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Judo's founder, Jigoro Kano, formed Judo to emphasize the healthful and beneficial practice of the martial arts. His goal was that in practicing the techniques, his students could also learn basic principles of living. This philosophy can be summarized by the principles of "Maximum Efficiency" and "Mutual Welfare and Benefit."
Maximum
Benefit
Judo
practice emphasizes effective use of both mind and body. The aim is to
apply the smallest effort possible to attain maximum performance; this
is the result of one's understanding, talent, and experience. Applied
to daily life, this means complete use of one's mental and physical energy
in anything he chooses to do. One does not need to prove himself, but
rather to be reassured and tolerant of others when attacked. In turn,
he will be freed from peer pressure and experience true expression.
However, maximum efficiency cannot be singularly used in life. Kano believed that a person should be productive and efficient, but also act in consideration of others. He named this principle jita kyoei, or "mutual welfare and benefit."
Mutual
Welfare and Benefit
In
Judo, students learn to cooperate with one another in order to advance
in rank. This type of collaboration can be applied to relationships in
life. Interaction with others is meant to bring about joy and satisfaction,
as well as to produce better results.
Although Judo has become sport-oriented in recent years and training more focused on competition performance, Kano's philosophy still guides the practice.
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