A DASH OF SOYA

 by Phillip Starr

When I first arrived in China, I knew next to nothing about Chinese cooking. According to my wife, I knew less than nothing about REAL Chinese cooking. So I was a fine student; she was quite adept at it and I wanted to learn. I didn't bring any preconceived notions along with me. I wouldn't stand next to her and say, “Oh yeah, that's how Jones showed how to do it in his book, which I've read twelve times”, or “That's not how they ground up the peppers in the television show I watched about this...” Nope, I'd never watched it done, nor had I ever read anything about it. I was a blank slate and ready to be filled with new information. I soon learned that although a dash or two of soya is used in preparing some dishes, it is very rarely found on the table and used after the meal has been served...it's regarded much the same way as ketchup; I was asked, “Why would you ruin the taste of a good meal by pouring soya on it?” My bad.

The average person who's interested in the traditional martial arts of Japan or China (and also those who have an interest in Korean martial arts although taekwondo is not a traditional martial discipline of Korea...it's much too recent) really doesn't know much about them. He knows nothing about their structure or how they are propogated. And that's fine. What is NOT fine is that oftentimes, the average person fails to recognize his/her lack of knowledge. And he/she believes that he/she knows quite a bit about the subject – perhaps even more than the teacher – but this is never through personal exposure to them.

This kind of prospective student may have read a book or two, watched some questionable videos or movies, or spoken to someone who was once involved in the study of a traditional martial discipline (or better yet, someone whose kids have been involved). When the class doesn't meet his/her expectations, he/she is disappointed.

I am sometimes asked to give talks about living in China (as opposed to simply going on a tour). I always enjoy doing this but the biggest obstacle I often face is not the relative ignorance or misunderstandings that most Westerners have about China; it's those who are absolutely convinced that they KNOW the subject, even if they've never even been to Chicago. One lady was so angry about what she perceived as a tone of flippancy on my part regarding food in China. “Preparing meals in China is almost a sacred thing”, she hissed. I asked if she'd ever been to that country and she replied, “No, but I've read A LOT about it...” Exactly the same kind of attitude we sometimes see in people regarding the traditional martial ways; they've read A LOT about the subject and they KNOW.

This problem of preconceived notions is one of the biggest problems faced by exponents who teach traditional martial arts outside of their native cultures. Another big obstacle is that of the Mistaken Assumption. Some time back on an internet forum, the subject of tatoos came up. One inquiring individual asked if having easily visible tatoos would be a problem in approaching a teacher of the traditional martial arts. One very senior Chinese exponent said that he would not allow a student to begin studying with him if he sported that kind of body art. Of course, there was an immediate outcry that rivaled the bombing of Dresden...the teacher was accused of being a prude, of being insensitive, of being too stiff-necked to allow for this kind of artistic expression. Yet, none of the protesters had had anywhere near the experience with a traditional martial discipline that the teacher had (some had NO experience with a traditional form) but what caught my eye was that none of them bothered to ask WHY the teacher had such a policy.

This is a fine example of people with little or no experience assuming that they know more than the teacher. These folks had mistakenly believed that the traditional disciplines must meet their standards; they must be democratic, open to everyone, and tolerant of individual tastes and needs. They have to be “fair.” Instead of asking why the teacher maintained the aforementioned policy, the respondents blazed away with their mistaken assumptions.

Nobody enjoys being told that they don't know what they're talking about; we all hate to think that all of our reading about a particular subject has been a waste of time. And we really resent having our ignorance pushed into our faces. The next time you're tempted to become angry about having your preconceived notions or mistaken assumptions are held up to you, please think about Chinese cooking. Think less about having your ideas shot down and open yourself to being exposed to something new. It isn't always pleasant and may be something you don't want to hear, but it's the best way to learn how to cook Chinese style...