Shuhari 守破離 is a Japanese term directly meaning “Obey - Digress - Separate” , but (as I described in this previous post) within the context of Budo it more appropriately means “Follow the rules - Break the rules - Make the rules”,
or also could be interpreted to mean “First learn - then detach - then transcend.”
The idea is that to become a true master, you must first learn the system (all its in's and out's), then you need to question the system and why it is the way it is, then you need to make it part of you. To master anything we must follow these steps.
If you understand these steps, you will have deeper understanding of the journey and what is required. This understanding may also give you insight into your place in the journey and help you reflect on "the Way".
SHUHARI is all about the progression from a beginner to master.
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| Only masters have big long beards |
Most sources of information regarding this topic basically describe what SHUHARI is, as I have done above (although very briefly).
This is a very detailed and complicated subject, so today I figured rather than just write a post about what it is, I'd share a few thoughts and realisations I've had regarding SHUHARI with a brief explanation.
Fear and self doubt will keep you in SHU indefinitely.
As beginners we need the rules and the system in order to follow the way. Eventually we reach a point with enough knowledge and understanding where we are able to begin to question and analyse the system, this is generally when we enter the HA phase. The problem is, whether you're actually ready to enter HA, doesn't matter if you don't believe you're ready.
If you never believe in yourself, you'll never leave SHU and always have to follow the system.
SHU is comfortable.
When 'following the rules' and being part of the system, it's like you have a safety net (the system is there to let you know if you're doing something right or wrong). This is a good thing for those that are learning, they still need the system in order to progress.
It has been said that Budoka in SHU only have to do two things, to do as they have been asked by the instructor and put effort into training. It's easy to stay in SHU and always follow the system.
If all you have to worry about are those two things, then the journey is straightforward and uncomplicated.
We need to remember that this journey doesn't take you anywhere beyond established system that all others follow.
To truly progress and reach your potential, you will need to eventually take what you have learnt in the system and "find your own way", you can't do this in comfortable SHU.
Arrogance and overconfidence will urge you to skip SHU, this is impossible to do and attempting to do so can be dangerous,
SHU is necessary.
Sometimes, certain people tend to be ignorant and don't realise all the work, the effort and focus that is required to master something. They see skilled people (but not the effort they put in) and assume they are able to emulate these people, without the work and effort that is needed to achieve that skill.
What these people fail to realise is that even with natural talent, without taking certain required steps that are involved in SHU, simple mistakes will be made and important lessons will not be learnt.
Put simply, you can't "break the rules" if you never learn what those rules are in the first place. It's wandering blind.
A person who tries to skip SHU is highly likely to make dangerous mistakes, for themselves and others around them.
To think that you're able to skip the most important lessons when you don't even know what those lessons are is the very definition of Arrogance.
Don't be arrogant, be patient and take your time, learn everything you can about the system and the rules. Only then can you consider progressing into HA.
People in SHU are sometimes judgmental of those in HA and RI.
Some people (not all) that are following the system, observe those in HA or RI. For them, it's easy to see others that aren't following the system as mistaken or misguided. This is especially true for those who are stuck and comfortable in SHU. They see those on HA as 'breaking the rules' and therefore incorrect. They make no distinction between doing something 'wrong' and doing something 'differently'.
These same people see those in RI as crazy. One who has transcended the need for any rules at all is so far ahead of those in SHU, that they aren't likely to even make sense of this person.
Of course this is not true for all people. Other types of people in SHU do see the other levels for what they are. They respect and/or revere those who are ahead of them.
The lesson being, don't be judgmental of others just because they do things different or have different views, they might actually be more advanced than your level of understanding.
People in HA are sometimes judgmental of those in both SHU and RI.
Even people who have progressed into HA still sometimes see those in RI as misguided and are quite often unable to understand people who have transcended the need for following the system.
Some people in HA can also let their progress make them arrogant and they start to see those in SHU as beneath them. They sometimes perceive those who are still learning as 'not as smart' or 'not as enlightened' as themselves. This is (of course) silly as it doesn't matter where others are on the journey compared to anyone else.
The lesson being, don't be judgmental of others just because they do things differently, but also don't be judgmental of others just because you're the one who does things differently.
You'll notice that a person who has truly reached RI, generally isn't judgmental of any part of the journey. They understand the journey as a whole.
We are only able to transition from SHU to HA when we're ready.
This is similar to a couple of the above thoughts on this list. Only when you're in a position to move into HA will you actually do so.
While in SHU there are certain lessons that must be learnt that make the progression to HA possible.
These lessons can vary depending on the individual and what you're trying to master.
The lessons quite often involve more than just one simple thing.
To be ready to progress onto the next level in Budo, we must be developing in: Physical Ability, Skill, Knowledge, Understanding but most importantly Self belief.
You must believe you are capable in order to achieve that capability.
It's easy to get lost in HA.
The idea of "breaking the rules" can have negative connotations, but the way it is meant in the context of SHUHARI is as an expansion on the given basic knowledge and techniques.
It's about questioning the system and searching for the reasons why the system is set up the way it is. It's about taking the 'training-wheels' off and learning to ride the 'bike' without the constant reassurance that if you lose balance you won't fall and hurt yourself.
When in HA, you can and do "fall off and get hurt". Without the 'rules' strictly directing you, you can make mistakes (sometimes really stupid ones) and you can get it really wrong. Some people reach HA and forget the rules that got them where they are. If you toss out the system all together, you will get lost and end up somewhere you didn't want to be.
HA is about making small changes and little mistakes and learning from them, under the loose framework of the rules. The idea is to find out what type of Budoka you are and what you are working towards being.
It's easy to confuse HA for RI.
Just because you are no longer bound by the strict rules, don't assume that you have transcended them and they now don't apply to you. When first transitioning into HA we have lots of little 'eureka moments', where we come to interesting (sometimes mind-blowing) realisations that we hadn't thought of before. These 'eureka moments' are a sign that you are questioning the system as you know it. This is easily confused for, but isn't a sign of, the 'enlightenment' that comes with stages in RI.
(In my opinion this is the same mistake made by many teenagers.
In lots of ways the teen years are a good simile for the end of SHU and start of the HA phase of development. Questioning the rules, sometimes breaking them, but still lots to learn about the world.)
Just because you have learnt some lessons recently, doesn't mean you now know everything, it's just another step along the way.
HA only comes with correct conscious thought, yet RI only comes in its absence.
Transitioning from SHU to HA is basically a paradigm shift from learning the established system and following it to doing the exact opposite. We no longer simply trust and follow, we question it, we doubt it, we analyse it and seek to understand the reason why the system is set up the way it is.
As the Matsuo Basho (the wise poet form ancient Japan) once said "Do not seek to follow in the footsteps of the wise. Seek what they sought." I think this sums up HA really well, no longer follow the masters teachings, but attempt to emulate them and find the understanding and thoughts they possessed.
So all of this takes great effort, analysis and reflection. There is much that is consciously required in order to progress to HA from SHU.
In contrast to this, transitioning from HA to RI isn't some big paradigm shift, it doesn't take any more effort or conscious thought. Reaching RI is the culmination of all that we were doing in HA. With enough depth of knowledge, understanding and wisdom gained from years of experience in HA, things that once required focus and effort slowly become subconscious and start to happen automatically (without effort or conscious thought). Once we reach RI we've mastered it and it is no longer something we 'do' - it is now something we 'are'.
This is why RI is 'transcendence', because it's now a natural part of who you are and you now have your own system and rules. You have literally transcended beyond the need for the external rules taught by others.
Calmness and time leads to RI.
A calm mind will help you find RI (for the same reason why meditation can lead to enlightenment). Being level-headed and not letting emotions take control.
The process of SHUHARI is all about maturing. Immature people tend to be emotional and rash. In life, as we learn more lessons and grow, we learn to not be as reactive to situations and find how to be more level-headed and calm.
RI is the epitome of maturity. Maturity is about not being emotional or reactive, but having learnt how to stay calm and be in control.
So finding calmness and not being emotional is how we find RI.
RI is all about having an intuitive subconscious understanding. When it comes to what you are mastering, you can only be confident in it. This is real confidence, those in SHU & HA sometimes feel the need to act over-confident in order to make up for the lacking knowledge or skill. Real confidence comes with not needing to prove how good you are to anyone, because how good you are is incidental.
When you have truly mastered something and you possess real confidence regarding it, your demeanour is nothing but calmness.
RI is not a finish or the end. RI opens up new options for more SHU.
SHUHARI isn't a linear progression of beginning, middle and end:
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It's not this easy!
Yes, I did do this on a post-it |
We don't actually stop once we have reached RI. The whole process is complex and different depending on the skill you're trying to master. So the path that your journey takes will be structured differently for different skills and for other people. So in reality, it looks less like the linear journey depicted above and more like this:
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| Complex - not straightforward |
Once you have reached RI, it might actually be a different RI than any others and once reaching RI you might be simultaneously in HA for slightly different skills and also have yet other SHU become available to you. When you're at RI, nothing has ended or finished. Confused yet?
For example; you have (presumably) mastered the art of walking, but with that skill you became pretty good at jogging and maybe running (...simultaneously in HA for slightly different skills...). Once you have the 'walking art' mastered, you will have the capability and strength to start learning other things like riding a bike or swimming (...yet other SHU become available to you).
We are only able to transition from HA to RI when we're ready.
Just like the transition from SHU to HA, we can't transition from HA to RI before we're ready.
It's difficult to know if you're ready, being that "it only happens in the absence of conscious thought". I estimate that over 95% of people that believe they have reached RI are most likely lost somewhere in HA, as it's very rare for people to reach RI for an entire art form.
Reaching RI is a result of the wisdom and subconscious skill achieved through many years within HA.
For many of us, this is just the same as the perfection we all strive for within our technique. We train and train and train, trying to achieve perfection with the knowledge that it is borderline impossible to get a technique perfect.
It is the same with RI overall, we aim to seek such depth of knowledge and natural ability with skill, but we know that only a special few are real masters of the art.
All of SHUHARI is not assured, it takes work.
We may not necessarily automatically go from SHU to HA to RI. Some people will stay in HA or even SHU for their whole life. The expectation that you will easily go from one to the next to the next simply because you have been training for a long time is a mistake and can be a source for great frustration.
A common mistake is to think that time equals development. You hear people say things like "I have been training for over [insert number] years!" with a tone that implies the proclamation indicates their level of development.
Time isn't irrelevant, it certainly is a requirement, but it's what we do with that time that determines how far we have progressed on the journey.
SHU, HA & RI can be found in everything we do.
SHUHARI isn't just about Budo training. Anything that needs to be learnt follows this process.
In general we use SHUHARI to describe the whole journey of mastering an entire art form. It can also be used to describe learning individual skills or concepts. As I mentioned before "you have (presumably) mastered the art of walking". This wasn't meant as a metaphor, when you do something and get so good at it that it becomes a subconscious part of you and you are a part of it.
I think if we recognise the process involved for SHUHARI, it helps us understand what we're doing and where we're up to in the mastering of any skill. Understanding this also can help those who are are stuck in SHU and don't realise what it required to move ahead.
I'd like to finish this post with a paragraph from the amazing book "Shin Gi Tai" by Michael Clarke:
A secret, standing in plain view of us all that the majority often fail to see, shu ha ri, nonetheless, is real for all that: it exists. It cannot be bought or sold, nor can it be taken or given. It cannot be passed on from one to another either, although it can be pointed to.
Each stage of shu ha ri grows within the karateka to a point where others begin to recognize it; therefore, no one can profess attainment of any stage, least of all ha, and yet, the level can be clearly observed in a person's behavior both on and off the dojo floor.
If you are fortunate, you might know of someone who has progressed beyond shu and even beyond ha too; and if you do, you should take every opportunity to learn from him. But a word of caution here, such people are exceptional, so don't expect to meet them every time you meet someone dressed in a do-gi.
If you cannot detect the level of progress a person has made for yourself, then it simply is not there, for there is nothing ordinary or widespread about shu ha ri. So be warned: if a person has to tell you his status, he is mistaken. In this respect, it is a little like being famous; if you have to tell people you are, you're not!
To conserve, to detach, and to transcend are three vital steps for all who wish to walk the budo path and navigate the way of learning how to live well. To arrive in the place we started from and to know that place for the first time, due to the journey we have taken in order to return, this is the nature of shu ha ri.
Comment below to share any thoughts or opinions you might have. :)
Thanks for reading.
Derm
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