One goes from the finesse of kata to the rough-hewn symmetry of the street. In that direction only. And yet, kata should walk the streets to toughen its metre and rhyme. Karate is alertness and savvy, puts nothing to waste, makes use of what is at hand, open hand, karate.
As I have said before, have no qualms. Karate is a violent art. Take it apart: violent, art. It is to be artful in your exercise of violence. It is the art of resourcefulness.
The most useful things are sometimes within your everyday grasp. I always carry a long, yellow, useless one among the house keys that I can easily knuckle. Apparently harmless, I bead them like a rosary as I muse on the vagueries of life in darkened streets. If you can conquer squeamishness, many kata applications are possible, no limits to the imagination.
Great for impromptu shopping lists, to jot down musings of the heart and mind, credit card receipts, and...oh yes, to gouge a peeper or execute a life-saving tracheostomy. I never leave home without one, the venerable ballpoint.
Take your pick. These mortal weapons are freebies at any sit-down in a diner, courtesy of management in tony restaurants too. Hunting knives are usually stored away or strapped somewhere inconvenient to the moment. Since you mostly have these in hand, use them.
Nothing like a hot, very hot, cup of java to stimulate the senses. Great at close quarters, a flick of the wrist will do. Does wonders for the bags under the eyes.
I call this the Samurai Combo. Splendid for crowd control. Wine glass temporarily blinds assailant 1, follow through with a bottle to the beaner on assailant 2, heave table at reinforcements approaching from either flank, retreat with the stool as shield as would a lion tamer exit the cage.
Hey, this is Bar Brawling 101. I beg to differ. All the street kobudo techniques described above need the finesse of dojo practice for their successful execution. They require the calmness and focus that only comes from years of Sanchin and zazen. They are grounded on the ethics of survival.
They have all been tested in the laboratory of life by dojo-trained karatecas the world over.
Wouldn't a Navy Seal knife be more practical? That's illegal.
As I have said before, have no qualms. Karate is a violent art. Take it apart: violent, art. It is to be artful in your exercise of violence. It is the art of resourcefulness.
The most useful things are sometimes within your everyday grasp. I always carry a long, yellow, useless one among the house keys that I can easily knuckle. Apparently harmless, I bead them like a rosary as I muse on the vagueries of life in darkened streets. If you can conquer squeamishness, many kata applications are possible, no limits to the imagination.
Great for impromptu shopping lists, to jot down musings of the heart and mind, credit card receipts, and...oh yes, to gouge a peeper or execute a life-saving tracheostomy. I never leave home without one, the venerable ballpoint.
Take your pick. These mortal weapons are freebies at any sit-down in a diner, courtesy of management in tony restaurants too. Hunting knives are usually stored away or strapped somewhere inconvenient to the moment. Since you mostly have these in hand, use them.
Nothing like a hot, very hot, cup of java to stimulate the senses. Great at close quarters, a flick of the wrist will do. Does wonders for the bags under the eyes.
I call this the Samurai Combo. Splendid for crowd control. Wine glass temporarily blinds assailant 1, follow through with a bottle to the beaner on assailant 2, heave table at reinforcements approaching from either flank, retreat with the stool as shield as would a lion tamer exit the cage.
Hey, this is Bar Brawling 101. I beg to differ. All the street kobudo techniques described above need the finesse of dojo practice for their successful execution. They require the calmness and focus that only comes from years of Sanchin and zazen. They are grounded on the ethics of survival.
They have all been tested in the laboratory of life by dojo-trained karatecas the world over.
Wouldn't a Navy Seal knife be more practical? That's illegal.
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