Tal Posted August 6, 2003 Share Posted August 6, 2003 the word style means 'a manner of doing something' according to my dictionary. in asking 'what style of MA do you practice?', you are essentially asking 'in what manner do you fight?'. i see nothing misleading about such a question. the names of various MAs are just quick and fairly precise ways of describing what style or manner someone fights in. shotokan karate nidanjujitsu shodankendo shodan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
major_motoko Posted August 6, 2003 Share Posted August 6, 2003 The Samurai used to say which "school" or Ryu of swordsmanship they were from. Certain schools became famous for their effectiveness and their individual "style" of techniques. I'm not sure that works today tho, as if you are asked "what school do you train in?" you're more likely to say the name of your club "Jim Bloggs Dojo".. not Wado-Ryu. Style/system/form surely it all means the same thing? If we call our training martial ARTs why not call them styles as well? But I see what you mean, some people feel calling it an "art" is degrading to the techniques and effectiveness. They think it's like saying karate/kung fu/jujistsu etc are just pretty dances/artforms.. not effective combat systems. I say.. whatever.. if my technique works in a fight, I don't care what you call it! 2nd Kyu Brown Belt, Wado Ryu Karate-do"Daniel-san best karate still inside!" Mr Myagi Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paolung Posted August 6, 2003 Share Posted August 6, 2003 it's actually not even considered the same as the most common meaning in some systems. allow me to explain- in the system i study, a 'style' is sort of like a drill so to speak... so for example, you could have a punch/block combination drill and it would be called a 'style'. so the common meaning of 'style' can easily be confused... which is why i try to substitute the word 'system' instead. "It is not how much you know but how well you have mastered what you've learnt. When making an assessment of one's martial arts training one should measure the depth rather than the length". - MASTER "General" D. Lacey Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
White_Tiger Posted August 6, 2003 Share Posted August 6, 2003 Sansooer said "well saying you do baseball or football is different, because they are different sports but ma's are all ma's just using your body in a different way instead of a whole new set of equipment." All MA's are MA's just like all sports are all sports. You still run, you still use a ball, etc. Just like in MA's we all punch, we all kick, but it is different "styles". Some of us do it on the ground some of us do it standing up. The point I was trying to make is that the word "style" helps define what we do. If I say my style is BJJ then you know I fight on the ground, if I say my style is TKD you know I fight standing up. Just wanted to clarify what I meant. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Treebranch Posted August 6, 2003 Author Share Posted August 6, 2003 Everyone has some really valid points here. I'm even surprised at the response to this post. I thought it was a little silly to nitpick the word STYLE, but I guess I'm not the only one who finds it misleading. System of fighting is probably the best one I've heard so far, that's actually perfect. From now on I am using the word system instead of the word style. Someone used a sports analogy and said that all MA's are sports, not true. Some are, some aren't. Plus you don't play Karate or Judo, like you play Soccer or Tennis. You don't play Boxing for that matter either. Usually fighting sports use words like a match, bout, fight and such to describe an event. Then there are Combat MA's that don't compete at all so how can those be sports? I think what system of fighting do you study works perfectly. "It is easier to find men who will volunteer to die, than to find those who are willing to endure pain with patience.""Lock em out or Knock em out" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tibby Posted August 6, 2003 Share Posted August 6, 2003 Yeah, this is just semantics, not that big of a deal. You know that I mean when I ask you what styles you study, and that is what matters. But, it was a fun topic to read an discuses, thanks for posting it, bro. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Treebranch Posted August 6, 2003 Author Share Posted August 6, 2003 Yeah, I guess it is semantics. I personally am going to use the word "System" from now on. I think it describes it better. "It is easier to find men who will volunteer to die, than to find those who are willing to endure pain with patience.""Lock em out or Knock em out" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DokterVet Posted August 7, 2003 Share Posted August 7, 2003 I've often heard the term "judo player". It does sound weird, but that seems to be what many judoka prefer. 22 years oldShootwrestlingFormerly Wado-Kai Karate Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drunken Monkey Posted August 7, 2003 Share Posted August 7, 2003 interesting note a lot of the old guys often ask us "what kung fu do you play"? (in chinese of course) post count is directly related to how much free time you have, not how intelligent you are."When you have to kill a man it costs nothing to be polite." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Treebranch Posted August 7, 2003 Author Share Posted August 7, 2003 Yeah, I've heard that a couple of times. Grandmaster Hatsumi says something similar. "It is easier to find men who will volunteer to die, than to find those who are willing to endure pain with patience.""Lock em out or Knock em out" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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