Practitioners of karate and other Japanese martial arts disciplines start and end each training session with a small ceremony. This is not a religious act, but a way to emphasize the seriousness of what you are about to do, namely learning how to use your body as a weapon.
The ceremony also aims to sharpen your concentration to the exclusion of other daily problems and chores. It is also a reminder to show respect to the instructor and former karate masters.
When the training starts, you line up in one row according to rank (highest graduate on the left). Then the ceremony takes place as indicated below.
The start of the training
| Instructor | Student |
| Says Kiotsuke, seiza. | Gather the heels in musubi dachi and then sit down in seiza (going down on the left leg first). |
| Says Mokuso. Closes the eyes and meditates. | Closes the eyes and meditates. Breathes in silently through the nose, hols the breath and exhales slowly through the mouth. Tries to clear the head of all thoughts. |
| Opens the eyes. Says Mokuso yame. | Opens the eyes. |
| Turning towards the shomen. Says Shomen ni rei | Bowing forward towards the shome. |
| Turns towards the students. Says Sensei/Sempai ni rei | Turns toward Sensei/Sempai. Says O-negai shimasu. |
| Stands up. Says Kiritsu. | Stands up in musubi dachi (right leg first). |
Slutningen af undervisningen
| Instructor | Student |
| Says Kiotsuke, seiza. | Gather the heels in musubi dachi and then sit down in seiza (going down on the left leg first). |
| Says Mokuso. Closes the eyes and meditates. | Lukker øjnene og mediterer. Man trækker vejret lydløst ind gennem næsen, holder vejret lidt og ånder langsomt ud gennem munden. Man prøver at tømme hovedet for alle tanker. |
| Opens the eyes. Says Mokuso yame. | Opens the eyes. |
| Turning towards the shomen. Says Shomen ni rei | Bowing forward towards the shome. |
| Turns towards the students. Says Sensei/Sempai ni rei. | Turns toward Sensei/Sempai and says: Arigato gozaimashita. |
| Stands up. Says Kiritsu. | Stands up in musubi dachi (right leg first). |
| Says Otagai ni rei. | Bows to the other students. |