aliveness training

I just read an interesting post over at TDA Training about “aliveness training” and what that term means. Go over and take a look and be sure to watch the video.

 

the book of five rings audio

Follow the link to YouTube for the remainder of the episodes.

 

very interesting Bullshido post

Keith Schwartz is a 6th degree black belt in JuJitsu  and 5th degree black belt in Judo. He created a high quality instructional video series back in the 1990’s that was widely sold. He has recently walked way from the martial arts entirely to pursue a religious calling. He just posted a very interesting reply over at Bullshido :

http://www.bullshido.net/forums/showpost.php?p=2240736&postcount=34

That is a good very good question and not “Foolish” at all – you may have to change that name of yours Foolish – lol! My answer would be that Kano was oversimplifying the situation of perfection of human character, i.e.: his contention was the diligent adherence to the maxims of Judo and its physical training/discipline would in themselves bring about an “eventual perfection of human character”. In this, I believe Kano was wrong.

Martial Arts do not intrinsically improve human character. However, they DO put people in a very intense discipline demanding situation that does EXPOSE character – both good an bad.

This – in itself is a very valuable service the martial arts can bring to humanity, for that reason alone I still believe it has purpose beyond a physical discipline, BUT: Whether or not that character gets improved, or mearly remains exposed (we all know as many self-seeking mat show offs and bullys as there are truly caring giving individuals) is directly proportional to an individuals wisdom and ability to honestly asses their faults AND the humility and perseverance to correct them.

I do not see a great difference between most martial artists and general society, but for that matter I do not see a vast difference between social club Christians who attend church on Sunday, and live like the world the rest of the week either.

A true Christ follower is both rare and precious to this old world.

I find that bold part to be a profound truth…..

 

Bas Rutten Workout

 

 

 

the art of war

Image via Wikipedia

No blog about tactics, strategy or warriorship would be complete without a post about The Art of War, one of the oldest and most well known books on military strategy.

The Art of War is military treatise written in 6th century China by Sun Tzu. It is composed of 13 chapters, each one devoted to a different aspect of warfare. The Art of War was the definitive work on military strategies and tactics of its era, and is still one of the basic texts on the subject. It has had an influence on military thinking, business tactics, and many other fields. The Art of War is still studied by soldiers in many modern military schools such as the USArmy Command and General Staff College.

The English translation of The Art of War can be read here.

 

jack of all trades?

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I just read this passage from the Hagakure:

There are many people who, by being attached to a martial art and taking apprentices, believe that they have arrived at the full stature of a warrior. But it is a regrettable thing to put forth much effort and in the end become an “artist.” In artistic technique it is good to learn to the extent that you will not be lacking. In general, a person who is versatile in many things is considered to be vulgar and to have only a broad knowledge of matters of importance.

The way I read it, Yamamoto Tsunetomo was saying that some people look at teaching, practicing or dedicating themselves in a martial art as the pinnacle of “warriorship” but that becoming an “artist” and being a “warrior” are two different things.

He furthermore says that when learning “artistic technique” it is good to learn only enough to be proficient, but he says that only having a broad knowledge of matters of importance is “vulgar”.

I am a bit confused by this passage. The first part, where he says that it would be “regrettable” to become an artist, I think I understand. It seems to me that he is saying “look..a warrior USES martial arts to accomplish his goals…martial arts do not define the warrior. Don’t get so involved in practicing the martial arts that you forget what your job is.”

I tend to agree with that sentiment. I have stated repeatedly in my writings here that I think that simply teaching or training in a martial art doesnt place you in the “warrior class“. If you want to BE a warrior, you have to get out there and put your ass on the line FOR something. Enlist, become a Fireman, an EMT, a cop, join the Peace Corps…get out there and DO something. Even if you have no martial arts experience I believe that you are closer to being a “warrior” than someone who goes to the corner dojo twice a week.

The people who hone their martial skills, the citizens who attend every firearms school from Blackwater to Gunsite…they are training in the “warrior arts” or perhaps trying to live “AS a warrior”, which is perfectly fine and honorable. Many of them are simply enjoying a hobby, some are preparing themselves to be self-sufficient in defensive skills, and myrid other legitimate reasons. Then there are some who think that practicing the skills of the warrior somehow “makes” them a warrior, but paying to learn all the skills and techniques of a Navy SEAL isnt the “same as” BEING a Navy SEAL.

So I agree…being an “artist” and being a “warrior” are different things. Then again, perhaps I am simply interpreting this writing to match my opinion because Tsunetomo goes on to say:

In artistic technique it is good to learn to the extent that you will not be lacking. In general, a person who is versatile in many things is considered to be vulgar and to have only a broad knowledge of matters of importance.

I can read the first part  in two ways. Either he is saying; “when you are an Artist you can “get away with” learning enough so as to not be lacking”. Or he is saying; “when you are a warrior who is learning an artistic technique it is best to not waste your time honing it too much to the detriment of other skills”.

I think that the last sentence tends to support the first interpretation. As if the writer is saying “well..if you are an Artist then learning enough to get by in many skills is all well and good, but being a generalist is vulgar.”

That tends to run contrary to my understanding of what “artist” means though. I would think that the “artist” would be concerned with refining and honing every minutiae of technique, while the warrior has many skills he/she needs to do their job.

Then again perhaps the authors “artist” was different than our modern interpretation of the term. Maybe he was saying; “Martial Artists are interested in learning anything and everything to do with their art so they tend to learn just enough to be skillful in those many things. The Warrior should not worry about gaining many mediocre skills, he should focus on becoming expert at his necessary skills (i.e. swordsmanship, archery, horesmanship etc.).”

To make a modern military analogy, this is like saying a “military artist” would be someone who tries to learn about everything; artillery, airborne operations, naval operations, intelligence, infantry tactics, armor etc. As such the “military artist” gains a broad but shallow knowledge of all these skills. Its as if Tsunetomo is saying “dont be a Military Artist…focus on your infantry skills. You may not know squat about Tank Warfare but you will be an Infantry expert.”

I wish that Tsunetomo was around so I could ask him to clarify. Does anybody else have an interpretation of this passage that differs from mine?

Any way you interpret it, this passage raises some interesting thoughts about the relationship between your “mission” and your training goals.

 

look ma im on the internet-siniwali

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My good friend and martial arts instructor Paul Martin has put together an online course for learning a basic Filipino Martial Art technique called Siniwali. Siniwali means “weaving” in Tagalog and is the technique you see on the silver screen when a character is swinging weapons around with both hands. Paul had to use his son and myself as demonstration dummies. You can link to his Udutu course site here.

 

threat indicators

Threat Indicators and Personal Safety

 

MMA conditioning

A nice example of MMA conditioning and how it paid off in a match. The fighter is Paulo Thiago.

 

dojo wars…dont get any on ya.- influences

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As part of my series on silliness in the martial arts, I would like to point you to an excellent article at Marc ‘Animal’ MacYoung’s site NO NONSENSE SELF-DEFENSE called “Dysfunction in the Martial Arts”.  He starts the article by saying:

A psychiatrist we know is fond of saying: “There is an assumption of sanity in this culture.” By this she means when you are dealing with people, you automatically assume they are sane. In a very real sense, this assumption is a courtesy you extend to the people you are dealing with. It is almost as though you are saying, “Out of politeness I will assume you are sane, and deal with you accordingly.”

If that assumption doesn’t turn out to be correct, things can get troublesome.

Not to imply that everybody that gets involved in “dojo wars” is “crazy”. I think that some of the excessive involvement in the drama is simply the human attraction to “soap opera” and drama. People like to feel that they are part of something “important”. Combine that with an inherent urge towards “tribalism” and “group identity” and you have an environment ripe for conflict. Marc talks about this phenomena:

The style wars, dojo politics, trauma dramas, Internet flaming, persecution, cults and countless other examples of outrageous behavior in the martial arts culture take on entirely different implications when considered from the stand point of dysfunctional people acting out.

That’s not martial arts or self-defense, nor is it even about the martial arts culture, it’s something else being hidden behind the name of those things. In fact, it would be safe to say, most of the arguments are red herrings; less about the topic and more about personal agendas. Agendas which can be strongly influenced by neurotic, dysfunctional and — sometimes — disturbed thinking. I mean stop and think about it, if the greater goal of personal safety is to keep people safe from violence and harm, then how come there is so much fighting, quarrelling, rude and obnoxious behavior going on in the name of self-defense and the martial arts? For people who claim to be able to teach you about self-defense, they sure aren’t walking their talk. Instead they spend a lot of time jumping headlong into flame wars, style wars, verbally attacking each other and creating all kinds of strife, hard feelings and trauma drama. That’s not self-defense, that’s fighting. More specifically, that is what is known in psychological terms as “acting out”

The rest of the piece goes on to describe some of the psychological and emotional disturbances that one can find in the world of martial arts and why martial arts in particular tends to attract people of these types:

And run into them you will in the MA world. As we stated earlier, there seems to be an attraction to the martial arts/self-defense world for disturbed people; who can be any personality type and anywhere along the continuum. Why? In psychology a known problem is “self-medication.” This occurs when a person with a mental disorder attempts to quell it by regularly ingestion a certain type of chemical. They initially attempt to do this because the drug seems to even them out in the short run. Unfortunately, without a doctor prescribed regime of medication, addiction commonly results.

A behavioral equivalent also exists. A person can become addicted to a type of behavior. Compulsive behavior occurs when a person engages in a certain type of behavior to the point of destructiveness and/or obession. While many people know about Alcoholics Anonymous and Narcotics Anonymous, do you also realize that there are groups like Gamblers Anonymous, Overeaters Anonymous and Sexaholics Anonymous, Emotions Anonymous and Co-dependants Anonymous? Groups that are dedicated to overcoming behavioral addictions?

Any behavior can become addictive in an attempt to mentally self-regulate or repair damage — including a fixation on self-defense, fighting and martial arts. With this in mind, it not unreasonable idea that people who are obsessively training for “self-defense” are commonly using it as a means of avoiding dealing with their issues. I mean face it…how often are you physically attacked? Then why obsess on it? Or is it a way to avoid other, more realistic issues? These can be any number of possible conditions ranging from obsessive compulsive, bipolar disorder, paranoid personality, primary delusional, secondary delusional, projection, post traumatic stress disorder to dependant personality, to name a few.

Putting that in layman’s terms: A person is attempting to shore up holes within themselves by adding in the ability to fight and/or learn the ultimate fighting art. Think about it, how often is self-confidence and self-respect promoted as one of the selling points of even the more mainstream martial arts? While it is true that the martial arts can assist in achieving these goals, if the problem is severe, without professional psychiatric help and supervision a very real possibility exists of such an attempt reinforcing the problem instead of solving it.

Another possible explanation is that instead of assisting in overcoming these problems, this kind of training can be used to reinforce them. That is to say instead of altering the behavior that puts a person into conflict with others, a certain type apparently is learning how to fight in order to be able to get away with that behavior. Why change an aggressive, dysfunctional behavior when you think you can beat up anyone who objects to it? This is especially true when you are willing to ferociously attack anyone who dares question your assumptions — if not physically then verbally. Why learn people skills when you are engaging in training that supports your belief that knowing how to fight is all you need in order to be safe? The mindset apparently is: If I can kick the world’s ass, then I’m not the one who has to change.

This is why we say such people seem to view MA/SD as a way to act out and reinforce their beliefs and dysfunctions. It also seems the more extreme the school/organization, the greater the numbers and degree of dysfunction. On the other hand, some seemingly “more normal” schools can have their fair share too, although these tend to be a little more subtle. As such, a little bit of research into this subject is warranted — before you find yourself being sucked into trouble.