Afterword

A forum dedicated to the creative expressions, inspirations, hopes and dreams of fellow Karateka.
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david
Posts: 2077
Joined: Thu Sep 17, 1998 6:01 am
Location: Boston, MA

Afterword

Post by david »

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Martial arts represent a never ending, yet ever changing and evolving continuum. That is, there is no clear cut Darwinian progression to their evolutions… However, the continuum of these disciplines stretches far and wide, with many stops along the way. And what is found in one combative culture is generally also found in another, and still another. Moreover, what was found to be useful on the battlefields of yesterday still holds true on the battlefields of today: the violent cities and streets we call home.

Martial arts, then, are not mere rigorous physical disciplines or cultural artifacts. They are "ways of life." As such, one can enjoy the very real combative aspects of the arts, the serene philosophical precepts, the intellectual study of history, the scientific breakdown of techniques, or the athletic appeal of physical fitness or sport. What is of value and interest to one may seem quite ridiculous to another. Yet, the martial arts and their many incarnations are here to stay, and they will continue to evolve, change, and come full circle many times.

With this in mind, we must not judge another's choice of involvement in the arts as better or worse than out own. Indeed, in the martial arts, as in the vast cultures around the world, there is neither better nor worse, only different. And it is in fact these very differences that make the arts so appealing to a vast audience. It is the perceived value and intended use of these arts by the people who embrace them that distinguishes one art from the next. And yet, almost every culture has practitioners involved in various aspects of the arts for any number of reasons.

As my dear friend Oscar Ratti has impressed upon me many times, the various systems of martial arts are not important, and one should strive to not become "stuck" on them. When we become blinded by the dogma of style and master, we are eventually no longer able to see "the forest through the trees." The arts are, then ethnographs of what Oscar calls the universal arts of combat -- "an expression of the ways diversified human beings confront and solved problems that arise from violent confrontations -- as well as the evolving ways of transcending them through the culture of movement."
<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Mark V. Wiley, editor, Afterword, Martial Arts Talk -- Conversations with Leading Authorities on the Martial Arts.
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Jackie Olsen
Posts: 619
Joined: Fri Sep 18, 1998 6:01 am
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Afterword

Post by Jackie Olsen »

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote
When we become blinded by the dogma of style and master, we are eventually no longer able to see "the forest through the trees."
When institutions get into rules, laws, philosophies and belief systems, they lose their heart. Then, they lose their way.

...And the truth is that as a man's real power grows and his knowledge widens, ever the way he can follow grows narrower; until at last he chooses nothing, but does only and wholly what he must do.

--Ursula K. LeGuin

Jackie



[This message has been edited by Jackie Olsen (edited February 12, 2001).]
david
Posts: 2077
Joined: Thu Sep 17, 1998 6:01 am
Location: Boston, MA

Afterword

Post by david »

Jackie, love LeGuin though I haven't read her stuff since college.

Mary Simpson posted this before. It's a nice piece and worth a re-run. Image

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>
Do not think that
This is all that exists
There is much more to learn -
The sword is unfathomable.

The world is wide
Full of happenings.
Keep that in mind
And never believe
'I'm the only one who knows.'
<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>--- Yamaoka Tesshu

david


[This message has been edited by david (edited February 14, 2001).]
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