Good Afternoon My Friends... Martial arts is another way saying the art of combat or art of waging of war. In its infancy, it was used as a weapon to survive. Kill or be killed. Martial arts can be a set of movements used for offensive or defensive purposes (called Katas or forms). It can also be a set of movements used to promote health. It has structure and every movement has meaning. Then again, the late Bruce Lee taught that one should take the best from all arts and adapt them to whatever situation one finds oneself in. By not having structure and preset movements, one is not limited and confined. But as some have pointed out, therein lies the structure. Martial arts has evolved into everything from simple to complex systems of fighting and health. For example, in Kung Fu, some mimic movements from the animal kingdom and adapt them to human fighting. Others, like in Tae Kwon Do, use focus techniques to build up Chi (Ones Life Force) and use it to generate powerful strikes. While others, like in Tai-Chi, use it to promote health. The list goes on and on. The truth of the matter is most martial arts are similar. They all teach similar principles (like the ones mentioned above), just in different ways. Its like religion. Many different religions but they all have something in common, they worship some form of deity. The one thing all martial arts have in common is that they promote self-defense. Hence the reason martial arts is called the Art of self-defense and it just depends on your personality, your range of movement and your comfort level as to which martial art will work best for you. Furthermore, traditional martial arts, as we know them today, has its roots in religion and philosophy. Buddhism had a great impact in India and China which impacted Chinese martial arts. Taoism and Buddhism in Japan led to Zen and all three impacted Japanese Martial Arts. Moreover, Chinese and Japanese philosophers too had an impact on martial arts. They strived to set a code of ethics and morals to live by. The Japanese Samurai, for example, had the code of the Bushido...!!
Posted on: Sun, 16 Mar 2014 08:59:32 +0000
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