teaching naginata in a particular way

Hello Naginatafriends,

Some of you know me personally and others perhaps from the reports in the internet about the different naginata trainings and such training events of the both groups in Potsdam and Berlin.

I was asked if I could write about these trainings. For example about the apple on the head of a Naginataka.

Now first a few words where it comes from and for what I use these specific training methods and events.

As a little boy, I was very annoyed by my teachers, played so many pranks, and put their patience to the test. In spite of my sometimes disobedience, there was one teacher who never gave up his kindness and patience to teach me. He did not give me up when I capitulated again and again in mathematics lessons. This teacher tried different ways to reach me. He explained mathematics to me in my language. In the language of a child. Numbers became figures of horses and knights …

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Many years later, as a young man, I assisted my Gongfu teacher and took over a beginner’s group. I tried to teach in the language of the students as my mathematics teacher did it to me. It did not work. For a very long time I tried different ways to the students. It did not help. These students did not understand me. At that time and even today, after more than 32 years of martial arts, I always remember my mathematics teacher. He often said, “Do not give up! Search the solution! She is there! She is waiting!” So I did not give up with the Gongfu students and sought a solution. I understood that it was not the students who did not understood me. It was me who did not understood the students. I did not understood why they really came to the class.

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They did not come to learn Gongfu!

Today I know, that to inspire someone for something or, as in this case, for martial arts, it may succeed. But it can quickly subside. The interest disappears. To inspire someone for himself – that si the core. I understood that people come to class because they want to grow. They want to develop, have joy and fellowship. They want to improve. So in this early days with the Gongfu class I changed my point of view of the method of teaching.

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Thus, over a long period of time, the way I taught in the courses arose and nowadays it have influence into my naginata teachings. In my teaching methodology I combine examples from everyday life with exercises in naginata teaching, or explain etiquette by using of cooking recipes; show the similarities of the tea ceremony (sadô) and the martial art of naginata …

Practical “crossovers” also belong to my method. Surprise eggs (these small yellow plastic eggs) find a task in Naginata teaching;

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impact pads from boxing, tea bowls, ribbons on feet or a wooden bar between the feet … apples also have to participate. ´ The latter are some of you known from previous reports and trainings. The apple is not only a healthy food, because it can also improve our body posture – if we put him on our head. In this exercise, the students have the task of placing the apple in the right position on the head and then, on command or independently, to work out the various naginata kamae. For example i use it also as a teaching method for stand up and sit down for seiza in sadô. This teaches the posture and concentration and for the naginata kamae too. Here likewise, the student avoids unnecessary movements with his head. For example, many move the head sideways towards the weapon when they take hasso-no-kamae or they move their heads forward when they take jôdan-no-kamae….

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Origin of these movements can be muscular imbalances or simply habitual movement patterns.

With an apple we can show this clear and can work on it to improve. Because I am interested in the fact that the student is interested not only in himself and his grows and develops, but also has equal interest in the other fellow human beings and helps them, I organize so-called event-trainings.

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Since for some years we have continuously Easter-training, Halloween-training, Year-Start-training, Friendship-training in which different Naginatagroups train with each other, Midsummer-training, Christmas-training, and some more.

The latter is the highlight of every year. Only a few days ago, on the 03.12.2016, was this year’s Christmas-training. Again came students of Naginata, Aikidô, Taijiquan, Qigong, Aikijutsu… together for a common training. I organize such cross-over training because it provides the opportunity for all participants to look beyond the box. The view into other martial arts and kinds of arts.

This training with other athletes shows again and again that the different disciplines always have the same indispensable core points:

Never give up to develop and grow, and that with joy and in fellowship and also, that more can be achieved if all support each other.

That is so important and not only in naginata exercise. This it is outside of the naginata dojo too. What I once learned from my various teachers is, that you with everything you do and also with everything you do not – you are a role model. We all leave footprints. That´s why this responsibility and task is so significant for me as course leader to make sure that everyone has the opportunity to improve and everyone has the opportunity to help others.

I think this community is the goal of Budô and with it of naginata too. That´s why i make this effort with the different unconventional training methods, will not give up with it and want invite you to do it too – this effort. For me all these different teaching methods and different training events are only different kinds of languages for the students to help to understand and improve themselves, because each student is special and speak his own language of understanding.

Today i follow to my one former mathematics teacher.

Even if I have not really understood mathematics to this day, he has brought me to understand the one thing – that patience pays off.

For this reason, I welcome the effort of the various training methods and events in naginata.

Only a few weeks ago a new member came to one of my naginata courses. The teenager puts my patience to the test.

Whenever he doubts and gets angry about it and angry with me too, I tell him, “Do not give up! Search the solution! She is there! She is waiting! Wait, we’ll do it together! “

Stefan Pawlitke

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