sdargie

Hey there. I study Hapchidado which is mix of a bunch of things. Why don't you take a shot at describing your style? A lot of people here study multiple or combined styles.

Nothing that helps you learn how to live better is obsolete. Period. I've been certified in running both archery and gun ranges for overnight camps and if anything I saw many more rules for gun safety than I saw for archery. And what about those gun nuts at the shooting range everyday that apply the rules of the range to how they live? What about those that deeply respect the power of a gun and strive to become as responsible with a gun as they are drivin a car? What makes them inferior to the punk black belt that takes cheap shots at lower belts? (That has been described numerous times on this board so it's not completely hypothetical.) So enlightenment is based on wardrobe, huh? How many threads are there on this forum bashing McDojos? I would suggest that there are high school wrestling coaches that are creating better fighters/citizens than some senseis/sifu/sabumnim/etc.

Yes they are, as long as you treat it like an art form and not a toy. If it's ok to launch a projectile with a string and call it a martial art (archery/kyudo) why isn't it ok to launch a projectile with a small explosive (guns)? Think of bullets as shuriken with a kick.

Tonfa would probably fall right in with TKD movements.

Not to belittle it with an analogy but Sakki is like spider sense right? I only caught a brief mention of the name in a book but it's being sensitive to when you are in danger right? Now are you practicing Sakki when you're aware of danger or are you aware of your opponents Sakki when you feel threatened? Forgive my ignorance but I'm pretty sure I've been practicing this in training but didn't know there was a name for it.

You should use it your advantage for a tournament. Cultivate it. Dreadlock it. Groom it. Love it. Get all Cousin It and see how many fighters concede. Open a school; Lotsofhair-ryu

So it's the thing at 18 when you feel uncomfortable about your body.

I bought some after I turned 20. There was no mention in any catologue about an age requirement. Are there requirements like this in other states besides Mass?

How old do you have to be to buy sai?

Can anyone recommend some good books on the philosophy of ninjutsu, kung fu as a whole or hung-gar specifically and tae kwon doe? I'm not interested in those "secret weapons/techniques" books since that's what training is for. My Sensei gave me some to look for but I'd like to throw my net really wide in case I can't find the ones he recommended.

Small bag o' tricks- PROS: 1) Quick basic understanding and lots of time to get REALLY good at those techniques. 2) There are many, many, many different applications to different techniques so once you've mastered the "how", learn all the different "whens" and "whys". CONS: 1) Could get boring doing the same few things over and over. 2) People might leave too soon with an inadequate sense of prepardness. "This is it? Oh, man I got this. Who wants some?" SPLAT! *sound of a MA becoming humbled by a drunken jerk* Big bag o' tricks- PROS: 1) Lots of choices mean that you're not trying to force one technique on any situation just because it's the only one you know. (You could read that as a CON for the above list too.) 2) You are always learning new things in class and new ways to apply old things which keeps you in the zen "beginners mind" and keeps you humble and eager for more. CONS: 1) You get stuck in a fight trying to make the "right choice" of which technique to use. 2) You aren't REALLY proficient at any technique. CONCLUSION: Use an average amount of very malleable techniques.

Taeguk Jeung (TKD) 1 and 2, although I'm currently learning 3, and Tiger Rising (Hung-gar Kung Fu).

Haha..I would go the other way in a tournament. I would have a brand new belt to make them think I had just tested the other day and didn't really know what I was doing yet just to play off the opponents cockyness.

I said yes but I was thinking if you used it aggresively or if you disarmed a knife from an attacker and started stabbing them then that's not good either.

Hey there.

hmmm...If I had to have a Katana in one hand I would probably leave it at that. If I could change the sword and add a secondary weapon I would use a Jian in my right and a sai in the left.

Hello

Congrats!

If you classify ninja/musician whatever by what it says on your tax form or your family tree then it's black and white. But for the rest of us that weren't born into the Togakure-ryu would like to know what shade of grey we are. I'm not going to get into this kind of debate again but I will link to it in case anyone is interested. http://rarb.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=1641&highlight=

What a great phrase. I'm going to share that with my dojo tonight.

wow, this is real similar to a debate I had on another forum about when a musician can be considered a musician. The "knowing how to..." logic came up a lot too which is what made me think of it.

I don't see how any one art is more dangerous to spar with than another. Hung gar is part of our art so I can say that we spar with it as much as we use the TKD part or the aikido part or the Ninjutsu part and somehow we all survive. We use tiger strikes as atemi in the middle of a sankyo for example. The only rule we have is that you shouldn't break your partner but other than that go %100.

You bring up a good point that's not immediately clear unless you've read some of Morihei Ueshibas outlook on aikido. It is very true that kaitenage, shihonage, koshinage, kotagaeshi, iriminage, etc can be very lethal. There is an almost imperceptable difference between throwing an opponent and ripping their arm out of it's socket. However, if any of these techniques are done with the intent to harm or kill it's not aikido anymore.

Haha, awesome. I didn't even see Enviromans post before I replied. Glad to see we're on the same page.

Aikido is not for killing at any level. If your intent is to kill people then I doubt you would be studying aikido in the first place. If your intent is to diffuse a situation before killing is the only option then aikido is worth the time and effort.