Sensei (先生?) is a Japanese title used to refer to or address teachers, professionals such as lawyers and doctors, politicians, clergymen, and other authority figures. is a language spoken by over 130 million people in Japan and in Japanese emigrant communities Japanese, like other languages uses a broad array of Honorifics for addressing or referring to people with respect It is also used to show respect to someone who has achieved a certain level of mastery in an art form or some other skill: accomplished novelists, musicians, and artists are addressed with the title in this way; for example, Japanese manga fans refer to manga artist Osamu Tezuka as "Tezuka-sensei. was a Japanese manga artist, Animator, producer and Medical doctor, although he never practiced medicine " Sensei is also one of the common Japanese martial arts titles. Japanese, like other languages uses a broad array of Honorifics for addressing or referring to people with respect
The Japanese expression sensei shares the same characters as the Chinese word, pronounced xiānshēng in Mandarin. Standard Mandarin, also known as Standard Spoken Chinese, is the official modern Chinese spoken language used in mainland China and Taiwan Xiansheng is a courtesy title for a man of respected stature; the English equivalent of xiānshēng is gentleman, or more commonly,– mister. English is a West Germanic language originating in England and is the First language for most people in the United Kingdom, the United States It can also be attached to a man's name to mean "Mr. " Prior to the development of the modern vernacular, Xiansheng was used to address teachers of both genders; this has fallen out of usage in Standard Mandarin, though it is retained in some southern Chinese dialects such as Hokkien and Hakka where it still has the meaning "teacher" or "doctor". Standard Mandarin, also known as Standard Spoken Chinese, is the official modern Chinese spoken language used in mainland China and Taiwan The Southern Min language or Min Nan ( POJ: Bân-lâm-gú or "Southern Fujian" language refers to a family of Chinese languages Dialects The Hakkas ( Hakka language: Hak-kâ; Mandarin Chinese: Kèjiā) are a subgroup of the Han Chinese people who live predominantly In Japanese, sensei is still used to address people of both genders. It is likely both the current Southern Chinese and Japanese usages are more reflective of its Middle Chinese etymology. Middle Chinese ( or Ancient Chinese as used by linguist Bernhard Karlgren, refers to the Chinese language spoken during Southern and Northern Etymology is the study of the History of Words &mdash when they entered a language from what source and how their form and meaning have changed over time
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Use in Buddhism
In Sanbo Kyodan related zen schools, sensei is normally used to refer to ordained teachers below the rank of roshi. Sanbo Kyodan (aka Sanbô-Kyôdan or Harada-Yasutani School; Japanese: 三宝教団 literally "Three Treasures Religious Organization" is Zen is a school of Mahāyāna Buddhism, referred to in Chinese as Chan. ( Chinese: Laoshi, Sanskrit: Rishi) is a Japanese honorific title used in Zen Buddhism that literally means However, other schools of Japanese Buddhism use the term for any priest regardless of seniority; for example, this title is also used for Jodo Shinshu ministers in the United States, whether they are ethnic Japanese or not. The history of Buddhism in Japan can be roughly divided into three periods namely the Nara period (up to 784 the Heian period (794–1185 and the post-Heian period also known as Shin Buddhism is a school of Pure Land Buddhism. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the In the Kwan Um School of Zen, according to Zen master Seung Sahn, the title Ji Do Poep Sa Nim is much like the Japanese title "sensei. History Seung Sahn Soen Sa Nim first arrived in the United States in 1972 where he lived in Providence Rhode Island and worked at a Korean Zen master (Ch Ch'an-shih) or Zen teacher, is an umbrella title which refers to an individual who teaches Zen Buddhism to others and it may be used to Seung Sahn Haeng Won Dae Soen-sa ( Korean: 숭산행원대선사 Hanja: 崇山行願大禪師 "[1]
Use in martial arts
Sensei is often used to address the teacher in Japanese martial arts classes such as aikido, judo, or karate. In Education, a teacher is one who helps Students or pupils often in a School, as well as in a Family, religious or Japanese martial arts refers to the enormous variety of Martial arts native to Japan. is a Japanese martial art developed by Morihei Ueshiba as a synthesis of his martial studies philosophy and religious beliefs meaning "gentle way" is a modern Japanese martial art ( Gendai budō) and Combat sport, that originated in Japan in the late ( or is a martial art developed in the Ryukyu Islands from indigenous fighting methods and Chinese Kenpō.
Ōsensei, DaiSensei and WakaSensei
Ōsensei (大先生?) is a Japanese title used to distinguish between two teachers (or doctors, etc. ) with the same name. The elder or superior one is then called ōsensei, and the other one WakaSensei (若先生?). In most cases, ōsensei is the father of waka sensei.
In martial arts and spiritual practice, another use for this term is DaiSensei (大先生?), or Master Teacher, such as may be found at a Buddhist Temple. Also pronounced with an 'o' sound is the term Ōsensei (翁先生?), for the founder of aikido, Morihei Ueshiba. is a Japanese martial art developed by Morihei Ueshiba as a synthesis of his martial studies philosophy and religious beliefs Morihei Ueshiba (植芝 盛平 Ueshiba Morihei, December 14, 1883 &ndash April 26, 1969) was a famous Martial artist Another famous martial artist, Masutatsu Oyama, founder of Kyokushin Karate was referred to as ōsensei within his organization, the Kyokushinkai. Masutatsu Oyama (大山倍達 Ōyama Masutatsu) also known as Mas Oyama, was a Karate master who founded Kyokushinkai arguably the is a style of stand-up, Full contact karate, founded in 1964 by who was born under the name Choi Yong-I (최영의 ( or is a martial art developed in the Ryukyu Islands from indigenous fighting methods and Chinese Kenpō. is a style of stand-up, Full contact karate, founded in 1964 by who was born under the name Choi Yong-I (최영의
Usage with negative connotations
Sensei can also be used with negative connotations. Sometimes enthusiastic supporters and admirers use it fawningly, as when addressing or talking about charismatic business, political, and spiritual leaders. Japanese speakers are particularly sensitive to this usage when it concerns members of an in-group who spontaneously associate or identify sensei with a particular person—many if not most Japanese speakers readily see this usage as indicative of adherents speaking of a charismatic spiritual or cult leader. In Sociology, an ingroup is a social group towards which an individual feels Loyalty and respect usually due to membership in the group The word charisma (origin from the Greek word χάρισμα (kharisma, "gift" or "divine favor" from kharizesthai, "to favor" This article does not discuss "cult" in the original sense of "veneration" or "religious practice" for that usage see Cult (religious practice When talking about such situations, Japanese speakers will sometimes use the term sarcastically to ridicule overblown adulation, and the Japanese media frequently invoke it to highlight the megalomania of those who allow themselves to be addressed in this manner. Megalomania (from the Greek word μεγαλομανία is a historical term for behavior characterized by Delusional fantasies of Wealth, power In speech, a sarcastic sensei is intoned for emphasis, whereas in print it is rendered in katakana, akin to scare quotes or italics in English. is a Japanese Syllabary, one component of the Japanese writing system along with Hiragana, Kanji, and in some cases the Latin alphabet Scare quotes is a general term for Quotation marks used for purposes other than to identify a direct quotation In Typography, italic type /ɪˈtælɪk/ or /aɪˈtælɪk/ refers to cursive Typefaces based on a stylized form of calligraphic Handwriting.
Uses in English
Sensei has also come to be used in English outside martial-arts and other similarly cultural contexts. In business and industry, sensei is often used to refer to an outside, third-party expert who coaches or advises on operational and organizational excellence. In particular, James Womack's book Lean Thinking advises companies to seek out a "lean sensei" who can provide expert coaching on how to achieve organizational effectiveness. Lean manufacturing or lean production, which is often known simply as " Lean " is the practice of a theory of production that considers the expenditure Lean sensei has since become a common term for describing an expert who can provide advice on operational and organizational strategy.
See also
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and are Japanese titles used to refer to or address teachers or masters of traditional Japanese arts including but not limited to Noh, Shamisen, Grandmaster and master used as a title in the Martial arts has changed in meaning and while instructors using the title Grandmaster may be highly capable and knowledgeable the Sifu (師傅 or 師父 Pinyin: shīfu, Cantonese: si1 fu6, Vietnamese: Sư phụ) is a Chinese term for The Malay language ( ISO 639-1 code MS is an Austronesian language spoken by the Malay people and people of other ethnic groups who reside in the Pendekar is a title bestowed upon practitioners of the Southeast Asian Martial arts called Silat and Pencak Silat, Sanskrit (sa संस्कृता वाक् saṃskṛtā vāk, for short sa संस्कृतम् saṃskṛtam) is a historical A guru (गुरु গুরু is a person who is regarded as having great knowledge wisdom and authority in a certain area and uses it to guide othersDictionary
sensei
-noun
- The Japanese term for teacher. It has been adopted into English mostly for use with martial arts instructors. Sensei of martial arts usually live and/or work at a dojo where they instruct their apprentices.
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