As I conclude my senior year I have often heard this word. Excellence. Whether to applaud me for my accolades or describe the programs I’ve started. But what truly makes what I did excellent at all? To me I was simply doing what was expected; giving my very best. This has led me to wonder […]
The Bar For Excellence Isn’t Very High Read More »
The following thoughts come from my Tozando Weekly notification. I wish I had a link directly to their notification; instead I will copy the thoughts exactly, as I found them interesting. There is a good reason why martial artists seek Koryu Arts. Such arts preserve the information from time before: How the people survived. Some
Some New Old Thoughts: Koryu Read More »
Research is never a straight line; my experience with AP Research showed me just how winding the path toward progress can be. It all began one fateful day during a conversation with my father. I remarked that it feels as if people are actively opposing fights for equality. This baffled me, I couldn’t understand why
A Journey of Research Read More »
Alright it’s not a blog but I’ve finally put together my reading list for koryu folks, or folks just interested in the koryu take on martial arts. What is koryu? In general, Koryu literally means “old flow” and is used in Japanese to refer to old styles, schools, or traditions (not necessarily only in the martial
Koryu Reading Lists Read More »
The idea we carry an internal source of energy is present in many cultures. It is referred to as Qi, Chi or Ch’i in China, Shakti in India, Ki in Japan, or Spirit in Western writings. But how does one access this inner resource and apply it? I see many students of martial arts practicing
Tapping The Source Read More »
In many cultures they have a concept of spiritual energy. They call it many different names: Nwyfre, Wyrd, Chakra, Ki, Chi. Even the ancient Alchemists and philosophers spoke of the spiritual and magical energies that glowed throughout all living and nonliving things. We are intricately connected and interwoven with this energy – flowing from the
In Plato’s Allegory of the Cave, Socrates tells Glaukon about an imagined scenario by way of illustrating his argument. In this scenario there are imagined people who are born, raised and who die in a cave. They are made to watch what amounts to a shadow-play on the back wall of the cave. They are
Shadows and Light, Kata and Combat Read More »
Power of a Beginner? How can that be? They are a beginner afterall and don’t know anything. However, The Beginner’s Mind is such a wonderful thing! It is the first of the Five Minds – Shoshin. Everyone is in such a hurry to “master” techniques or any particular subject. They seldom take the time to
Power of Being A Beginner Read More »
I heard an interesting thing from Dr Sydnee McElroy on her podcast Sawbones. In one of the later episodes she mentions that human bodies are living chemical labs, at all times churning chemical reactions back and forth. This means, she explains, that we are at constant chemical imbalance, which causes the reactions to happen: there
Is Balance the Right Word? Read More »
I started training martial arts in 1979, but this past Saturday, July 29th, 2023 at the Bluegrass Games was only the third tournament I’ve competed in. My first art was Tang Soo Do, a Korean kicking-heavy style that I trained in for about 2 1/2 years, but I never competed for reasons I’ll explain later.
Don’t Stop – Tournament Musings Read More »