Ikebana and the Jedi Model

"The Japanese traditional arts including ikebana have adopted the apprenticeship model [of the Jedi]. Once you enter the world of ikebana, you are trained under one certain master for at least several years and if the master thinks you are ready to be a master, which is called "shihan" in Japanese, the master recommends you to the board of masters which would approve you as shihan. If approved, you are allowed to teach others as your apprentices. To be perfectly honest, this model was quite frustrating to me for a long time, who started ikebana at the age of nineteen." To Mayuka Yamazaki, a high-level business executive, ikebana -- the ancient Japanese art of floral creations --is not just about arranging flowers. It is about attuning to the wisdom and beauty of nature and enriching our experience of being human. As a master of the art, she explains that ikebana is a word derived from the verb ikeru (to bring alive) and hana (flowers), or combined, "letting flowers live." For over 20 years, Mayuka has been letting flowers live, and most recently, she has brought this practice to help restore wholeness to schools, international organizations, communities, and most notably, corporations. In the following piece she connects dots between ikebana, Jedi training, and her own unique work in the world.

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