In a situation where you need to defend yourself, it is your skills, not your rank, that will protect you. Prevention is the best self-defense. Attackers, whatever their objectives, are looking for unsuspecting, vulnerable targets. Be aware of your surroundings, avoiding confrontation. If you can defuse a situation (talk someone down from physically…
Tag: Dojo
You must become a great student
To become a martial arts master, or at the very least a great teacher, you must first become a great student. . You must take responsibility for your own learning and actively pursue knowledge and experience. . Recently I asked a black belt instructor from another ‘style’ to come train with us. He had the…
Karate has many stances; it also has none.
“Karate has many stances; it also has none”. Genwa Nakasone wrote explaining Gichin Funakoshi’s 17th precept; ”Kamae wa shoshinsha ni ato wa shizentai”. (Fixed positions are for beginners: later, one moves naturally) . So there are no stances in karate? . A common complaint about karate, and its kata, is that the stances are impractical–that…
Your sensei taught you everything you know…
“Your sensei may seem old and frail. Keep in mind, he taught you everything you know…… but not everything he knows.” . Prince Loeffler Shugyokan Dojo Matsubayashi Shorin Ryu . . “A teacher is never a giver of truth; he is a guide, a pointer to the truth that each student must find for himself.”…
Don’t let style limit your karate.
“Don’t let style limit your karate.” ~ Jesse Enkamp There’s a multitude of martial arts styles out there, some originating from China, others are Okinawan, Japanese or from Korea. One comment that I often hear is …..“my style of karate is the best style.” . It’s essential to define what people mean by “best”. I’m…
Should you ask for a black-belt?
Recently a nidan from another part of our association, with whom we had not seen train before, asked us to grade him to sandan. “I have done part of it”, with another instructor he said. “…are you going to be a good Shihan?”….”I will do [insert syllabus] for my sandan.”….. (Oh oh…this does not bode…
It’s not how much you know that counts
“It’s not how much you know that counts, but how much you can recall under stress.” . Most effective martial artists, fighters and self-defense practitioners, have a ‘main toolkit’ which gives them something they can use in most situations, plus a larger collection of more specialized techniques that they may use if the right circumstances…
Always believe in yourself
Being successful and having a feeling of improving is a habit. There is a mindset, lifestyle, routine, and expectation, that comes with being successful. . Small accomplishments have a way of accumulating, and building momentum that you may not see, but that are necessary to lay the foundation for those bigger improvements down the road….
The art of fighting without fighting
I had so many comments on a post I made recently about self-defense and fighting. Many people could not see the distinction between the two. Most people are taught physical/fighting skills FIRST in a self-defense lesson…. Again; there IS an overlap with the two, but they are NOT the same. . Fighting is NOT self-defense/self-protection….
If you run after two hares, you will catch neither.
“There is a proverb that says – Nito oumono wa itto omo ezu (二兎追う者は一兎をも得ず). It translates to – If you run after two hares, you will catch neither.” ?? . Yasuhiro Uema 9th dan Shorin-Ryu Shubukan . A great master received a university professor who came to enquire about wisdom. . The master served tea….
Real karate is for self-defense
“Real karate is for self-defense and kata bunkai is the main tool for this.” . . Yoshio Kuba 10th dan Goju Ryu, repeating a quote from Gogen Yamaguchi. ? . . It is all in the kata. Understand the combative principles contained within them and you will find that you are able to extract a myriad…
Okinawan karate is more than martial arts
“Okinawan karate is more than martial arts. It is a way of cultivating the spirit.” . “We avoid conflicts and prefer peace — that is the legacy of Miyagi Sensei, founder of Goju-ryu. Karate is not for attacking people, there is no way you will deal the first blow in a fight. The greatest secret…