Quote:
Originally Posted by aohige
I don't think learning from the strongest in order to become stronger than him is at all cheapning.
But it may be the difference of way East and West precieve.
師を超える (going beyond the master) is a common concept not only in Japanese culture, but I'm pretty sure in Chinese as well.
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Fascinating. I know the Chinese pendant to the aforementioned idiom: “青出於藍”which means 'to surpass one's master in learning'. But it has nothing to do with defeating your own master: No matter how good you've become in the according skill, the student is obliged to respect the master and his teaching. It's really not that much different from the western culture with reference to the teacher-student relationship. Even within the Bushido it's neither accurate nor honorable to beat your own master. I know that people like Tachibana Dōsetsu and Takahashi Shigetane had been a rarity during the gloomy Sengoku period, but that's why they were and still are highly praised and belong timelessly to the best examples representing the way of a true warrior.
But you only used the term 'to best' and not 'to defeat', so I guess we're on the same boat.