Creating your own style.

[Ben Martin]

i personally think it is best to master the 1 style that suits you best then learn and add bits of other styles for example if you mastered kung fu you could learn thai boxing elbows and knees and the grappeling from bjj stuff like that.

[ovine king]

i really wish people would stop using "kung fu" as if it the term means any one specific style.

 

also, there is a flaw in that suggestion.

 

the problem with just picking moves from other styles to fill in gaps is that you don't really know if it will fit in with how your base style works. a thai knee is used within a very specific framework and the way thai boxers play with balance and weight isn't the same as a wing chun guy for example.

 

that is one of the strengths of modern cross-training, they train 'loose' techniques into a usuable whole, as opposed to a bunch of moves that might not work with each other.

 

i'd say, if you are going to leanr from another style then you should go into that style and train from fresh as you did with your original art. that is the only way i can see you appreciating it for what it is, instead of always seeing it from the persepctive of your base style.

[searcher]

Mashed potato is good too!!

 

Can it be garlic mashed potatos, they are good?

 

On the creation of a new style. It takes years of research and study to trult get a deep understanding of what it takes to create a whole new style. I have seenway to many who have taken what they have learned and created thie new style. What they were truly lacking is a backbone to their new are, some soul. I have been through the ringer so to speak over this issue. I have been studying for quite a while as it pertains to a human life and have studied multiple styles. This being said, the only thing that I have been able to do is alter some of the techniques of my existing style. To better suit my own way of doing things. With so much still to learn in the styles that I have studied and the one I still study. I have come to the understanding that anything I think I can come up with, has already been thought of. To sum it all up if, as martial artists, we think we are ready to create a new style we need to make sure that what we are going to create will be of some martial use.

[pineapple]

I love garlic!

[Chaz]

I would say you shouldn't be pondering that at all frankly, unless your some grandmaster or something, even then, why?

[ShotokanKid]

Hey Taku-Shimazu

 

Aren't you the guy who did the Ninja post?

 

Anyway, I suppose, if we're just pondering the thought, you could do your own style, but probably only for yourself.

[Taku-Shimazu]

 

OK, so if I understand this correctly, you've been involved in the martial arts for 19 years? And the highest rank you've achieved during that 19 years is purple belt? Is this correct?

 

Again, how old are you please?

 

I am 24 (Yes, I was introduced into MA when I was 5)

 

On paper yes, but I have learned and trained much more than this, It is like do you need a degree to prove you are smart? Answer, No.

 

And yes I did the Ninja post to try and spread my knowledge but to many google users tryed to be smart 'aleks' and messed that up arguing with me.

 

Can I please chat to Shorinryu Sensei as He/She is trying to discuss something interesting.

 

Is it my fault that my McDojo shut down? Is it my fault that I value the mind and workings behind Ma and I value Studying styles rather than get MA Qualifications.

 

Is this a sesible discussion or single out the JAP!?

[Shorin Ryuu]

I'm a huge advocate of traditional martial arts. However, like most practitioners of what is truly "traditional", I don't get too hung up on the whole style debate. As usual, I'll point out that in karate, the notion of a rigid style-structure is a relatively new innovation. Sadly, much of this is fostered either by ego, money or misguided sentiment. In those oft-quoted "old days", which really weren't that old or long ago, masters trained with other masters and weren't strict on keeping exclusive control over students.

 

That being said, I'm perfectly comfortable sticking with the system I train in right now. Why? Because from dojo to dojo I train in a different style. People who denounce the rigidity and lack of openness in styles are either observing systems that promote unhealthy dogmatic single-mindedness or they underestimate the individuality and openness of the instructors. I think the truth is probably a mix of the two. Having the somewhat mixed blessing of being able to (and being forced to) travel and move quite frequently, I've had a chance to train with many instructors from within my system and without. Even just between different instructors within my system, the individual "style" is quite marked. There's enough leeway within individual systems for the "style" of individual instructors to develop.

 

What does this have to do with the question? Well, I approach the question of creating a new style from several vantage points.

 

The first is ability. As people have mentioned, there is relatively little or nothing that is new under the sun when it comes to martial arts. Therefore, people are somewhat limited in their ability to create something totally original in regards to martial principles or techniques. That being said, the only things that can distinguish a style is the specific combination of principles and teaching methods used to transmit it.

 

Another point on ability: Few people actually have studied well enough to reach the point where they can "piece together" various aspects of learning to a composite, workable whole. Simply learning techniques from styles X, Y, and Z isn't enough. You have to weld them together in an appropriate context in order for it to stand together by itself. If you died tomorrow, it has to be able to be more than simply a personal collection of information that requires your presence. This is what distinguished the personal "style" of Bushi Matsumura when he started the Shuri styles of karate as oppossed to Joe Schmoe who started Kwik-E-Karate. Perhaps this is semantics, but if it can't survive on its own, then it isn't truly a new "style". The majority of all those new styles out there are simply patchwork hodge-podge collections without depth. There are some that have depth and probably have worth of their own. But those are much rarer exceptions.

 

Next: Neccessity. Does the world really need another style? Someone alluded to it before. What's the purpose of creating one? If you don't wish to be part of some organization or want to deal with all of that, that's fine. You don't have to. At the same time, you shouldn't really put on the pretense of creating something truly unique. Most often, it's just an extension of system X. Shotokan. Shorin Ryu. Judo. Whatever. So yes, you can create your own "style" of martial arts. But it is a rare occassion for something to be noteworthily different or profound enough to celebrate by calling it a STYLE with capital letters. Most often, it's simply just a style. Personal, individual and pretty common.

 

I'm not against people forming their own styles. I wish people wouldn't go off and do them without a decent foundation in something. When it comes down to it, all styles in existence today are merely the products of talented masters who wished to pass on their own teachings but in a context that others can take and personalize for their own. When you advance in your training and understanding, you realize that even if you train within a system, style or organization, your karate is your own. You just can't let that fact get to your head. So sure, found your own style if you think it is necessary. Just be prepared to painfully self-critique yourself. I don't mean self-evaluation, but purely divorced criticism.

 

My path I have chosen for myself is to gain a firm foundation in Okinawan karate and learn about and from other styles, instead of trying to learn many styles.

[Taku-Shimazu]

Thank you for your valued opinion.

[Taku-Shimazu]

Shinryu Sensei are you interested in continue-ing our conversation?