Shu Ha Ri
- Shu (imitation),
- Ha (innovation), and
- Ri (detachment or transcendence).
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Fitts & Posner’s Three-Stage Model describes progression from the Cognitive stage, where learners consciously think through each movement. It then moves to the Associative stage of refinement and error reduction. Finally, it reaches the Autonomous stage where skills become largely unconscious.
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Adams’s Two-Stage Model offers a simpler linear progression from the Verbal-Motor stage to the Motor stage, where performance becomes increasingly automatic.
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The Dreyfus model proposes that learners progress through five levels: novice, advanced beginner, competent, proficient, and expert.
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Perhaps most influential is Scaffolding and Fading, rooted in Lev Vygotsky’s theory of the proximal zone of development. This approach deliberately simplifies complex skills into manageable components, with teachers providing extensive initial support before gradually removing assistance.
- A video interview with the author.
- A summary of the argument, adapted from the introduction: The Surprising New Significance of Shu Ha Ri in Postwar Karatedo.
- A 1983 BBC documentary about Okinawan karate: The Way of the Warrior: Karate, the Way of the Empty Hand. This is extraordinary and a real classic! (mentioned in a footnote on p.97).
Curious about Hypercuriosity
One reason I make notes and write is that I’m curious about everything.
I’ve written previously about how to be interested in everything. And I’ve also written about busybodies, hunters and dancers - three different styles of curiosity.
It was the ‘dancer’ style of curiosity that resonated most with me:
“This type of curiosity is described as a dance in which disparate concepts, typically conceived of as unrelated, are briefly linked in unique ways as the curious individual leaps and bounds across traditionally siloed areas of knowledge. Such brief linking fosters the generation or creation of new experiences, ideas, and thoughts.”
So I was interested to see that Anne-Laure Le Cunff, author of Tiny Experiments and founder of Ness Labs, Has been exploring what she calls ‘hypercuriosity’, which may be associated with ADHD.
Well, I guess I’m the living proof. I set out this evening to write about my book, Shu Ha Ri: The Japanese Way of Learning for Artists and Fighters but I ended up writing about something completely different instead: hypercuriosity.
Come to think of it, that’s how the book got written in the first place, by pursuing my curiosity. And come to think of it, that’s how I do practically everything.
In writing the book I was particularly attracted by the value placed on the Japanese concept of shoshin (初心), ‘beginner’s mind’ - a quality often downplayed in Western contexts, where experts are supposed to already know everything.
I’m more interested in not knowing - and then going to great lengths to find out.
Links:
Brar, G. (2024, November 14). The hypercuriosity theory of ADHD: An interview with Anne-Laure Le Cunff. Evolution and Psychiatry (Substack).
Gupta, S. (2025, September 16). People with ADHD may have an underappreciated advantage: Hypercuriosity. Science News.
Le Cunff, A. (2024). Distractability and impulsivity in ADHD as an evolutionary mismatch of high trait curiosity. Evolutionary Psychological Science, 10, 282.
Le Cunff, A. (2025, July 15). When curiosity doesn’t fit the world we’ve built: How do we design a world that supports hypercurious minds? Ness Labs.
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Author Craig Mod seems to be following me. I saw his picture in Kyoto Station. Now he’s doing a 200km walk in the Kiso valley, where I walked just a few days ago. Follow his latest pop-up newsletter Between Two Mountains for a unique view of Japan.
#KisoValley #Japan #Walking #Travel #SlowTravel
Japanese Shu Ha Ri: Is it Better Than Western Learning Methods?
I’m the author of Shu Ha Ri: The Japanese Way of Learning, for Artists and Fighters, available now.
The way we approach learning fundamentally shapes how deeply we can master a skill. In the West, we’ve largely embraced linear progression. We move methodically from theoretical understanding to practical application. And the dominant image of learning is that of a ladder or a pyramid which the learner climbs step by step to reach the top. Yet there exists an alternative philosophy that challenges this conventional wisdom. It’s the Japanese concept of Shu Ha Ri. It’s not better, perhaps, but I’ve found it different in interesting and fruitful ways. Interesting enough to write a short introduction to the concept, since no one else had done so.
Western learning models, certainly those I grew up with, characteristically begin with cognitive frameworks before advancing to hands-on practice. Students typically start with rules and theories before attempting simplified components. Only then do they attempt the full complexity of their chosen discipline. In contrast, Shu Ha Ri represents a cyclical process. It moves through three distinct phases:
This isn’t so much a ladder, a one-way journey, as a circle, or better, a repeated spiral, in which experts don’t stop learning but return to the basics and understand them anew.
While Western models serve their purpose in structured environments, the Shu Ha Ri approach offers crucial insights for achieving true mastery, particularly in disciplines that demand intuitive understanding rather than merely intellectual comprehension.
How Western Linear Learning Actually Works
Western psychology has produced several influential models that support linear skill acquisition.
All these models assume that effective learning requires moving from simple, understood components toward complex, integrated performance. Obviously this isn’t wrong. But this linear progression may inadvertently create barriers to the deep, intuitive knowledge that characterizes genuine expertise.
Why Shu Ha Ri Creates Deeper Mastery
Western models excel at creating competent practitioners, but they may limit the development of true mastery. By prioritizing theoretical understanding and simplified components, these approaches can prevent learners from accessing the profound depths that Shu Ha Ri makes possible.
An important aspect of learning risks being overlooked - the way in which students often learn best from observing and imitating practitioners in action. As psychologist Albert Bandura observed, learning is fundamentally a social activity.
Does Starting With the “Whole” Beat the “Simplified”?
Western scaffolding deliberately fragments skills into digestible pieces. A violin student might spend considerable time on bow hold before attempting a simple melody, or a chef might practice knife cuts in isolation before approaching actual recipes. Yet this reductionist approach, though logical, can prevent learners from experiencing the skill’s true essence.
Shu Ha Ri takes a radically different approach. In the Shu stage, students engage immediately with the complete, unsimplified form. Recently I visited the Japanese city of Matsumoto, which is where music educator Shinichi Suzuki (1898-1998) lived and worked. I remembered first encountering the Suzuki method of music education years previously, and marveling at how very young children were encouraged to play complete pieces of music and to be immersed in musical culture from a very young age. A student of the Japanese tea ceremony doesn’t begin with broken-down movements or theoretical principles. They observe and attempt to replicate an entire ritual (known as temae), albeit simplified, from their very first lesson. And this immersion in the “whole” allows learners to absorb subtle relationships between components that might be lost in fragmented approaches.
Why Imitation Surpasses Cognition
Western educational models place considerable emphasis on cognitive understanding before physical practice. Shu Ha Ri fundamentally inverts this priority. The Shu stage prioritizes imitation and embodied practice while deliberately minimizing cognitive load.
This is somewhat consistent with Albert Bandura’s presentation of observational learning, and the idea that we learn best not in isolation, but socially, by observing and imitating effective practitioners.
Students are encouraged to copy their master’s movements and timing without initially concerning themselves with underlying principles. And this allows “embodied cognition” to develop naturally through physical practice rather than intellectual analysis.
A jazz musician learning through traditional Western methods might spend considerable time studying music theory and chord progressions before improvising. But the Shu Ha Ri approach would emphasize extensive listening and playing along with masters. This allows the musician to develop intuitive understanding of rhythm and phrasing, along with harmonic relationships and timing that cannot be fully captured in theory books. This was in fact very close to the approach of Clark Terry (1920-2015), legendary jazz trumpeter and educator, who proposed:
“imitation, assimilation, and then innovation”.
Can Learning Be Cyclical Rather Than Linear?
Western models typically imply completion. They suggest reaching a final “autonomous” stage where learning essentially concludes. Newly minted experts risk being led to believe they have somehow finished their education. Perhaps we have to keep talking about ‘lifelong learning’ because otherwise we might forget to do it. But Shu Ha Ri presents a fundamentally different philosophy. Rather than linear progression toward completion, it describes a cyclical journey of continuous refinement.
After achieving mastery (Ri), practitioners commonly return to foundational practices (Shu) with deeper understanding. They uncover subtleties previously invisible to them. So a master calligrapher might return to basic brush strokes after decades of practice. By returning to their ‘beginner’s mind’ they may find new and previously unrecognised depths in movements they’ve performed thousands of times. This cyclical concept suggests that true mastery isn’t a destination. It’s an ongoing process of deepening understanding.
Which Path Actually Leads to Mastery?
Western learning models possess considerable strengths, particularly in academic settings where clear progression markers are essential. These models prove invaluable for complex technical skills where safety and precision demand systematic understanding. Medical training, engineering education, and scientific research all benefit from structured, theoretical foundations.
However, when our goal extends beyond competency to genuine mastery, Shu Ha Ri offers a complimentary framework. This is particularly true in disciplines requiring intuitive understanding or creative expression. And the traditional Japanese approach recognizes that true mastery involves more than accumulated knowledge or perfected technique.
Shu Ha Ri encompasses a quality of understanding that emerges through sustained practice and cyclical refinement. It prioritizes deep immersion in complete forms and wholeness over fragmented components. Linear models efficiently create capable practitioners. But the cyclical and holistic philosophy of Shu Ha Ri nurtures the lifelong pursuit of true mastery. Its imitation-based approach and emphasis on complete forms creates deeper understanding than fragmented learning.
We’re increasingly focused on rapid skill acquisition and short cuts to expertise. Yet this ancient wisdom reminds us that the deepest forms of human expertise can’t be rushed or simplified. They must be lived, embodied, and continually refined through patient, cyclical practice.
Read more in Shu Ha Ri: The Japanese Way of Learning, for Artists and Fighters.
And did you know you can sign up to the Writing Slowly weekly email digest?
References
Adams, J. A. (1971). A closed-loop theory of motor learning. Journal of Motor Behavior, 3(2), 111-150.
Bandura, A. (1962). Social Learning through Imitation. University of Nebraska Press: Lincoln, NE.
Bradić, S., Kariya, C., Callan, M., & Jones, L. (2023). Universality and applicability of shu-ha-ri concept through comparison in everyday life, education, judo and kata in judo. The Arts and Sciences of Judo (ASJ) Vol. 03 No. 02.
Dreyfus S, Dreyfus H. (1980). A five stage model of the mental activities involved in directed skill acquisition. California University Berkeley Operations Research Center. Accessed at www.dtic.mil/dtic/inde…
Fitts, P. M., & Posner, M. I. (1967). Human performance. Brooks/Cole.
Freimann, R. (nd) An Interview with Clark Terry. banddirector.com. Accessed at https://banddirector.com/interviews/an-interview-with-clark-terry-by-rachel-freiman/
Hammerness, K., Darling-Hammond, L., & Bransford, J. (2005). How teachers learn and develop. In L. Darling-Hammond & J. Bransford (Eds.), Preparing teachers for a changing world: What teachers should learn and be able to do (pp. 358-389). Jossey-Bass.
Magill, R. A., & Anderson, D. I. (2017). Motor learning and control: Concepts and applications (11th ed.). McGraw-Hill Education.
Peña A. (2010). The Dreyfus model of clinical problem-solving skills acquisition: a critical perspective. Medical education online, 15, 10.3402/meo.v15i0.4846. Accessed at doi.org/10.3402/m….
Vygotsky, L. S. (1978). Mind in society: The development of higher psychological processes. Harvard University Press.
Wood, D., Bruner, J. S., & Ross, G. (1976). The role of tutoring in problem solving. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 17(2), 89-100.
Keeping a diary is a way of living
“A diary is not only a text: it is a behaviour, a way of life, of which the text is a by-product" - French theorist Philipe Lejeune. Source: Arts & Ideas Podcast.
Exactly so. I have a journalling habit, which fuels my Zettelkasten, (my collection of linked notes), which in turn fuels my writing. This in turn affects my life, which I journal about. It’s a virtuous circle.
I’m the author of Shu Ha Ri: The Japanese Way of Learning, for Artists and Fighters.
And did you know you can sign up to the Writing Slowly weekly email digest?
Some books I read before visiting Japan.
#reading #Japantravel #shuhari
Western learning is linear; mastery is cyclical. A new article will show exactly why the Japanese concept of Shu Ha Ri offers a more effective path to true expertise than conventional Western methods. Is it time to unlearn how we learn?
#ShuHaRi #Learning #Mastery
The hills just to the North of Kyoto, from Kurama-dera temple. There’s a cool breeze up here, seemingly far removed from the sweltering city.
Shu Ha Ri: The Japanese Way of Learning, for Artists and Fighters is available now.
I’m excited to be heading to Japan for some research. But just realised I’ve spent more time learning Japanese history than the Japanese language. Oops.
#shuhari #JapanTravel #writingslowly #amwriting
After launching my book on the Japanese concept of Shu Ha Ri I’m visiting Japan itself soon to research another concept that’s become a minor obsession.
I’m particularly interested in traditional Japanese gardens and in traditional crafts, so where should go? If you know Japan, what tips have you got to share?
#Japan #shuhari #Japantravel #Japanesegardens
What does it mean to transcend the rules?
A martial arts dedication performed by Japanese karate practitioner Kiyou Shimizu at Kiyomizu-dera Temple, Kyoto.
This former world champion has retired from competitive karate, and is finding new ways to express her mastery of the discipline.
Watching this dedication reminded me of some words of the kabuke actor Nakamura Kanzaburo XVIII:
“You break the mold because there is a mold, and if there is no mold, you have no form."1
I’m the author of Shu Ha Ri: The Japanese Way of Learning, for Artists and Fighters. It’s a short and accessible introduction to the concept, available now.
And if you liked this article, why not subscribe to the weekly Writing Slowly email digest?
#Shuhari #martialarts #karate #kyoto #kiyomizudera
“The creative life is not linear. It’s not a straight line from point A to point B. It’s more like a loop, or a spiral, in which you keep coming back to a new starting point after every project. No matter how successful you get, no matter what level of achievement you reach, you will never really “arrive.”” - Austin Kleon, Keep Going.
Is this daunting, or reassuring?
#shuhari #learning
Mastering Any Skill, the Japanese Way
📚 A review of Analysis of Shu Ha Ri in Karate-Do: When a Martial Art Becomes a Fine Art by Hermann Bayer, Ph.D.
Most people believe that mastery of a skill comes from practicing harder and longer. ‘10,000 hours of deliberate practice’ has achieved a level of imperative unwarranted by the actual evidence (Epstein, 2021). Yet countless learners, whether in business, the arts, or sport, hit a plateau they can’t break through. The problem isn’t effort. It’s that they’re missing a hidden progression that separates the true experts from the merely experienced.
For centuries, Japanese masters have understood this journey. It has three distinct phases, Shu, Ha, Ri, and each demands a different mindset and approach. Skip one, and your growth stalls. Get them right, and you move beyond imitation into competence and ultimately mastery. Unlike many Western theories of learning, it’s not a linear set of stages to be climbed like the rungs of a ladder: instead it’s a cycle, a spiral of increasing competence where the earliest phase is never forgotten.
Hermann Bayer’s Analysis of Shu Ha Ri in Karate-Do is one of the clearest and most extensive explanations of this progression I’ve encountered. While his examples come from Okinawan karate, his real subject is the universal process of moving from novice to master, potentially in any discipline.
Bayer brings to his writing both deep scholarship and decades of martial arts expertise. This shows, but the book remains reasonably accessible for general readers. He unpacks philosophical ideas without jargon, showing exactly how they play out in practice. One of his most important clarifications is effectively a major theme of the book: Shu Ha Ri is not an Okinawan tradition. Despite its frequent modern association with karate, Bayer shows that the concept comes from Japanese fine arts, especially from the tea ceremony, and only entered karate after karate’s fairly recent introduction to mainland Japan, in 1922. This detail is more than just historical trivia; it changes how you see the concept. Shu Ha Ri is not tied to a single fighting style, and certainly not to karate. It’s potentially a transferable blueprint for mastering any complex skill.
Although Shu Ha Ri has wide applicability and has been adopted in many different disciplines, Bayer does focus heavily on karate, and on its Okinawan origins. This is the author’s specialist field. He is, after all the author of the two-volume Analysis of Genuine Karate, which explores Okinawa as the cradle of true karate. So readers curious about Shu Ha Ri, but with limited interest in karate and Okinawan history may wish for more examples from other disciplines. But the underlying framework is so universal that the author’s examples still work. You don’t need to know a kata from a kumite to apply what you learn.
If you are a practitioner of Karate, I suspect after reading this book you’ll never see it in quite the same way. But what makes the concept of Shu Ha Ri valuable beyond martial arts is its potential application to any field where performance and creativity matter. For instance, writers might see how to move from imitating their influences to developing a unique voice. Leaders might understand when to enforce process and when to encourage innovation. Artists, athletes, and entrepreneurs might recognise the moment to step beyond rules without losing their foundation.
If you care about personal growth and continuous improvement, or want a proven roadmap to mastery, this book will give you both the theory and the practical insight to get there. By the time you finish it, you won’t just understand Shu Ha Ri, you’ll be inspired to integrate this learning philosophy into your own life. And in case you were tempted, you will never again confuse Shu Ha Ri with the historical traditions of Okinawan karate.
Details
Analysis of Shu Ha Ri in Karate-Do: When a Martial Art Becomes a Fine Art by Hermann Bayer, Ph.D. (June 2025, ISBN: 9781594399954)
Purchase directly from the publisher, YMAA.
Resources
I’m the author of Shu Ha Ri: The Japanese Way of Learning, for Artists and Fighters. It’s a short and accessible introduction to the concept, available now.
And if you enjoyed this review, you may like to subscribe to the weekly Writing Slowly email digest.
The cat is characteristically ecstatic to see that the proofs of the new book have arrived. Not long now before it’s published!
Update: I did it. Shu Ha Ri: The Japanese Way of Learning, for Artists and Fighters is now available. I hope you enjoy it!
#amwriting #booklaunch #comingsoon #nonfiction
I designed a book in three and a half hours
A while ago, well, quite a long while ago, I designed a book in three and a half hours. Fun, yes, but it wasn’t very publishable.
Now, years later, I’ve finally got round to updating and redesigning the whole thing.
Yes, I’m still writing slowly but I’m excited to say it will soon be available for sale - so watch this space for more information.
