Martial Arts

Martial Arts Colored Belt System

2012-04-24T10:30:00.002+01:00

The Origin of the Martial Arts Colored Belt System
The martial arts colored belt ranking system was originated by Dr. Jigoro Kano, who was Japanese and known as the "Founder of Modern Judo", who first devised many of the concepts that are the foundation of Modern martial arts. Dr. Kano devised the colored belt system as a visible sign of a student’s progress, awarding the first “black belts” in the 1880's.

Gichin Funakoshi, who was Okinawan and the founder of Shotokan Karate and often referred to as the "Founder of Modern Karate" adopted the belt ranking system and other organizational and philosophical concepts from Dr. Kano, who was both his contemporary and friend.

Byung Jick Ro, who is Korean and the founder of Song Moo Kwan and known as "Founder of Modern Taekwondo" was a student of Gichin Funakoshi, receiving his black belt from him in 1939, and thus, the color belt ranking system has been part of Modern Taekwondo since it was developed in the early 1940's.

Meaning of the Colors
Originally, the white belt was simply dyed to a new color. This repeated dying process dictated the type of belt color and the order of the colors. The standard belt color system is white, yellow, gold, orange, green, blue, purple, brown, red and black. Due to the dying process, it was only practical to increasingly use darker colors. All of this came about shortly after the Second World War, when Korea and Japan were very poor countries. Dying the belts to a new color was a cheap way to have a visible, simple and effective ranking system.

White Belt: White signifies a birth, or beginning, of a seed. A white belt student is a beginner searching for knowledge of the Art. The white belt is the beginning of life's cycle, and represents the seed as it lies beneath the snow in the winter.

Yellow Belt or Sash: Yellow signifies the first beams of sunlight which shines upon the seed giving it new strength with the beginning of new life. A yellow belt student is given his first ray of knowledge, opening his mind, from his instructors.

Orange Belt or Sash: Orange represents the growing power of the sun as it warms the earth to prepare for new growth in the spring. The orange belt is starting to feel his body and mind open and develop.

Green Belt or Sash: Green signifies the growth of the seed as it sprouts from the earth reaching toward the sun and begins to grow into a plant. A green belt student learns to strengthen and refine his techniques.

Blue Belt or Sash: Blue signifies the blue sky as the plant continues to grow toward it. A blue belt student moves up higher in rank just as the plant grows taller. The light feeds the plant so it can continue to grow. The student is fed additional knowledge of the Art in order for his body and mind continue to grow and develop.

Purple Belt or Sash: Purple represents the changing sky of dawn, as once again the student undergoes a new change and prepares for the transition to advanced student. A purple belt begins to understand the meaning of the black belt.

Brown Belt or Sash: Brown represents the ripening of the seed, a maturing and harvesting process. A brown belt is an advanced student whose techniques are beginning to mature, and he is beginning to understand the fruits of his hard work as a beginner.

Red Belt or Sash: Red signifies the red-hot heat of the Sun as the plant continues growing toward it. As a red belt student acquires more detailed knowledge, just as the plant grows slowly toward the Sun, so the red belt student learns to be more cautious with his knowledge and physical abilities. Red is a sign of danger, and the red belt is beginning to become dangerous with their knowledge and abilities.

Black Belt or Sash: Black signifies the darkness beyond the Sun. A black belt seeks new, more profound knowledge of the Art. As he begins to teach others, he plants new seeds and helps them grow and mature. His students, many whom will form roots deep into the Art, blossom and grow through the ranks in a never-ending process of self-growth, knowledge, and enlightenment.

Gichin Funakoshi - Founder of Shotokan Karate and the Father of Modern Karate

2012-04-24T09:40:00.000+01:00

Gichin Funakoshi (船越義珍 Funakoshi Gichin, November 10, 1868 – April 26, 1957) was the creator of Shotokan Karate, perhaps the most widely known style of karate, and is attributed as being the 'father of modern karate. His teacher was Anko Itosu, he was one of the Okinawan karate masters who introduced karate do to the Japanese mainland in 1922. He taught karate at various Japanese universities and became honorary head of the Japan Karate Association upon its establishment in 1949. He was trained in both classical Chinese and Japanese philosophies and teachings and wanted to be a medical doctor.

Funakoshi had trained in both of the popular styles of Okinawan karate of the time: Shōrei-ryū and Shōrin-ryū. These are the styles he coined into Shotokan karate, a style for the slim and agile plus a style for the big and strong.

Shotokan is named after Funakoshi's pen name, Shoto, which means "waving pines ". In addition to being a karate master, Funakoshi was an avid poet and philosopher who would reportedly go for long walks in the forest where he would meditate and write his poetry. Kan means training hall, or house, thus Shotokan referred to the "house of Shoto". This name was coined by Funakoshi's students when they posted a sign above the entrance of the hall at which Funakoshi taught reading "Shoto kan" meaning "house of pine waves".

In 1939, Funakoshi built the first Shōtōkan dojo (training hall) in Tokyo. He changed the name of karate to mean "empty hand" instead of "China hand" (as referred to in Okinawa); the two words sound the same in Japanese, but are written differently. It was his belief that using the term for "Chinese" would mislead people into thinking karate originated with Chinese boxing. Karate had borrowed many aspects from Chinese boxing which the original creators say as being positive, as they had done with other martial arts. In addition, Funakoshi argued in his autobiography that a philosophical evaluation of the use of "empty" seemed to fit as it implied a way which was not tethered to any other physical object.

Funakoshi's interpretation of the word kara to mean "empty" was reported to have caused some recoil in Okinawa, prompting Funakoshi to remain in Tokyo indefinitely. His extended stay eventually led to the creation of the Japan Karate Association (JKA) in 1949 with Funakoshi as the honorary head of the organization. Funakoshi was not supportive of all of the changes that the organization eventually made to his karate style. He remained in Tokyo until his death in 1957. After World War II, Funakoshi's surviving students formalized his teachings.

Karate vs Wingchun

2012-02-12T00:26:00.000+01:00

A martial artist is not defined by his style but by who he builds himself/herself into. It is true "that anybody can lose any day" but a "martial artist that trains constantly and never looks for trouble, will never loose any battle". You can say I speak from experience... This is a clip showing a Japanese military general also a black belt in Karate (a Dan) and a Wingchun grandmaster: Ip Man (supposedly the master of Bruce Lee, acted by the famous Donnie Yen) bearing witness to this...

Tae Kwon Do - The Way of the Hand and Foot

2012-02-09T00:02:00.000+01:00

TaeKwon-Do also known as Tae Kwon Do is a Korean martial art and an olympic game. This is like the most famous martial art today. Tae means to "strike or break with foot", kwon means "to strike or break with fist" an do means "way" "method" or "path". Thus taekwondo means "the way of hand and foot".

Chudan Oi Zuki - Lunge Punch to the Chest Level

2012-02-06T00:27:00.000+01:00

In Karate, chudan oi zuki is a very simple but very powerful punch. This punch is done in zenkutsu dachi, it is not a jab and it carries power but the secrete is in the stance (zenkutsu dachi). This is done by keeping power on one leg in front which is going to carry all the wait while you trust forward without standing while the leg at the back moves, drawing a zig zag-like pattern on the floor, as the hand at the same side as the moving leg also thrusts sharply to the opponents chest or tummy (chudan).

The hand at the side of the Leg with load or your pivot (the one on the ground) serves as a target, therefore is withdrawn simultaneously as the punching hand jets forward.

The waist also plays a very important role by twisting to adjust to the movement since you don't stand in zenkutsu dachi.

Chinese Martial Arts and the term Kung Fu

2012-02-03T22:09:00.000+01:00

“Chinese martial arts” is popularly known as “kung fu” but the actual name for it is Wushu. Kung fu’s original meaning is somewhat different, referring to one's expertise in any skill achieved through hard work and practice, not necessarily martial art. However, The Chinese literal equivalent of "Chinese martial art" is Wushu.
Wushu literally means "martial art". It is formed from the two words (wu), meaning "martial" or "military" and (shu), which translates into "discipline", "skill" or "method". Kung fu in the other hand is a compound of two words, combining (Kung) meaning "achievement" or "merit", and (fu) which translates into "man”, that is like "human achievement".

Originally, to practice kung fu did not just mean to practice Chinese martial arts. Instead, it referred to the process of one's training and strengthening of the body and the mind, the learning and the perfection of one's skills.
You can say that a person's kung fu is good in cooking, or that someone has kung fu in sketching; saying that a person possesses kung fu in an area implies skill in that area, which they have worked hard to develop.
Someone with "bad kung fu" simply has not put enough time and effort into training, or seems to lack the motivation to do so.

Here are some Chinese martial arts listed in alphabetical order:

Before you continue, you might want to note that these fighting styles are often classified according to common traits, identified as "families" (jiā), "sects" (pài) or "schools" (mén) of martial arts. Examples of such traits include physical exercises involving animal mimicry, or training methods inspired by Chinese philosophies, religions and legends. Styles which focus on qi manipulation are labeled as internal (nèijiāquán), while others concentrate on improving muscle and cardiovascular fitness are labeled external (wàijiāquán). Geographical association, as in northern (běiquán) and southern (nánquán), is another popular method of categorization.

The word “qi” is pronounced “chi”;

Earlier Styles

· Bafaquan - Eight Methods

· Bagua Zhang - Eight Trigrams Palm

· Bai He Quan - Fujian White Crane

· Bajiquan - Eight Extremes Fist

· Bak Mei - White Eyebrow

· Chaquan - Cha Fist

· Changquan - Long Fist

· Chuo Jiao - Poking Feet

· Choy Gar - Choi Family style

· Choy Li Fut

· Dachengquan - Great Achievement Boxing (Yiquan)

· Ditangquan - Ground-Prone Fist, Ground Tumbling Boxing

· Do Pai - Style of the Way

· Dragon Kung Fu Lung Ying

· Duan Quan - Short Range Boxing

· O Mei Ch'uan

· Fanziquan - Overturning Fist, Tumbling Boxing

· Five Ancestors - Wuzuquan or Ngo Cho Kun

· Fu Jow Pai - Tiger Claw System (also called Black Tiger Kung Fu or Haak Fu Mun)

· Fut Gar - Buddhist Palm

· Gouquan - Dog Fist

· Hakka Kuen

· Hap Ga

· Houquan - Monkey Fist

o Drunken Monkey

· Heihuquan: Black Tiger Kung Fu

· Hsing-i Ch'uan: Xingyiquan

· Huaquan - China Fist

· Hung Fut - Hung and Buddha style kung fu

· Hung Gar; also known as Hung Ga or Hung Kuen

· Jing Wu Men - Jing Wu, a famous school founded in Shanghai that teaches several different styles

· Jow-Ga Kung Fu - Jow family style

· Lai Tung Pai - Shaolin Style that mixes long and short fist

· Lama Pai

· Leopard Kung Fu

· Li Gar - Li Family or Lee Family style

· He Ba Fa - Six Harmonies, Eight Methods or Water Boxing

· Luohan Quan Arhat Boxing, Loh Han Kuen

· Mei Hua Quan Plum Blossom Fist

· Mian Quan Cotton Boxing

· Mizongyi Mízōngquán - Lost Track Fist (also known as My Jong Law Horn)

· Mok Gar Mok family style

· Monkey Kung Fu or Houquan

· Nam Pai Chuan - North South Fist

· Nan Quan - Southern Fist

· Ng Ga Kuen - Five Family/Five Animal style (Hung, Mok, Li, Choy, Fut)

· Northern Praying Mantis

· Northern Shaolin - Bei Shaolin

· Paochui - Cannon Fist, Sanhaung Paochui

· Piguaquan - Chop-Hitch Fist, Axe-hitch boxing

· Shaolin Quan

· Shequan - Snake Fist

· Shuai jiao - Chinese and Mongolian styles of wrestling

· Southern Praying Mantis

o Chow Gar - Chow Style Southern Praying Mantis

· T'ai chi ch'uan - Supreme Ultimate fist

o Chen-style t'ai chi ch'uan

o Sun-style tai chi chuan

o Wu (Hao)-style tai chi chuan

o Wu style tai chi chuan

o Yang-style t'ai chi ch'uan

· Tantui - Springing legs style

· Tien Shan Pai

· Tongbeiquan - Through-the-Back Fist

· Wing Chun - Style based on movements of a snake and a crane or Wing Tsun

· Wudangquan

· Xingyiquan; Hsing-i Chuan - Form-Intent Fist

· Yau Kung Mun - Flexible-Power Style

· Yingzhaoquan - Eagle Claw Fist

· Yuejiaquan - Yue family Fist/Boxing

· Yiquan; I Ch'uan - Mind Boxing

· Zi Ran Men - Natural Boxing or "fist of nature"

Modern Hybrids

· Hong Cha

· I Liq Chuan - Mind-Body Art

· Jun Fan Jeet Kune Do - Bruce Lee's Way of the Intercepting Fist

· Jing Quan Do - a modern synthetic style

· Kenpo - Japanese description of various Chinese arts

· Liu Seong Kuntao (also Liu Seong Kung Fu, Liu Seong Chuan Fa) - A Chinese art with Indonesian influence, practiced primarily in the United States

· Kuntao - Way of the Fist, a Hokkien term referring to Chinese martial arts practiced in Southeast Asia and in Indonesia in particular

· Sanshou or Sanda - Free Fighting

· Shao Quan - Kung Fu style based on Ziboce's teachings

Aikido:- The Way of Peace

2012-01-31T23:41:00.000+01:00

An interesting art that is immediately recognizable. It does have a few striking moves in it, but for the most part, it is based on the principle that when an attacker strikes, he leaves some part of his defense vulnerable. If you, the defender, do not attack him, you remain defensively invulnerable.

Do not resist his attack. Use its momentum against him. Steven Seagal is the most famous Aikido practitioner in the Western world. He may be a horrible actor, but he is a genuine 7th degree black belt in Aikido, and his signature move is absolutely essential to any self-defense arsenal: the kote gaeshi, or “forearm return.”

The attacker steps forward and throws a straight punch. You sidestep, snatch hold of his wrist, and twist around in time with his punch. Do it right, and it will fling him completely off balance, using his own momentum, while you whirl around, and twist his wrist toward the outside. He probably will not flip over like the classic theatrics in a Seagal film, but his wrist may well break. He’s unlikely to fight anymore after that.

Most critics of this art point out that it is nearly impossible for the average black belt to catch a person’s punch and turn fast enough to perform this move, but that’s not true. It’s actually a very easy move to learn and perfect.

Aikido thrives on joint locks, which do not require much speed to perform, compared to the kote gaeshi, and are extremely effective in immobilizing and incapacitating an attacker.

Which style of Martial Arts is the best?

2012-01-29T23:23:00.000+01:00

There is no "The ultimate martial art style!", many people think they love martial arts but want to engage in the best of the styles. There is no such thing. All martial art styles are good, but you might want to consider the style that drives you crazy; that is, the style you love the most. It could even be the only one you've seen, you also need to consider your body type; Are you big and strong or are lanky but agile, do you like locks and brakes or throws, you know! stuffs like that.

Don't forget thet martial is for discipline, self-defence, physical health and fitness, as well as mental and spiritual development.