My Karate-Jutsu

My Karate-jutsu Association’s direction and theme for 2010 is to pass on as much information of practical Karate-jutsu and associated applications as possible. Pass on historical conjecture, pragmatism or my own personal applications and observations of significant tried and tested technique? Which would be most appreciated by my students or teachers? I think to call on my own research, findings and resources would be easier to justify and apply through a recollection of my own reference, knowledge and ability. Not to try to emulate or impersonate the best of my inspiration sources.

YouTube is saturated with information and research material from the who’s who and what’s what of Masters. Information which will probably lead the confused to a state of even more confusion. I have been training and practicing martial arts for over 40 years, I’m still very much a novice compared to some but I’m still very much hands on in the dojo, on the street and in the archives of information. I do have a slight aversion to anybody that stereo types me or has disregard of my sentient thinking.

Working on my unverified theory that 10% of the people in the world are left handed, 10% don’t respond to pain, 10% are Gay and 90% of Martial Arts practice, technique and tradition is prescribed, embellished and or, not fit for the definitive purpose of drastic self defence, I put pen to paper. At best organisational Martial Arts are a very good regime of fitness, discipline, hypothetical study of combat technique and recreational pursuit.

I feel violence has a very serious role to play when embarking on an investigation into the abyss that is Self Defence and effective Martial Arts, dynamics, tactics and applications thereof, infinite by specific or adequate comprehension. Violence can be manifested by a state of mind, through physical exhibition or extremes of both in varying proportions. It can be instantaneously stimulated or calculated and articulated. Absolutely required for self defence Martial Arts is an appreciation and experience of the consequences of violence for all circumstances. Accompanying these attributes will be a means and an advantage maybe, by which to avoid confrontational violence.

Athleticism, fitness, physical ability, state of mind, preparation, knowledge, demonstration and understanding of skills is without doubt vital and any essential, serious consideration when contemplating a study of the Martial Arts. I personally feel they are subjective rather than objective. Over the years I have been trained by and studied a plethora of teachers and students. I have come to the conclusion that from the broad spectrum of Martial Arts that my limited considerations have assimilated so far, are particular to me. To that extent I want to, do and will excise my right to express an opinion of training in the Martial Arts. I do not imply I am right in my practice or thinking, my preference rather to share it, for whatever it’s worth to anybody else.

Specifically this year I’m going to focus my attention on who and what has had the greatest influence on what I am practicing today. Hopefully pass on the data to whoever wants it for their own studies. From day one I have been heavily influenced by a number of people I’ve trained with. All important to me and essential for the understanding I have today. However I have to refer to Sir Isaac Newton’s Three Laws of Motion for help in giving this article impetus and direction.

“Every object in a state of uniform motion tends to remain in that state of motion unless an external force is applied to it”.

So what objects in the Martial Arts fraternity would give one a change of direction? Dave Hazard, Steve Morris, Bruce Miller, Patrick McCarthy and Terry Wingrove…………….? For me without doubt! I reckon I can recruit enough theory and application from my combined experiences with these guys to give a reasonable account of “myself as a Martial Artist”. Probably to their dismay and denial but who gives a shit at the end of the day?

“The relationship between an object's mass m, its acceleration a, and the applied force F is F = ma. Acceleration and force are vectors (as indicated by their symbols being displayed in slant bold font); in this law the direction of the force vector is the same as the direction of the acceleration vector”.

This example is the most obscure and most difficult to equate to this article but it is significant to my understanding of how physics and science are key to a comprehension of transmission of power. This is a key principle in Martial Arts and I don’t want to compare people or persons as to effectiveness. Anatomically Steve Morris and Terry Wingrove have different applications as they are different people. However I did pick those as examples as they are the most experienced in “Martial Arts, Self Defence and Combat”. Although I personally think Steve Morris, Terry Wingrove, Dave Hazard, Bruce Miller and Patrick McCarthy all have outstanding knowledge and ability as stand alone persona, of transmission or otherwise effective means by which to move things, or the mind.

“For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction”

This being a most profound statement as well as in my mind, the most significant Law. It has no equal or comparison other than its own anti entity (one’s own comprehension of it).
I hope this article will stimulate or aggravate (whatever) more than a few minds into pursuing a furtherance of their understanding of how the teach, guide, learn, practice or train students of Martial Arts and Self Defence. After all an anatomical technique is an anatomical technique, its principle and variations thereof and how it’s applied are subjective, not necessarily prescribed adequately for all anatomical considerations. This applies to prescribed form too!