Learning respect and how to bow holding the jo. (5ft stick)
An entire class in this movement?
How can one begin to learn how to use the jo without knowing the mechanics and movement of how to bow?
Seems simple, but some very important hidden movement.
In bowing, moving the stick from the front to the back- are you moving it in balance, ready to move in balance at any moment?
Bowing and being aware of the feeling and balance of the jo, that awareness of it as a way to expereince it, much needed for the kata that follows.
Bowing and the position of the head, spine, and back, not bowing out of balance, the awareness of movement in balance.
Two simple aspects of bowing that contain the needed matrix for the kata.