tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2648987284969270841.post2785937726063975076..comments2024-02-25T12:49:53.561-05:00Comments on The Budo Bum: Sensei, Kyoshi, Hanshi, Shihan: Budo titles and how to use them, or rather, how not to use themThe Budo Bumhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17829768452637120001noreply@blogger.comBlogger15125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2648987284969270841.post-83846022496116476392024-02-25T12:49:53.561-05:002024-02-25T12:49:53.561-05:00candaianjokyunim,
Sensei 先生 is a word generally m...candaianjokyunim, <br />Sensei 先生 is a word generally meaning "teacher" that is written with characters which mean "before 先" and "born, live 生". The meaning and usage has evolved extensively in the centuries since Chinese characters were adopted as the writing system in Japan.The Budo Bumhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17829768452637120001noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2648987284969270841.post-28872745666827807072024-02-24T22:16:38.619-05:002024-02-24T22:16:38.619-05:00Sensei does not mean "teacher". It means...Sensei does not mean "teacher". It means "on who comes before" and this means any person of high skill (AKA kung fu means ANY skill in China)canadianjokyonimhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16738232173066142659noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2648987284969270841.post-41077126689099929452024-02-24T22:11:21.068-05:002024-02-24T22:11:21.068-05:00Sensei does not mean teacher. It means "one w...Sensei does not mean teacher. It means "one who comes before".canadianjokyonimhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16738232173066142659noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2648987284969270841.post-32083437248322761242022-02-11T01:29:04.842-05:002022-02-11T01:29:04.842-05:00One more aspect. I once referred to an eminent ins...One more aspect. I once referred to an eminent instructor of another school as "X-sensei" in conversation with my own instructor, and he asked me, "Why are you calling him, 'sensei?' He's not your teacher." He stated that the only people one should call by such an honorific was someone in one's own lineage (I should not call HIS same generation training brothers - senpai or kohai - 'sensei' either, only HIS teacher. <br />The only exceptions was in direct dialogue, if one GENUINELY (or tactically) wanted to offer respect to someone of another ryuha, or perhaps, if someone was of much greater age. But, he cautioned, if you called X-san as 'sensei,' he would presume the right to take liberties with you. <br />Pretty strict and old school, perhaps. (His statement regarding membership in the Kobudo Shinkokai was, "Why should we be presenting enbu with our enemies?")ELLIS AMDURhttp://kogenbudo.orgnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2648987284969270841.post-29636083408807148092019-12-09T05:14:46.612-05:002019-12-09T05:14:46.612-05:00Dear Budo Bum, thank you so much for writing this ...Dear Budo Bum, thank you so much for writing this up. I am acquainted with a great - and humble - master who is a Dai Shihan within Bujinkan, and it has been a lot on my mind whether I am offending him by addressing him as "(first name) Sensei". Not that HE would get offended as he is far too wise for that, but still, I did not want to address him inappropriately, while at the same time "sensei" seemed much more natural. Thanks for making this clear!Mama Igahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01090395501316802579noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2648987284969270841.post-77603719068040035992019-05-29T11:50:35.168-04:002019-05-29T11:50:35.168-04:00Both hanshi and shihan are titles awarded by organ...Both hanshi and shihan are titles awarded by organizations. You use the one that the organization in question uses. If you are in the Kendo Federation, you use hanshi. If you are in the Aikikai, you use shihan. There is a little more nuance to it than that, because shihan can also be used to indicate respect for someone. I have teachers that we, the students, refer to as "Shihan" but only in the third person. We speaking directly to our teachers, they are "Sensei."The Budo Bumhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17829768452637120001noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2648987284969270841.post-43494235229229452252016-07-06T03:06:59.816-04:002016-07-06T03:06:59.816-04:00When do we use Shihan and when do we use Hanshi? I...When do we use Shihan and when do we use Hanshi? I think Hanshi is more common right?Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11501699966257656747noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2648987284969270841.post-81740515969270027932015-09-22T15:04:06.923-04:002015-09-22T15:04:06.923-04:00The radical shi (士) seems to have originally mean...The radical shi (士) seems to have originally meant a person who performs some function or who has the ability in some field of knowledge.<br /><br />Early in Chinese history it came to define the upper class of society, and in the Book of Han this definition is given:<br /><br />The shi,<br />the farmer,<br />the craftsman,<br />and the tradesman are the four noble professions of the people. He who occupies his rank by means of learning is called a shi.<br /><br />Some authorities, such as William Scott Wilson states that the "shi", as the highest of the four noble classes.<br /><br />While it is Japanese we speak of, it is easy to forget that the Kanji is Chinese and a lot of thought is borrowed from the source language. <br /><br />Look to the old to understand the new -G. FunakoshiPrincekermithttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06940192282185465346noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2648987284969270841.post-24850949749714206472014-06-14T07:01:54.802-04:002014-06-14T07:01:54.802-04:00With regard to the use of Professor as a title, so...With regard to the use of Professor as a title, some of the Chinese systems will use it as will many of the Filipino MA systems.<br /><br />I believe it is also used in American Kenpo for certain ranks, but I believe GM Ed Parker wanted all ranks and terminology to reflect the "American" in American Kenpo.<br /><br />Doesn't make it wrong, just different...<br /><br />Great article, by the way, thank you for sharing.<br />DavidDavid Cobbhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17335039700078785760noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2648987284969270841.post-83529735929669203902014-06-11T14:33:17.635-04:002014-06-11T14:33:17.635-04:00Actually, attorneys are also addressed as "se...Actually, attorneys are also addressed as "sensei," along with doctors and dentists. To this day I remember a fellow American dojo mate who thought one of the other students in the Japanese honbu was also a teacher because he was, in fact, a lawyer, and everyone called him "sensei." (He was, in fact, my kohai). No matter how I tried to explain, I could not convince him. To him, "sensei" meant martial arts teacher, period!<br /><br />With regard to referring to American martial arts teachers as "professor," I have found this in some very old American dojo where the teacher has been around for a long time (i.e., 40-50 years). Having become familiar with the word "sensei," and having looked it up, the members found the translation to be "professor" and used it accordingly (yes, I think it seems weird, too). Ronin scholarhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13302218589301012843noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2648987284969270841.post-49275098222620350242014-06-11T09:41:03.348-04:002014-06-11T09:41:03.348-04:00Mr. Jones,
If I ever get things 100% correct, I fu...Mr. Jones,<br />If I ever get things 100% correct, I fully expect the world to end. I purposely avoided the use of positions as titles. Really understanding that aspect requires a level of understanding of Japanese culture and social norms that isn’t necessary for simple level of using budo titles and honorifics correctly. Positional title references such as kancho 館長, bucho 部長, and shacho 社長 simply stating a particular role a person holds within an organization. I know of many dojo in Japan where the kancho is not the head of the dojo nor the most senior member or highest ranking teacher. He’s the one who handles the operational responsibilities for the dojo or the group. <br /><br />Your examples of the uses of hanshi and kancho point up just how complicated Japanese use of titles can be. While you might refer to someone as “Hamada Hanshi” in the third person, you would not be likely to use that as a form of direct address. We refer to our Shinto Muso Ryu teacher as “Shihan” among ourselves in the third person, but he is always “Sensei” when we are talking to him. <br />Kanji are important for distinguishing between words, I fully agree. I was horrified the first time I read something in kana and thought “Couldn’t they just write this in kanji? It would be so much easier to understand.” However, it is not as useful for finding deep meanings in words that have been around for a millennium or more where the actual usage has shifted over time. What was meant by the kanji when it was first written is no longer relevant to the meaning and usage of the word now. For distinguishing between the seemingly limitless homonyms of Japanese though, kanji are indispensable.<br />The Budo Bumhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17829768452637120001noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2648987284969270841.post-47081961714001890722014-06-11T08:06:18.827-04:002014-06-11T08:06:18.827-04:00Nice article and as I wrote, almost 100% correct b...Nice article and as I wrote, almost 100% correct but not quite. Firstly it is correct in Japan that "it is rude to be polite about yourself" and you would never say "Watashi-wa Jones-sensei desu". However, titles/ honorifics are often mixed with positions - for example Haruki Uemura the Head of the Kodokan is referred to as Uemura-kancho - kancho meaning "Head of School" or "Principal" and the shogo are also used e.g. Hamada-hanshi of the DNBK. What is wrong is when westerners say things like "I'm Sensei Hank". What is also wrong is to dismiss the importance of the kanji. The kanji is the first thing someone who is serious about developing an understanding of the concepts under consideration would look at. They are vitally important as writing Japanese words in Romanji often introduces misunderstandings. For example "kyoshi" can be written in two ways - one (教師) means "teacher" the other (教士) is a shogo title. You can see that the "kyo" character is the same, but the "shi" in the former means teacher, expert, master. The shi in the latter is the same as in bushi and means warrior or samurai. Also, in an academic and other setting people are usually referred to as Professor Goldsworthy or Dr Jones if they hold a Chair or have an earned Doctorate. What is also totally wrong is dubious Martial Arts organisations that call their teachers Professor.....Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12173300031491110295noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2648987284969270841.post-1869903154602026282014-06-11T03:50:45.979-04:002014-06-11T03:50:45.979-04:00Good explanation. I think it easiest, though, to a...Good explanation. I think it easiest, though, to address your teacher as sensei, and drop the other honorifics. What humble karateka would want to be addressed with anything more?SGoodyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06704269630536544087noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2648987284969270841.post-33108562288432117932014-06-10T14:14:54.634-04:002014-06-10T14:14:54.634-04:00Hello Ms. Borich,
Thank you for your comments. In...Hello Ms. Borich,<br />Thank you for your comments. In Japan, titles are usually for business cards and figuring out who outranks whom in the hierarchy. The only forms address normally used are "Sensei" which can be added after a name, or used by itself, and "san" which is only used after a name. "Sempai" and "Kohai" while popularly used in the US, are rarely used in dojo in Japan, and are much more terms used in grade school.<br /><br />A good book for digging deeper into dojo etiquette and behavior is Dave Lowry's "In the Dojo: A Guide to the Rituals and Etiquette of the Japanese Martial Arts"<br /><br />My personal comment on dojo etiquette is that first and foremost it should be sincere. The formal etiquette serves several purposes (providing structure, a clear understanding of proper behavior, a means of expressing respect and appreciation, and a way of maintaining a safe training environment, among others), but it should always be performed sincerely. It's not something for putting teachers on pedestals or for controlling students. When you do formal actions they should be done sincerely. I guess this is really the topic for another blog post. :-) The Budo Bumhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17829768452637120001noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2648987284969270841.post-6736274284864835282014-06-10T13:52:53.092-04:002014-06-10T13:52:53.092-04:00Thank you for this post! I am a karate instructor ...Thank you for this post! I am a karate instructor who has not yet visited Japan and have had American instructors all my life. I truly appreciate you sharing your knowledge and would welcome more information on the proper reishiki of title usage and meaning. I also would like to have a better understanding of proper dojo etiquette. (It is all over the board in most dojos!) Do you have any books on the subject that you would recommend? <br /><br />Thank you,<br /><br />Ms. Vashon BorichAnonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14745434910902257275noreply@blogger.com