A student has given me a present of a brand new Shureido New Wave 3 gi on my birthday. This is my first Shureido, but I have worn Tokaido and Hirota before.

I also received a nice poster with the gi with a drawing/painting of Boddidharma (I presume) and some kanji underneath it. I was planning to have it framed and hang it the dojo. The question is, what does all that kanji mean.. is it a poem or something? Could someone enlighten me... I wouldn't want end up hanging it up and have people come up to me and ask what it means and answer: 'mmmmmmmm... beats me...'

I believe it's Bodhidharma (Daruma). For some reason, it looks familiar, so I think it's a famous representation. Don't know about the writing.

It translates as, "With the purchase of five or more Shureido
gi you receive a 10% discount".

Duane

LOL, That's is good, OSU

Hi,

I've got one of those hanging in my dojo, and you'll find nearly every Karate dojo in Okinawa has one hanging up. They usually give me a new one each time I go over and buy a Shureido NW3 gi.

You're correct in saying it is Bodhidharma, the text with it is the Kenpo Hakku. It is the concepts of Kenpo (in poem form) that stems from the Bubishi. This is a translation:

The Kempo Hakku.

The very important eight poems of the martial arts.

Jinshin wa tenchi ni onaji
The mind is one with heaven and earth

Ketsumyaku wa nichigetsu ni nitari
The circulatory rhythm of the body is similar to the cycle of the sun and the moon

Ho wa goju wo tondo su
The way of inhaling and exhaling is both hardness and softness

Mi wa toki ni shitagai hen ni ozu
Act in accordance with time and change

Te wa ku ni ai sunawachi hairu
Techniques will occur in the absence of conscious thought

Shintai wa hakarite riho su
The feet must advance and retreat, separate and meet

Me wa shiho wo miru wo yosu
The eyes do not miss even the slightest change

Mimi wa yoku happo wo kiku
The ears listen well in all directions

I tried to look at the poster
http://www.budoseek.net/vbulletin/member.php?4832-KMRing&s=fc7ec87af81913f8df2a1b4968b95ae7
and was told I was not logged in
What's up?

Thanks Reece for the info...