In November, our two members, Marián and Adriana, took part in the traditional Jodo koryu seminar in Utrecht, the Netherlands. The program was packed from the very first moment. On Friday evening they already managed to join the first training session, during which they went through various kihon and tuned themselves for a weekend full of technique and concentration.
Saturday was dedicated to the complete Omote series, which was extremely useful for our practitioners, since Hikari Dojo has just begun intensive training of this first set of koryu kata. After a full day of practice, all participants enjoyed a traditional group dinner, which as usual ended with a sweet dessert. It disappeared from the plates faster than suburi during warm-ups.
This year’s accommodation was, one might say, surprisingly romantic. From the apartment where Marián and Adriana were staying, they had an idyllic view of the garden and the little sheep wandering about like a natural form of Zen meditation. The morning coffee therefore had a gentle “farm vibe”, just the right kind of energy before training.
Sunday’s ritual began with a walk to the hall through freshly fallen snow. It looked like a scene from a hiking-boots commercial, just with weapons in hand. The snow crunched beautifully under their feet, creating a very authentic soundtrack to the morning warm-up.
The training itself was dedicated to selected kata from the Chudan series, and in the afternoon, as tradition dictates, the seminar concluded with a small friendly competition. Adriana and Marián placed an excellent 3rd, a wonderful finishing touch to the entire weekend.
After the seminar, our members travelled to Eindhoven, where they celebrated a successful and quite demanding weekend with their favorite combination of Fish & Chips and a beer. Apparently it tasted even better than usual, because after good training everything tastes twice as good.
We thank Marián and Adriana for their representation, energy, and the good spirit they bring back to our dojo from seminars like this.
