Another "Open" Secret: Shutos?

First, sorry for the lengthy absence. Much has changed in my personal life in the past 2 years but mostly for the better. That said, back to karate.

We've talked before about the "Hidden Secrets in Karate-Do" before and how they really aren’t all that hidden. Karate is NOT solely a physical art. In their development and progression, the student reaches a fork in that development. Unfortunately, that developmental fork is usually a subconscious decision and missed by many.

The fork itself is whether to pursue karate as a physical skill or to pursue karate as an art composed of both physical and meditative development with a goal of self-improvement both physically, spiritually and cognitively.

To that end I want to look more deeply at "chudan-soto shuto-uke".

Every Sensei I have worked with (at least up to Shihan Zapata and Renshi Sanchez) have insisted the perpendicular positioning of the extended hand as being the actual block. Before then I was corrected time and time again to bend my hand up perpendicularly and not let it drop.

It has never felt right to me physically or internally.

Over the years I have researched the anatomy and physiology of the hand wrist and the hand-wrist joint and, to that end, I have discussed it with a couple of physiologists and kinesiologists. (Teaching at a school with a Sports Medicine program helped). The consensus of opinion is that the position of the hand in traditional chudan-soto shuto-uke is extremely weak and would injure the executioner of the move against a much stronger force. The muscles and tendons in those areas simply cannot be strengthened past a certain point without decreasing general range-of-motion in those areas.

No doubt there are those out there who would argue with me however, physiology is physiology. So, to appease them the nay-sayers: I'm sure there are rare exceptions.

When I have watched Sensei's, other yudansha, and kyu ranks (you can learn a lot from "beginners") I noticed, in practice, the hand invariably falls naturally into a palm down, 45-degree position before being corrected by the instructor. The exception is when a yudansha is "sparing" with a lower kyu rank and there is a clear chasm between experience levels

So I began practicing with a large diameter wooden dowel.

Executing traditional chudan-soto shuto-uke is unstable and then required a repositioning before a same hand follow up move could be performed.

"Poorly" executing the chudan-soto shuto-uke utilizing the distal forearm in combination with the side of hand (aided by the change of the angle of execution), was a much stronger block and, without repositioning, left me ready to immediately grab the attacker's arm/shirt/gi and then execute a follow-up move.

I was amazed at the immediate release of tension in my arm and shoulder when executed in this manner.

Try it. assume a traditional neko-ashi dachi, chudan-soto shuto-uke stance. Become aware of the tensions in your upper body. Then simply turn your hand palm down and drop the position to a 45-degree angle. Decide for yourself.

So the obvious question then is, If I am correct should we suddenly change the position of chudan-soto shuto-uke in all the katas as a reflection of my BFO (Blinding Flash of the Oblivious)?

Simple answer: ABSOLUTELY NOT!

Kata is kata and real-world is real-world. Kata DOES however, apply to real-world.

As I said before, I have watched many, many, shutos executed during kumite. All drop the shuto. In kumite few perform flawless kata techniques. They utilize real-world strikes and blocks based on kata, call them "naturally lazy blocks" not because they are really "lazy" but because the body naturally drops the hand.

Too often we refer to "bunkai" as "application". That is not it's meaning. Bunkai best translates to mean "analysis" or perhaps more appropriately, "disassembly". By disassembling a technique we can better understand how the execution of the technique best delivers the best ROI (Return on Investment) by the practitioner.

To paraphrase Gennosuke Higaki, "Studying/practicing kata is not the same as understanding the art of Karate-do."

Again, my belief and only my belief: Only by training to the high standards imposed by kata do we begin to grow and understand true bunkai but only if we dissect both thoroughly. Contrary to a popular belief, kata does not represent the practitioner fighting off eight different opponents at once. That would be absurd. Kata represents a standardized, easily replicable manner of teaching, training and perfecting both basic and advanced techniques. However, the most advanced meanings of kata take place when one begins the disassembly of the movements and begins to analyze each one of them at a deeper level.

Bunkai is as much a mental discipline as it is a physical application. The individual technique; chudan-soto shuto-uke, illustrates those concepts superbly.

TFYQA!

Cox Hakase

REFERENCES:

Bindal, V. D. (2018). Textbook of kinesiology, Jaypee Brothers Medical Pub

Higaki, G. (2005). Hidden karate: The true bunkai for the Heian katas and Naihanchi, CHAMP Co., Ltd.

McGinnis. (2021). Biomechanics of sport and exercise (4th ed.), Human Kinetics Publishers

Weinberg, R. & Gould, D. (2018). Foundations of sport and exercise psychology (7th ed.). Human Kinetics.

Kata Counts??

The kata begins. Ich, ni, san, shi . . . and the count drones on. With each count the class executes another movement of the kata.

In another dojo, same kata, same count but in this dojo each count elicits a response of a series of movements.

Another dojo, same kata, same count, and yet a different sequence of techniques.

Why? I've always wondered how dojo to dojo the kata are the same but the count is different. Learn it one way and then a different count/sequence makes you feel like a white belt again.

The question is simple; Why the differences?

There are several good answers: behavioral conditioning, classical conditioning, even "that's the way we've always done it." However these answers are all only partially correct at best.

In nearly every school the count initiates a combination (i.e. block-strike or strike-block) sequence. They do this not because they have thought it through but because it "seems" right or "it just makes sense, you would block then stop before striking!"

Well, yes you would.

But I digress.

I just finished reading this month's edition of "Classical Fighting Arts" (if you're not subscribing you REALLY should be). Graham Noble, in his article "Chosin Chibana's Shorin Ryu" quoted Shinpan Shiroma Sensei as saying "Each movement found in a karate do kata contains both the means of attack and defence." He then explained "until this is understood kata will appear as a pointless dance. When the purpose of kata is understood, that it contains the technique of attack, and defence, one will be deeply moved and excited by a kata performance" (Shinpan Shiroma, as cited in Noble, 2018).

Therein lies the answer of count and sequence.

If we practice true traditional Okinawan Karate-Do, i.e. "One Strike, One kill", if we practice true karate no point karate then the whole world is contained in just one count. Blocks ARE strikes and strikes ARE blocks.

If a chudan-uke is delivered with sufficient force it is both block and strike. Think of the yakusoku kumites. We so often practice the dance but without really focusing on the point of the sequence.

You can go as far as to say "karate ni sente nashi" is really saying "There is no first strike in karate because, in self -defense, the block is sufficient to disable your attacker so a strike, as such, is not needed."

O'Sensei said "Ken Zen Ichi Nyo" (Zen and the fist are one) - they are. The study of karate without the study of Buddhism (you don’t have to convert) leaves it incomplete.

Zen icons such as D. T. Suzuki advocate approaching everything, regardless of the repetition. Remember O'Sensei? Remember "Shoshin"? Translated it means "beginner's mind".

If every technique, in every kata, is delivered with the solid intent to kill, then a "one-count" is sufficient.

Yes, I know the one strike , one kil may sound antiquated and inappropriate in today's millenial, emo, politically correct, vegetarian approach to life, but we are talking about the 1500's on a little island 320 miles south of the Japanese mainland constantly subject to pirates, Samaurai abuse, and other such politically incorrect niceties of the day.

One count, one technique equals One technique, one kill.

The basics work best, lets go back and stick with them.

TFYQA!

Cox Hakase

REFERENCES:

Noble, G.(2018). Chosin Chibana's Shorin Ryu: His Legacy and Students, Classical Fight Arts, 56, (29-46).

Rank for Sale?

I recently had a very interesting, albeit unusual, experience. An acquaintance basically asked if I would "sell" him a shodan and nidan rank (with certificates). In addition to the rank, I would have to agree to serve as a reference as to their martial arts prowess including serving as a job reference. (The job he was applying for required a martial arts background/competence.)

The rank would have to have been backdated to 2005. The idea was even floated for me to misrepresent myself as a rokudan and award him a godan ranking. This also involved changing the website to reflect my various, but non-existent, "promotions".

I will say the amount of money discussed was significant.

As a background to all this, my wife and I would really to move to Roan Mountain, Tennessee, so the timing of the offer was interesting.

Many people believe if you have "Dr" in front of your name you are rowing in money. Let me assure you, as a teacher, nothing could be further from the truth. In point of fact, I make far less with a Doctorate than I did as a nurse with an Associate's degree. (plus still paying school loans).

So, the proffered money would have been very welcome and timely.

I am happy to say I never once seriously considered the offer. I do not think I could have lived with myself if I had.

I discussed the offer with him in great detail, specifically why it was so wrong and why I could not, would not agree to it.

At the end of a long drawn-out discussion, he agreed the whole idea was extremely inappropriate and he thanked me for refusing. However, he then asked that I not tell anyone which makes me suspect he will simply approach someone else. I suspect out-of-state, with the same, or similar, deal.

So what's the point of this page out of my life? It's back to basics, again. Karate is more than kata, sparing, respecting your peers, your Sensei, your style, etc. The values we learn in karate apply to our lives, not just the time we spend in the dojo.

Rank is a reflection of one's dedication. Not just to karate but to the spirit of the art, the spirit of budo itself. I think we could go so far as to say: "There is no "I" in karate".

Selling rank is prostitution of the worse sort. The seller of rank is not just shaming themselves. They are representing, and shaming, everyone who trained before them.

It's even more complicated than that. You can actually sell rank to yourself; the process is called self-promotion. However, the price for self-promotion is your own dignity and your sense of self-worth. Of course, if you suffer from Antisocial Personality Disorder (or merely antisocial leanings), it's sort of a moot point. I cannot imagine buying rank and then sincerely feeling "I deserved that!". That's like the people who purchase graduate and doctorate degrees, Then again, that's me. I guess not everyone feels that way.

So, bottom line: no easy money. I guess I'll go back to filling out my VA Home Loan application.

I wonder if "GoFundMe" would work????

Cox Hakase

Wax On, Wax Off, Knife Fighting and Karate-Do

Although I teach Matsubayashi-Ryu, we have enhanced the curriculum by adding skills training outside of traditional karate do. Let me be clear, Matsubayashi-Ryu remains unchanged. The additions I refer to enhancements, nothing more, to account for the realities of our changing world and include skills sets like, firearm marksmanship, edged weapons, stick fighting, urban SERE (survival, escape, resistance & evasion), and improvised weapons of opportunity to name a few.

Last week I was presenting a very basic ROK SEAL MUSAT (Multi UDT SEAL Assaulting Tactics) knife drill very similar to a kata of sorts (no I wasn't in the Navy, wasn't a SEAL, wasn't in Sec Ops, etc. In fact I swim like a large rock) but I do have friends in low places. A single man drill prepares one for the two man "kata" they have developed. Actually it's fairly similar to a SPETSNAZ drill I have seen. While we used rubber blades the ROKs use live blades.

After class, as we always do, we debriefed. As one thing led to another we somehow landed on "The Karate Kid" (the original, not the Jaden Smith abomination).

It seems no one can talk "Karate Kid" for more than 10 seconds before someone says "Wax on, Wax off"!

Everyone laughed and off we went but, at some level, it lingered inside me. Eventually it percolated into awareness and insight.

People laugh at the Karate Kid's, "Wax on, Wax off" because they see it as an over simplification of what the martial arts really are. After some thought, it occurs there is little that represents the true nature of karate more than "Wax on, Wax off", if you expand your thinking.

For the 3 of you who have never see the movie: the Caucasian kid (Daniel) asks the Japanese-American war hero (CMH) - Mr. Miyagi, to teach him karate.

Mr. Miyagi agrees and then proceed to teach Daniel how to wax Migayi's car by applying the wax with his left hand in a counterclockwise motion and then buffing the wax off using his right hand in a clockwise motion.

When Daniel has had enough and confronts Miyagi about not really teaching him karate, Miyagi punches Daniel who, utilizing the right and left arm movements, intuitively blocks all punches.

These basic skills quickly morph into yudansha quality tournament skills and Daniel (spoiler alert!) wins the big tournament.

But the "secret" of karate has been unwittingly exposed!

When someone starts karate because "I want to learn to defend myself" I encourage them to buy a handgun and get some training. It's faster, cheaper and proficiency can be achieved in a matter of weeks. A good karate student is not proficient in basic self-defense for at least 3 -5 years after beginning training. Sure your develop "islands of skill" before that but generalized skills really do take years.

If you are going to a dojo and become a yudansha in less than 3-5 years (without significant previous training) you are dangerous only to yourself. You're dangerous because you may actually believe you have real skills when, in fact they are still developing.

Renshi Sam Palmer used to ask "Do you know what they call a 2 year Blackbelt who gets into a street fight? . . . the answer was "A trauma patient."

- The secret of proficiency in karate is two fold: Repetition and basics.

- The secret of proficiency in fighting with edged weapons is also two fold: Repetition and basics.

- The secret of proficiency in kobu-do is two fold: Repetition and basics.

- The secret of proficiency in the use of firearms two fold: Repetition and basics.

- The secret of proficiency in MMA, judo, gung-fu, even bowling? Repetition and basics.

In a fight if you start thinking "I'm gonna do a ni-dan geri then drop into a cobra coil and deliver..." You're tagged!

Basics, remember "mizo no kokoro" (mind like water)? If you're "fighting" you'll lose; in the dojo or in the street. Remember "Enter the Dragon": "What's your style?" "I call it the art of fighting without fighting."

In sparing, in fighting, one must be proficient enough to "flow" with your opponent. That does not mean simply responding, but rather reading the waves of the flow of the encounter, letting go. The "empty mind" of the beginner must become the "empty mind" of the seasoned karate-ka. In fact, in Buddhism, we call it "beginner's mind".

One does not look for openings in a battle, the seasoned karate-ka is aware without being aware.

O'Sensei Nagmine said "Zen and the Fist are one". Many misinterpret this slogan. It means (to me) that the same principles, of empty mind, awareness without effort and the absence of "wanting" which are key to Zen are also the keys to karate. No tournament karate but true, spiritual karate.

Thankfully the vast majority of karate students never use their fighting skills in a real real encounter. However, on those occasions when they do find themselves in a confrontation they do NOT utilize neko-ashi dachi, chudan soto shuto uke, a ni-dan geri, or plain old flying side kicks. Instead (and the literature supports me) they fall back to basics and use chest blocks, straight punches and front kicks - most of them not delivered in textbook form.

I'm sure you ask why? Why does an 8th degree blackbelt, jumped on the street, execute a chudan uke followed by a simple chudan zuki then finished with a mae-geri to the kogan before walking away from the encounter?

Simple, because he (or she) has done those techniques so many thousands of times that they are delivered without thinking. The opening is sensed, the technique delivered and it's over.

If you have enough time to spot your target then think about where and how you are going to block or strike you opponent, hopefully you're sparring in the dojo. If this occurs when you're on the street you will never hear muzzle report of the bullet that is about to hit you.

https://youtu.be/WM-hiVoQugs

But back to knife fighting. Knife fighting seminars are extremely dangerous. Not techniques in the seminar but attending the seminar. Taking a seminar on knife fighting can be enlightening, entertaining and down right fun but it doesn't prepare you to defend against a knife nor fight with one. It's the 1,000 repetitions of the techniques you learn at the seminar that helps you begin to get prepared for an edged weapon assault.

Repetition and Basics - ALWAYS!

TFYQA!

Cox Hakase

P.S.

If you are going to practice with edged weapons you should follow these guidelines.

1) Learn from someone who knows

2) Start with a rubber blade (consider buying a Shocknife )

3) See one, do one, teach one, repeat.

4) When the "good idea fairy" says "You know, it can't be that hard with a live blade" - don't listen to him!

5) If you have not had a tetanus shot in 5 years, get one from your family physician.

6) Repetition is the key so buy Band-Aids.

7) First, First Aid, step for bleeding is ALWAYS direct pressure.

8) NEVER be the guy who brings a knife to a gunfight!

Motivation and Retention of Students in the Martial Arts

Palmer Renshi receiving instruction from Nagamine Hanshi (undated)

Note: Before writing this piece I did some research on available literature on the subject, there is a reference list attached at the bottom of this post if you are interested.

Many highly skilled martial arts instructors fail miserably when they open their own dojo. Not because they are bad teachers, not because they are poorly skilled practitioners, but because they believe being skilled in karate somehow equates to be skilled in teaching and that personality is all you need to motivate students. Nothing could be further from the truth.

Students do not remain in training because of the instructor's skill, the size of the dojo, how great a guy the instructor is or how fast they get promoted. They stay because they are motivated to do so.

Now here is the part nobody's Sensei taught them: as a Sensei, Renshi, Shihan or Hanshi you CANNOT motivate a student. Motivation must come from within the student themselves. You can provide a caring nurturing training environment but still the motivation comes from, and must come from, within the student not from us.

However, instructors CAN de-motivate a student and do so very, very quickly.

When we think "motivation" we really need to think on "retention", i.e. "what can I do to retain this individual as a student even as their motivation vacillates over time?"

Well the first attitude I have to "fix" is my own. My personal motivation in no way equates to what motivates my students, every student is different.

Some students start because they want to learn how to kick someone's ass. Usually those students last 6 months or less.

Some students start because they want to be able to say "I study karate". Those students usually last 6 months to a year or two.

Students who start training so they can learn "self-defense" usually face a crisis when, at some point, they realize self-defense proficiency takes 3-5 years (no one in the street ever remembers that "cool" technique they learned at the seminar.) You fight like you train so you have blocks, punches and straight kicks for a very long time. No one leaves a $400 seminar with even one new muscle memory. It doesn't happen like that - you may not like that but neurophysiology is neurophysiology.

Who is more motivated, the student who trains 5 days a week solid for five years or the student who trains once a week for 15 years? Certainly the retention of the 1st student appears to be better, especially during those 5 years and thus more motivated - but is it really.

Consider these examples:

Example 1: There's an old John Wayne movie called "The Green Berets". In it, when selecting members for a new A Team, Wayne chooses a new team member. The SgtMajor questions his choice by saying "Are you sure you want Sgt Smith? The jumpmaster says they have to kick him out of the aircraft every time he makes a parachute jump." Wayne responds "That's exactly why I want him: he keeps going back up."

Example 2: Bill Hendrix was a "star" in the dojo from the day he walked onto the floor. His reflexes were like a cat. His speed and accuracy rival the best yudansha. When shown a kata once or twice in one class he returns the next class capable of teaching the moves. Basically everything comes easy for Bill. Karate is fun, ranks comes quickly, Sensei uses Bill as the example to other students, and always spends a few extra moments in every class focusing on Bill and his techniques.

Once promoted to Shodan Bill stops being a idiot-savant and simply becomes another yudansha, albeit a good yudansha. 6 Months later Bill discovers skydiving and leaves karate behind.

So, who do you feel is more motivated? Bill or Sgt. Smith? Looks a bit different when viewed in these terms, doesn't it?

So back to the question, what motivates them. Do they "want to be like Sensei"? That's not motivation, that's an unresolved Daddy issue. An instructor who wants students to match the instructor's level of motivation is looking for sycophants not students.

For me to try to motivate a student by pointing out how motivated another student is only runs the risk of alienating the very student I want to motivate. No matter how you phrase it they still hear "Why can't you be more like your Frank?"

Some instructors think that only pearls of wisdom flow from their mouth or, worse yet, the have no one else to talk to. Students make the perfect captive audience. Unfortunately both techniques server only to alienate students.

Having a black belt or the title "Sensei" does not mystically embue the bearer with the skills and training they need to be an effective instructor. Unfortunately those exact skills sets needed to become proficient as an instructor are rarely taught in a dojo.

So, as an Instructor what can I do to provide a training environment that encourages retention and gives students a reason to motivate themselves to train?

Suggestions to Instructors on How to "Retain" Students:

1) Individualized instruction (even with yudansha students) the mudansha still need that 1:1 attention from Sensei.

2) Every student progresses at their own speed, don't be a speed bump. Nothing demotivates a student as quickly as being held back. Holding back a student is almost as bad as promoting a student too quickly.

3) Yudansha who are not good teachers should not teach UNLESS they are being directly supervised and their teaching is part of THEIR professional growth. How do you know who is a good teacher? Assume everyone is a bad teacher until proven differently.

4) Set clear individualized expectations for students collaboratively. I know that's not the way they did it in Okinawa but WE are not in Okinawa. The millennial student of today, and our dojos, would not survive under that training model nor should they have to, this is the 21st century not the medieval Ryukyu Kingdom. To retain students, the first person that has to adjust, who has to learn to be flexible, is the instructor, i.e. US!.

5) Care about your students, legitimately care about them. I'm not talking about making them a member of your family, we're talking about what Carl Rogers referred to as "non-possessive caring".

6) There is no place for ego in the dojo, least of all from the instructor. That's not what teaching martial arts are about.

7) If you have a "favorite" student, shut-up about it. One favorite student equals ten demotivated, "done quit" students. Its like being a parent: Parents lie all the time and say "Oh I love all my children equally" your children know better and, in the dojo, your students know better as well.

If your best friend(s) are your students you have your own issues. Students are students not peers or friends. This is not to degrade them but to ensure there exists professional distancing between student and Sensei - this is called a psychological and professional boundary. There has to be boundaries and you, the instructor, must set them. If you worry students will not like you if you are not their friend then you have other issues. In the dojo you are "Sensei" ALL the time and should be addressed as such before, during and after class.

Outside of class the salutation "Sensei" is inappropriate. If a student chooses to address you as "Sensei" at church fine, don't shut them down but don't insist on it.

9) Here's a novel idea: Actually learn how to teach. Learn how to develop your personal pedagogy for teaching. Your local Community College offers educational courses year round - take advantage of it, become a professional teacher not just another guy who knows karate and teaches.

10) This one is very important: Don't be afraid to say "I don't know". If a student asks you a question you do not have the answer to, tell them "I don't know". You then have two choices for follow-up:

a) "I don't know but I'll find out by the next class." Then do so.

b) "I don't know. Why don't you find out the answer and let us all know by next class?" Then make sure YOU do find out the correct answer before next class in case the student does not or in case they find the wrong answer.

Great Ways to Lose Students:

1) War stories; the dreaded "No crap there I was...." Your spouse is tired of your stories, your yudansha are tired of your stories and so are your mudansha. Students are in the dojo to train, not to hear your philosophy of life, political viewpoints, world traveling adventures, etc. etc. If you suffer from an external locus of evaluate and, as a result, you have a need to have people listen to you in order for your to validate your sense of self worth, join Toastmasters (http://www.toastmasters.org) .

2) Exclude from your training statements such as: "...then tear off his arm and beat him to death!" or "Once he's out, kick him to make sure!". Sounds great in the movies but in real life it just guarantees you will be in the "plaintiff boat" in court. The plaintiff boat is when, in court, your ex-student recounts the story of how you taught them to continue beating the victim after the danger had been neutralized. The student will lose in court and you will share the blame for teaching them. There is an old saying: "Never say anything in the dojo you could not justify saying in court."

3) Homophobia, genderism, and ageism have no place in the dojo - ever. If you cannot or will not teach the female student the homosexual student or even the older student, not only are you breaking the law, setting a horribly poor example and missing a profitable income stream. If you are homophobic but feel sure you can "hide your true feelings" in the dojo you're an idiot. A student will see through you in about 30 seconds. A Sensei teaches, period. Prejudice (of any flavor) converts an instructor into a liar; to themselves and to their students and, in the process, they sully the name of their art.

4) There can only be one "instructor" in a class at a time. Martial arts training is not a consensus of opinion. This goes back to boundaries. No one every said to Nagamine Hanshi during a class, "hold on Hanshi, I think twisting it this way works better" or worse yet "I studied another style before this and we did it a different and more effective way." Sensei is always right. period, end of story, no further questions your honor.

I once had a green belt (with no teaching experience) come up to me after a class, in front of other students, and say "Would you like some feedback on your teaching?. My answer was, of course "No". For a student to display that degree of arrogance is, in itself, a harbinger of issues to come. As a Sensei do not be afraid to maintain a healthy professional distance with your students. When you have a student you work with or run into on a constant basis in other life ventures this known as a dual relationship". When a dual or multiple relationship exists, the student's ability to observe boundaries becomes paramount.

5) Don't bad mouth other styles. No style is "pure" and no style fits everyone. Despite that, all styles have something we can all learn from.

There is an old saying: "If you meet the Buddha on the road, kill him." It is not encouraging violence. It is saying be your own person. Whoever, whatever your instructor was, don't become a "Minnie Me". Bring your personality into your teaching

Teaching is hard. Good teaching is even harder but highly rewarding.

T.F.Y.Q.A.!

Cox Hakase

---

References:

Allen, B. (2015). Striking Beauty: A Philosophical Look at the Asian Martial Arts, New York, NY: Columbia University.

Anshel, M. H. & Payne, J. M. (2006). Application Of Sport Psychology For Optimal Performance In Martial Arts, in Joaquin Dosil (Ed.), The Sports Psychologist's Handbook: A Guide for Sport Specific Performance Enhancement, (pp 353-374), Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Dosil, J. (2006). The Psychology Of Athletics, in Joaquin Dosil (Ed.), The Sports Psychologist's Handbook: A Guide for Sport Specific Performance Enhancement, (pp 265-284), Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Freire, P. (1921/1985). The Politics of Education, Westport, CN: Bergin & Garvey Publishing.

Kunen, S. M. I. (2011). Superhuman In The Octagon, Imperfect In The Courtroom; Assessing The Culpability Of Martial Artists Who Kill During Street Fights. Emory Law Journal, 60(6), pp 1389-1435.

Lantz, J. (2002). Family Development And The Martial Arts: A Phenomenological Study, Contemporary Family Therapy 24(4), (pp 565-580).

Molanorouzi1, K., Khoo1, S., & Morris, T. (2015). Motives For Adult Participation In Physical Activity: Type Of Activity, Age, And Gender, BMC Public Health, DOI 10.1186/s12889-015-1429-7

Nower, J. (2006). >Martial Arts & Feminist Awareness: A Plausible Explanation of Origins, Off Our Backs 37/(2/3), pp 28-31

Robertson, D. (1991). Marital Arts for People with Disabilities, Souvenir Press, London, United Kingdom. Vertonghen, J. & Theeboom, M. (2010). The Social-Psychological Outcomes Of Martial Arts Practise Among Youth: A Review, Journal of Sports Science and Medicine 9, 528-537

Yi, J. & Silver, D. (2015). God, Yoga, and Karate, Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion. 54(3), p596-615.

Ziv, G. & Lidor, R. (2013). Psychological Preparation of Competitive Judokas – A Review, Journal of Sports Science and Medicine 12, 371-380

Spirituality and Karate-Do

I've been studying, practicing, learning, and teaching Matsubayashi-Ryu karate-do since 1972, first on-base at Patrick AFB, FL and then in a small strip mall off A1A in Satellite Beach under Palmer Shihan. I've taken breaks, sometimes long breaks, but I always keep coming back.

From day one I have been told karate has a core of spiritual development, not religious development but spiritual development. While this doesn't exclude religious development it is not a focus.

In spite of this, in dojo after dojo, I have found very little emphasis on true spiritual development. This is most frequently due to the Sensei's above me also not having been trained in spiritual development.

When we go back to the source, Osensei Nagamine, we see he did not separate spiritual development from physical development. Osensei said "Ken zen ichi nyo" roughly translated means "Zen and the fist are one". His karate practice paralleled his spiritual development via Zen Buddhism and Zazen meditation.

Why spiritual development?

Excellent question and one which lends itself to an answer via metaphor.

Existence is like the ocean. We are all a part of the ocean of existence but occasionally we begin to develop into a wave. It is insanity for a wave to think it is somehow different, better, superior to the ocean it is a part of. Many times the wave can lose itself and believe it is more - it is not; we are not.

Even as a wave we are still part of the ocean and, eventually, every wave returns to the ocean, returns to the source we never actually left.

Every karate practitioner starts as a drop of water in the ocean, we grow, excell, become a wave and in that moment run the risk of losing ourselves in the insanity of the "superiority of the wave".

Eventuality even the greatest karate practitioner slows down, time & age draws us back into the ocean like it does everyone.

If we avoid the insanity that enticed us when we were the wave, we return to the ocean like going home. If we succumbed to the illusion presented by "wavehood", we return to the ocean fighting tooth and nail.

Fight or not, we all return. The difference is how we return, how we embrace our existence, our life, our death.

This is the spiritual lesson "hidden" in karate; do we visualize reality as a threatening enemy to be fought against or do we embrace the ocean of reality as the bed of existence we all come from and return to without every actually having left it?

So how do you incorporate spiritual development into karate training?

It's not easy because we, as Westerners, do not want to "waste" dojo training time on spiritual development.

We have to present spiritual development as an integral part of karate training. To that end, why no start with what we already do?

We do formal sitting at the start of every class; an ideal time to start.

A Warning; If you are not trained in Zen do NOT try to teach Buddhist meditation. To do so would present a tremendous danger to your students. As a psychologist I will tell you it is very easy to find yourself in an abreaction which will NOT end well.

However you can start with basic Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) exercises. Don't reinvent the wheel, you can download free self-help audio recordings of the exercises from the UCLA Mindful Awareness Research Center http://marc.ucla.edu/body.cfm?id=22 . If you like it; get certified as an instructor.

A note of caution: Screen your students. Any student under a physician's care for hypertension, heart disease, lung disease or any other chronic physiological or psychological ailment(s) should be cleared by a physician before starting the training.

Its a start. If it works for you, then find meditation instructors in the area who can help your dojo. A good source are your local Buddhist centers and/or Yoga centers - do your research.

Return to the source! (TFYQA!)

Cox Hakase

Happy Birthday!!

If he were still alive today, 27 November, Bruce Lee would be 75 years old! Can you imagine? 75! To me he will always be 33.

I remember the first time I "met" Bruce in 1972. I had just started school at Brevard Community College while living on-base at Patrick AFB, FL. I had a part-time job in the base theater but absolutely no interest in those crappy low-quality Chinese movies. My best friend, Wesley Golden, convinced me to stay and watch "Fists of Fury".

I did.

My life changed.

Nunchakus, OMG NUNCHAKUS!!!

I went home, sawed a broom in half, put a length of chain between them and proceeded to beat myself to death with the worst set of nunchakus ever made - nonetheless I was hooked!

I saw the move again 6 times.

After than Wesley convinced me to come join a group he had joined studying karate. That was how I met Palmer Renshi and was introduced to Matsubayashi-ryu.

Bruce was my introduction to Shorin-Ryu. I, like so many others, owe him a debt I can never repay.

Bruce, wherever you are, Thank You! (please tell Sam I said "Hello"!)

Cox Hakase

IMPORTANT NOTE: If anyone knows how to contact Wesley Golden, PLEASE have him contact me! Thanks.

Mindfullness and Karate are NOT Paradoxical Statements!

Mindfulness is the "secret" to mizo no kokoro; mind like water. Another way of conceptualizing this is the when the practitioner achieves the state of "no mind" or mushin. All external focus is dropped, the running internal mental dialog ceases or at least quiets significantly, and a state of mindfulness is attained however transiently.

Calming the mind to mushin, or “no mind.” Removing internal chatter to allow the mind to function more efficiently.

Nagamine Hanshi focused on achieving this state through the study and practice of Zazen and Zazen meditation.

Other Okinawa styles have incorporate the kata Sanchin. Sanchin, literally translates as "three battles" which refers to the development of mind, body and spirit.

Sanchin is a deceivingly simple kata, linear movements, basic block and punches incorporated into the sanchin dachi stance. The difficulty does not lie in the moves themselves but rather the single minded focus on tension and relaxation that accompanies the movements and centers on awareness of the breath.

If you are looking to expand your practice by incorporating a traditional Okinawan kata while retaining the focus of mindfulness consider adding Sanchin to your repertoire.

There are numerous resources for Sanchin with some variations from practitioner to practitioner. YouTube (below) has several clips.

Goju-Ryu Sanchin Kata By Morio Higaonna

Higaonna Sensei, Sanchin - Explanation and Training

Sanchin kata by Goshi Yamaguchi

Another excellent source is available from Tsunami Productions located at http://www.dragon-tsunami.org/Tsunami/Pages/go2rev.htm

So, does Sanchin actually work as a vehicle to mindfulness? If done correctly; yes. More than one practitioner has experienced moments of enlightenment or "satori" while performing Sanchin. (Traditionally satori refers to the achievement of kenshō which is the experience of "seeing into one's true nature".)

All of this is not to say the process is easy or even attainable for everyone but it is another avenue for more fully developing the holistic karate-ka and not just the punching-kicking mindless karate "master" so many occidentals view themselves as.

T.F.Y.Q.A.!

Cox Hakase

Conservation of Energy"Things Are NOT as They Seem!"

I was training a small group of visiting Wado-Ryu stylists in “Slow Zen – Mindfulness” training this weekend and we began taking about kata. Sigh. . . .

They training in a version of Pinan III which has some variations not seen in Matsubayashi-Ryu. See Below:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lPc-uVTBxwA

Pinan Sandan – Wado-Ryu Performed by: Maicon Nonoyama

Mawashi Hiji-Uke (Harai) or a “Sweeping Elbow Block” In Matsubayashi-Ryu traditionally this is referred to as a shoulder block.

Seeing the move as a sweeping elbow block or a shoulder block cannot be, or should not be, the correct interpretation of the move.

I tried block a straight punch with first my elbow and then my shoulder. Even knowing when the strike was coming it was nearly impossible to effectively block and left me in a vulnerable position with my back exposed to the attacker. Don’t believe me? Try it.

I then experienced a “BFO” (Blinding Flash of the Obvious)!

It is neither a elbow or a shoulder block, it’s a side step, upper body only.

The strike is launched and you spin your upper body to avoid contact, but just barely. This placed you in a perfect position to execute a reverse back fist to the unprotected head of the attacker and positions you perfectly to trap their extended arm and take them to the ground or dislocate the shoulder, All in a fraction of seconds.

Watch Hanshi Ota, Eihachi perform the same kata. The avoidance of the strike is clear as is the position for counter attacking it places you in:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i9X4GpCMvbc

Pinan Sandan – Matsubayashi-Ryu Performed by Hanshi Ota, Eihachi

This is NOT a beginner technique, it is simplistically sophisticated! Not only that but it also adheres to Nagamine Shoshin’s doctrine incorporating his view of sidestepping to avoid contact while place yourself in an excellent position to counter strike.

How is it I never saw this before?

The old Okinawan saying is there are no secret techniques in karate. Apparently this is true, this was staring me in the face for 20+ years.

Time to go back an look at the Fukyugatas!

T.F.Y.Q.A.!

Cox Hakase

Taking a Life

"If you can't be safe, be deadly."
Unknown U.S. Army Ranger

What is Okinawan-Karate really about?

- Self-Defense?
- Exercise and Physical Training?
- Maintaining Okinawan Traditions?
- None of the above?

Karate is about a singular event in your life, the moment you either take another person's life of give them yours. Karate is about life and death, that moment where years or decades of training suddenly are called upon and you either live or die.

I know, sounds melodramatic; but it's not.

I can train you in karate, I can teach you blocks, punches, kicks, yadda-yadda-yadda, but how do you learn to kill? How do you take a technique you've learnt in a safe, nurturing environment with other yudansha who you know will not intentional hurt, maim, or kill you and suddenly move beyond those limitations and terminate another man's life?

"Well I can train full contact."

You can, in it might help, but in that moment of singularity when the awareness leaps into you mind and you realize "for me to live, I must kill", how do you prepare, more importantly how do I prepare you for that moment?

We've all heard the instructors, at that time of month when their testosterone it at it's highest, encouraging you to "gouge their eyes out. … rip of their arm and beat them to death with it…" and other mindless pabulum. If you're 12 years old it does sound C-O-O-O-O-L but it's dumb. It doesn't work. Worse yet, if you do injure, or maim someone their lawyer will sue you AND your instructor who spouted off that maniacal crap.

Few martial arts students have been in actual hand-to-hand, life-or-death combat. So what we say we would do is based on a mindless repetition of what other equally mindless peers and instructors have told us. Maybe we should consider thinking for ourselves?

You've probably never heard of Col. David Grossman, but you should have. He's not a martial artist in the oriental sense of the word but he is a true renaissance martial artist. He's an Army Ranger and PhD psychologist who taught psychology at West Point (the U.S. Army Military Academy). His expertise is in how we teach young boys out of high school to become killers when everything in society tell them such behavior is abhorrent.

Col. Grossman is the developer of The The Warrior Science Group. He has written such books as; "On Killing: The Psychological Cost of Learning to Kill in War and Society",. . . "On Combat, The Psychology and Physiology of Deadly Conflict in War and in Peace", . . . "Warrior Mindset", . . . and others.

As a paramedic/critical care/emergency/flight and Air Force nurse I will tell you the human body is, at best, frail. Death can be produced easily. It's not like the movies; there's no sound track, not drums; one second you're alive and the next second your dead. It's that simple. The next morning the monthly bills arrive, a new contestant is thrown off Survivor, the phone rings, Email continues, etc. The world continues to turn, unaware, unaffected, by the death.

Funerals, Wakes, Stencils on Windshields, are NOT about the dead, they are about the survivors.

The physical act of killing is a surprisingly simple task. The psychological preparation prior to taking a life and the psychological preparation for dealing with the aftermath is far more difficult and training I have never seen in a dojo or even talked about except in mindless "manly" banter. Colonel Grossman breaks down the B.S. into the reality of the act.

If you are not familiar with Col Grossman's works, consider "On Killing: The Psychological Cost of Learning to Kill in War and Society" it's available in both print and audio CD. He talks about the detrimental effects of learning to kill to the individual and society. In the process you learn a lot about how individuals become indoctrinated and capable of killing despite societal admonitions against such acts.

Think about it, I can teach your 4,000 different bunkai to 27 different kata and in a fight you'll throw up you arm and cower behind them while you opponent rains down the blows. Or if we follow the Osensei's teaching when he says "it takes 10 years of training to become proficient in one kata" we respond instinctively, muscle memory, mindlessly and yet completely mindful. "Mizo no kokoro" in all it's beauty and simplicity!

You may have the most perfect execution of Kusanku, your dojo buddies have acclaimed you as the next Bruce Lee, but on the street, when assaulted, you will do three things; block, punch and low kick. Why? Because THOSE are instinctual, mindfully mindless. If you stop to think about what technique to do next, or worse yet, you've learned SO many techniques you can make up you mind what to use; you're road-kill.

Street thugs, hit-and-run "gangstas", don't train in the dojo for years like we do, they learn the art of the sucker punch. The sucker punch is great, when delivered properly is has a 80-90% success rate. Best yet, when it fails the assailant simply runs away. What would you do? No not that insane stream of martial arts conciseness running through your head right now but in reality; WHAT WILL YOU DO?(how do you know?)

T.F.Y.Q.A.

Cox Hakase

References:

http://www.warriorsciencegroup.com - The Warrior Science Group

http://killology.com - Killolgy Research Group

Learning TRADITIONAL Okinawan Karate-Do

Okinawan Shorin-Ryu Blogspot Top 10 List!

Ten things that will tell you that you are NOT studying TRADITIONAL Okinawan Karate.

10. You are NOT in Okinawa.

9. Your Sensei is American or Occidental.

8. Any technique starts with "Now this is a technique I took from (another style)".

7. Your American Sensei is a 10th degree.

6. Your Sensei is a convicted felon.

5. Your Sensei says his master flew 14 successful Kamikaze missions during the war.

4. Your Sensei promises to teach you a "secret Okinawan Master's" technique for $19.95.

3. Your Sensei promises to teach you a "secret Okinawan Master's" technique.

2. Your Sensei claims to have participated in a "Death Match" (win or lose).

1. Your Sensei says "We teach Traditional Okinawan Karate-Do!".

There are four types of Karate-Do taught in the United States:

Type 1. Sport Karate (we also teach fitness, aerobicize and Tae Bo!)

Type 2. Tournament Karate (Katas? . . . We don't need no stinkin katas!)

Type 3. American Karate (We combine the best of Okinawan and Japanese karate to get back to the roots and teach you 'traditional' karate!)

Type 4. Modified "Traditional" karate (Here's what Sensei really meant when he developed this technique!)

Type 5. Traditional American/Okinawan Karate (this is the way I learned it in Okinawa and that's the way it's going to stay!)

Now, this may surprise you, coming from me, but every one of the above has it's advantages:

Type 1. Sport Karate - Not everyone wants to become the next Bruce Lee and more power to them for being honest. While karate develops physical fitness, this style focuses on the physical fitness aspect of the art. Fine - just don't tell your students they are learning "self-defense"

Type 2. Tournament Karate - American Egos are more numerous than American Eagles. That's ok, most of us have an ego that rears itself in the most inappropriate time. Just don't confuse "tournament prowess" with "Karate skill". I can put a black belt on a golden glove contender and he too will win karate tournaments but would you want to learn karate from him?

Type 3. American Karate - Stop calling it "American Karate" that's like "American Vodka" Be proud, step up call it something that fits. . . . MMA? (Sorry, had to do that although MMA appears to be Brazilian at least that's what the Gracies says.)

Type 4. Modified "Traditional" karate - OXYMORON! If it's MODIFIED it not TRADITIONAL. If you change a technique "cause it works better that way" it may indeed work better but it's no longer traditional "As the Okinawans taught".

Type 5. Traditional American/Okinawan Karate - This is the closest you can get without actually training in Okinawa. The Sensei is either an Okinawan expatriate, trained in Okinawa or trained under an instructor trained by either and who changed NOTHING, hence the traditional part. Is it 100% traditional? of course not but it's the closest till you book your trip to Okinawa to learn "Modified Traditional Okinawan Karate"!!

WAIT A MINUTE! I thought you were going to tell me how to learn TRADITIONAL OKINAWAN KARATE!!

Sorry to break it to you but "Traditional" Okinawan karate died the day the first Okinawan started teaching Karate at the Kadena Air Base USO (outside BC and Gate 2 Street) and other assorted US Military bases.

Traditional Okinawan karate is taught to a very small dojo or a few students in back yard, hidden away in Okinawa. Gaijins not welcomed. Some HAVE made the transition and been accepted into true Okinawan dojos but most have not. Oh, by the way, if an Okinawan Sensei says "I'm teaching you the same way I teach my students in Okinawa" he's probably telling the truth... Sadly.

T.F.Y.Q.A.!

Cox Hakase

Women in Martial Arts

Do you know a woman in any of the traditional Okinawan (or even Japanese) martial arts who holds a legitimate rank of Hachi-Dan or higher? Probably not, they are more rare than an honest politician.

Martial arts continues to have a glass ceiling separating male and female practitioners.

Part of this is our (i.e. male practitioner's) fault. We treat women differently. We expect less from them and, when they live down to our expectations, we think less of them. That process is referred to as prejudice, genderism.

Not every female martial artist joins a dojo to meet a husband (although it does happen). We remain a male dominated society and the Asian influence, unfortunately, perpetuates the discrimination inherent in martial arts.

Combating or own prejudices can be a much more difficult fight than any Kumite we have ever engaged in.

How to begin? Start by eliminating genderism in the dojo. There is no "Miss" no "Ma'am" and no "Sir", there are only "students". We have already seen how students imitate what they see in the dojo, so let them see an equalitarian approach to instruction. To paraphrase Ghandi; We must be the change we want to see in the world.

Women can only compete at the level of men when they are allowed to. In the process BOTH students learn. We teach women self-defense against men, but have you ever seen a self-defense class where women are taught to defend themselves against a female street thug? They do exist and they do fight differently. Would that difference enhance the fighting skills of male and female students alike?

We are doing our female students an injustice but we can make things better.

I know some will say "Women don't have upper body strength to compete with a man." Were you sleeping during the lecture "Martial arts is not about strength"? Okay maybe a 110 pound woman physically cannot "duke it out" with a 220 lb man, but a 110 pounder male would not fare any better in a stand-up fight. However a 110 pound elbow strike is definitely going to ruin that 220 pounder's day, be that elbow male or female.

"But if I treat a female student like a male student they'll drop out of class." Maybe, but nationally the dojo drop out rate, proportionately, for female students compared to male students is actually lower. SURPRISE!

As instructors and practitioners we need to close our minds to what we think we know and open them to what we do not know and have not thought about.

T.F.Y.Q.A.

Cox Hakase

For your consideration I encourage you to read/view the following sources:

DVD: "Mrs. Judo: Be Strong, Be Gentle, Be Beautiful" available at: http://www.mrsjudomovie.com

Synopsis: HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!! Shihan Fukuda, a student of Judo Grand Master Kano Jigoro, was the ONLY women to receive a legitimate 10th dan ranking in martial arts.

Book: Shoot the Women First: Inside the Secret World of Female Terrorists, by Eileen Macdonald. ISBN: 0-679-41596-3 (Don't confuse with the fiction by William Waugh III with the same name).

Synopsis: Explores why female terrorists are much deadlier than male terrorist, i.e. when Special Operations troops hit a terrorist compound they are taught to shoot female terrorist first as they pose a great threat to the SOF troops survivability. Read the book to find out why and how it applies to martial arts.

Closure of the Nagamine Honbu Dojo

Today, 15 December 2013, is a sad day. Not because it's my birthday but because today was the last joint karate practice in the Nagamine Honbu Dojo in Okinawa.

Matsubayashi-Ryu has fought for its existence since the death of Osensei in November 1997. So the Honbu Dojo has survived a mere 16 years after his death.

After the death of Osensei the focus of the WMKA, perhaps motivated by poorly informed advisers, shifted from martial arts to money (as has occurred with many schools and styles over the years). This was quickly followed by an exodus/expulsion of many talented senior yudansha, renshis, and dojos who remained loyal to Matsubayashi-Ryu and the vision of Osensei preferring to forego the temptation of milking the Matsubayashi-Ryu cash cow. The loss of these superb, senior practitioners and their dojos had a vampiric effect and drained the very life blood from Matsubayashi-ryu.

If you have ever visited the Nagamine Honbu Dojo you know it's importance to the Matsubayashi-Ryu community. (I did when I was stationed at Kadena/Torii Station in 1976-77)

Taira Yoshitaka Hanshi, and his senior staff have a tremendous challenge in (hopefully) extending an olive branch to the many practitioners disenchanted with the old WMKA and then pursuing reunification of the Mataubayashi-Ryu community. A difficult task but one wherein the Nagamine Honbu Dojo remains a symbolic touchstone.

It is unrealistic to expect Osensei's grandson, Nagamine Bunshiro Sensei, as a Ni-Dan to suddenly take over a world renowned dojo and deal with the constant visitation of international senior yudansha and their students many, if not most, out rank him by several dans. Likewise there is only so much President Yoshitaka Taira of the WMKA can do on his own and in a vacuum. They need our support and they need to know how important the Nagamine Honbu Dojo is to us all.

Once the Nagamine Honbu Dojo closes its doors it may well be the first domino in a long chain of dominoes falling which threatens to leave Matsubayashi-Ryu unrecognizable to future generations. We don't want to wind up like Tae-Kwon-Do do we?

I encourage you to express your support and volunteering your help by writing (on your dojo letterhead) to Taira Yoshitaka Hanshi and Nagamine Bunshiro Sensei in Okinawa at:

Nagamine Bunshiro Sensei
Nagamine Honbu Dojo
Postal NO. 900-0015
3-14-1 Kumoji
Naha City, Okinawa, Japan
tel: 011 81 98 867 3413

and

Taira Yoshitaka Hanshi
Kodokan Taira Karate Dojo
Postal NO. 901-2122
2-19-19 Jitchaku
Urasoe City, Okinawa, Japan

Once it's gone, it's gone forever.

Cox Hakase

Okinawa is NOT Part of Japan!!

Time/Life Photo of American Troops Trying (unsuccessfully) to Convince Okinawans NOT to Commit Suicide.

When I was first stationed in Okinawa I made the mistake of referring to the Okinawans as “Japanese”. The wife of one of my supervisors, an Okinawan by birth, quickly and some what annoyed, pointed out “I am Okinawan, I am NOT Japanese.”

When I asked what the difference was she recited a litany of how the Okinawan people had been abused, used, belittled, and treated like third class citizens by Japan.

Okinawans and Okinawa itself have a proud history of self-determination, political, diplomatic and national accomplishment far before Japan began to cast an envious eye on their island paradise. Japan and the Japanese like Okinawa (and it’s exports) but only after the Japanese “fix” whatever it is they import.

For an example look at Funakoshi, Ginchin. Clearly an Okinawan master but not accepted in Japan until he reformatted Okinawan karate to better meet the needs of the 1930's pre-WWII Japanese military society. While Shotokan is a fine style of karate, it is not Okinawan and, really, it is not Japanese much like Tae-Kwon-Do is a further modification of Shotokan. Yes, Korean Tae-Kwon-Do does have a direct lineage from Okinawan karate, regardless of what anyone says (don’t believe it? or don’t want to believe it? do the research yourself, its not a big secret.)

Back to the Okinawans. The Okinawans were used as bullet fodder in both the war in China and later the battle for Okinawa. You may remember Nagamine Shoshin actually fought in China, while not our proudest moment, he had little choice when compelled by his Japanese overlords.

You may or may not know but as the battle for Okinawa came to an end and after the sacrifice of many, many lives on all three sides, Japanese troops tried to force Okinawans to use themselves as IEDs by giving them hand grenades coupled with horror stories of how American troops would treat them and their families if captured. The Okinawans were told to sacrifice themselves for the Emperor (not theirs) and for the home island (again not theirs) (many sources hold significantly more Okinawans were killed than Japanese).

"At the hands of Japanese soldiers, civilians were massacred, forced to kill themselves and each other,"… Soldiers seeking refuge from the naval shelling forced civilians out of limestone caves and, during the fighting, out of the island's turtle-back shaped tombs, according to captions. About two weeks into the battle, the Japanese military commander sought to suppress spying by banning the speaking of Okinawan dialect, a version of Japanese often unintelligible to nonresidents. Armed with this order, Japanese soldiers killed about 1,000 Okinawans, according to local historians. Two mainstream Japanese history textbooks from the 1990's that talk of Japanese soldiers "coercing" civilians to kill themselves are on display. Now, Okinawans fear that this history will be dropped from the national consciousness. "In many cases, hand grenades, which were in extreme shortage, were distributed to residents," Masahide Ota, an Okinawan who fought here in a unit called the Blood and Iron Student Corps, said in an interview on Friday. "I heard people say they were told by the military to commit suicide using the grenades rather than becoming captives." - Masahide Ota in the New York Times

Many Okinawans fell for the propaganda and either sacrificed themselves trying to kill Americans or jumped to their deaths (many with their children) to avoid the horrors they envisioned they would experience under the American occupation. Horrors which never materialized by those who survived.

"At one place, we sat together and hit the grenade on the ground, but it did not explode," she recalled of her flight with friends after Japanese soldiers told them to kill themselves rather than be taken captive. "We tried to kill ourselves many times, trying to explode the grenade we were given from Japanese Army." - Sumie Oshiro in the New York Times.

To this date the Okinawan “Suicide Cliffs” remain a somber tourist attraction serving to remind everyone of the horrors of war. Unfortunately Japanese and American alike either do not wish to acknowledge these war crimes or choose to ignore them for other reasons. A few years ago one dojo owner asked me to remove the "Anti-Japanese" sentiment from the web site so as not to offend potential mainland Japanese students. That's a sad state of affairs on many, many levels.

This is not an Anti-Japanese posting, it is a pro-Okinawan posting. I study Okinawan karate not Japanese karate! The atorcities in Okinawan committed by the Japanese militray

"We understand that there are various views and debates over the mass suicides in Okinawa,'' the Cabinet statement said. ``The screenings of the textbooks are not based on the government's view of history." - Hideko Takayama on Bloomberg.com

Maybe the words of an Okinawan who lived through the first Japanese occupation makes the points its clearest:

"The Rev. Shigeaki Kinjo, 78 years old and in failing health, no longer wanted to talk about that fateful day 62 years ago toward the end of World War II when he beat to death his mother, younger brother and sister.

Brainwashed by Japanese Imperial Army soldiers into believing that victorious U.S. troops would rape all the local women and run over the men with their tanks, Kinjo and others in his village here in Okinawa thought that death was their only choice. A week before U.S. troops landed and initiated the Battle of Okinawa in March 1945, Japanese soldiers stationed in his village gave the men two hand grenades each, with instructions to hurl one at the Americans and then to kill themselves with the other. Most of the grenades failed to explode. After watching a former district chief break off a tree branch and use it to kill his wife and children, Kinjo and his older brother followed suit.

"My older brother and I struck to death the mother who had given birth to us," Kinjo said in an interview at the Naha Central Church, where he is the senior minister. "I was wailing, of course. We also struck to death our younger brother and sister." Kinjo agreed to tell his story again because the Japanese government is now denying, in new high school textbooks, that Okinawans had been coerced by imperial troops into committing mass suicide." - Norimitsu Onishi, The New York Times

The Okinawan People are NOT Japanese!

Okinawa is NOT an extension of Japan!

Karate is NOT a Japanese art!

Matsubayashi-Ryu is Okinawan!

Preserve Okinawan culture by preserving Okinawan Karate-Do!!!!

Cox Hakase

REFERENCES:

Japan's Textbook Case Of Revisionist History, The New York Times,
http://www.sfgate.com/news/article/Japan-s-textbook-case-of-revisionist-history-2536639.php

Japan Says Some Okinawans Died Under Army Orders During Wartime, Bloomberg.com,
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&sid=afbGoFEKLj34&refer=japan

Okinawans Protest Japan’s Plan to Revise Bitter Chapter of World War II, The New York Times,
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/07/world/asia/07okinawa.html?pagewanted=1&ei=5124&en=f2dfcc063221fe72&ex=1349496000&partner=delicious&exprod=delicious

Okinawa Suicides and Japan's Army: Burying the Truth?, The New York Times,
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/20/international/asia/20okinawa.html?_r=2

Training Martial Arts Monkeys

Okay, you train 3-4 days a week. You kumite every couple of weeks, you know all your style's katas, you're a virtual martial arts historian. You may have even won a trophy of two in competition. You can pound a makiwara, your Naihanchi stomps put fear into the mudansha, and everyone in 3 dojos acclaim you as the next Bruce Lee.

Yet you have failed as a martial artist as you missed the most important part of martial arts training.

I don't have studies to support this but I would imagine at least 8 out of 10 dojos talk about spirituality (not religion) in one form or another. They talk about it's importance to training, the need to cultivate "mizo no kokoro", the need to develop awareness in training, "focus", and the like. However lip service is where it stops. They do not actually train you - that’s because they don't know how? (Ask your Sensei; "Sensei, train me in mindfulness." Then watch for the deer in the headlight glazed-over look.) Don't feel bad, there are many, many, high ranking Blackbelts who cannot meditate, and would even know where to try to start.

Without mind training, without a true and active focus/training in mindfulness, awareness, meditation; any student's training is incomplete.

Go back and watch the first "Karate Kid" movie. (Yeah I know - sorry). But look at the core difference between the quiet Japanese-American instructor and the ex-special forces, "kill 'em all and let God sort them out" loud mouth instructor. Which are you? Or do you (more commonly) talk like Miagi but act like the "killer". If so, you lose.

There's a great line in "Enter the Dragon" where O-Hara breaks a board in mid-air without support (a difficult feat). Bruce Lee looks at him and calmly says "Boards don't hit back". You know, you saw the movie, and you too misunderstood what he was saying.

Breaking the board or hitting the opponent is fairly easy. When you overpower them, when you've become a karate machine, they present little danger to you. You ARE the master! Even if they beat you to a pulp your focus is still on THEM, how you're gonna get even, better, faster, smarter, etc. Your focus is still outside yourself either way - you lose either way.

What scares you?

What frightens you the most?

It's not the outside threat, it's the inner threat; looking inside, seeing, acknowledging oneself. Confronting that part of yourself you both hate and loathe. That secret shadow self you would NEVER tell another person about, you already know how their opinion of you would change forever if they knew you _______________ (fill in your own blank).

That shadow self CANNOT be defeated; it won't hit back. Yet it controls your life. The more you try to suppress it, defeat it, control it, the more control you actually give your shadow over your physical self. You LOSE!

The journey toward mastery of karate is a road you CANNOT complete without the mastery of self. Meditation, mindfulness training, forgiveness of self and, ultimately acceptance of self is the ONLY way the shadow self can be dealt with, compromised with, not defeated. Embracing the shadow reunites self with self, ying with yang, and this reunification is the only way you can quiet the battle of the inner turmoil. Again Bruce Lee's "The art of fighting without fighting…"

I'm not referencing religious training. Having a strong religious orientation may help fortify you for the inward journey but, in and of itself, will not get you there. Religious armor for battle won't work. In this battle you an only survive by NOT armoring yourself.

You ever see the monkey on Youtube with the Gi on? Looks like he knows karate? We laugh at him but it's a nervous laugh; inside we identify way too much with the monkey. Physical training without spiritual training only creates trained monkeys. Sure, some monkeys learn faster than others and are better than others, but their still monkeys.

Monkey see, monkey do, but monkey not understand.

TFYQA!

Cox Hakase

Shobu ha, Issho Ichido

     The last entry on Kumite generated a number of private responses; some think I'm brilliant (thank you again) while others believe I should "increase your medication[sic]". The majority of the comments lie somewhere in the center of the continuum.

     Fortunately it's my blog, my thoughts. If you are offended by my ideas, here's an idea; don't read them. Tibetan Buddhism teaches words only offend us when we fear there is truth in what is being said. Hmmmm . . . . . . .

     I blame my current teacher, Sanchez Renshi, for your discomfort. He strongly encourages students there is the traditional way, the right way, the hard way, the wrong way, and the easy way. You (i.e. "I") have to decide what the truth is for me. It WOULD be a lot easier if he just told students what to do and believe but then he would simply be making little copies of himself. Instead he teaches the basics, keeps an ear open to innovation and discourages cronyism. Unfortunately he encourages my academic, pseudo intellectual prattle - what you're reading.

     Anyway kumite really IS an important topic for every karateka, and something we all must learn conceptualize in order to continue training. If we simply repeat what we were taught "cause that's the way we've always done it" we are nothing more than robots. We can become very good robots but remain fearful of original ideas.

     First we must decide WHAT we believe.

     Example. Remember when you decided what your spiritual orientation was? Weather you believed in a deity or not? Of course not, you were indoctrinated by your parents, caregivers, and other significant adults. If you developed your own sense of self you one day did ask the question "What do I believe in and why?" You may or may not have changed your ideation but at least now it's YOUR belief and not an inter-generational transmission of un-reviewed belief.

     Kumite is the same. You reach the yudansha ranks, finally you're a recognized student, and hopefully start to ask yourself questions about what you believe and do not believe.

     Fortunately, for me, I have a strong background in anatomy and physiology. Even as a mudansha I soon learned many of the sacred cows of karate were delusions; e.g. "you rotate your fist on a punch so that the twisting motion tears the flesh on contact." I started thinking; out of the hundreds (perhaps thousands) of patients I have seen struck with a fist how many had tear marks where the assailant's knuckles made contact.

     Answer ……

     Wait for it …..

     N - O - N - E! (except when brass knuckles were used)

     Now, back to Kumite.

     I conceptualize there being five different types of Kumite with numerous sub-divisions:

          (1) No or minimal contact (occasional light contact slips in).

          (2) Moderate contact (although the word medium is seldom defined and tends to try to hide the words "testosterone driven").

          (3) "Yudansha Rules" (testosterone driven)

           (4) Full contact (another nebulous term - usually followed by the words "except to the _____".)

          ((5) No Kumite practiced.

     Many times instructors (not true Sensei's but instructors) will tell students you have to get hit so you will not be afraid in a real fight or won't get hit and simply stop fighting because it hurts.

     Much like Communism this sounds like practical advice but is not based in reality. In a real fight (yes, been there) hormones are dumped into your system. What Cannon, in 1923, identified in his book "Traumatic Stress", and later became known as the "Fight or Flight Syndrome". We all have heard of this syndrome and may even talk about it in training carelessly not allowing our ignorance of the subject prevents us from talking about it.

     During the Fight or flight syndrome there is a dumping of catecholamines (biologically active chemicals) into the body. These include, but are not limited to; epinephrine, norepinephrine, dopamine, serotonin, and many others. This chemical dumping can produces all or some of the following somatic functions:

     Tachycardia, Tachypnea, Slowing of digestion, Peripheral blood vessel constriction, Muscular blood vessel dilatation, Gluconeogenesis, Decreased tearing and saliva, production, Pupil dilatation, Focused hearing, and Focused visual acuity. All of these functions are each designed to enable you to fight your assailant or run swiftly away.

     In addition, this chemical dumping can also produce more deleterious effects known as the cortical inhibition syndrome; an acute dulling of higher intellectual functioning. Symptoms of the cortical inhibition syndrome include all or part of the following:

     Agnosia, agraphia, alexia, akathisia, amnesia, anomia, aphasia, apraxia, delirium, dysarthria and/or dyscalculia.

     So, to clarify, in a "real fight" the limbic system (our primitive "lizard" brain") prepares by increasing our oxygen intake, redirecting blood flow to large muscle masses, increasing our visual acuity in low light situations, producing energy by converting fat to glucose and pumping the highly oxygenated nutrient rich blood throughout our body.

     At the same time our brain is betraying us by limiting our ability to think, cognate, and remember the fancy 473 different bunkai applications associated with Pinan Sho-dan.

     Really? Yep, look it up.

     Now if you were to fight for your life once a month you COULD eventually develop a limited control over some of these functions. Remember even the "big gun" MMA stars know their opponent will not kill them.

     But wait, it gets worse; Neither the Flight or Fight Syndrome nor the Cortical Inhibition Syndrome can be reproduced in Kumite, unless you will occasionally kill a student and the student knows and believes this.

     So what then is the purpose of Kumite? -- That's the question you have to answer for yourself grasshopper.

     Uechi-Ryu Shinjo Seiyu Sensei used to have a saying on the wall of his dojo: "Shobu ha, Issho Ichido" (A fight occurs only once in a lifetime). He wasn't talking about a smack down, or a drunk throwing a punch he was talking about Thunderdome; "Two men enter, one man leaves". Think about it.

     So, summary: Kumite teaches you how to spar in the dojo, it fails to prepare you for "real fights" and can actually increase the odds of you being seriously injured in such a fight. On the practical side (we all have to make a living) kumite decreases your dojo enrollments by intimidating students who have the potential to become excellent martial artists IF they were taught, mentored and grown with care and attention.

     Okay now that I've annoyed you, the oblivious question is "If kumite doesn't work why even study karate?"

     To quote Monty Python "A fair question and one that's be much on my mind of late. . . "

     (     ((1) At it's core I maintain karate is NOT about fighting another person but about YOU coming to terms with who YOU are. Kumite does not help in this introspective process. To do this karate MUST have a spiritual component integrated into it. While I, and many others, prefer Buddhism, Christianity, Islam, Judaism etc. all can work.

          (2) You WILL learn to defend yourself, physically and mentally, but not overnight and not in a year or two. If you an "win" a blackbelt in less than 5 years of hard work you dojo is probably not a dojo but rather it's a business. (Go ahead send me the letters - I won't answer them)

          (3) It is a martial tradition that teaches mindfulness. Remember "Mizo no kokoro"?

     OK now for the million dollar question; if I don't practice kumite how will I ever learn to defend myself?

     Best answer; if your primary reason for learning karate is to learn to defend yourself, buy a gun and take lessons. It's cheaper, easier, and you'll feel safer within a couple of weeks.

     Go back to the Cortical Inhibition Syndrome above. In a crisis situation we (all of us) respond automatically, without thinking (mizo no kokoro). Our bodies respond reflexively, automatically based on the concept of "muscle memory".

     You block a sucker punch with a jodan-uke because you've practice delivering jodan-uke's literally thousand's of times by the time you tie the blackbelt on. Your body remember and reacts, the motion has become part of you, automatic. How do you learn to defend yourself: KATA!!!!!!

     Again I go to Uechi-Ryu Shinjo Seiyu Sensei (and many other Okinawan masters who did not teach or practice Kumite). Seiyu Sensei stated ". . . by correctly practicing kata, fighting is not needed." Kata is taught full force with emphasis on proper delivery. Exercises develop the body's ability to deliver power strikes and protect oneself from injury. Zazen is practiced to settle the mind. Most importantly, in every kata, every strike is also a block just as every block is also a strike. And of course, Makiwara (again).

     Here's a thought. If you brought in a Golden Gloves amateur boxer to your dojo's Kumite night and everyone went full contact, how many of your best Kumite artists would survive? (I'm betting on the boxer) Don't believe me - I DARE YOU TO TRY IT! I DARE YOU!

     Show me a karateka who practices kata precisely, accurately and with power and you'll be looking at someone who will survive a street encounter.

     Who would you rather fight "for real"; the karateka whose kata is powerful and almost perfect or the guy who does a sloppy weak kata under the guise of "I include my personal bunkai"? P-U-U-U-U-L-E-E-E-Z-E!

     Again. You don't have to agree with me, in fact I hope you don't because you're taking my word and not developing your own thoughts. If you are upset with what I write; EXCELLENT! Now I dare you to explore your own mind and discover why. If you like what I write, great, dig in and start doing your own exploration.

T.F.Y.Q.A!

Cox Hakase

REFERENCES

Cannon, W. (1939), The Wisdom of the Body (2nd Edition), W.W. Norton & Company: St. Louis, MO.

Everly, G. (1994), Psychotraumatology, Springer Publishing: New York, New York

Grossman, D. (1996). On Killing: The Psychological Cost of Learning to Kill in War and Society. New York: Little, Brown, and Company.

Grossman, D. (2000). Teaching Kids to Kill, A Case Study: Paducah, Kentucky. Paper presented at the American Psychiatric Annual Meeting, Chicago, IL. (Full text available on-line at http://www.killology.com/print/print_teachkid.htm ).

Miyagi, M. (2011). Interview with Miyagi Minoru Sensei, available at http://okinawakaratenews.com/eng/hanshi.php

MacDonald, E. (1992), Shoot the Women First, Random House Publishing, New York, New York.

Bruce Lee in the Dojo - Victim in the Street!

Another entry sure to annoy many . . .

A couple of months ago I received a cracked rib when a lady in a chemically induced psychosis kicked the crap out of me with her boot. I had already been think a lot about Kumite training and that incident, coupled with an article I read on-line entitled "5 Reasons Karate is Useless" gave rise to the following diatribe.

Every school applies a different significance to sparring as the Hanshi of the style sees fit. At the same time EVERY type of sparring has it's own benefits and it's own failures.

First there's the concept of sparring, i.e. Kumite, in itself. "Kumite" does NOT mean sparring but rather "Grappling hands".

There are four types of Kumite:

1) Yakusoku Kumite which translated, means "Promise Kumite" Some styles call this Gohon Kumite. This is the most basic form of Kumite. I attack, you know I'm attacking, and how to defend. No surprises

Purpose; For the neophyte to begin working with other students, focus on and develop timing, accuracy and attacking/defending while moving with a partner.

Yakusoku Kumite is further divided into three sub-divisions:

     (a) Ippon kumite - one step sparring, frequently used in basic technique drills

     (b) Sanbon kumite - three step sparring, typically used to develop speed, strength, and technique.

     (c) Kiso kumite - structured sparring based specifically on the movement from one of more kata

Disadvantages: None, IF, used properly in a systematic training curriculum.

2) Jiyu Kumite translated means "Free sparring". Working with a partner but you do not know what technique will be utilized and what technique you will use to defends/attack

Purpose; Develops "Mizo no kokuro" (mind like water) . If you think about what technique you will use, you'll get hit. Liberating the mind and instinctively responding with a block or strike is the epitome of success in Jiyu Kumite. Because of this most schools do not allow mudansha below the rank of go-kyu to participate.

Disadvantages: Many. Mostly the limitations of the approach; e.g. there are usually no-contact zones, limited contact zones. But the biggest advantage is the more we try to make Jiyu Kumite "authentic" or "Street worthy" the more we fail.

Example: Many schools may advertise "full-contact karate" but not to the head. The great kicker will love this approach but it sets that individual up for failure and even injury in real life. If I'm 6 foot 4 and can kick the crap out of you before you can get close enough to kick me I have an advantage. However since I do not have to worry about a Monkey fist to the temple I soon fail to protect my head.

In the street I'll take a kick most any day in order to get close enough to deliver a shuto to your temple. You may hurt me but I'll K.O. you. Who wins? The lawyers.

3) Shigoki (savage training) - While "Shigoki" is not true Kumite, Kumite engaged in during shigoki is similar to a "beat down initiation" into a gang. No respectable karate school engages in such training although there is the occasional exception usually including a perp parade on the nightly news.

Purpose: No valid purpose. Seeing how much of a beating does not make you a man - it simply means you're stupid enough to be a human punching bag - Think of it as martial arts bullying.

4) "Authentic" Kumite. This fourth type of Kumite does not have an actual name (if you know differently please contact me).

In Okinawa it was not unheard of for a karate student to venture into town or over to the "bad part of the village" (i.e. "B.C.Street") and get into a fight purposefully to perfect their techniques in a "real" fight.

While in our politically correct society this sounds abhorrent, it WAS extremely effective. NOTHING in a dojo can prepare you for the adrenalin rush, the concentration narrowing of a true fight. There is no break, no time out, no pulling of punches and no forbidden techniques. Authentic Kumite is the real-deal from another age and another time

So, the best BAD reasons to engage in Kumite training:

1. This is Florida, everyone carries a gun. Karateka's who develop defenses against guns are known as "the dearly departed".

2. You fight the way you train. So unless you allow all full-contact attacks and blocks (including eye gouges, traumatic testicular rupture, tracheal strikes, do not wear any protective equipment [jock, gloves, mouth guards, etc.] AND you wear combat boots when sparring) Then you are delusional and what's more you're endangering your students and your home (which is what the lawyers will sell to pay your court judgment.)

3. You scare off students by engaging them in Kumite before they have developed the basics needed to support their training.

4. Talented students are misled to believe they will be capable of successfully defending themselves in the street.

5. A karate student training to fight another karate student, so you can learn to protect yourself against a street thug, is sort of like practicing Spanish with another student studying Spanish so you will be ready to speak Portuguese on your vacation.

6. If you feel more "manly" by thumping and getting thumped in Kumite classes you have deeper seated issues which should be addressed at a psychological level before you continue your martial arts training.

Okay, enough bitching. What role does/should Kumite have in karate training? Consider the diagram below (specific to my conceptualization of Matsubayashi-Ryu)

So now you're thinking, sounds boring. What is the "secret" of being ready and capable of defending yourself in the street.

Makiwara training.

Makiwara training teaches you how to deliver devastating attacks AND blocks. Who cares how fancy or special your "spinning round house flying reverse monkey stomp kick" is if you have trained yourself to make EVERY block an attack, every straight punch a pile driver, every shuto a katana and every kick a jack hammer?

In your first "real" fight you will remember nothing; but your body will automatically respond (muscle memory) with what you have practiced the most, i.e. (1) Chudan-uke, (2) Chudan-zuki, and (3) Mae-geri.

If you have enough control, presence of mind, to deliver fancy advanced attacks, you're clearly fighting an unprepared opponent. That's not karate.

Anyway that's my approach. Like it, modify it or blow it off. - - T.F.Y.Q.A.

For my brothers and sisters in budo,

Cox Hakase

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