The character for “tai” (躰) is probably not the uber-special word we are often taught to think it is. While the breakdown above is not technically incorrect, it’s very likely a revisionist definition.

In fact, the character we use for “tai” in Taido originally referred simply to the body. In modern times, that character is no longer used; it has been replaced by the simpler form 体 “karada.”

Looking at it this way, Taido is very simply “the way of the body,” and a lot of the more complicated ways to define it are simply big talk. This is why I spend so much time in the article above discussing definition in terms of function and doing/being.

Still, one has to assume that Shukumine had some reason for using the older character in the name of his art. Perhaps it was because of the “deeper” connotation hidden in the composition of the kanji. Perhaps it was simply because he wanted to sound smart (and his writing style does have a little of that consciously over-complicated feel). Maybe he chose that character just to be contrary (lest we forget that much of what he taught does in fact center around and include rampant contradiction).

For whatever reason, in naming Taido, Shukumine left us with yet one more riddle. But, as with all riddles, once the confusion subsides, there is a dead simple answer. In this case, the most accurate definition of Taido’s “tai” as a word is simply “body.”