Spartacus Maximus

The only thing possible to do in writing is a rough approximation based on English pronunciation. Getting the exact pronunciation and rythm of spoken language requires hearing it, listening and repeating.

This question in one that comes to mind when thinking about the life of skilled martial artists. Especially those who have managed to continue training for decades while living a successful professional and family life.

Here is the dojo kun as shown on the official website in Japanese. Hitotsu, ware ware wa shinshin o renma shi, kakkofubatsu no shingi o kiwameru koto Hitotsu, ware ware wa bu no shinzui o kiwame, ki ni hasshikan ni bin naru koto. Hitotsu, ware ware wa shitsujitsugou ken o motte, jiko no seshin o kanyou suru koto. Hitotsu, ware ware wa reisetsu o omonji, choujou o keishisobou no furumai o tsutsushimu koto Hitotsu, ware ware wa shinbutsu o toutobi, kenjou no bitoku o wasurezaru koto Hitotsu, ware ware wa chisei to tairyokuto o koujou sase, koto ni no zon de ayamatazaru koto Hitotsu, ware ware wa, shougai no shugyou o karate no michi ni tsuuji, kyokushin no michi o mattou suru koto. Instructions on how to correctly pronounce Japanese can easily be found on YouTube. Listening and repeating will help but here is a rough guide "F" is a sound between "f" and "h" in English. "R" is approximately between an English "L" and "R" "A" as in "father" "E" as in "elephant" "I" as in "ee" in "meet" but shorter sound "O" as in "old" "U" is like the "oo" in "boo" but slightly shorter These are just approximations based on English sounds. The actual pronunciation should be learned by copying acutal speakers. Good luck

When one understands the principles and mechanics of a technique as well as its purpose, the importance of kata becomes clear. kata is essential for learning these points and feeling how they function. Kata is a drill in body mechanics and movement principles. These, however must be correct and understand otherwise it is a dance. Or like memorizing and singing a song in a language one neither speaks nor understands. Kata is but one part of karate and is of no use if it is not fully integrated to kihon and kumite. The three are meant to complement and complete one another. They are not meant to be considered separately. When a training partner or your instructor is available practise the techniques together. Kata is for when one is training alone to practise and reinforce what was done with partners.

Seen it. That's one of the best parts of that movie.

A question for anyone training regularly while holding a full time job (that is not teaching martial arts) and having a family. How much time are you able to spend training in a week, not counting time at the dojo or school? Personally, it is a great week when 4 hours total is possible. Average is slightly less and not including 2 hours at the dojo on weekends. Maybe more can be done, but it is doubtful with 10h of work and family/children/household to mind.

One thing that these types of annoying comments and questions have taught me is to become expert at changing the subject or stirring the conversation in a different direction. Luckily this is only necessary for the few times when avoiding the subject is not possible.

This issue is obviously more complicated than it appears at first glance. None of my instructors ever set foot in a ring or engaged in "free sparring". Only two of them had the misfortune of having had to use if "for real". This happened decades ago in different times and in places where violence was quite common. Okinawa is the late 50's to mid 60's was not a nice place. Those who had the experience see it as a trauma. The one thing they all have in common is their constant reminders for students to avoid all types of fighting and never give in to provocations.

A common theme in discussions about martial arts is that to be considered "effective" and "legitimate", a person must have experience in the ring or in a actual situations. Martial artist who have neither or are unable to prove it are instantly dismissed, or labeled as "fake". Does a lack of experience using martial arts in live situations or full-contact type bouts really disqualify someone from being a knowledgeable and skilled martial artist? How about as an instructor? A ring fighting record is as easy to verify as it is to hoax. "Real world" experience is impossible to verify with any accuracy because such instances rarely have an audience or witnesses.

What exactly would qualify as a "traditional style" logo? How exactly could one identity elements that might suggest such a tradition or trend exist? If such a thing does exist, where could it be said to originate? The birth country or region of a given martial art? The only quasi-universal trait martial arts logos appear to have is that as a general rule, smaller and older martial arts dojo with strong ties to their region of origin tend to favour more sober designs.

This sort of thing is one of the reasons why one might choose to keep one's interest in martial arts and training to oneself. After dealing with such things a number of times it reaches a point where any answer, attempt to explain or any reply becomes a waste of time. The majority of people who do not train do not understand and do not care to try. Mentioning martial arts or attempting to talk seriously in all but the utmost superficial way about it is akin to have a serious debate about life with a 3year old. Avoiding the subject and restricting who knows about one's interest in it seems like a good way to get along. It sure spares a great deal of headaches.

Belts or any other objects may come sooner or later. It is different for everyone and only relevant in whatever dojo one trains. All that is left when one changes back to everyday clothes and outside of that context is what one can or cannot do. What counts is what one has learned and how well.

Simplicity is always best when it comes to martial arts schools. Overly loud, complicated and colorful designs are not necessary and can often be distracting.

Context is everything with kicks or whatever other martial arts technique. A roundhouse kick has an optimum range and applicability. How effective it is depends on how well the kicker can kick, and more importantly how good said kicker is at knowing when and where to kick. To kick for maximum effect, all this must be done with great speed and timing. All of this can only be achieved with diligent and assiduous training. Like the song says "kung fu (and martial arts in general) fighting has got to be fast as lightning. You've got to have expert timing"

In general there are two reasons why certain techniques in certain kata might be done slowly. As others have explained, this varies from dojo to dojo and even from one instructor to another in some cases. The first reason for slowness is to emphasize a key point and make it easier to teach. Slowing down any movement, especially subtle or complex ones also allow one to feel and remember the required body mechanics to make it effective. The second reason is a question of rythm. Each kata has its specific rythm and some parts are easier to evaluate by instructors or judges when done slowly.

It is entirely possible to train in a traditional way while taken full advantage of the modern equipment and knowledge available. Modern knowledge of how the body functions, for example, is very useful for planning and optimizing training sessions.

The logo of my dojo is simple and "boring" compared to most others. It is the Okinawan three-pointed symbol(looks like three sickle blades stuck together) in a circle with the three Japanese characters for the name of the association inside it between the points of the symbol. No colours except black. The name of the association is embroidered in black calligraphy on the upper left side of the karate-gi. There is no patch and the logo is not worn anywhere on training equipment. It is only displayed on the dojo's main door. A few dan grade students as well as the instructor have a small pin slightly larger than a penny. Mine is pinned to my gear bag.

The man made a foolish decision to resist and ended up getting injured due to his lack of better judgment. The entire physical struggle was both trivial and unnecessary. Much trouble, aggravation and pain on both sides was entirely avoidable if only the man had swallowed his pride and sense of entitlement. It was his choice to stubbornly refuse to move and cause the authorities to remove him by force. His choice again to resist when said authorities came to do their job. What happened was no surprise at all given the man's behaviour. A wiser man would have quietly moved or left on his own and taken up legal and service issues with the concerned parties afterwards, instead of causing a commotion and inconveniencing everyone else around. If he had done that, then perhaps he might have had some recourse, instead he chose to act belligerent and got injured for his trouble.

Putting a specific age requirement to consider an instructor acceptable and credible doesn't make much sense. There are much more important factors to consider. In theory and hypothetically a younger person could be a better and more experienced teacher than someone older, but the fact of the matter is that most people, especially men, will find it more difficult to accept being taught by someone much younger than themselves. A teacher of any kind is a position of high responsibility and authority over other people. A person I that position ought to have the moral character and mental maturity to handle it. Without this one is unfit to teach whether one is 20 or 50

It is usually a good idea to train regularly wearing the kind of footwear one wears most often. The reason is perfectly logical: if by misfortune a situation arises where self defense is necessary and inevitable, one will likely be wearing that type of footwear and said footwear must not be a handicap. Except for rare cases, people usually wear some sort of shoes. Being able to move comfortably and quickly in them is important. Training barefoot is also important but for different reasons. Mostly because training the foot and strengthening the ankle to use as a striking weapon is more effective. Modern society has made it a custom and rule to wear shoes and most people rarely if ever walk about barefoot. Weather and social situation permitting, going barefoot is a habit. I try to go barefoot as often as possible, which means anytime outside work. This has made my feet calloused enough that blisters are no longer painful, just a bit gnarly.

Age is much less important than personality, character and skills( especially teaching skills). There is no specific age to be credible and acceptable as a karate teacher, other than being a fully responsible and mature adult.

As simple as can be. This means that the person being evaluated must be able to do what is expected and not make any major technical mistakes for the level in question. Either one has the skills or does not. Failing matters very little if one has the will and determination to keep improving. How long it takes is never the same.

Any self-defense course or class that spends more time or physical techniques than ways to avoid violence or potential threats is nonsense at worst and wishful thinking at best. Self defense is 90% avoidance and threat management. Physical techniques are of no use if one is unable to read the signs of a potentially dangerous situation before needing to physically defend oneself. The ideal self defense course should teach people to read and understand signs of potential danger and a few very simple counters to the most common attacks in social and criminal violence. It should also cover the difference between the two.

I meant drinking water. All other liquids are for enjoyment because they taste good but plain natural clean water is the only drink that truly quenches thirst. It is also he only one to replace essentials the body loses from sweating.

Peacefulness is meaningless if it is not a matter of choice supported by strength physical and moral. Both of these qualities can be forged through training and both are of great importance in making one useful and dependable to one's house, community and nation. There is a saying in Okinawan karate. It says to first train to defend yourself. When you get better train to defend your family; then your community and when you get better still, you must do it for your country. This means that the more one improves the more one's skills ought to benefit others.