JSKA BLOG

JSKA LOGO

Sensei's Blog 2021.09.30

Dieter Flindt JSKA Director

20 years ago, the current JSKA logo first appeared to many of our members at the first JSKA World Championships in Germany. The design, with its sharp, sword-like typeface against the sun, was very well received, but everyone noticed a mysterious little white triangle space in one corner of the letters. However, this small white space, which seemed somehow unbalanced and useless, and in general a pain to print was gradually ignored or deliberately omitted from the logo as it became used in many places.

A few years later, at the JSKA European Championships, all the staff lined up in their new matching T-shirts. Suddenly Abe Sensei said, “The JSKA logo is not correct”.He immediately pointed out the small white space inside the logo was missing and he explained to us that’s why the logo is incorrect. He said that the small white space was an expression of “Zanshin”. Zanshin means not to make your own judgement of victory after defeating your opponent, and to keep your mind alert for a while. It is a precept that the moment of victory is the most dangerous time to let your guard down. This is a philosophy unique to Budo and cannot be found in any other sport. Zanshin doesn’t seem to make sense or necessary for ordinary people, but it’s something that we as Budo artists must always keep in mind and devote ourselves to. The small white space that we had so casually omitted was an expression of the JSKA spirit to remind us of the essence of Budo. It was a moment that taught me a very important lesson.