Happy World Karate Day. . “In 2005, the Okinawa Prefecture Assembly passed the resolution declaring October 25th ‘Karate no hi’, (空手の日) ‘the day of karate’. . Some 700 years ago, karate was born in this land, Okinawa. Coexisting with the beautiful nature and climate of Okinawa, our predecessors created karate, a traditional culture that Okinawa…
Tag: Humility
I guess you can’t fix stupid!
A comment on one of my recent articles stated; “Come step onto a jiu-jitsu mat and you’ll will be humbled. I guarantee it.” . A great many people are dying to be reassured that their martial art is the best and most effective. They evidently believe that their martial art is superior to all others…
Stop calling yourself “sensei” is just narcissistic, weird and presumptuous.
You’re not my sensei, so why do you call YOURSELF sensei? . If I see somebody labeled as, and calling themselves “sensei”, and I don’t know them, it’s just plain wrong. They aren’t teaching me… so they aren’t my sensei. I’m not choosing to call them sensei. . The term can’t apply as a blanket…
“Do not pretend to know something you have not experienced.”
Open-mindedness involves being receptive to a wide variety of ideas, arguments, and information. This doesn’t mean that being open-minded is easy. Being open to new ideas and experiences can sometimes lead to confusion. . What you once practiced as a “block” or “punch” doesn’t seem to work the way you thought, and realizing is wasn’t…
What does it mean to be a senpai?
What does it mean to be a Senpai (sempai)? Senpai (先輩) translates as “Senior” and can be applied in any situation where someone is senior to you. But the meaning for those in a traditionally run martial art school is far deeper than simply ‘Senior’. The senpai of a dojo has usually trained for a…
“The most powerful weapon on earth is the human soul on fire.”
Be passionate about your martial arts training and your martial arts training will improve. . People join martial arts schools for many different reasons, perhaps wanting to learn how to fight, how to protect themselves, get fit, gain confidence or a combination of all those things. Often times those reasons change when there is a…
Karate is NOT only a striking art.
When karate began to move across the world in the early to mid 1950’s the training emphasis was almost exclusively on striking. Kata was not properly understood. . Even today you can still find karate dojo that teach kata without ‘bunkai’ (analysis/breakdown). Those first generation Western practitioners then went on to perpetuate the bias of…
“Karate wa shōgai no kenkyūdesu.” (Karate is a lifelong study)
空手は生涯の研究です- Karate wa shōgai no kenkyūdesu (Karate is a lifelong study) – Mabuni Kenwa (1889-1952) . . Relatively speaking, there is still relatively few who choose to dedicate their lives to studying martial arts. In terms of sports, many choose more mainstream pastimes such as football, basketball, baseball, or soccer, as apposed to the martial…
“Bun Bu Ryō Dō” – The “Education of Body and Mind”.
Many of you who have spent a good number of years studying the martial arts have probably heard the term “Bun Bu Ryō Dō” (文武両道). . Bun Bu Ryō Dō is a term which has been in use throughout Japanese history, possibly going back further than the Heian period (794 – 1185). In a simple…
Throughout history certain people have become Masters of their art.
Throughout history certain people have become Masters of their art. . You know what they all had in common? They chose to dedicate their time to their art. They showed up when it was fun and easy….. and they showed up when the training was tedious, hard, frustrating and tough. . You too can be…
The wearing of the “Aka Obi”. The Red Belt.
Titles, belts and grades are often discussed in the martial arts, and is usually a topic of contention. . Often it’s people who don’t even know each other personally and decide to head off into a diatribe of hatred and abuse. It’s usually coming from people who are lower grade black belts that have never…
“Always leave things better than when you found them…… especially people.”
Within the martial arts community there are many types of people. Some have morals and are good people that you can rely upon, and others…….well, not quite so much. . You would think that in a profession where character traits such as honor, integrity, courtesy, perseverance, and an unbreakable spirit, are held in such…