I was reading the blog from the Roy Dean Academy lately (Click Here for Article). A couple things I really like about the image of this club is the crest (which hints at the more traditional Japanese symbolism), and the thoughts and practice behind their routines for the beginning and ending of their classes. It made me think and remember some of the things I've been through in my training.
In the Judo classes I remember (both from when I started at 6 yrs old, and again when I restarted at 30) the formal beginning to class was everyone line up, standing bow, and begin class. Same at the end. Sometimes with the phrase "Domo arigato gozaimashita". I liked this because it was quick, but still held some sort of Dojo feel to the practice. In these classes the Japanese names and terms are used extensively, and the students are strongly encouraged to familiarize themselves with those terms.
In the Karate training days, the process was a bit more complex. The class would line up in belt order, then proceed to go to kneeling position. On command a brief period of meditation (no more than 30 seconds), followed by a kneeling bow to the founder of the art, then same again to the head instructor of the club, a bow to any other instructors of the class, and then a bow to your class mates. Then the class stands up, again in belt order and has one final bow before we begin. Each bow is preceded by a phrase in Japanese instructing the class as to which bow is coming next, which the most senior belt in the class had the responsibility to announce. Now even with all the ritual, I liked this start and end very much at the time. It was lengthy and slow which I didn't like so much, but I really enjoyed the meditation at the beginning and end of the sessions. I miss that. These classes also used the Japanese terms, and as the student progressed the classes were taught in more Japanese to the point where no technique or action was described in English. It felt very traditional, and very Asian (even though the club owner and coach was European). On the other hand, that club also had the sports team and team training was without formalities. One bow, and sparring until the end of class. No terms in Japanese, just time filled with actually doing the sport. It was great. and it was all about the workout. So my life in the club was very balanced between all ritual and no ritual. 
When I began Jiu-Jitsu in the seminars I attended, there was no bowing, no ritual, no titles. The group gathered and listened to the coach detail what we were going to do that session. Then we warmed-up and broke off into pairs for practice and training. At the end of the session, we simply ended. This seemed to be the norm for the majority of the BJJ clubs I went to. My thoughts on no ritual... I liked the way that it transforms the training into real sports training. The instructors become coaches, and the group huddle at the beginning and talk/discussion at the end are really what I like about the format. The informality of it all is quite relaxing. It lends an openness and approachability to the training, you really feel quite comfortable sharing and questioning which is such a vital part of the training process. 
About a year ago, I began training at another BJJ club where the class lined up to begin, bowed once and repeated the same process at t he end. One bow, and then everyone shook hands down the line. This again was quick and added a flare of formality to the room, but without going too far. The handshake at the end of the session was great, as it allowed a brief reconnection with your training partner and the rest of the class. It reminded me playing baseball as a kid in the neighborhood leagues, where at the end of a game both teams had to line up and everyone had to shake hands. I enjoy each one for different reasons. having some kind of a process for beginning and ending classes, I feel is important. It gives an opportunity for announcements, and allows the members of the class to adjust mentally to what we are about to do, and reflect on what we have done. But what do we do? Am I just attached to the ritual because I can't let it go? Does it actually serve a purpose, or am I just clutching at symbolism? Having had a few different training opportunities, how do I honor each element and experience that I've had, while still making my club my own? What collection of ritual, if any, do I decide is important for us?
Maybe making a list of what I enjoyed at the other clubs will help...
- Formal beginning and ending period. Allow for the transition between life and the mats.
- Meditation and reflection periods. Internalize the training, visualize the process.
- Allow for announcement time, a question period, and feedback moments.
- Interaction moment with each member of the club.
- Include the 'Zen Culture' in the experience.
Reading that article this morning, reminded me about what I liked about the Japanese phrases and the Dojo feel of a training club too. I miss these things now that I have been running the club more of a sports group and gym than a Dojo. It is a tough thing to accomplish when you are using a shared space facility. The other side of the coin is how do we incorporate some of the ideas that we have, without fostering a poor environment for performance and relationship building. The last thing I want is a Sensei vs The Students- bow to me for I am he, attitude and environment. I don't think we'll ever get there, but some of the inherent Zen culture rituals are designed for exactly that purpose. We'll have to watch out for traps.
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