Tzu-Logic

We practice rolling very similar to the second roll. One of the requirements for purple belt is to be able to do a roll, pop up and hit or kick a pad (held by the instructor or your partner), then do a back roll away. It feels very natural for my body to tuck my head roll shoulder to hip. I was up a 6 foot ladder that started falling back from what it was propped against. I lost my balance and fell off. As soon as I hit the ground went into a back roll. I popped up and I was unharmed. It happened without any conscious thought. I'm sure I would have sprained my ankle badly had I not rolled.

Thank you all. My right arm was sore all week from working with that second degree black belt. He really pushed me hard. The bruise* on my arm was worth knowing I can stop a heavy attack. *We don't usually train to the point of bruising. However things get ramped up several notches for tests. And by the time you are testing for brown they go pretty dang hard on you.

"It is not in the knowing of the art, but in the doing of the art that truly makes one a warrior." -I'm not sure who said it, but we say it at the end of every class. "There is only one rule... Survive!!" I said this one day in class and it caught on with a lot of the other students. They still say it lol. " Softness triumphs over hardness, feebleness over strength. What is more malleable is always superior over that which is immoveable. This is the principle of controlling things by going along with them, of mastery through adaptation." -LAO-TZU And my signature has two quote that are very near and dear to my heart. Good thread idea

I am bored tonight so I thought I would write about my experiences at my most recet test, my brown belt for Shaolin Kempo/Inayan Kadena de Mano. They are taught seperately and then woven together to compliment each other. It's pretty cool. The test was two hours long or so. And it was fairly physically grueling. We did KDM drills for pretty much the whole first hour. Just switching between drills when the instructor said to. I worked with someone of my own rank (Green with brown stripe) for the whole test. One of the things about practicing KDM is that muscles in the arms get toughened up through lots of practice. The second degree black belt that was helping test us had me do a few drills with him to test my speed and coordination. His blocks were like running my arms into oak branches . I survived but my arms were very tired out after working with him. After Kadena de Mano testing it was time for the shaolin kempo techniques. I had to successfully preform 15 different tecniques (Some schools might call them bunkai??) Then it was forms (which is my favorite thing!) I preformed Kata 1, Kata 2, 3 pinan 4 pinan, statue of the crane, and 5 pinan. One of the students broke down and started crying during the forms part, they were really nervous. My instructor asked her if she was going to give up, she wiped off her tears and said she wanted to try again. She was able to preform her form correctly, and passed the test. My instructor kept trying to play mind games with me as part of the test. Wanting me to get frustrated with him. I didn't take the bait lol He said to me at the end when he gave me my belt, that he can remember a few years ago when I would have gotten upset with those games. And that my test tonight was as much mental as it was the physical. Things I learned: I need to spend more time doing KDM drills with partners. The basics are super important even at brown belt! I really need to improve on some things that got a little sloppy. So yeah, I'm brown belt! I've been waiting for this belt a long time! I am still trying to learn just as much every lesson I can. In that regard I'm still a white belt. I will always be trying to learn from every moment. I hope you all enjoyed my test night story.

I am right there with you! I believe it has to do with not feeling the need to prove yourself anymore. Funny how that works

What a great idea for a thread. 5 years ago I was just I hadn't actually started MA yet. That came a year later. I was physically overweight and very out of shape. Mentally I had recurring bouts of depression. Spiritually I was angry and bitter. It seems like a lifetime ago. I was a completely different person. My life was totally different. Different city, different job, different spouse. ha ha ha wow so much has changed in the last 5 years Now here I am a fresh brown belt in Shaolin Kempo, and about that same level in Eskrima (doesn't have traditional belt system). Physically I am much more fit, and not overweight at all. Mentally I am focused and achieving my goals. Spiritually I am at peace with the universe. 5 years from now I hope to have quite a bit of world traveling under my belt. Which will definitely be black by then. Possibly a second degree black belt with enough practice. I hope to continue training as much as I can. 20 years from now I hope to still be learning as much as I am now. I would really like to learn Aikido. I am also interested traditional Tai-Chi. Whatever roads I go down over the next 20 years I'm sure I'll continue practicing MA in one form or another. I may be living in a different country by then. Who knows what kind of interesting things I will find to learn out there.

I picked physical fitness. All of those things are good. And learning a skill is a definite side effect. I have formed bonds of camraderie to. But the main reason I study MA is to hone my body. To stretch and push myself physically. I believe a fit body helps keep a fit mind, and fit spirit. It's a little cheesey sounding, but it's working well for me

1. I practice martial arts as a way to be physically active. I also started training because I was tired of being scared all the time (of physical confrontations etc.) My motives have changed over the years, as now it's more about staying active and less about conflict. I am not afraid anymore, but I can't really say that came from just practicing martial arts (although it did play a part.) 2. The biggest way it has affected my work life is how I move. I have to walk a lot because I work at a large facility and it's necessary for me to move between different floors and areas constantly. I used to meander about and take elevators. Now I'm always full on power walking and always take the stairs. Also solid post JusticeZero with the part about people getting in your face. I agree with you completely.

I know what you mean JCavin. I used to have a more physically demanding job. I definitely wouldn't show up to class with the 'umph' of a day off. One of my favorite things to do when I'm really physically tired is slow motion katas. I will go through my form in a very relaxed almost Tai-Chi type of manner. I just try to have the best posture and body movement possible. It's not physically demanding, but it does help quite a bit when you speed the forms back up.

I responded. I hope it helps.

I was looking at my post and It occurred to me that it sounds like a total cop out leaving out my own interpretation of those quotes. Expressing myself through writing is not one of my greatest strengths, so bear with me. So who are you? Go ahead and stop for a minute and think about it.... All of the things you just defined yourself as, is the ego. Webster’s dictionary defines “ego” as: “the self especially as contrasted with another self or the world”. So your ego is literally your idea of who you are. It's how you define yourself as opposed to another person. I'm not defining it as bad, or negative thing. I'm just defining it. Now in some schools of Buddhism one of the main goals is to "destroy" the ego. This leaves you in a state of "one-ness" or Nirvana; enlightenment. However, I'm not Buddhist, and as far as I know you aren't either. So let's try to bring it down into more practical terms. I think Wastelander has an excellent post that shows how attachment to the ego can be destructive. When you are attached strongly to your ego, your idea of yourself as a powerful, knowledgeable martial artist, you close yourself down to new ideas. This can be seen in other areas of life as well. For example, A manager who yells at an employee for trying to find a way to be more efficient. His ego is threatened that someone may be smarter than him. Because of the attachment to the ego fear arises that his own image of himself may be false. By clinging to our (often bloated) definitions of who we are, we often put ourselves into unnecessary conflict with each other, and ourselves. I'm certainly not trying to push any spirituality on to any of you. I think there are some very real, tangible benefits to reevaluating your idea of yourself. Possibly avoiding a needless ego conflict and using that energy for something meaningful to you. I hope this was helpful. Thank you for your time

The ego is quite simply, a creator of illusions. As Ramana Maharshi said, "The Self alone exists. When you try to trace the ego, which is the basis of the perception of the world and everything else, you find the ego does not exist at all and neither does all this creation that you see." That is probably pretty far out there for most of you. Let me share with you a quote from a more modern teacher, Osho: "The longing of the mind is to be extraordinary. The ego thirsts and hungers for the recognition that you are somebody. Somebody achieves that dream through wealth, somebody else achieves that dream through power, politics, somebody else can achieve that dream through miracles, jugglery, but the dream remains the same." What does this mean? Well I think this is going to mean something different to each person that reads it. And I'm not going to bias your view of it with my clumsily worded interpretation. much respect

It is not in the knowing, but in the doing of the art, that truly makes one a warrior. We recite that at the end of every class.

Hi! Welcome! enjoy your stay

Zen Master Alan Watts remixed and set to modern music. What a neat video. Even if you don't buy into the deeper spiritual meanings, it's a good reminder of the fact that we are literally connected to each to other. Biologically connected through the planet we all share. http://youtu.be/0EygqL--RW4 It's by the same guy Thoughts?

In Inayan Eskrima we have that same technique. What we do is start with that same cross block, deliver the fully loaded backhand, then follow through with a left cross and a right cross. It can also be used as a drill between two people, block the backhand, sticky hand to the left cross to parry that, then do the cross block on the right cross and it starts over going the other way. It's a very simple, very effective combo.

HI! Welcome. This is a very good place to be. Everyone is real respectful. Sounds like you have a great attitude and will fit right in. Feel free to browse around and post! Just don't get too excited and karate chop your monitor (it happens more often than you may think)

I realize this thread is pretty old now, but I wanted to give the OP a big thumbs up. Sun-Tzu would be very proud of you. You avoided needless conflict. You won on a higher level.

Alpha One Four, I think this has been a great thread. Lot's of interesting techniques posted. I think there is also a lot of wisdom coming from the experienced folks on this thread. I honestly can't see their skepticism as personal attacks on you. I truly believe they were asking you with respect. I think it's a good idea to already be able to respond to skepticism before you even officially announce your art. You are going to need be very sure of yourself because you will need to be able to show people how much you believe in your style. Without firm confidence and ability to answer any and all questions about your style, you won't win many students. So basically I'm not commenting on your intentions of starting an art at all. But rather encouraging you to be very well prepared if you are going to 100% go for it. Perhaps try imagining a scenerio where your first week of opening a dojo you have to explain your art to skeptic potental customers. Use the questions in this thread to train yourself mentally. Best of luck to you with your journey my friend. edit: I accidentally a word

Bread and butter for me? Filipino boxing styles. Various strike combos with lot's of knee level kicks. It's very effective at close range. A lot of elbows. Kadena de Mano principles of "defanging the snake" meaning attacking the arms and hands to take away the enemy's weapons. I practice a lot of various katas and techniques, but if I needed to defend myself I know for sure that stuff would flow out of me.

It's hardtimes everywhere friend. I actually had to give up going to my dojo for 2012 until about a week ago. I worked two jobs almost all year and couldn't fit classes into my schedule (or finances.) It was a long 10 months away from my "MA family" But my life changed again so now I'm back. Your situation actually sounds pretty positive. Working two jobs can be rough, but it sounds like your living in a cool place. And getting into shooting is really fun! Let us know what you get for a handgun! I'm partial to the Springfield XD series myself.

I understand what you are saying justice. I fight with elbows A LOT! To this day I still do not know of a way to throw a "friendly elbow" lol. I also do a lot of low kicks for the sides of the knees, once again not safe for friendly sparring. So sparring ends up being more of boxing match with some mid level kicks thrown in. It doesn't ever feel like a real fight to me. I have no desire to harm a sparring partner. I have experienced a lot of frustration from this. Anyone wanna start a fight club with me??

I own this in book form. It is an excellent read. It was one of my earliest intros into self inquiry. I still enjoy revisiting those stories. Especially after a great night of training. It's one of those books that you can read many times and find different useful things each time you do. As you grow sometimes you may notice the lessons in the stories have new deeper meanings. Thank you.

Very thought provoking post, thank you. What it brought to mind for me was one of my favorite Buddha quotes on patience, The bucket is not going to be filled in one day, to accept that, and then continue putting drops in... well that's pretty much life. I like the quotes better right there good post sensei8

To reach enlightenment is to reach a state when you are no longer aware of yourself as a separate ego identity. This is actually something very difficult for me to put into words... Let me borrow a quote: