Legend of the Fist

Just came across a fine work by the renown karate historian and philosopher Patrick McCarthy, Legend of the Fist. With help from his wife Yuriko, McCarthy Sensei has painstakingly translated dozens of newspaper and magazine articles from Okinawa and mainland Japan beginning in the late 19th century to modern day. More than thirty years in the making, this collection of essays and interviews not only reveals the true spirit of karatedo, but also the social mores and customs of Okinawan and Japanese culture that served as the impetus in the development of karatedo⁠—karate as a way of life.

The book is full of axioms and advice from the early masters about fighting techniques and decorum when outside the dojo. One interesting account depicts the intense rivalry between Gichin Funakoshi, the founder of Shotokan in Japan, and Okinawan street-fighting expert Choki Motobu. Motobu's views on his aversion to using kicks in a real fight, his pursuit for drinking and having fun, and his time spent with a certain crime lord make Motobu an outlier in the chronicles of karate history.

Translated from Japanese to English, articles include stories about mixed matches featuring exponents of karate and judo, commentary on Western boxing, and a brief discussion of the classical text, Bubishi. The author has written a previous book on the "Bible of Karate."

Patrick McCarthy (Hanshi, 9th dan), a true devotee to the traditional fighting arts, believes that the way of karate transcends the mere physical; that the training and cultivating of mind, body, and spirit form the triumvirate essential to the development of the aspiring karateka. At just over 300 pages, Legend of the Fist is a worthy, concise read, and the author promises a Volume #2 is in the making.

Strike First!

The title of this post comes from part of the motto of the Cobra Kai school from The Karate Kid movie. Cobra Kai is now a series on YouTube.* Yes, after 34 years, Daniel-san and bad guy Johnny ("Sweep The Leg") are back! These guys are in their fifties now, and they're still at it. Fifty is the new thirty-five. I'm pretty sure Johnny is still hawking "Strike First, Strike Hard, No Mercy" at his new Cobra Kai school. This idea is diametrically opposed, deliberately I assume, to one of the most fundamental tenets found in karate, among other styles. But the Cobra Kai "Strike First" stance takes no prisoners. "Strike Hard" is a no-brainer, I suppose. "Mercy is for the weak" is dysfunctional; roles can be reversed. What goes around, comes around.

In 1938, Gichin Funakoshi put forth 20 precepts for karate students to train and live by. His Twenty Guiding Principles of Karate contains the famous excerpt karate ni sente nashi, or "There is no first strike in karate." This basically implies that you don't provoke a fight; it does not mean that in the midst of what looks like a potential altercation — after all other options have failed — you wait to get laid out on the sidewalk. Deescalation isn't always available. Unprovoked attacks and sucker punches happen. If you're lucky enough to factor in time and distance, then reading intent or energy (shin or ki) is possible.

In traditional karate, there are two basic strategies in dealing with an aggressor:

• Go no sen. This means "after the attack." A basic example would be an aggressor steps in with a punch, you block and counter with a strike.
• Sen no sen. This is "before the attack." An aggressor announces he wants to kill you, and without hesitation you strike. This is like the old military aphorism "The best defense is a good offense."

It's easy to see how both of these concepts can be misconstrued. Waiting for an attack with the sole purpose for a counter and strike is a recipe for disaster. And the legal ramifications of kicking someone in the head because he flips you off should be obvious.

These concepts are not exclusive to karate, and there are more no sen principles in other arts, such as Kendo and Aikido. These strategies go into much greater depth than I describe. For a deeper study into these principles dealing with situational assessment in actual combat, check out The Book of Five Rings by the Japanese swordsman Miyamoto Musashi (c. 1645).


* This is only on YouTube's new "premium" channel. So yes, that means it ain't free. It's either a monthly rate, or pay-per-view.

Olympic Karate and The Okinawan Karate Kaikan

Earlier this year, a multi-purpose training hall and exhibition center — The Okinawan Karate Kaikan — opened in Tomigusuku City, Okinawa. A multi-purpose venue, it's a training facility for karateka that includes a museum, classrooms for teaching seminars, a general dojo and a "Special Dojo" featuring red tiled ceilings and traditional adornments used exclusively for testing high ranking black belt candidates. The creation of The Okinawan Karate Kaikan coincides nicely with even bigger news: For the first time, Karate will be an event for the Summer Games in the 2020 Olympics to be held in Tokyo.* This is both timely and appropriate, as the art of Judo made its Olympic debut in the same city in 1964.

In advance of the upcoming Olympics to be held on the mainland, Okinawan businesses are anticipating an economic ripple event from the expected rise in tourism. There are a number of attractions on the island to attract martial arts enthusiasts from abroad, including some 400 karate schools. For nightlife, there's even a Dojo Bar in Naha City that features old style karate memorabilia and decor. As an enticement to come to the island, The Dojo Bar, in collaboration with KARATEbyJesse, is running a Okinawan Karate Nerd Programme that's a "once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for two young Karate Nerds between the ages of 18-35 to fly to Okinawa and live there for 6-12 months and experience the Way of Karate at its source."

As for the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo, there's no doubt there are purists who will deride the idea of karate in the Games. Indeed, when Gichin Funakoshi introduced Okinawan karate to the Japanese mainland in 1922, he was diametrically opposed to the idea of karate tournaments; in his view, competition was antithetical to the true spirit of karate. Compare this notion to that of the founder of Judo, Jigaro Kano, who set out to promote his martial art specifically with the Olympics in mind. In Kano's vision, the Olympics would be the perfect vehicle to spread judo to the world. For him, judo-the-sport and judo-the-martial way were both compatible and complimentary to each other.

So far Olympic Karate will feature two events for individual competition: Kumite (fighting) and Kata (forms). Scoring will be based on World Karate Federation (WKF) rules. Therefore, for senior men and women (over 21) there will be five weight classes each. Kata will be the empty-handed variety, no weapons. Although this is sport, the WKF is still intent to preserve the tradition in karate. Nothing gaudy like camouflage belts; the gi (uniform) must be white. Vital area shots are prohibited, as are low kicks and strikes delivered with excessive contact. So much for tradition.^† Strikes to the head, face, and neck are allowed but must be delivered like a "touch" (or as one instructor I had wryly put it, 'touch one side of the face to the other'). Hand guards, mouth-pieces, shin and foot protectors are mandatory, but curiously, groin protectors are optional.

Through the years sport karate has had to endure its share of problems and politics. I'm not certain karate can avoid the scandals and controversies that have been pervasive in Olympic competition for so long. Perhaps Funakoshi was right.


* This was actually announced last year.
^† That's a joke. Heavy sparring usually provides a good metrics for handling pressure, among other things. An astute ref can determine when "excessive contact" can be regarded as what Mike Tyson used to call "bad intentions." Not very sportive.

Out Of Print, But Not Outdated

Now available online is a book penned by karate master Gichin Funakoshi, Rentan goshin toudi jutsu (Toudi arts: Polish your courage for self defense). Toudi, or to-te was the term originally used for karate before its codification on mainland Japan in the 1920s.

First published in March of 1925, this version is the sixth printing from just thirteen months later. It's a PDF format and in Japanese. There are over 200 photos, and two things I noticed were the high stances which are not a staple of Japanese karate, and nage waza (throwing techniques) that are given short shrift in most schools of karate. This was apparently before Funakoshi, who arrived in Japan in 1922, made some very deliberate changes to the Okinawa-te he learned back home. Funakoshi's style of karate eventually came to be known as Shotokan, a term the master supposedly never used or felt comfortable with.

The book is divided into four parts. The first part in an introduction into karate's history and formal etiquette required during training. The second part describes — using photos — how to make a fist, open-hand techniques including spear-hand and split finger jabs, stances (again, not very deep except for what looks like a lone illustration of zenkutsu-dachi from the kata Kusanku), embusen (starting point and directional line for kata), and directions for how to use a makiwara (striking post, usually bound with wicker). The third part is devoted to the complete kata canon of his system. The final section is entitled "Karate Research Gossip" which chronicles karate's development dating back to antiquity. [SOURCE]

Replete with illustrations, there are no English translations of this book to my knowledge.

For more works of this ilk go here.

The Twenty Guiding Principles of Karate

In 1917 Gichin Funakoshi, an elementary school teacher and Okinawan-te master, traveled to mainland Japan in a preliminary effort to introduce his fighting art to government officials and members of the Butoku Kai martial arts ministry. Five years later he returned to begin a tour of demonstrations held at universities. He reasoned, correctly, that learned men tended to be physically unfit. His main pitch was that a regimen of karate training could produce health benefits in addition to skills in self-defense. His student base grew quickly and by the 1930s the "empty-hand way" (as it was now called) had a larger following in Japan than on Okinawa.*

Funakoshi made fundamental changes to karate in Japan that included adopting the belt-ranking system from judo and its introduction as a do form, or life art. Thus karate-do was born. More than just a method of fighting, karate skills could be actualized in many aspects of everyday living as exemplified in the following list of aphorisms that was first published in 1938:



1. Karate-do begins with courtesy and ends with rei (respect).

2. There is no first strike in karate.

3. Karate is an aid to justice.

4. First know yourself before attempting to know others.

5. Spirit first, technique second.

6. Always be ready to release your mind (or heart).

7. Accidents arise from negligence.

8. Do not think that karate training is only in the dojo.

9. It will take your entire life to learn karate, there is no limit.

10. Put your everyday living into karate and you will find myo (subtle secrets).

11. Karate is like boiling water, if you do not heat it constantly, it will cool.

12. Do not think that you have to win, think rather that you do not have to lose.

13. Victory depends on your ability to distinguish vulnerable points from invulnerable ones.

14. The out come of the battle depends on how you handle weakness and strength.

15. Think of your opponents hands and feet as swords.

16. When you leave home, think that you have numerous opponents waiting for you.

17. Beginners must master low stance and posture, natural body positions are for the advanced.

18. Practicing a kata exactly is one thing, engaging in a real fight is another.

19. Do not forget to correctly apply: the strength and weakness of power, stretching and contraction of
the body, and slowness and speed of techniques.

20. Always think and devise ways to live the precepts of karate-do every day.


* Donn Draeger 1974. Modern Bujutsu & Budo. Weatherhill, Inc.

Anko Itosu's Ten Lessons of Karate

Anko Itosu (1832-1916), an Okinawan Shuri-te master, was a progenitor to what would eventually develop into one of the major systems of modern karate: Shorin-ryu. Shorin is the Japanese pronunciation for the Chinese Shaolin (small woods). Itosu's most famous students were Choshin Chibana and Gichin Funakoshi, the latter who brought karate to mainland Japan (c.1920) and adopted the colored belt system from the indigenous art of judo. Hitherto there was no 'ranking' system in karate, but it would take some years before the belt system caught on in karate's birthplace of Okinawa. Funakoshi was especially interested in developing karate as a budo form -- a life skill as it were. Actually some of his ideas, such as teaching karate to children and to sedentary adults for exercise and health, were likely taken from Itosu.

In 1901 Itosu introduced a modified version of karate to the Shuri Jinjo Elementary School. He removed some of what he felt were risky techniques and developed new, short practice forms that kids could pick up easily known as pinan kata. Within a few years Itosu secured teaching jobs at colleges and in 1908 wrote a letter to the Education Department on Okinawa which summed up his philosophy on karate, or as it was more commonly referred to at the time as To-te (lit. China-hand) or tode:

Tode did not develop from the way of Buddhism or Confucianism. In the recent past Shorin-ryu and Shorei-ryu [a forerunner to Goju-ryu] were brought over from China. They both have similar strong points, so, before there are too many changes, I should like to write these down.

1. Tode is primarily for the benefit of health. In order to protect one’s parents or one’s master, it is proper to attack a foe regardless of one’s own life. Never attack a lone adversary. If one meets a villain or a ruffian one should not use tode but simply parry and step aside.

2. The purpose of tode is to make the body hard like stones and iron; hands and feet should be used like the points of arrows, hearts should be strong and brave. If children were to practice tode from their elementary-school days, they would be well prepared for military service. When Wellington and Napoleon met they discussed the point that "tomorrow’s victory will come from today’s playground."

3. Tode cannot be learned quickly. Like a slow moving bull, that eventually walks a thousand miles, if one studies seriously every day, in three or four years one will understand what tode is about. The very shape of one’s bones will change.

Those who study as follows will discover the essence of tode:

4. In tode the hands and feet are important so they should be trained thoroughly on the makiwara. In so doing drop your shoulders, open your lungs, take hold of your strength, grip the floor with your feet and sink your intrinsic energy to your lower abdomen. Practice with each arm one or two hundred times.

5. When practicing tode stances make sure your back is straight, drop your shoulders, take your strength and put it in your legs, stand firmly and put the intrinsic energy in your lower abdomen, the top and bottom of which must be held together tightly.

6. The external techniques of tode should be practiced, one by one, many times. Because these techniques are passed on by word of mouth, take the trouble to learn the explanations and decide when and in what context it would be possible to use them. Go in, counter, release; is the rule of torite [lit. releasing hands].

7. You must decide whether tode is for cultivating a healthy body or for enhancing your duty.

8. During practice you should imagine you are on the battle field. When blocking and striking make the eyes glare, drop the shoulders and harden the body. Now block the enemy’s punch and strike! Always practice with this spirit so that, when on the real battlefield, you will naturally be prepared.

9. Do not overexert yourself during practice because the intrinsic energy will rise up, your face and eyes will turn red and your body will be harmed. Be careful.

10. In the past many of those who have mastered tode have lived to an old age. This is because tode aids the development of the bones and sinews, it helps the digestive organs and is good for the circulation of the blood. Therefore, from now on, tode should become the foundation of all sports lessons from elementary schools onward. If this is put into practice there will, I think, be many men who can win against ten aggressors.

The reason for stating all this is that it is my opinion that all students at the Okinawa Prefectural Teachers’ Training College should practice tode, so that when they graduate from here they can teach the children in the schools exactly as I have taught them. Within ten years tode will spread all over Okinawa and to the Japanese mainland. This will be a great asset to our militaristic society. I hope you will carefully study the words I have written here.

— Anko Itosu. Meiji 41, Year of the Monkey (October 1908).

In spite of some bold claims such as making the body like iron, taking on ten attackers and references to militarism it is said that Itosu never had to use karate in a real confrontation in his eighty-three years. This is either a product of immense luck, especially during his time, or more likely his virtue and character that were forged from his life of training, perfecting, and teaching karate.

SOURCES:
Mark Bishop 1999. Okinawan Karate: Teachers, styles and secret techniques. Tuttle Publishing.
Shoshin Nagamine (trans. by Patrick McCarthy) 2000. Tales of Okinawa's Great Masters. Tuttle Publishing.

Awareness

The eye must see all sides. The ear must listen in all directions. - from the Kenpo Gokui

The Zen monk, Thich Nhat Hanh, advises to practice mindful awareness with every waking moment. When opening the door, be aware of opening the door. Pick up the candle with two hands instead of one to accentuate mindfulness, and so on. That doesn't sound easy, does it? Think about really placing your full attention on every mundane task you do throughout the course of the day. To be thoroughly aware of every nuance and event within one's purview is the basis for meditation and the path to satori (enlightenment).

In classical budo the emphasis was on constant surveillance of one's surroundings. This made it to the modern ways as expressed in karatedo. Shotokan founder Gichin Funakoshi would demonstrate on his students how improperly held chop sticks could be rammed down the throat if one was caught off-guard. He would walk wide around turns in the street so as not to be surprised by a would-be attacker. In the dojo Funakoshi would deliver sound kicks to the back of the legs of students that he deemed weren't paying attention.

The problem with being on-guard all the time can be debilitating. In this way you're not alert at all, in fact, you're merely thinking about being alert. All one can really do is be awake, open-minded, and relaxed. Then the potential attack can be fended off effectively and swiftly without the mind being laden with a cacophony of "what if" scenarios.

The fact that our daily lives are invaded by ceaseless thoughts and preoccupations or "monkey mind" as they say in Zen are by-products of modernity and our culture. I consider the ability to ponder one's daily routines alongside of a job and whatever you have to do in the course of the day as multi-tasking, not some form of lower consciousness. Most people these days aren't cut out to be a Zen monk or a Japanese bushi.

Here's a good example of spontaneous right action to an attack, Spaghetti Western style. In the 1971 movie Red Sun, Charles Bronson's character attempts to ambush a samurai. We'll call this one a draw.

Making The Kata-Kumite Connection

The kata must always be practiced correctly. Real combat is another matter. - Gichin Funakoshi

Here's a pertinent question raised by Michele over at Just A Thought: What is the relationship between kata (pre-arranged practice forms) and jiyu-kumite (free-style sparring)? To expound on this, does the practice of kata necessarily translate into good fighting skills? Kata translates as form, so then this suggests that karate's form and function can be found in its kata. Kata is like a living textbook of karate's techniques and their precise execution. But principles alone don't win a fight. That is, knowing how to do something and actually doing it are not the same. Kata is a dry run; kumite is a bit more like actual combat.

I will say that most of the good kata people I've seen through the years are also pretty decent fighters. On the other hand, some of the other good fighters' renditions of kata have been less than inspiring.I've actually seen dan level promotions given to people based almost solely on their fighting prowess. With that said, should a black belt rank be given to a trainee who has mastered kata, comprehends the mechanics of kata, but can't really fight?

Tatsuo Shimabuku, the founder of Isshinryu karate, offered kumite in his curriculum as an option. He had black belts who never sparred. Should we assume these same individuals were then held to extra high standards in regards to understanding kata and their martial applications?

Broadly speaking, I think certain elements of kata could present themselves in a fight. (Kata as a canon of self-defense techniques falls outside of the sparring/fighting paradigm that I'm referring to.) In naihanchi, for example, the entire form's movements are side-to-side. One explanation for this is that the defender has a wall or the edge of a cliff to the rear. Another interpretation implies the lateral movement (tai sabaki) necessary to keep an assailant off-balance, as retreating in a straight line from your opponent is a cardinal sin in sparring. Interestingly, naihanchi is the only kata seen performed in old photos of Choki Motobu, an early innovator of kumite on Okinawa.

While I strongly agree that the techniques used in kata should be of the same caliber as the ones used in sparring (and vice versa), it should be pointed out that the rehearsed movements of kata do little to prepare anyone for the spontaneity and chaos of a full blown attack.

What do you think?

The American Way

I used to have a gi with the American flag sewn on the sleeve. The caption read Martial Arts - USA as if this were some new paradigm. Maybe it is. Somewhere along the line the martial arts became a bona fide American institution, like baseball, apple pie and labor unions. But do American budoka measure up to their Asian originators? Has the US or anywhere in the West produced the likes of a Kano, Funakoshi or Shimabuku? Donn Draeger, who studied for many years under Japanese sensei, felt that for a classical martial system to be preserved justly, it must include the manners, customs and beliefs indigenous to that style's nation of origin.

So then what aspects of American culture influence our interpretation of the martial arts? Are we doing them any justice? Draeger had doubts about this, defining The American Way as ultimately "lazily convenient." We like to think we all train hard. And we're accustomed to the formal etiquette practiced in nearly all dojos, especially the all-important aspect of rei (respect). Respect is apparently lacking in our culture, certainly more now than in the past. One only has to witness the disrespect that is present in the workplace and public schools.

Gichin Funakoshi felt that a karateka should at all costs be a decent citizen and a role model for society. To that end most schools adhere to a special code of conduct called a dojo kun which outlines a list of goals and behavior a good practitioner should strive for. Here's two precepts from Chuck Norris' code taken from his chun kuk do system:

• I will maintain respect for those in authority and demonstrate this respect at all times.
  
  
• I will always remain loyal to God, my country, family and my friends.

Notice how religion and nationalism come into play in the second one. Should these icons be included within the context of martial arts training? When Okinawan karate first arrived in Japan around 1920 it became infused with Japanese ideologies, which included militarism, Zen, and yamato damashii - the "Japanese spirit". Some Okinawans were unhappy with these changes, but karate's move to mainland Japan was but a prelude to its worldwide acceptance and popularity. Equally, when the martial arts arrived here in the US they became Americanized to a degree. Did this necessarily devalue them? I don't believe so. If you're a sincere, committed student in the right school then coming to terms with these cultural infusions can be transcended, if they matter at all.

Take It Outside

Today I took my Okinawan kobudo weapons outdoors and went to town. I know that's a bit of an oxymoron, but I'm just trying to make a point. There's just not too many schools that will structurally accommodate the swinging of a six foot bo. In my day I've come too close to breaking the overhead florescent bulbs (also six feet in length, ironically) wielding my weapon with reckless abandon. I like to feel free when I train.

Does your school ever conduct training outdoors? One summer day we took a class down to the beach for a two mile run followed by some basic drills done in the surf while drawing some spectators. Kicking in knee-high water provides a tough workout. Peter Urban, the legendary goju karate pioneer in the States, would occasionally have his uniform clad students run down the streets of New York outside his famous Chinatown dojo. I admit, Canal Street bears no semblance to a nature trail, but I'm sure a group of karate trainees jogging across busy Manhattan intersections was cheap advertising for Urban's school.

Most of the twentieth century founders favored rigorous outdoor training at some point. As a youth Gichin Funakoshi would practice kata during the midst of a raging typhoon to forge his spirit. Mas Oyama spent extended periods in the wilderness performing karate and Zen meditation under frigid waterfalls as part of his shugyo (austere training) regimen.

Fitness guru Jack LaLanne used to run these TV ads during the 70s for his health clubs with the promise of escaping the winter chill ("Baby it's cold outside!"). The classical dojo was not designed as a total haven from the elements - a departure from the insulated, air conditioned modern facilities. As historian Donn Draeger noted, the traditional training hall is "hot during summer, cold during winter; it has approximately the temperature of the environment beyond its walls." I really don't recommend training during extremely hot or cold conditions unless certain precautions are taken. Keeping yourself hydrated is a must during any strenuous activity, especially in the heat. Stretching and warming up the muscles and connective tissues is imperative prior to training, particularly when it's cold.

For me, martial arts training outdoors is ideal. There's nothing like it: fresh air, freedom, sunshine (when available) and if you live in the 'burbs like me you benefit from the surrounding oxygen-exuding plant life. Such is the symbiosis of living on our planet, for now, as long as we don't continue to ravage her natural resources.

Dress Code

Years ago I entered an "open" tournament. All the quasi karate styles were represented there: kung fu, kenpo, tae kwon do, you name it. I saw uniforms of every imaginable design on these competitors. Some wore hakama (garb originally worn by samurai) and a few were donning something similar to a Roman toga! Still another entrant wore just a T-shirt with his school logo embossed on it. I actually felt out of place with my plain white karate uniform.

The unadorned white gi (uniform) is generally regarded as part of martial arts tradition. Really, defining tradition here is an iffy undertaking given the fact that many systems of empty-handed combat were devised barely more than a century ago. And since the martial arts seem to be in a state of constant flux, what practitioners wear for training apparel has also been subjected to change. It was Judo's Jigoro Kano who introduced the white gi in 1907, but the idea didn't catch on with other styles until some time later. So the wearing of the gi is a relatively modern development in the martial arts. When Gichin Funakoshi demonstrated karate in Japan for the first time around 1920 he wore a judo gi and adopted judo's colored belt system in an effort to encourage Japanese participation.

Kano's original belt grades were just white and black. Later, brown was added to denote an intermediate level. The first school I trained in had white, yellow, green, brown and black belt levels, and for many years that's all there was. Eventually more were added, including orange, blue and purple. Now we also have camouflage belts, and before you know it we'll probably have mauve and chartreuse belts walking around.

Then there are the patches. Most schools require that you wear an organizational patch or one that symbolizes your style. I see nothing wrong with that, but as a rule of thumb less patches are better. Some of these new players, especially in Brazilian jiu-jitsu, wear more emblems on their uniforms than you would find on most NASCAR stock cars. Longtime karateka Charles Goodin recently wrote a brief article on uniform patches whereas he feels that all of them are tawdry and unnecessary. Some of his points are well taken, but I feel that one or two on your gi is fine.

I usually have three of four karate gis at my disposal, if for no other reason just so I have a clean one to wear to every class. Always arrive wearing a washed and unwrinkled uniform if you want to remain in good standing at your school. I actually saw an adult student get sent home once because his gi was absolutely filthy (and he stunk to high heaven). When you buy a new uniform, make sure you hem the pants length before you come to class so you don't trip over the excess material while you're working out. Your uniform is an expression of you, so take good care of it and wear it proudly!

Finding Balance

There was a movie a while back called Gung Ho that comically depicts the high standards of the Japanese workforce. In reality, this intense work ethos may be what's responsible for the high suicide rate in Japan. A recent US survey reveals that the life expectancy for the average CEO after retirement is about thirty months. So even if your job doesn't kill you, not showing up for work doesn't fare so well either. Finding oneself without purpose after a lifetime of work and achievement must be akin to having the rug pulled out from under you.

I used to train with a woman with four young kids. Even after she earned her black belt she continued to train five times a week, teach on the same days and hold down another part time job. It was a bit much and her hectic lifestyle was palpable. Commitment is essential in the martial arts, but not when it morphs into fanaticism.

Do you consider yourself a devotee of the martial arts? What do you enjoy doing when you're not in the dojo? Do you have any hobbies besides your training? (My apologies to the devout budoka who may be offended by the notion that the martial arts are a "hobby".) When the medieval kenshi Miyamoto Musashi said "learn the ways of other men" he wasn't referring to different styles of combat. Judo founder Jigoro Kano and karate's Gichin Funakoshi were skilled in the art of calligraphy and poetry. Musashi made beautiful paintings, wood sculptures and hand guards for swords. These men set aside time for creative outlets as a way to counterbalance their considerable efforts invested in the martial arts. Training to the exclusion of all else leads to stagnation and craziness (kichigai). "All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy" said Jack Nicholson's character in The Shining. And we all know how Jack ends up.

The Need to Win

The idea of winning is woven into the fabric of popular culture. Everybody loves a winner. "Winning isn't everything, it's the only thing" has not only become an American credo for sports, but suggests what's wrong with this type of competitive anti-spirit. The need to win is rooted in anxiety and fear; fear of failure, fear of looking bad, and the fear of being scorned round out this pathology.

A Taoist would say that winners and losers are two sides of the same coin, but the truth is that losing or setbacks are subjective. A short term loss could be seen as a long term gain. It's all a matter of perspective and what we can learn from the experience.

Gichin Funakoshi, the founder of modern karate in Japan, was strongly opposed to competition. Anyone who engaged in jiyu-kumite (free-style sparring) in his school was summarily thrown out. Funakoshi's karate techniques were based on bunkai (self-defense applications) which were unusable in sportive matches. Still, I believe sparring is essential for any stylist because it forces the student into a state of no-expectations. In tournaments you're dealing with total strangers. You don't know your opponents and they don't know you. Rules notwithstanding, anything can still happen. Embracing uncertainty is part of the martial way, something that cannot be acquired from practicing kata or pre-set drills. But vying for trophies to the exclusion of all else is ill-advised. Martial arts in their truest form are not games to be won.

A karate competitor I once knew was unbeatable on the tournament circuit. He won a number of grand championship titles for both kata and kumite. Then one day it happened: he lost. He never competed again.

The Need to Win

When an archer is shooting for nothing
He has all his skill.
If he shoots for a brass buckle
He is already nervous.
If he shoots for a prize of gold
He goes blind
Or sees two targets-
He is out of his mind!

His skill has not changed. But the prize
Divides him. He cares.
He thinks more of winning
Than of shooting -
And the need to win.

- Chuang Tzu

Fitness Was The Way

Gichin Funakoshi had an idea. Upon arriving in Japan from his native Okinawa, he would demonstrate his brand of karate only before intellectuals. He reasoned that learned men, relying on brainpower as opposed to brawn, had come to neglect their bodies. Doctors, attorneys, university students, and artists of every stripe became the hand selected audience for Funakoshi's inspiring demonstrations and lectures. Funakoshi asserted that anyone who put in the time and effort could develop a karate physique, as he called it. That was one of his main selling points; to get in shape, and to reap the benefits of health and physical well-being through rigorous training in karate. Japan (c. 1920) was beginning to catch up to the West as a nation of advancement and technology. The white collar class there had begun to emerge, and thus Japanese men of that time had become less physically active than their predecessors. Karate, it seems, found a new home in Japan, and had arrived in a timely manner.

Funakoshi was hardly the first to advocate a fitness oriented regimen for a scholarly group. According to legend, the Zen master Bodhidharma arrived in China around 500 AD, settling at a Buddhist monastery known as the Shaolin Temple. Dismayed and surprised at the poor health of the residing monks, he prescribed exercises to strengthen and condition their atrophied bodies. Over time, these exercises became more structured and systemized, developing into self-defense applications. This gave rise to chuan fa, or more popularly known as kung fu. Tai chi, one of the world's oldest martial arts, is generally practiced today for its health benefits. Ultimately, the purpose of martial arts training is to strengthen all three human components: mind, body, and spirit.

Expect The Unexpected

History points to the legend of the Trojan Horse, 9/11, and the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor as classic examples of being caught off-guard. Guerrilla warfare, ninpo (ninjutsu), and Navy SEAL tactics were developed specifically to surprise the enemy. Heiho (strategy) really means effective combative "cheating". The term "fair fight" is a misnomer. So maintaining surveillance of one's suroundings is key. Nobody wants to be ambushed.

Two of the precepts in the classical Chinese-Okinawan text the Bubishi states, "The eyes must see all ways", and "The ear must listen in all directions". Shotokan karate founder Gichin Funakoshi sustained this level of alertness even when performing a mundane activity such as taking a stroll outside. When rounding the corner of a building, he would make his turn wide and carefully to avoid being taken unawares. No matter where he was or what he was doing, he would be vigilant at all times. Studying a martial art cultivates the practitioner's ability to be cognizant of foreboding danger, and then taking appropriate measures to ensure safety.

Can Martial Artists Really Fight?

Hit 'em where they ain't! This was the strategy employed by Gen. Norman Schwarzkopf during the Gulf War during the early 90's. About seventy years earlier, Gichin Funakoshi, karate's quintessential grandmaster, claimed that the one who overcomes the opponent without fighting possesses the highest skill. Funakoshi's remark could be misconstrued(especially to the layperson) to mean that budoka are not really interested in combat.

In spite of all the philosophical musings and references to eastern thought, such as Zen and Confucianism, do the martial arts actually need these ideals for them to be effective? More to the point, can the average black belt defend her/himself in a real-life altercation? In "Living The Martial Way" author Forrest Morgan writes, "...most martial artists can't fight...(they) just aren't trained or conditioned to be fighters." This is quite an indictment; that holding a black belt does not guarantee fighting prowess anymore than being a devout Christian assures passageway into heaven. It's all up to the practitioner. The serious martial arts aspirant knows how to fight. Maybe the real question is: Do martial artists need to fight? Perhaps Funakoshi was right after all.