SHUGYO has no direct English word translation but roughly means ascetic discipline. It indicates the highest form of spiritual development in training.
The analogy used most often to explain Shugyo is that of forging a fine blade from raw steel, heat, water and repeated hammering.
Shugyo is a process by which a person, through rigorous work, forges all other elements of training, keiko [practice], renshu [training] and shunren [discipline], into a far stronger, sharper and enlightened entity than the basic materials with which he or she began.
