Musings of a Seeker

By Tom Spellman

Welcome to my second article in this series of “Musings of a Seeker.” As a seeker I am a researcher at heart and by profession. My love of discovery has been a cornerstone of my life.

My martial arts journey began at three-years-old with my dad as my first instructor. It was a time of initiation and wonderment. My Dad was a person who I could surrender my trust andconfidence to as challenges arose in my practice of Nihon Jiu Jitsu. In reflection, I realize that the traditional relationship of transmission portrayed by the master/disciple and father/son model in olden Okinawa would have been much the same unlike today’s propensity for group style transmission. Life and the martial arts were reflective of one another other and interactive. My grooming as a male within my family, my role, and the society in which we existed played a part of my growth and my personal identity too. In comparison, today we are surrounded by many public roles that influence our thoughts, actions and conformity within our society, all too often in conflict with one another. My training with my dad instilled in me a personal model  healthy masculinity, social responsibility, respect for others, and the refinement of the warrior/scholar mentality. This afforded me a strong, unified dynamic to grow in a positive way with tools to engage life successfully whether it was general living, education, personal relationships, or commerce.

At eight years old I sat my mom and dad down and declared I planned to defy our Irish Catholic family tradition that I, being the first son born in this generation, was duty bound to become a cop or a priest as an adult. I chose instead to dedicate myself to earning a Black belt and to teach martial arts as my life’s vocation. Despite the numerous career paths in business and the field of education I sought in my life, I still suit up to share my budo knowledge four days a week and continue to pursue my personal practice at 71.

As I write this, it is November and the end of the Harvest season when we reap the fruits of oulabor and prepare for the coming hibernation instincts of Winter. It is a time of reflection, to go into the monk’s cave, if you will, and study the past year’s goal accomplishments, or not, to evaluate new discoveries and their value to the curriculum, and to update my personal training progress thus far over the past 67 years. My role today is to oversee the direction of our training of the age-old Legacy we have inherited. This is a living, breathing entity which requires nurturing and protection to preserve its integrity.

I was taught to serve the Legacy I bear and strive to hand it on intact. I began as a mere vessel into which my father and my subsequent teachers throughout my journey filled with valuable technical knowledge of the physical properties that most practitioners acquire. I pledged my oath to guard the integrity, authenticity, content, and accurate history data as well. An important component my teachers emphasized was taking the value of the practice beyond the mere physical. Strive to incorporate the mental and communicative skills experienced in practice as relevant functional life skill strategies in your daily routine. During the decades I have also delved into its history, and cultural customs while working to dispel the falsehoods, mistranslations, and historical inaccuracies some practitioners still cling to.

At years end, my annual process is to first study the results of our yearly gathering event in September that is the culmination of the year’s training cycle and determine if we achieved our goals and targeted outcomes. Also, I and the attending senior masters evaluate the individuals’ skills, knowledge and growth, and decide if rank advancement is in order. This information can

then allow me to plan a positive course of training for the coming year at all levels of the organization while helping to increase the refinement of their body, mind, spirit unification and skill level. All in all, my very beginnings as a child who loved and trusted his father, his judgement and his loving investment in my development into a whole, well adjusted, contributing person who believed in mercy and justice for all has been a measuring stick which helped to govern my path of martial arts transmission and gives life to my art I hold so dear. The perpetuation of my individual transmission model and the future appear bright with promise for the Legacy I and my student’s serve.

 Here’s wishing you all Happy New Year. May the dawning of 2025 be joyous and hopeful as we dance our dreams awake.

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