Onra:YamatoDamashii

Hafa Adai,

Years ago when MixedMartialArts training on Guam was backyard at the very best —the small handful of people that were training found most of their education from videos or from very seldom occasions of friends returning from training overseas. The pursuit of hands on instruction often led to ridiculous instructor fees and near impossible demands that at the time, most of the guys couldn’t afford.

Enson Inoue arrived on Guam as a cornerman for Tetsuji Kato in SuperBrawl 5. Though he was cornering for Kato against Guam fighters in a 3fight tournament—incidents unfolded for reasons obvious and within 3months time, Guam’s fight ambition came together with Enson’s goodwill and soon the PurebredShootoGymGuam was formed. Secret training for self-defense took a massive step forward to unified training for sport. Doors were opened between wrestlers and Jiujitsu players, from Guam to Japan and from Japan to Guam—and minds were opened for a revitalized and better-structured way of training.

Enson Inoue is a remarkable athlete. After winning the Shooto Heavyweight world title as a severe underdog with an armbar submission over the at-the-time UFC Heavyweight Champion Randy Cotoure, Enson enjoyed an exciting career of exciting battles against some of the world’s greatest fighter s—Mark Kerr, IgorVovchanchyn, Antonio”Minotauro” Noguiera, to name a few. Though he never went on to win another world title and even though his record been decorated with many defeats– his way of fighting and his never-give-up attitude had immortalized his name in mixed martial arts. His life campaign of “Yamato Damashii”  has sent inspiration and a message of perseverance around the world that started and still motivates the careers and ventures of  many successful MixedMartial Artists today.

Though only half-Japanese in descent, his promotion of the term “Yamato-Damashii” has placed an exclamation point to a world-massive interpretation of what we embrace and celebrate as the SamuraiSpirit. This fire for the martial arts, his gift for motivational speaking, and his availability to fans has toured him around the world with guest appearances and seminars in Mongolia, Italy, Guam, Saipan, TheMainland US, Korea, Sweden, to name a few and likely for even for more destinations ahead. Often celebrated for his fighting spirit, the admittedly less-than-perfect Inoue has most recently projected another side in the aftermath of March 11ths fatal and fateful tsunami that resulted from a reported 9.0 earthquake in northern Japan.

There is a face of Enson Inoue however that many of us haven’t seen. It’s an asset even even more credible than his skills in the ring, a side to his will that offers in example and true testament—the community serving asset of the Samurai Spirit.

Yamato-damashii “Japan, Japanese” compounds Yamato (??, lit. “great harmony”) with damashii, which is the voiced rendaku pronunciation of tamashii (? “spirit; soul”).

—Wikipedia

From this we can derive that  YamatoDamashii can be literally translated as the Japan Spirit. Maybe that explains why Japanese folks look surprised when they see foreigners wearing the increasingly popular YamatoDamashii shirts so often.

From its super cool-looking kanji, maybe we can even derive that it means the spirit of great harmony.

Or as it is often translated locally, YamatoDamashii has gain much momentum for its representation of the Samurai Spirit. Either way—YamatoDamashii has become a term that has become embraced worldwide and continues to do its service by offering courage and inspiration to the tens of thousands of foreigners who have connected with it to persevered through many adversities.

Even for us who aren’t Japanese, though we might not have blood-roots with the samurai, we can move forward and live enduringly, honorably, and community-servingly with What we have come to digest as Yamato Damashii through Enson’s example—not only with the strength for survival but also with the will to serve those who might be less fortunate.

In the words of Enson Inoue: “Yamato Damashii is an undying Spirit. The Spirit and Honor of the Samurai. Yamato Damashii is a Way of Life.”

Thanks for dropping by.