The "Three Pillars of Karate" explains how martial arts should be approached. The three pillars are shown above: Jutsu (technical skills), Shikata (the manner in which one personally uses techniques), and Do (The Way, or the personal character of a practitioner).

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To explain more fully:

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Jutsu refers to HOW a technique is performed or HOW a certain skill is developed. You may at times hear this phrase applied to a style to refer to the technique of that particular system such as Iiai-jutsu for Swordsmanship or Aiki-jutsu for practice of Aikido techniques. In essence, Jutsu means the physical skills associated with Karate and other Okinawan/Japanese arts.

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Shikata, on the other hand, refers to the individual method or application of techniques. In other words, this is the individuality between students, their personal touch or approach to performing Karate. In MojuKai Renshi Darby associates this with the ART of Karate or how each student may be significantly different while still being correct. As Renshi says - some people are more powerful, some quicker; some students will attempt to be as precise as possible, seeking the "perfect" technique, but others may be more creative, doing the same technique different ways each time...so long as the basic application is achieved, the ART of Karate is up to the individual. This is the essence of Shikata.

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Finally we come to Do, or "The Way" of martial arts. To some this may be synonymous with Jutsu, or even Shikata, but in MojuKai we apply a different philosophy. To us Do is the personal character that one should strive to achieve, not only in their approach to training, but in their approach to life.  Karate is a tool to achieve success - not only in developing physical skills, but in everything we do - and the most important success we can have is to be a role model for others. Renshi Darby believes that the goal of karate is to develop the self, to improve in any way possible - and he stresses this in his teaching, especially with young students.

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While training in Karate keep in mind that even though a great deal of time is spent on learning new skills and improving existing ones, the real goal should be to use physical training (Jutsu) and personal style (Shikata) to build a character (Do) that you can be proud of, that represents your dojo, your Kai and instructors in a way that brings credit to them. In other words, of the Three Pillars, physical skills should be the least important, method of application (Artistry) next, and development of Personal Character the most important.