A place where people pray, worship and celebrate their faith.
Is it the church that first came in to your mind?
Don’t worry, I will not talk about any religion.
I’m here to talk about Learning Martial Arts.
You must be asking what does church have to do with martial arts.
When I was in highschool back home, I used to go to church everyday to say a little prayer before I attend my first class.
Until one day, someone grab my behind.
I was in shock I couldn’t move.
It was almost 2 decades ago but I can still remember his face.
I told myself, I could have done something.
I could have somehow defend myself.
That was the time I decided to study martial arts.
I took karate lessons in AAK, the Association for the Advancement of Karate-do.
At first, my goal was just mainly self defense.
That someday if I see this man again, I would punch him in the eye and throw a full roundhouse kick in his “you know where”.
But I was wrong. Self defense is just a part of learning the art.
From the word Karate, “Kara” means empty and “te” means hand.
A fight with an empty hand is a misconception of the true meaning of Karate.
Gichin Fonakoshi, the founder of Karate, interpreted the “kara” to mean
“to purge oneself of selfish and evil thoughts.
For only with a clear mind and conscience can the practitioner understand the knowledge which he receives."
Funakoshi believed that one should be "inwardly humble and outwardly gentle."
Only by behaving humbly can one be open to Karate's many lessons.”
Karate is also a sport. The competition has two disciplines: kumite & kata.
Kumite means sparring. There are two opponents that require body contact or a combination of punches and kicks to get a score.
You don’t want to hit your opponent too hard. Because if you did, the score would go to your opponent.
Kata on