PERFORM OR PRACTICE?

 By Phillip Starr

Do you perform or practice your forms? There's a considerable difference. If you PRACTICE your form you will study it, taste it, pay attention to its rhythms, spirit, and the types of power that are issued. And that's not all of it; there's the breakdown, the “bunkai” that teaches you so many things. You strive to polish every aspect of it, including those that aren't readily noticeable to an observer. The object is to learn from it; to perfect it and in doing so, to strive for self-perfection. You endeavor to carry on the tradition and the lineage from which it is derived. This is real martial art.

To PERFORM your form is to do it so that LOOKS outwardly impressive. Your primary interest is in developing aesthetic appeal, especially in the competition arena. The objective is to look good and take home the trophies, championship cash, or whatever. If one or more movements need to be “adjusted” or changed completely to achieve the desired result, so be it. This is a far, far cry from genuine martial arts.

Unfortunately, more and more wannabe martial artists seek only to PERFORM their form(s) well. It's all about cosmetics. Many of them never consider what they're doing – tossing away many generations of knowledge, development, and tradition. Their forms have no roots, no souls.

THE OWIE FACTOR

 by Phillip Starr

I often tell my students that training in the martial arts is very similar to weightlifting. That is, training should be progressive and regular. You'd think such simple advice would be fairly easy to follow but I am constantly surprised at the number of people who just don't seem to get it.

When you lift weights, you must do it regularly; you dare not do it twice this week, once next week, skip a week, then come back and hit it full-strength again. If you attempt to train in this way, you're guaranteed an injury. Yet, students will miss a week or two (or a month or more) of class, then show up and try to start where they left off. Now, one who has trained for an extended period of time can miss a week or two but even so, it's best to come back slowly so that the body becomes re-accustomed to the intensity of the workout(s).

One of my advanced students whose job now prevents him from training on a regular basis, showed up at class one Sunday afternoon. Within the first 60 seconds of drill over basic techniques, he suffered a serious tear in a hamstring! I'd warned him about jumping right into class but he figured that because he was an advanced student, he'd do just fine.

Not.

Training isn't just about learning various techniques and memorizing a bunch of forms; it involves attaining a certain level of fitness and then maintaining that level of fitness year-round. If you've been out of training for some time, come back slowly. If you jump right back in and injure yourself, you'll be out of training even longer! Train smart before you train hard.

ONE FORM FOR HOW LONG?

 By Phillip Starr

Years ago, I happened upon a book authored by an English karateka named Bill Burgar. A practitioner of Shotokan karate, he decided to practice one form daily for FIVE YEARS. Daily. Every day. Several times each day (like ten repetitions). He kept up his usual practice of the other forms, but he didn't practice them all every day; after all, Shotokan utilizes 21 forms, I believe. But his one chosen kata was practiced every day.

He had read that the old Okinawan masters would typically specialize in only one or two forms. That's not to say that they didn't know several others, but each instructor favored and subsequently specialized in just one or two, which they'd practice every day. He thought he'd give it a whirl.

This is in line with the Chinese gong-fu masters of old; they would specialize in just one or two forms, which they'd study assiduously every day.

At first his practice was rather enjoyable but after a time, it became very boring. To really focus on what he was doing (instead of just “walking through” the movements was more than a little difficult at times. As an escape from the boredom he'd sometimes alter the tempo of the kata, doing it very slowly one time and then full-tilt boogie the next. He'd begin by facing a corner of the room instead of a flat wall (it's tougher than you might think; try it!). He'd practice with his eyes shut or in a darkened room.

It was a struggle but he stuck with his plan and he gradually began to discover facets of his kata that he'd never seen or even suspected previously. He came to understand that each form is a complete fighting system/method in its own right. He discovered subtle rhythms and timings that he'd never noticed before and it brought him to a much clearer understanding of the importance of kata practice.

To engage in this kind of training and not succumb to the daily tedium requires a strong spirit and a sharp mind. Are you up for it?

MIZU NO KOKORO

 by Phillip Starr

Back when I trained in karate, my teacher mentioned the phrase, “mizu no kokoro”... This is a Japanese expression that means, “mind like water.” What exactly did he mean when he said this? Oddly enough, it was my gong-fu teacher, W. C. Chen, who explained it me.

“In a fight your mind must be still, like the smooth surface of water in a pond”, he said. It (the unbroken water) is like a mirror and will clearly reflect what is placed in front of it. Thoughts and emotions are like pebbles and stones tossed into the water; they cause ripples, which distort what you see.”

He told me that ANY emotion, anger as well as joy, can cause such ripples. Extreme anger or fear is akin to dropping a small boulder into the pond; they do more than just create ripples and subsequent distortions... they create WAVES that are almost blinding!

How is the mind to be calm during a frightening and/or very tense situation? The answer can be summed up in one word...TRAINING! Realistic, traditional training. Learning to breathe correctly and maintaining breath control under stress is also key. There are those who espouse the “lizard brain” theory, saying that in times of extreme stress we lose fine motor control and so on and on, ad nauseum. Let me state for the record that this undesirable effect is to be overcome through regular, repeated training. I know. I've been there. More than once. More than twice... If one does not train regularly or repeatedly, certainly the undesirable “lizard-brain” theory comes into play.

MASTERY WITH A WEAPON

 by Phillip Starr

Over the years, many people have asked me about how they might become highly skilled with a particular weapon, ranging from a simple staff to a variety of swords, knives, halberds, and so on. Many of them were more than a little incredulous when I told them the secret to mastering a particular weapon.

Of course, learning and acquiring skill with the basic techniques and form is essential but there's more to it than that. The crux of the problem is that most people, although they may have trained with a given weapon for some time, still have the feeling of “self” and “the weapon” as being separate things and to truly master a weapon you must make it a part of your “self.” Many of you have probably heard this statement before.

So here's what my teacher told me...”If you really want to acquire a high level of skill with a certain weapon, you must carry it around with you for AT LEAST one hour every day.” That's right...no matter what you have to do, you must hang onto that weapon (yes, you can switch hands if need be) for at least a full hour. Every day for a minimum of 100 days. This is one of the rare cases in martial arts where more is actually better (more than an hour and/or more than 100 days).

It's really awkward at first and you'll have to be extra careful that you don't damage your spouse's favorite piece of furniture OR your spouse him/her self (or the children, if you have any)! In time, it gets easier as you acquire better and better control of the object in your hand(s).

At first, you'll “play” with it a bit (BE CAREFUL!) and develop agility with it. In time, you'll notice that you don't even think (or feel) about the weapon as a foreign object that you're holding; it becomes a part of your body! You learn to control it as easily and naturally as you do your arms or legs, without having to “think” about it at all. It has become a natural part of your body.

At this stage, you'll notice that practicing the form with your weapon becomes very easy to do. Your skill with the weapon increases considerably. So if you're really serious about mastering a certain weapon, give this method a whirl!

MODERN KARATE AND THE SCAP BAN

 by Phillip Starr

This is for the karateka out there who (under their breaths) curse whoever is responsible for the Japanese forms featuring deep and long stances, such as we see in contemporary Shotokan, Wado-ryu, and a host of other similar styles. Well, the individual who's ultimately responsible is Gen. Douglas MacArthur!! Surprised? Well, here's the story behind it....

After Japan's surrender in 1945 at the end of WWII, MacArthur was appointed Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers (SCAP) during the subsequent U.S. occupation of the island nation. Fearing a resurgence of patriotism and re-emergence of bushido (“the way/code of the warrior”), one of the general's first actions was to examine the various “patriotic” activities, especially those that promoted bushido. If they were viewed as potentially dangerous (to the troops occupying the island), they were banned. This became known as the “SCAP ban.”

Judo, all forms of jujutsu, and kendo were among the first to be outlawed. All others forms of budo (martial ways) were gradually banned as well.

Now, karate was a relative newcomer to Japan, having been introduced by Gichin Funakoshi (from Okinawa) in 1923. The forms of old Okinawan karate were heavily influenced by southern forms of gong-fu, so their stances were relatively short and high. This particularly suited the Okinawans, who practiced outside. Okinawa isn't known (by the Marines) as “The Rock” because the ground is flat and even. On the contrary, the ground is quite rocky, so using short, high stances and footwork is almost essential. And Gichin's karate (later named after his pen-name, “Shoto”, which he used when writing poetry...his school and style became known as Shotokan...”Shoto's School”) featured short high stances. Old film footage of him in his later years demonstrating kata shows this.

He had three sons, one of whom was named Gigo (said to be a “karate genius”) who had trained since the age of 12 to improve his health (he developed tuberculosis at the age of 7). Gigo (who would die of TB during 1945) saw what was happening with the SCAP ban and knew that karate would be on their list. He thereupon set out to deepen and lengthen karate's stances and after his famous father would correct a student's posture, Gigo would come up behind him and tell him that it was perfectly okay to lengthen his stance... I can just imagine the confusion in the classes!

When the military examiners stopped by the dojo (in one of Japan's foremost universities), Gigo informed them that this “karate” was not a form of fighting; it was a form of dancing!!! THAT'S why he wanted the stances lengthened – so the participants would look more graceful – like dancers. And the examiners bought his story! And so it was that the most lethal martial art was left alone and the people could continue to practice it!

And that's the rest of the story.

MIZU NO KOKORO

 by Phillip Starr

Back when I trained in karate, my teacher mentioned the phrase, “mizu no kokoro”... This is a Japanese expression that means, “mind like water.” What exactly did he mean when he said this? Oddly enough, it was my gong-fu teacher, W. C. Chen, who explained it me.

“In a fight your mind must be still, like the smooth surface of water in a pond”, he said. It (the unbroken water) is like a mirror and will clearly reflect what is placed in front of it. Thoughts and emotions are like pebbles and stones tossed into the water; they cause ripples, which distort what you see.”

He told me that ANY emotion, anger as well as joy, can cause such ripples. Extreme anger or fear is akin to dropping a small boulder into the pond; they do more than just create ripples and subsequent distortions... they create WAVES that are almost blinding!

How is the mind to be calm during a frightening and/or very tense situation? The answer can be summed up in one word...TRAINING! Realistic, traditional training. Learning to breathe correctly and maintaining breath control under stress is also key. There are those who espouse the “lizard brain” theory, saying that in times of extreme stress we lose fine motor control and so on and on, ad nauseum. Let me state for the record that this undesirable effect is to be overcome through regular, repeated training. I know. I've been there. More than once. More than twice... If one does not train regularly or repeatedly, certainly the undesirable “lizard-brain” theory comes into play.