Karate: a lot like swimming
I had a conversation with a MA friend of mine about karate and knowledge transmission and acquisition. It led me to a startling thought, one that seemed to have a familiar theme.
Karate is a lot like swimming. (And thank God I am slightly better in one than I am in the other - I have seen the bottom of the pool the hard way and lived to tell the tale!)
Sure, we've heard of the karate/ water maxims used: there is no competition in flowing water, karate training is like water. If not heated constantly, it will return to a tepid state.
But, I mean this in a quite literal sense. In both situations, you learn basic techniques. In both situations, you have the option of doing it recreationally, competitively or for personal development. Consider the two recent attempts to swim long distances - one in the Great Lakes, one from from Cuba to Florida. One came to the fulfillment of a goal and the establishment of another. The other ended in heartache - not without its learning experiences and its pain.
Sounds a bit like karate, huh?
In this case, the issue was around the passing of knowledge and ideas from teacher to student. He lamented that, in his overall experience with his system, he had learned truly little in that time, other than the correction of kata. Movements and the rationale for same were never explained beyond a superficial level. He also complained that questioning was frowned upon. If one is unable to ask questions, one would never learn more than they are given.
Now, my friend is a competent karateka in his own right. And while I do see his point, I would dare say that, in pondering on this, that the lack of a question/ answer paradigm may be based on one of two issues:
1) the 'secrets of the masters' theory that says that one should not ask questions about knowledge that the master is not willing to give out. This answer is commonly given by a karate 'sheeple' - the master is to be revered and his knowledge ought not to be questioned.
2) the 'I can tell you but I'll have to kill you' premise that posits either a very basic understanding of technique X or some bullshit (yes, I said bullshit) excuse on why the technique can only work in form x or y. Usually, this is the answer chosen by someone who has a very superficial level of knowledge themselves.
Both, in their own way, are laughably wrong.
Karate is meant to be an exploration, a journey of introspection and discovery. Like the swimmers, there will be success and/ or failure. Both are learning experiences. Depending on the will of the person, the failure means the end of the journey or the desire/ will to try again. Swimmers, like karateka, need to practice their techniques to a fault. They spend hours in the pool, working on technique, seeking ways to improve and increase their technique's abilities and efficiency.
Sure, there may be a coach there for the competitive swimmer, spotters for the swimmers as above, but some swimmers just get out there and churn away, attempting to improve their skills without the watchful eye of a monitor or a safety net. Their success is personal satisfaction; their failure a test of their character.
But, karateka have a choice as swimmers do: they can play it safe and stay in the shallow end; they can frolic and splash and spend most of their time lounging in the hot tub; others may embark on a journey to the far depths of the pool, and even beneath the surface to discover the wonders and miracles that your abilities can expose you to!
And this, dear friends, is where karate and swimming really have something in common. Once you start developing your skills to this level, the `secrets of the deep` become apparent to you. Much like the mythical 'secrets of karate' can be seen or experienced. 'Seen' means watching others who put in the time and the introspection to look at their karate and answer the questions. Experiencing is the doing rather than the wishing. The harder you train and the more time you spend analyzing what you are doing, the more likely you are to find these secrets that are not so secret after all.
If you find that you are not moving beyond the superficial in your training (or even if you do not know), you have no one to blame but yourself. Lest of course, you enjoy staring at your own feet and the odd, stray pool noodle staring back at you in the chlorinated abyss.
In Okinawan karate, information was not spoon-fed. It was transmitted and left largely to the students to explore, study and define the potentialities of the movements. The instructor would correct and interject, but it was quite hands-off, as demonstrated by many of the old images of that time. In our current times, karate is often relegated to kickie/ punchie/ not much blockie like this or this. Talented athletes, no doubt, but good-looking karate? Debatable at best. And techniques? swinging arms and repetitive kicking techniques. So much for ikken issatsu. I'll come back to this in a later post.
Karate is an art of self- defense, thus, one should be able to defend oneself depending upon a variety of factors in the defensive continuum: force and intensity of the attack, size of the aggressor, their mental/physical/emotional state, age, fighting prowess, etc. The same application can be applied in two different ways to achieve two different outcomes: under-respond and you get hurt. Over-react and you get punished legally. If you only know or practised and applied one, you have a 50/50 chance of getting it right - or horribly wrong. Sorta like the speed swimmer trying to cover a long-distance swim using the same principles and practices.
Thing is, you have to work on it, repeatedly. You have to hone your techniques and check the validity and efficacy of the techniques. If it doesn't work - keep on swimming. Sometimes, the best way to learn is to practice til you get it right. So, if you're not happy with what you know within your own karate, put yourself back on the floor and go through the motions - this time, looking for ways to improve or understand what you're doing and how it will benefit what you want to do.
Lest we forget that karate and swimming are not entirely congruous. You can do karate in the water, but,. I would not try swimming on land - ouch. Friction.
There is one rule that applies to both karate and swimming - wait one hour after eating. take this from personal experience!
Karate is a lot like swimming. (And thank God I am slightly better in one than I am in the other - I have seen the bottom of the pool the hard way and lived to tell the tale!)
Sure, we've heard of the karate/ water maxims used: there is no competition in flowing water, karate training is like water. If not heated constantly, it will return to a tepid state.
But, I mean this in a quite literal sense. In both situations, you learn basic techniques. In both situations, you have the option of doing it recreationally, competitively or for personal development. Consider the two recent attempts to swim long distances - one in the Great Lakes, one from from Cuba to Florida. One came to the fulfillment of a goal and the establishment of another. The other ended in heartache - not without its learning experiences and its pain.
Sounds a bit like karate, huh?
In this case, the issue was around the passing of knowledge and ideas from teacher to student. He lamented that, in his overall experience with his system, he had learned truly little in that time, other than the correction of kata. Movements and the rationale for same were never explained beyond a superficial level. He also complained that questioning was frowned upon. If one is unable to ask questions, one would never learn more than they are given.
Now, my friend is a competent karateka in his own right. And while I do see his point, I would dare say that, in pondering on this, that the lack of a question/ answer paradigm may be based on one of two issues:
1) the 'secrets of the masters' theory that says that one should not ask questions about knowledge that the master is not willing to give out. This answer is commonly given by a karate 'sheeple' - the master is to be revered and his knowledge ought not to be questioned.
2) the 'I can tell you but I'll have to kill you' premise that posits either a very basic understanding of technique X or some bullshit (yes, I said bullshit) excuse on why the technique can only work in form x or y. Usually, this is the answer chosen by someone who has a very superficial level of knowledge themselves.
Both, in their own way, are laughably wrong.
Karate is meant to be an exploration, a journey of introspection and discovery. Like the swimmers, there will be success and/ or failure. Both are learning experiences. Depending on the will of the person, the failure means the end of the journey or the desire/ will to try again. Swimmers, like karateka, need to practice their techniques to a fault. They spend hours in the pool, working on technique, seeking ways to improve and increase their technique's abilities and efficiency.
Sure, there may be a coach there for the competitive swimmer, spotters for the swimmers as above, but some swimmers just get out there and churn away, attempting to improve their skills without the watchful eye of a monitor or a safety net. Their success is personal satisfaction; their failure a test of their character.
But, karateka have a choice as swimmers do: they can play it safe and stay in the shallow end; they can frolic and splash and spend most of their time lounging in the hot tub; others may embark on a journey to the far depths of the pool, and even beneath the surface to discover the wonders and miracles that your abilities can expose you to!
And this, dear friends, is where karate and swimming really have something in common. Once you start developing your skills to this level, the `secrets of the deep` become apparent to you. Much like the mythical 'secrets of karate' can be seen or experienced. 'Seen' means watching others who put in the time and the introspection to look at their karate and answer the questions. Experiencing is the doing rather than the wishing. The harder you train and the more time you spend analyzing what you are doing, the more likely you are to find these secrets that are not so secret after all.
If you find that you are not moving beyond the superficial in your training (or even if you do not know), you have no one to blame but yourself. Lest of course, you enjoy staring at your own feet and the odd, stray pool noodle staring back at you in the chlorinated abyss.
In Okinawan karate, information was not spoon-fed. It was transmitted and left largely to the students to explore, study and define the potentialities of the movements. The instructor would correct and interject, but it was quite hands-off, as demonstrated by many of the old images of that time. In our current times, karate is often relegated to kickie/ punchie/ not much blockie like this or this. Talented athletes, no doubt, but good-looking karate? Debatable at best. And techniques? swinging arms and repetitive kicking techniques. So much for ikken issatsu. I'll come back to this in a later post.
Karate is an art of self- defense, thus, one should be able to defend oneself depending upon a variety of factors in the defensive continuum: force and intensity of the attack, size of the aggressor, their mental/physical/emotional state, age, fighting prowess, etc. The same application can be applied in two different ways to achieve two different outcomes: under-respond and you get hurt. Over-react and you get punished legally. If you only know or practised and applied one, you have a 50/50 chance of getting it right - or horribly wrong. Sorta like the speed swimmer trying to cover a long-distance swim using the same principles and practices.
Thing is, you have to work on it, repeatedly. You have to hone your techniques and check the validity and efficacy of the techniques. If it doesn't work - keep on swimming. Sometimes, the best way to learn is to practice til you get it right. So, if you're not happy with what you know within your own karate, put yourself back on the floor and go through the motions - this time, looking for ways to improve or understand what you're doing and how it will benefit what you want to do.
Lest we forget that karate and swimming are not entirely congruous. You can do karate in the water, but,. I would not try swimming on land - ouch. Friction.
There is one rule that applies to both karate and swimming - wait one hour after eating. take this from personal experience!
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