Dō (philosophy)
A Dō (道) is any one of a number of spiritual, martial, or aesthetic disciplines that evolved in Japan and Korea. The term "Dō" is borrowed from the Chinese philosophical concept of Tao (道, Dao). The word means 'way', 'path', 'route', or sometimes more loosely, 'doctrine' or 'principle'. Within the context of traditional East Asian philosophy and religion, Dō is a metaphysical concept signifying the primordial essence or fundamental nature of the universe.
In Japanese, a Dō implies a body of knowledge and tradition with an ethic and an aesthetic, and having the characteristics of specialization (senmonsei), transmissivity (keishōsei), normativity (kihansei), universality (kihensei), and authoritativeness (ken'isei).[1]
The same character,(道) can also be rendered as “path, way, way of life” which is a classical Japanese term used by initiates of the Old School (koryū- 古流) lineages, especially the Kashima Shin-ryū (鹿島神流),[2], although its use in the greater martial arts community is much more widespread. The term serves to unifies both artistic and martial lineages, since both lead to the betterment of the individual. It is said someone is a person of this Way or that Way, depending on the particular physical expression of an individual discipline. Michi, by the very nature of the term, speaks to a greater goal than a mere path or road. Therefore, all true michi point to the same place, leading to a sense of brotherhood between initiates, especially deep initates, of widely disparate disciplines.
List of Dōs
- Aikido (合気道), the Way of harmonious spirit
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- Compassionate hand-to-hand fighting
- Bushidō (武士道), the Way of the warrior
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- The samurai moral code
- Chadō (茶道), or sadō, or chanoyu, the Way of tea
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- The Japanese tea ceremony
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- The group of martial disciplines that arose after the Meiji restoration
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- A Japanese martial art of restraining a prisoners using cord or rope.
- Iaido (居合道), the Way of harmonious life
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- A Japanese martial art associated with the smooth, controlled movements of drawing the sword
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- Wooden staff fighting
- Judo (柔道), the "gentle way"
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- A grappling martial art
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- Bayonet fighting
- Kadō (華道) or Ikebana, the Way of flowers
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- Flower arrangement, an artistic discipline
- Karate or karate-dō (空手道), the Way of the empty hand
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- Okinawan Bare hand fighting
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- A way that encompasses fencing, unarmed fighting and other classical Japanese martial expressions
- Kendo (剣道), the Way of the sword
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- Traditional Japanese fencing
- Kōdō, (香道), the Way of incense/fragrance
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- Appreciation of incense
- Kyūdō, (弓道), the Way of the bow
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- Zen archery
- Kyushindō, the Way of longing for knowledge of the fundamental nature of anything
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- Japanese-inspired Western school of hand-to-hand fighting
- Nanbudō (南武道), the Way of the Nan warrior
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- Hand-to-hand fighting recently evolved from karate
- Shinto (神道), the Way of the gods
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- The native religion of Japan
- Shodō (書道), the Way of writing
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- Traditional Japanese brush calligraphy
- Taidō (躰道), the Way of the body
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- Hand-to-hand fighting evolved from Okinawan karate
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- Comprehensive martial art with ancient roots
List of Korean Dōs
The word "道" is used in quite the same way in Korean language and culture, and is pronounced identically with its Japanese cognate as Dō.
- Taekwon-Do (태권도; 跆拳道), the Way of the foot and the fist
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- a Korean martial art with roots in Taekkyon and Karate
- Kumdo (검도; 劍道), the Way of the Sword
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- Korean fencing with roots in Japanese Kendo
- Hapkido (합기도; 合氣道), the Way of the harmonious spirit
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- a Korean martial art which shares history with Japanese Aikido
- Seodo (서도; 書道), the Way of writing
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- An alternate name for Korean brush calligraphy, Seoye (서예; 書藝)
Notes
- ^ Konishi Jin'ichi, "Michi and Medieval Writing," trans. Aileen Gatten, in Principles of Classical Japanese Literature, ed. Earl Miner (Princeton, Princeton University Press, 1985), p.181-208
- ^ ^ Friday, K. (1997). Legacies of the Sword. (p. 16). University of Hawai'i Press