chalkdust

Thanks! Sorry for my mis spelling of maestre! This was very helpful and interesting. Much respect and thanks. I will continue to train and learn and I will check that book out. Gotta run now, but I will return! You are right about the zen. Thats what my teacher is always saying. Just do it, dot think about it, just do it! Everything has to come from the hips and I need to always work on relaxing.

nice do so called "advanced concepts" make their way into the capoeira disciplines? I see already my maestre talks about moving with the joints and not the muscles which I take to mean to be aware of your body and keep relaxed until the right moment of focus. surely a concept found in asian systems! it would be interesting if candoble or macumba capoeiristas combines their spirituality, possessions, rituals etc and understanding of elements in the west african or great lakes cosmologies with their capoeira in a way similar to animal and elemental meditations in kung fun and tai chi and perhapse karate if it is out there (i assume it must be) I know I have seen videos that say a capoeirista needs mandinga and to know what st rules him. this is yoruban or palo (kongo) or macumba (fon and ewe?) way of looking at it i think.

I would like to know how to think about shotokan, shorin ryu, uechi and goju and also the famous uber awesome kyokushin I believe I am in a good shotokan dojo but would like to make the most of my training. I am into traditional martial arts: chinese, japanese, african, and maybe even czech (systema!) . I am into the weird stuff, the ground connection, the tan dien, very good conditioning, flexibility, expansion and contraction, kime, meditative berating, reflexes, body awareness, (meditation), iron body conditioning, and of course balance, the balance of a "real" ninja on plum blossom poles! I dont care about sparring outside of the reflexes trained by it. I am intrigued by chi or ki development and working with elements and mental focus "things" that come from eastern philosophies, the chi, earth air water and fire, the animals. what do u think? what should i train in my martial arts life? currently doing capoeira and shotokan, just started chen tai chi... do a little yoga from a sai baba lineage excited to tie this all together.