As a Sensei-student relationship forms it can, in many ways, be a type of bonding that is equivalent to that type which occurs between a parent and child. For most students, training in the ways of Karate is a new experience. Initially, there is a dependency on the Sensei for help and knowledge. At this stage the Sensei is there to provide that necessary information, time, and encouragement. It is the Sensei who provides a willingness to work with all who seek to travel this pathway. For those who do, it is at this stage where a relationship begins to form. Many will leave for a variety of reasons, but over time a few students will persevere and strengthen this bond. By far, this is the most common of the relationships that a Sensei has with students, taking place primarily during the kyu ranks.
Very much like a teenager, those who continue to train discover a type of mobility and freedom they lacked earlier. No longer quite so dependent on their Sensei, these students have developed greater proficiency with their skills, and have started to incorporate Seibukan training into their daily lives. Seibukan is not something “just for the dojo”. The relationship is still very much dependent on the guidance of the Sensei, but greater demands and responsibilities can now be placed on the student. At this point the student will now voluntarily come to class early, and stay beyond class for additional training.
While many students have formed a relationship of some degree with their Sensei over a period of years, very few will continue to expand or extend it. By this time, a Sensei may have produced several students of Dan ranking. Eventually there comes a time when a student may even go on and become a Sensei in his or her own right. This, however, does not end the Sensei/Student relationship, but rather furthers it. There is still formal instruction, but the role of the Sensei is now engaged only when necessary. This is the stage when the student, as a new Sensei, will form a dojo.
Eventually, after thousands of students, there will be one, possibly two, who reach a point in the Sensei/Student relationship where the vision and knowledge of the Sensei is matched by that of a student. Often there is somewhat of a role reversal at this point, and the teacher uses more time and energy doing things for the future interests of the student. For the first time in the relationship there comes a type of “spiritual quality and friendship.”
Finally, as completion to this relationship occurs, through time or circumstance, the Sensei disappears –
“ALWAYS TO BE PRESENT”