Virtue & The Bow In
On to what is termed as virtue. Because our mind is always on our growth, while in training, our mentality needs time to absorb and regenerate all it has done. The true martial artist's time of rest is in the dojo. When one comes to the kamize and bows, one is essentially acknowledging the release of his focus on his mental training. Now, you can let those emotions flow and have fun working physically on techniques. When bowing out, the student refocuses his mind to awareness of his training. Essentially, when training, the martial artist will be least concerned with his training!
The bow in is traditionally done by placing first the left knee to the floor then followed by the right, then bowing deeply face to floor to honor our release of our only form of stress (which also is our most important form of growth). Bowing out, is similarly a face to floor bow and a reassuming of our code. The right knee is removed from the tatami followed by the left. Notice here, when we bow in and out it is not simply rote repetition. The purpose of the action is to physically express our mentality. Nothing conceived can become real without experience. That is what we are up to here with our actions. For example: A bow in may be accompanied by a long exhale and the feeling that stress is being lifted from your shoulders. Entering into your place of training should be as if entering into a safe haven and taking off your muddy shoes and raincoat at the door. A leaving bow should be accompanied by a feeling of assuming responsibilities with higher confidence and rejuvenation.