|
|
      |
| The Lounge | Champions | The Wire | Schedule | Audio | Arcade | The Top Ten | Historical | Email | Video |
|
|
|
| The Lounge | Champions | The Wire | Schedule | Audio | Arcade | The Top Ten | Historical | Email | Video |
 |
The Best Martial Art
It is a very difficult task to determine which martial art is the best so first of all let's take a look what a martial art exactly is and what not. The word "martial art" consists of 2 parts ; "martial" and "art" both of them are very important as you will see in the following lines in the determination of what a martial art exactly is. According to the dictionary the word martial means: 1. Of, relating to, or suggestive of war. 2. Relating to or connected with the armed forces or the profession of arms. 3. Characteristic of or befitting a warrior. As you can see, martial has everything to do with war and the ways of the warrior. The word "Art" on the other hand gives the following definition: 1. Human effort to imitate, supplements, alters, or counteracts the work of nature. 2. a. The conscious production or arrangement of sounds, colors, forms, movements, or other elements in a manner that affects the sense of beauty, specifically the production of the beautiful in a graphic or plastic medium. b. The study of these activities. c. The product of these activities; human works of beauty considered as a group. 3. High quality of conception or execution, as found in works of beauty; aesthetic value. 4. A field or category of art, such as music, ballet, or literature. 5. A non-scientific branch of learning; one of the liberal arts. 6. a. A system of principles and methods employed in the performance of a set of activities: the art of building. b. A trade or craft that applies such a system of principles and methods: the art of the lexicographer. 7. a. Skill that is attained by study, practice, or observation: the art of the baker; the blacksmith's art. b. Skill arising from the exercise of intuitive faculties: "Self-criticism is an art not many are qualified to practice" (Joyce Carol Oates). 8. a. Arts Artful devices, stratagems, and tricks. b. Artful contrivance; cunning. So combining the two this would give us "a system of war principles and war methods employed in the performance of a set of warlike activities" as a useful definition for martial art. In short; "the training of the methods and principles of war" It is very important that we understand this because most martial arts nowadays are not martial arts as defined by the definition above.War is not defined by rules, competition or divisions. War has only one goal; the destruction of the opponent by all necessary means in the shortest time possible. The moment a martial art sets rules of competition, divisions, and rules of engagement or protection, the martial aspect of the martial art is lost and the martial art in question becomes a completely different thing. Now I am not going to write about the sports derived martial arts because the question in this article is "What is the best martial art" In my opinion the best martial art is the one that gives you the widest range of options of survival in a true case of life and dead confrontation. This means that the martial art must be prepared to give the practitioner the possibility and means to deal with both armed as well as unarmed opponents, single or multiple attacks and so on. This is not only done by techniques because techniques and the human capacity to perform them in the short period of time (seconds) during a true case and in constantly changing environments , situations and against different opponents makes it virtually impossible to use only techniques to overcome all sorts of attacks. This is where the martial methods in Japan became an art. Being aware of the limitations of training (limited time and physical capacity) the Japanese bushi started to study the underlying principles of war. They found out that all human beings have similar reactions when they find themselves in similar situations. Let me give you an example to make this clear: When someone touches a hot stove his hand automatically recoils without even having to think about pulling your hand back. Or when your head is pulled down, your body automatically will follow and to prevent falling to the floor you will resist pulling to the opposite side of the force that is pulling you down. Knowing and understanding these concepts gave the bushi in ancient Japan an enormous advantage over their adversaries. It increased by no small amount their capacity to deal with life threatening situations. Today this is still useful and I think it will always be useful because humans today have the same reactions as the ones 600 years ago. We still share the same fears and instinctive reflexes and the principles of war have not changed, only the means by which we engage in war. So if you want to practice the best martial art first of all you must be prepared to do a lot of hard physical training (did you ever see a warrior with an overweight of 50 pounds?) to prepare your body. Next explore your fears and instinctive reactions and adapt or change them to fit your needs as a warrior so you will be able to use them in true combat and finally learn to understand your opponent so you can use his fears and instinctive reactions against him. This will give you the best martial art. Peter Vermeeren is a traditional martial arts teacher for over 30 years. His websites can be found here: Takaharu Dojo and Kamikaze | martial arts | fitness | self defense
MORE RESOURCES:
Google News |
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
A Great Question! It's a question that we went back and forth with for awhile ourselves many moons ago. The "how" and "why" of our conclusions may be of some interest. So You Think You Train Hard "Tokio Hirano (1922-1993) 8th DanThe Man Who Revolutionized Judo"By Jim Chen, M.D . How To Defend Against A Knife - Dont Use The Stuff Taught In The Dojo! Defences against Knife attacks, Firstly if at all possible get yourself and anyone else out of the potential danger area.. Who Created Tai Chi Chuan (Tai Chi Boxing)? I have read a number of books, articles, and novels, and have watched movies and television series that touched on the origins of Tai Chi Chuan (Tai Chi Boxing), and the question, "Who Created Tai Chi Chuan?" made me concern very much!Although knowing the origins or the source of Tai Chi Chuan is not going to have much effects on your learning and practicing of the art, it is my responsibility to share with the masses of what I have found out. And understanding the origins of something that we loved so much about will make us appreciate the understand it better, if not improving our skills. Its Not a Matter of Who is Right "People here may belittle sports arts.. Are You Frustrated Yet? I was talking to a parent recently and they told me that their son was not going to compete in wrestling because they were afraid they would get frustrated when he lost. The parent felt the child was far too sensitive to handle the frustration of failure and may get 'burnt out'. Basic Drills We all have a good foundation in the basic blows and combinations.Think about adding the following drills to your basic syllabus. Fun Games for Children Training in Martial Arts Keeping children interested in their Martial Arts training requires an element of fun and games. Traditionalists are usually only concerned with the discipline and structure of their training, but incorporating fun games involving proper techniques will add to the value of training and keep the kids interested. COMBATIVES? ...... Don't Tell Me. I Know What That Is! (Part 1) "Combatives" from the root word COMBAT - "to fight in direct contact", "active fighting between enemies", "any fight or struggle".Well, let's see??????. Benefits of Martial Arts Training For Kids Admit it. When the going gets tough at home, we've all plopped the kids in front of the television and breathed a sigh of relief. Okinawan Karate So you are thinking of starting to train in okinawan karate. There are a lot of choices as far as okinawan karate schools are concerned. Strategy as Applied to Warrior-citizens After years of study, I have come to a small understanding of the way of strategy. I will here explain some strategy as it applies to warrior-citizens. Why Every Cop Should Study Judo Part 1 Up until 30 years ago, JUDO was the martial art. Then with the introduction of the more mysterious martial arts with more of a "killing" edge to them this coupled with the focus of the USJF/USJI (the leading Judo organizations in the US and the world) focus on Olympic competition and the simple fact that training in judo is painful and to this day, very difficult to get a black belt rank in it, especially if you are in a competitive area. Safety Awareness & Self Defense: Circle of Safety Safety Awareness & Self Defense is the responsibility of each individual. Knowing your surroundings and being aware of potential dangers is your first step towards self-defense. Tae Kwon Do As A Means To Stay In Shape Becoming a martial artist is a fanatastic method of fitness. While there are many martial art forms to choose from, taekwondo is clearly the most beneficial, and the most practical. Interesting Facts on Samurai Sword Manufacture A samurai's sword is his most sacred and prized possession. Not only did the samurai rely on his sword to defend him, but spiritually the sword held greater significance as the samurai actually believed his soul inhabited the sword. How to Select Your Martial Arts and Self Defense Equipment The most common place to buy martial arts or self defense equipment is in the local dojo. Most dojos, training centers, etc. A Few Things Everyone Should Know to Keep Themselves Safe The following are a few thoughts about how to decrease your chances of being a victim of a violent crime. I know a lot of times we focus on the nuts and bolts of a fight and we assume most of us know these things and this information is common knowledge for some of you, but it some times it's always good to review. New Book: Positive Aikido A new book with a practical look at Aikido and its history. The Co-authors are direct students of the legendary master Kenshiro Abbe Sensei from 1957. The Thumb Jab I'm sure a lot of you remember the scene in the movie "The Presidio" were Sean Connery's character decimates the jackass in the bar with nothing more than his thumb!Some of you may remember Andy Adam's book on Ninjutsu highlighting Hatsumi. Several photos showed the intense conditioning of natural weapons including the 'boshiken" or thumb fist.
|
Section Site Map - Submit News - Feedback - Comments - Advertise with Us Copyright © 2006 Luminati Inc. All rights reserved. 
|
