Once upon a time there were three blind students, who were martial artists. Each of them diligently studied their styles of fighting and each of them had an understanding of what martial arts were supposed to be. They each were certain and confident in their understanding. One day their teacher took them to a Zoo. The first blind student felt the elephants leg, it was big, thick, and fuzzy. The next blind student felt the elephants ear and it was floppy and thin, like a worn out wool blanket. The third student felt the elephants tail, it was slender, long and it had a fuzzy tip. Each had formed their impression of what an elephant was in their minds and they were all satisfied and convinced that their opinion was correct.
Obviously each walked away with a different view of what the elephant is like.
We are all like these blind men, particularly in budo, we form our own opinions through our martial arts experiences and no one has the same experience.
