Sen

I keep coming back to the meaning of sen.

/sen/
awareness; anticipation; readiness to act

It’s not that I’m overly forgetful but it’s useful to review.

Sente. “First move , initiative ”, abbreviated as sen. The idea of sen is that one is“ready to act”. 

An essay I found by Stephen Quinlan from 2011.


From sen we get the mitsu no sen:

  • sen no sen – I strike you as you begin your attack
  • go no sen – I strike you while you are attacking me
  • sen sen no sen – I strike you just before you begin your attack

One of the references I find most useful is this one from George McCall back from September 2015.


I think this is worth reviewing over and over.

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