bushido_man96

There was a book on Jogo Do Pau through Chivalry Bookshelf that I had wanted to pick up, but never did yet. I don't think it was too pricey, either. I have read in some of the Western style books I have how some weapons systems started with the staff, and many techniques of the staff transferred to the sword styles they went on to work with. I believe the oak staff was also a common weapon kept by priests, too.

I think it would be hard to teach, and not work towards betterment. Teaching offers new challenges every time I step on the floor, whether its with a group of 4-7 year olds, or adult black belts.

I did ATA Taekwondo. Its how I got my start in the MAs. The ATA is a franchise, but that doesn't mean McDojo. You can't relegate every TKD school as a McDojo, just because the ATA is a big organization. The JKA is a big organization, too, but nobody titles it as a McDojo.

I think its just an Americanization. I don't think anyone is trying to butcher it; its just how they see it and read it.

8/6/2012 I was really sore for several days after those leg cranks, so I toned them down a bit to build up to doing more. 1/2 JC Leg Cranks Squats: 24 Lunges: 12 each leg 1 minute rest between. Stretch: seated straddle, left and right, butterfly, ham and quad stretches while standing.[/u]

I've noticed that the problem in the MAs when it comes to forming something new, is that the style that brought them along sees them as somehow disloyal, and so they get offended. It often becomes political in nature, and separations occur. I do think that if someone starts up something new, then it should be given a chance, and looked at to see what they offer, how they present it, and what their credentials are in doing so.

Not many hand strikes in TKD: not true. In fact, there are more hand strikes then types of kicks, when you get down to it. MAs only come from the East: there are so many great Western styles. Just because there aren't uniforms, bowing, and a foreign language involved, doesn't mean it isn't an MA.

I know a lot of people don't like the contract idea, and immediately attach the McDojo label to an MA school that has them. Personally, if I know its something I want to do, I would rather sign a contract, that way, I can pay electronically, and not worry about whether I am paid up for a month or not. To me, its just easier, and all I have to worry about doing is showing up for class. Contracts are not always bad; they are merely convenient. Much the way a debit card is more convenient than writing a check, or worrying about carrying cash on you all the time.

The hips connect the lower body to the upper body, and use of the hips helps transfer power from the ground up through the body, into the tool you will use to strike. Hips are good.

I have not made the distinction of impact, as you mention it. I see impact as the result of the strike, instead, but I can see where you are coming from.

I don't think the gi is being disrespected; what you do have, are some kids with some uncontrolled actions, and it sounds like the instructor(s) need to get things under control. How old are the kids do the meditation? Depending on the age, I don't think I would try to introduce a concept like that. Kids just don't have the attention span for it.

To me, and I'm not wanting to sound like the biggot here, because I don't think of myself as a biggot, but depending on what the alternate lifestyle is, it might make a difference to me. If I found out the instructor was smoking dope, it would probably affect whether or not I attend that school. It would also affect if I sent my kids to the school; other things might come into play, as well. The same sex relationship thing, would just depend to me. If the instructor was trying to use the MA class to push their beliefs on the students, then I would probably consider not going there. If they did not do anything other than teach MAs, then I would probably not let it bother me. It would just depend on the situation. I think its easy to say "to each their own," but I do have my core beliefs, morals and ethics, of what I believe is right or wrong, and if someone tried to push some different beliefs on my family in that respect, then I would take that into consideration in regards to attending or not.

When I am striking, I'm usually thinking of penentrating with the strike. I do like the idea of the push on joint manipulations; I had never thought of it that way before, but that makes good sense. But when I strike, I'm not usually looking to just push someone away, but at times, it can be useful.

I think it tends to get easy to forget to thank someone, when you do something every day or every few days that just tends to be the normal grind for us. I know I just tend to take it for granted. Great post, Bob.

Congrats!

I don't doubt that at all.

8/1/2012 Kwonkicker Footwork tutorial #1: switch, front step, back step, and bounce, doing incremental sliding forward and backward, then the steps forward and backward. 15 minutes of footwork training. J/C Leg Cranks: 1 circuit, 1 minute rest between exercises. Squats: 24 Lunges: 12 each leg Split jumps: 12 each leg Squat jumps: 12 Stretch I think my legs are not going to like that at all. But it felt so good to do something with a focus.

Robert Charette just released a very nice book on Fiore Dei Liberi's manuscript Flos Duelletorum. If you purchase Tom Leoni's translation of the Getty Manuscript, and use Charette's book as study guide you'll have an excellent combination. Even if swords aren't your thing, Fiore's simple, logical and efficient grappling and dagger defense (plus variants on how to apply the defenses using every day objects like batons and belts) is worth taking a look at. His entire grappling system is broken down into 4 basic positions, and the rest of his fighting system extrapolates from these four positions. The great thing about Dei Liberi is that his system is a complete, integrated and internally self consistant system of fighting with weapons that is laid out in a logical and reasonably clear manner. Leoni's translation: http://www.lulu.com/shop/tom-leoni/fiore-de-liberis-fior-di-battaglia/paperback/product-5364635.html Charrette's Book http://www.freelanceacademypress.com/armizare.aspx Very cool. I will check into these. Thank you!

Its quite difficult to say, to be honest. I don't know enough about the Koryu arts to make a solid judgement. I do study an eastern sword art, buts its Haedong Gumdo, which was invented in the 80's and is a synthesis of japanese styles, Gicheon il su kung fu and theatrical sword fighting so its not entirely relevant. If you look at the grappling, its very similar. The dagger work is similar too. All The techniques tend to emphasize very direct gross motor actions. There isn't anything like the japanese notion of Aiki and not much emphasis on pressure points or small joint manipulation, just a fist to the face and a dagger in the neck. Western swordwork has some very unique features which are made possible by the shape of the weapon which I haven't seen in Japanese swordsmanship , but as to whether they are more or less practical I do not know. There were philosophical, even internal aspects to some of the arts, but these aspects do not resemble the philosophical aspects of eastern arts at all. The biggest issues we face are context. We see these pictures, we read the words but we are not entirely sure what it is we are seeing, especially with sword. The grappling and dagger are fairly easy, since we have a modern basis of comparison. Initially there was great resistance to applying and using Kenjutsu and other living lineages, but that resistance is dying and with more eastern sword arts people coming in we may gain perspectives to fill in the gaps. In these manuscripts the language is sometimes cryptic. The art may be crude or missing. The context is uncertain. One of the problems is that these manuscripts were usually written as reference books for people who already knew how to fight. There is much that the authors assumed the reader would already know, so they didn't write it down. Trying to figure these things out takes alot of time, study and trial and error. Disputes over interpretations have caused heated arguments and even schisms in important organisations. Another problems is the distinct possibility of frauds..how many of these manuscripts were written by guys who knew what they were talking about, and how many were written by frauds? Koryu arts don't need to worry about this..they have a living lineage, a teacher and full syllabus with a defined interpretation of the art There are strong points though..we can see elements of context that I think may be lost in oral transmissions. We have the literal words of the fighting men themselves telling us what to do, what works and when. For instance there are certain dagger defense techniques and sword guard positions that work much better in armour than out of armour and the authors tell you this. Similar techniques may have been preserved in Koryu, but without the words of the old masters, their original intent may be lost. There is also an element of mutation that is bound to occur in any oral transmission. Any art that is not being used in its original function will mutate to suit its new function. Since no form of transmission is perfect, I suspect that there has been mutation in certain elements of Koryu that no one may realise. If I could throw in a line or two here, they won't be as in depth as Zoodle's response, but I'll give a whirl... In response to the bold type, I would admit that the WMA practitioners started out behind the 8-ball because of the lack of a continual transmission. As technology changed, the WMAists seemed more apt to adjust with the times, moving on to firearms and the like, and relying less on cold steel. If you look at the history of Boxing and Fencing, you see how they went from more combat related arts to sporting arts for the gentlemen to compete in. As sword play wasn't needed, its instructors went away. So, the WMA practitioners must use more of a trial and error form of learning to figure out what is being referenced in the manuals, and by doing some active research, through sparring, they begin to piece back together these old styles. Its a long road to hoe, but very rewarding in the end. I think many see this as not being a very accurate way of learning what the old masters taught, but when you think about weapons fighting of the time, the armor that was worn, the make of the weapons, and what is described in the manuals, and using common sense in combative movements, it can be a very fun and enlightening way to learn those styles.

You may think so now, but when you train with an instructor, I think you'll find that you hadn't taught yourself anything at all. yes. From experience, you will walk out of the very first class realizing that you learned more in the first thirty minutes than you did for the past year of self training - and a few weeks later you will discover that it will take you months just to train the bad habits from that period out so that you can start to be as good as the people who had never trained who just started in the class. The first half of what you say, I do agree with. The second half, I think comes down to the individual. Some people are pretty natural athletes, and can overcome physical miscues more easily than others.But, overall, I do agree that instruction as opposed to individual self-training is a better rout to follow.

I've seen the HEMA website, and it seems like lots of good stuff is going on there. I'm curious as to whether or not there have been any recent works published worth picking up? I have several translated Fectbuchs, but haven't picked up anything new for a few years. Thanks for joining up and sharing all this with us. I look forward to having more converstations with you on this subject. Its been a while since I've reviewed anything, and since I have no group around to study with, aside from some SCA guys I used to fight with, all I can really do is read and learn.

Welcome to KF! Have fun at your camp, and let us know how it goes!

1. It depends on the school. I'd guess between 2 and 4 years. 2. As long as you hit their designated target area, you should be fine. Most of the time, they use punches only in competition, and they aren't usually scored much, if at all. 3. It depends on what your goals are for the Martial Arts. If you don't have anything else going on, its as good a place as any to start. 4. Yes, you'll do lots of different hand strikes in the forms and in some one-steps, but in sparring, you'll mainly see punching.

That's awesome. That really shows how far ahead Norris was thinking.

I have several different works on Medieval Combat, and have enjoyed all of them so much. George Silver's works are fun to read, and many don't realize he was pretty much a contemporary of Musashi. Its good to see some more info on Western styles floating around now. Thanks for showing these here. Another great resource for WMA is the website https://www.thearma.org They have the works of their members listed there, along with ways of setting up practice groups, and scheduled seminars. I would love to be able to get to one of those someday.