Shotokan Karate - General Background (martial art description)
December 20th, 2007
History: Shotokan is both a young and an . It is ancient because its roots are deeply entrenched in the past, and young because, as it is expressed today, it is an art that is less than a 100 years old. Shotokan is characterised by its long and low stances, its powerful techniques and its dynamic forms. The founder of Shotokan, Gichin Funakoshi, was an Okinawan. He trained in the oldest of the Okinawan te (hand) systems as a young man and in the early 20th century brought what he had learned in the island of Okinawa to mainland Japan, where he demonstrated his art before the Emperor. He originally intended to return to Okinawa but was persuaded to to remain and continue teaching in Japan. Funakoshi’s pen name was Shoto (waving pines) and kan (hall). Hence Shotokan can be translated to mean “Shoto’s hall of the way of the empty hand”. While Funakoshi was the originator of Shotokan, it was really his son, Yoshitaka Funakoshi, who developed it into the form we know today. It rapidly grew in popularity, supported, encouraged and regulated by the powerful Japan Karate Association. Before long, it was to be found all over the world. Triads: Shotokan is built on what are known as triads, which are both real organisations and metaphors for something much deeper within the human psyche. There exists the physical triad of kihon (basics), kumite (sparring) and kata (forms), which require dedicated training and the constant perfecting of technique. This is followed by the moral triad of justice, mercy and compassion and finally by the ethical triad of duty, honour and loyalty. If we put all of the 9 triad principles together (9 symbolises perfection) we achieve the whole, rounded person. When these principles are practised in a martial art, they illustrate one of the fundamental concepts of Shotokan, as advocated by the founder, Gichin Funakoshi. His aim was to focus on the development of the human character as a whole being, rather than on winning and losing. Significance: While Shotokan is a wonderful form of relaxation or sport for many people, for those who practise it seriously it has a much deeper and wider significance. This deeper realisation, however, can only come after years of dedicated practice. While this is a dimension of the art that emerges rather slowly, Shotokan can still be enjoyed at all levels by hundreds of thousands of people throughout the world.
- Thanaseelan, click on <a target="_new" href="http://www.worthofwordplay.blogspot.com">http://www.worthofwordplay.blogspot.com</a> to view his main blog. Don't forget to check out the categories on his blog.
Learn how to put boxing gloves
Your hands might get damaged or broken if you dont properly take care of it for boxing. This process initiates by wrapping your hands with lengthy strips of cloth called hand wraps; this is followed by digging the hands into the boxing gloves. Here are few steps mentioned below which one should follow before putting on the boxing gloves. First of all fasten the hand wrap hook in the region of your thumb, and then enfold the wrapper in the region of your wrist three or four times. Enfold the wrapper in the region near knuckled four to five times (dont include the thumb). Keep your fingers stretch away from each other to permit for suppleness when making a fist. Continue this wrapping process the region at the base of your thumb, the thumb must be in such a position that it shouldnt touch the rest of your hand, following this take the cloth wrapping the out portion of your hand, just next to your pinkie. Continue wrapping the cloth at the back of your hand. Following the above steps the cloth wrapping process must continue across your palm and the inside of your hand, in-between the thumb and index finger. The cloth should be again taken to the pinkie side (i.e. back of your hand). Dont forget to make X pattern over the hand by crisscrossing amid the in and exterior parts of your hand, and then wrap the surplus in the region of your wrist. The end of the cloth wrapper should be tied at your wrist. Many of the wrappers have fabric fastening straps that can be protected at the wrist for a comfortable and tight feel. The completely wrapped hands must be placed in the gloves to completely feel relaxed and secure. The wrappers which have the fabric fastener should be strapped on the gloves for complete fitness. If appropriate, lace can be tied on each glove. Dont wrap the cloth very tightly, it should make your fingers movement easy going and not stuck.
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Kung Fu (Mok-Gar) - General Background
History: Shaolin Mok-gar kuen is one of the original family disciplines of Kung fu, from Southern China, and is well known for its kicking techniques. Practitioners are not restricted just to kicking, however, since the use of a full range of weapons is also part of the system. The resulting flexibility of attack and defence epitomises the original concept of Chinese martial arts: to express oneself fully in the attempt to triumph in combat. When engaging in combat, the objective is to win, so practitioners believe that to place any restrictions on one particular movement would be to put themselves at a disadvantage. Training: One of the unique training drills found in Mok-gar kuen is that of the darn gee kicking technique. In Kung fu, each school has its own method of teaching the kicks using various mechanical facilities. Irrespective the method, the aim is the same: to increase the freedom of leg movements, enhance speed, improve accuracy, and to develop and harden the soles of the feet. During the course of training, the darn gee helps practitioners to improve their stamina, hardness, speed, accuracy and strength techniques. This unique training drill is a stage that all Mok-gar practitioners must experience if they wish to develop a high standard within this style. The 108 movements that are the basis of the Mok-gar style can be used in many ways, from just a single punch, which may be all that is needed to win a fight, to multiple jumping kicks. When experienced students progress to learning a soft form of Kung fu, called Tai chi. Sifu Chan, who came to England to develop the system which incorporated the use of weapons, teaches the wu style Tai chi, based on the Taoist symbol of yin and yang. Tai chi teaches us to be aware of, and to react to, any form of attack, and to be ever-changing and formless. To learn and combine these 2 systems of Kung fu is not an easy task, but once acquired, the knowledge and experience can prove invaluable.
- Thanaseelan, click on <a target="_new" href="http://www.worthofwordplay.blogspot.com">http://www.worthofwordplay.blogspot.com</a> to view his main blog. Don't forget to check out the categories on his blog.
Ninjutsu Martial Arts Strategy: Key Moments and Phases in a Self-Defense Situation
A major pivoting point in my ninjutsu martial arts learning process happened when I realized that there was something more going on than just the punching, kicking, and what-not, that makes up conventional martial arts and self-defense training. In fact, once I saw it happening, my mind shifted away from the typical orientation toward this “style” or that, and started looking beyond the techniques themselves to…
…what was being “done” by each move in a technique string.
The question I began to ask was, “what’s the logic behind the moves?” And, “why are the moves where they are in this particular string?”
And THAT is what the book, “Controlling the Fight: The 5 Keys of Effective Self-Defense Strategy,” is all about.
It’s about understanding and recognizing the keys, or bridges, between one phase…
…one strategic moment…
…in a self-defense situation, and another.
It’s about controlling the “pieces” of a fight-scenario that must be strategically managed in the correct order, and at the correct time, if you are to be successful.
What are these critical moments within the flow of the fight? Let me first tell you what they’re NOT.
They are not…
…when you’re fist makes contact with the surface of your assailant’s body…
…when you lock his joints to immobilize him and prevent him from continuing to fight…
…when you take up your “way-cool” stance…
…the way with which you’ve been taught to hold your weapon, or…
…a hundred other “things” that most books, videos, and schools of martial arts and self-defense focus almost exclusively on.
But, they are not NOT these things either. If you don’t understand what I’m trying to point out here, you won’t see it.
Confused? Don’t be.
The point here is that, behind any move or technique itself - the punch, lock, throw, etc. - there is a “reason” that THAT particular technique is being done at THAT way, and at THAT particular time. There is something that the technique is either doing ‘for’ us or ‘to’ our attacker that gains, maintains, or accentuates our control of the situation. In short…
…there is something that makes a particular technique RIGHT and APPROPRIATE for any given moment…
…and completely WRONG for another.
And, make no mistake here. We are talking about a scientific application of principles that work, and have worked for centuries. And, this science works…
…for whoever is knowledgeable of, and in control of it in the fight!
What it means is this; if you know how to use this scientific application and make it the logic behind your strategic use of your skills and techniques, then you will probably win. If you don’t and your assailant does, you will lose.
So, what are these key moments or critical phases?
They are…
1) Your ability to assess your situation and understand what the assailant is doing or attempting to do to you.
2) Your defense against his incoming attacks. This is your ability to neutralize the effect that his attacks were to have on you.
3) How you unbalance him in a way that prevents your assailant from going on with his own strategy and literally puts him in a position of weakness.
4) The actual counter-attack that you use to knock him back or take him to the ground. This is the phase where you actually take the fight to him.
5) Your ability to assess the effect that your technique has had on your assailant and what your next move (escape, restrain him, or prepare for another barrage of attacks) should be.
In my attempt to learn how to really be successful at defending myself and others, I was lucky enough to find some teachers who could point the way towards many of these answers. Unfortunately (or fortunately, as this caused me to have to really look), we’re not talking about the step-by-step mechanics of the “style” here, as these can be taught by practically anyone to almost anyone else. What we ARE talking about is something that cannot be seen unless you know what you’re looking for. It’s invisible to the naked eye but there nonetheless.
Just know this. Each of these critical moments - these keys - is an important, no crucial, element in any overall defense strategy. But, where the book “The Karate-Myth” focused on the big-picture defense strategy that lead from General Awareness to Actually having to Deal with the Attacker (remember?), what I’m talking about here is the little-picture strategy of phase 6 - “dealing with the attack.”
Where an overall general self-defense strategy is ultimately designed to “avoid” dangerous situations altogether; this life-saving knowledge is all about effectively and efficiently handling one one you find yourself in it.
And, when the “rubber-meets-the-road,” so-to-speak…
…it doesn’t matter how many way-cool techniques you know, so much as…
…what you can “do” with them.
About the Author
Jeffrey Miller is the founder and master instructor of Warrior Concepts International. He is the author of “The Karate-Myth” and the Danger Prevention Tactics video, among others. For more info, subscribe to his ezine here.
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