Budō

Budō (武道:ぶどう) is a term that embraces all Japanese martial arts.

The word “Budō” consists of two words: Bu (武:ぶ), which means “war” and dō (道:どう), which means “way” or “path”.
So, Budō translates to “The Way of the Warrior”. It refers to the idea of exploring, through direct and in depth experience in a given form of martial art, the relationship between ethics, religion and philosophy and following a “path”, a “way of life” to validate and realize them.

Budō includes such arts as kendo, judo, aikido, and kyudo (archery). However, it’s not just learning a technique; its association with sports is only a very recent development. Budō is the teaching that helps you to find and walk “the path” and enables you to understand the nature of your own mind and self. The point in Budō is to cease the struggle and find peace and mastery of the self. The Budō has no external enemy, only the internal enemy, one’s ego that must be fought (state of Muga-mushin).

It’s the way of the Buddha, that leads you to discover your own original nature, to awaken from the numbness of the sleeping ego (the little self, the limited “me”) and accede to higher, fuller person-hood. What does this mean? That you can forget your personal body and mind; attain absolute spirit, non-ego. Harmonize, unite sky and earth. The inner mind lets thoughts and emotions pass by; it is completely free from its environment, egoism drops away.

In Asia this way has become the supreme morality and essence of all religions and philosophies: Inside and outside, Body and Mind, Yin and Yang. These pairs are neither dualistic nor opposed, but form one un-separated whole. Any change influences all actions and relationships among all existences. The satisfaction or dissatisfaction of one person influences every other person; our movements and those of others are interdependent. Everything in the universe is connected, you cannot separate any part from the whole. Interdependence rules the cosmic order.