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The meaning of the term "Sensei" By Peter Boylan When we practice budo, we do so under the guidance of a person who is almost always addressed as "Sensei." I have heard all sorts of definitions of the meaning of "sensei" put forth by people who have never lived in Japan. Among them I have heard that '"Sensei" means "teacher in all aspects of life."' In conjunction with such strong definitions, the behavior of non-Japanese towards their "Sensei" often is often extremely self-effacing and servile, with students tip-toeing around "Sensei" and always behaving in a subservient manner, while these "Sensei" may sometimes be tyrants both inside and out of the dojo. This contrasts sharply with my experiences in dojos here in Japan. Here, while Sensei is accorded a great deal of service and respect, it is never given in a servile manner. Students do a lot of things for Sensei, like getting him a cup of tea or making sure that his shoes are placed where he can slip them on easily at the door. These are services performed out of a sense of gratitude, not servility, and whom they are performed for has a lot to do with what "Sensei" means in each case. I am one of these "Sensei" people, in several positions in my life. "Sensei," as most martial artists are already aware, is written with the characters for "born" or "live" and "before." Put together, you get born before, or lived before. There is nothing here which indicates a need for excessive humility when dealing with a person with that title. So the question is, who warrants being called "Sensei?" The answer is, anybody in a position of status significantly higher than you are. The key here is that it must be a person in a position of high status. What the actual person is like has little to do with the title. The title is related entirely to their relative social position. Thus, lots of people are called "Sensei." First,anyone who teaches is called "Sensei." That includes my daughter's pre-school teachers, and me, since I teach English privately and at a local technical school, and the local 19 year old giving skating boarding lessons. That's why martial arts teachers are addressed as "Sensei." They are teaching something. Of course, there are lots of people besides teachers whose position calls for the use of "Sensei" as a form of address. Doctors are always addressed as "Sensei." So are lawyers and politicians. And believe me, if you think your countries politicians are a bad lot, you should see some of the scandals that Japanese politicians get caught in, and then they're re-elected after they've been exposed. The prime minister of Japan was caught in a massive bribery scandal back in the 70's. Even after being found guilty, he continued to be re-elected to parliament for 20 years. He died a couple of years ago, still a member of parliament, while the Supreme Court was considering his final appeal. He was always addressed as "Sensei." Japan is a rabidly hierarchical country. It is impossible to speak Japanese with any degree of politeness without constantly reinforcing people's position in the hierarchy. The way you conjugate verbs is based entirely on your status relative to the person you are talking with (or the BS you want to shovel if you're a politician). Using titles like "Sensei" is just another aspect of this cultural obsession with status and rank. In Japanese society, people are only addressed by their names + san when they don't have any significant title. I discovered when I taught school here, all the teachers were "Sensei", the principal is always "Kocho Sensei" or "Principal Teacher" and the assistant principal is always "Kyoto Sensei" or "Assistant Principal Teacher". In the business world, if you are at the head of company, no matter how small, everyone who relates to you in the business world will address you as "Shacho" or "Company President." If you work for a large company, you may well be known as "Kacho" or "Bucho", "Department Head" and "Section Head". All of this is just to show that the term sensei has no special, mystical meaning attached to it in its home country. It is a term used to show appropriate respect to someone in a position of status higher than your own. The usage can cause some jolts. I'm still not accustomed to my iaido teachers, a pair of octogenarian 7th dans, introducing me to a new student in the dojo as "Peter Sensei." It makes me very uncomfortable. However, from their perspective it is also entirely appropriate. Much of the training of new students is delegated to me, so my position is that of teacher, i.e. "Sensei." My teachers only refer to me as "Sensei" when they are talking about me with a student whose status is significantly lower than mine in the dojo. The term reflects our relative status. When they address me without such an audience, I am "San" or even "Kun," a term that refers to boys, or as a term of familiarity when used with someone you like who is significantly below you in relative status. All this is merely to make the point that "Sensei" is a term of respect. Not one of awe. If we appreciate our teachers more than usual, we should show it by going out of our way to do little services for them that make their lives a little easier. Scraping the floor and being subservient is not the way to show appreciation for your teacher. It just makes your teacher look like a petty tyrant, and you like a fool. |