Sauzin

Depends on what you're looking for but in my opinion, yes that would be a good idea.

As it was explained to me, loud breathing was placed into training for the sake of the instructor being able to hear the student's breathing. It is said a trained instructor can hear proper breathing vs improper breathing when it is done loudly. Kind of ironic since I do agree in many ways it does hinder energy flow. Of course I have only seen loud breathing practiced in arts that focus on hard chi conditioning so, there you go.

Well those weapons you just mentioned come from Kobudo. Kobudo or Kobujitsu are the terms used for Okinawan weapon arts. They are often practiced with various styles of Karate including but not limited to Shorin-ryu, Okinawan Kenpo, Isshin-ryu, Goju-ryu, Shito-ryu, etc... Here are a few topics that are very relevant to your questions and have been discussed at length... What weapon is practical? http://www.karateforums.com/viewtopic.php?t=13383&start=0 What martial weapon do you prefer? http://www.karateforums.com/viewtopic.php?t=1614 What’s your favorite weapon? http://www.karateforums.com/viewtopic.php?t=14044 Favorite martial arts weapon? http://www.karateforums.com/viewtopic.php?t=18812 A while back there was a topic on what historically was the superior weapon. I believe most people argued it has been the sword, but many others believed it to be the spear. I hope this helps.

This goes back to how the sai's are viewed. If you are viewing them as a weapon then perhaps by asking for "tricks" you are looking for helpful learning techniques. If that's your question is then yes there are many such techniques and in my opinion you need a qualified instructor to learn them properly. Some advice is to listen to the instructor. Always be aware of what direction the prongs are facing when you have the sais flipped in or chambered. And start slow. There are many other techniques with the sai, but when you are starting you should focus on the basics. If you're looking for advice on how to juggle or twirl them or add more "flash" to your techniques then I am definitely not the right person for to be answering your question as these things have no relevance to the way I practice them as weapons.

Sort of. My reflexes are about the same but my responses are better and I have more control over them. My senses are heightened as is my awareness of my body and my surroundings. I feel overall that I am better connected to my body then I was before.

Do you mind if I ask you're sensei's name. It might refresh Dean Steven's (my sensei's) memory.

There's been a couple of topics that have surrounded opinions and views of Shotokan and it's effectiveness. Take a look at these... http://www.karateforums.com/viewtopic.php?t=21754&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=0 http://www.karateforums.com/viewtopic.php?t=18075&start=0&postdays=0&postorder=asc&highlight=

I was tested for my 2nd dan at a rather large seminar that my Sensie was giving. He knew of the seminar date about a year before it happened and he told me then that I would be testing at that time. I think he had a pretty good idea of how I was progressing and decided to match the promotion date to the date of a large gathering. I don't think there's anything wrong with this. In many arts a big part of tests, especially in the upper belt ranks are not so much to actually test as they are to demonstrate and celebrate the student's accomplishments. Large martial gatherings are a particularly good place to do this. Also keep in mind the saying that belt testings are as much for the instructor as they are for the student. As far as not being ready, an instructor can always pull a student out of the event if he feels his progression has not kept up to what was previously expected. But in most dojo's it would take a lot for this to happen. Generally by the time an instructor has several brown belts he has a pretty good idea of who's progressing at what rate.

While I highly doubt he has any video of it, I'll ask my Sensie. I belive he was there at the time. Do you mind if I ask why you are looking for the footage?

That's my understanding as well. Self defense classes are often given by martial artists to attempt to educate and teach the most basic aspects of self defense for the time and commitment constrained individual. I've told many people, if you have the time and commitment then practicing a martial art is without a doubt the best way to become “as good as you can be” . But in many aspects it can be overkill. If someone is just looking to defend themselves against an a non trained combatant or just learn how to deal with bad situations defense classes can defiantly help, particularly when time constraints are an issue.

I would also vote the bo. It is very benificial to your empty hand work as well. In my opinion it teaches more about fighting then any other single weapon.

Sparring is a very different animal then real life. Basic blocks don't work very well with sparring because they are designed to counter attacks made at full speed, power, and range. They are also not designed so much to prevent you from getting hit as they are designed to knock an opponent off balance and position yourself to counter. Not getting hit is simply a nice side effect. Blocks also have many other applications involving striking, grappling, takedowns, and throws.

Actually every art does. They just differ in opinion as to what these things are. A good Okinawan karate class is the same way they just have a different method of getting there. Aikido also practices strikes and weapons so you really aren't missing out of any "range of combat" if you work with a good Aikido school either. Since you have a couple of good well rounded arts to choose from I would suggest choosing the art based on who is teaching it. This will make the biggest difference.

On another note, real is a matter of perspective as is the evidence of such. If you see, feel, smell or hear something you assume it is real, and while it may be to you it may not be to everyone. I have experianced such personal evidence of dragons but few others have. Are dragons still real? Well they are to me.

Dragons have become and in my opinion likely always have been a spiritual being or ideal. I don't think it is any more absurd to spiritually believe in dragons then it is to believe in many of the other saints, gods, and/or spiritual beings that are worshiped and interacted with in various religions. And I don't feel threatened to say that I myself, have seen a dragon. It was a very interesting experience. And no, drugs were not involved.

I would recommend finding one well rounded style and sticking with it. By well rounded style I mean a style that practices grappling, groundwork, striking, and throws. There are many styles that offer well rounded approaches such as traditional Okinawan Karate, many styles or schools of kung-fu, Aikido, etc... After practicing this one style for a while (10 years +) you will learn to apply all the other things you've learned through that style. Then and only then will it all fit together.

You know here's a point that I wish was better known. There are less differences between Chinese styles of Kung-fu and Okinawan Karate then I think many people really know. Not only did much of Okinawan karate originate from Chinese masters settling or stranded in Okinawa, but many founders of some of the most popular Okinawan Karate styles studied in China for decades before coming back to Okinawa and founding their style. In other words, aside from Okinawan tendencies to like no nonsense fighting, being well rooted, extensive use of low kicks, and throws that work well against very big people, Okinawan karate really is Chinese Kung-fu with gi's on. You just can't say things like "A karate punch is an iron bar and a kung fu punch is a ball and chain" because a lot of karate uses the same ball and chain punch you see in some Kung-fu. Of course I've seen some kung-fu guys that punch more like an iron bar so there you go. There really is no difference in punching between Okinawan karate and Kung-fu that you can find across the board in all styles.

If I could and I were you I would spend as much time working with the world renown guy as possible. I have a hunch on who that might be and you won't regret the time you work with him. While sparring with Tae Kwon Do guys might be fun in my mind I'd be afraid of developing mixed habbits that won't translate well into Shorin-ryu. The karate club sounds like a great place to spar anyways. It would also probably be good for working out when you don't want to drive two hours, and comparing info. I would suggest that you drop the Tae Kwon Do, spend as much time as you can with the other Shorin-ryu Sensei and spar/work out when convenient with the guys at the university. Just my two cents.

I like hakutsuru (we actually do a goju version) & seiuchin but my fav right now is probably gojushiho-cho. For weapons it is Shimijiri no kun ni.

Those 5 moves were with boken not swords. Normally a fight between two swordsmen weilding katana's wouldn't last longer then a second maybe two.

Yes I have worked with and sparred with TKD guys. The guys I worked with were good people. Great attitudes. They were very fast, good kickers, and they even knew some self defence. I've also trained with 2 different Judo practitioners. I was even more impressed with what they were doing. Very effective given the rules they were using and even without I'm sure they could make it work against most. Look I'm not bashing any martial arts here, I'm actually trying to offer a more open and accepting perspective on the term Martial Art. People can put the art into any work or sport. Arguing what is and is not an art is pointless. Anything having to do with weapons or fighting can be tied to martial. So let's give people some artistic leeway.

I can disagree. First of all (in my opinion) no one is meant to fight anyone. Fighting is a choice. Secondly what I believe is wrong in the situation Jay provided is not that the attacker used a knife but that he attacked and prevented the other person from getting away at all. This should never have happened in the first place. Yes the knife makes it even worse but the real crime is forcing a fight on someone because even without the knife, fights can kill. So to break it down. I would never force someone to fight. Secondly if someone forced me to fight I would only do what was necessary to get away. Thirdly if, in forcing me to fight, I sensed he intended to seriously hurt or kill me (with a knife or without) I would respond with whatever force was necessary to end the threat. That includes using any weapon at my disposal. Because if he isn’t intent on killing or seriously hurting me I guarantee I could get away, and there would be no fight. But if he is intent on killing or seriously hurting me what relevance does a weapon have? If the attacker has his way the end result will be the same regardless. This is why I don’t really understand why people are getting hung up on armed vs unarmed attacking. If it’s a real fight you can’t just say “Well I want to defend my life but I don’t want to defend it badly enough to use a weapon.” Now if you’re absolutely sure a weapon is unnecessary then, of course, why use it? But if you’re not sure, if there’s a chance that by not using the weapon you may forfeit your life to your opponent, why even take a chance? In my mind if the situation is extreme enough to get me to fight in the first place then it’s all most certainly extreme enough to use whatever means are available.

Hey Paul, I'm not advocating overkill here either. What I am advocating is "use what is necessary". And in a way I am implying that the time to really worry about what is overkill and what isn't cannot be during a fight. Let me see if I can explain this more thoroughly and put these comments in perspective. First of all if a drunken guy in a bar goes to punch me, regardless of whether or not it hits me I leave. I don't fight. If a friend of a friend gets offended and in my face, I leave. If someone is mistreating my girlfriend and being disrespectful, we leave. My view is that just because I'm a martial artist doesn't make me a hero. It's not my job nor my place to get into a physical confrontation if something that I deem "wrong" occurs. My honor means nothing if I risk a fight solely to defend it. To sum it up, what I'm saying is I don't fight unless my life is in danger or the life or womanhood of someone I love is in danger. I don't subscribe to the bar room brawl mentality and if it happened I'd take a few lumps to get out of there. So this brings me to my second point. If indeed the only time that I will fight is when extreme circumstances force me to what is "overreacting"? If someone was trying to seriously hurt me or kill me and I knew I could stop them without using lethal force then I would. But I'm not going to take any risk in doing so. If there is even a chance that I might get killed trying to spare the life of my attacker then I won't do it. And in a serious confrontation I'm not going to waste time weighing the chances. That in and of itself is too much of a chance when my ability to live is on the line. Now yes in the courtroom an understanding judge may let the self defense and "what would a reasonable man do" line slide when you could have otherwise gotten out of there. But I've known people here in Boise where that didn't happen specifically because they were a martial artist. For some reason in the court room incidents my friends have been apart of the judge expected some kind of higher standard of the martial artist and when the other party made claims the judge was either indifferent and let the charges stand or assumed that someone who trained in fighting was looking for it. I'm not saying that will always be the case. But if I had to choose between a black eye or a courtroom explanation. I'd take my chances with the black eye. I hope this puts it into perspective a bit. I'm not avocating that people bring out a knife if a drunken someone pushes them back. What I'm saying is that in almost any non-leathal circumstance I can think of I wouldn't be fighting I'd be leaving. Since all that's left is leathal or worse I can't imagine why someone would be weighing fair or not fair durring a fight. In my mind, at that point, I'm lucky if I can live to see the courtroom.l

Mmmm…so you’re talking about malicious intent but what is your question? I heard you mention “stopping a fight before it actually happens” and I’m wondering what you are fishing for there. You see in my opinion, malicious intent rarely ends a fight before it begins. Occasionally you scare away the easily shaken but those aren’t really the guys you need to worry about in the first place. Most of the time, with adrenalin running and tensions high, malicious intent will only encourage an escalation of the situation. Now I don’t want to get too meta-physical on you unless you really want to go there but I know of at least one art that encourages using black, ugly, and nasty malicious indent in a strike to cause a KO or death. If you’re talking about doing that I would suggest that you are a bit nuts. I don’t know if you believe in karma or not but to intentionally project such bad intent for pretty much any reason only makes the debt greater. Even if you don’t believe in karma you must understand that even practicing such crud isn’t healthy, let alone using it. Intent is potentially a huge discussion if you broaden it past this small scope though. Use of intent, sensing of intent, and manipulation of intent are sometimes considered the very highest level of an art. But it is such a broad area of discussion you will have to ask more specific questions before I go there.

Uh...sakki like rice wine? Umm...good stuff but it kind of sneaks up on you. Never misjudge a good bottle of sakki or you will regret it later. No seriously though you need to be more specific if you're talking about intent. Perhaps you could give an example and list your definition of intent and what you think can or cannot be done.