Our School Insignia

 Here is the dojo emblem and the painting on our shirts. We commissioned it 17 years ago by  local artist; Brenda Baker - here is the meaning:

The Shape: The shape of the insignia represents two things. First; every movement in the arts is circular in nature. Second that the shape of the world is round; and everyone in the planet should be influenced for the good with the work we do on ourselves.

The Path: The path on the painting is not straight, and is not flat either. Instead there will be many twists and highs and lows along the way. But the path is always leading toward the sun and light.

The Sun: The sun represents enlightenment. Enlightenment is not a static state or destination - instead it is reaching for more wisdom, happiness and understanding.

The Mountains: The mountains represent the Law Of Momentum. When we are on the dark side of the mountain we are holding a negative belief; and consequently begin to move away from our desires. When we are on the light side of the mountain we are holding positive beliefs and our joy increases. As we feel more joy we naturally begin to move towards the things in life we want. When the mind is still we find perfect balance at the mountain peak. From the peak we have perfect control and can choose to move in any direction. The deepest purpose of our practice is to get to this point of stability so that we can then decide to move in the direction of our dreams.

The Dragon: The dragon is stepping into the circle. This represents how most of us begin our study of the Martial Arts. The dragon represents the external nature of most of our goals when we start. Some people want self defense, some people want fitness, some people want a sense of belonging or spirituality, but EVERYONE is seeking something external when they begin the practice. 

The Sage: The sage is the representation of who we become when we stay on the path long enough. Eventually we stop practicing Martial Arts for the “outside” benefits”. At this stage we usually have achieved many of the externals we wanted when we started; but for some reason we keep practicing anyway. It’s at this stage we begin to realize that practice is at it’s highest level when we are practicing just for the sake of practice itself. We continue to train not because we want another rank or to learn a new technique; we continue to practice because life goes better when we do - and at this point we practice just because practicing is enjoyable.

When we become more like the Sage we have more wisdom, more patience, and are more giving and caring than we ever thought possible. There is a certain power in the Sage - because he can defend himself - but since he’s not looking for his happiness and joy in outside sources, he rarely needs to.