The Complete Picture.

For a long time i was so fascinated with Eastern Unarmed Martial Arts that i forgot about West and about Weapons.

But now i think that for a complete picture, one should not ignore Western Martial Arts.

One should not ignore Martial Arts with weapons as well, not only unarmed ones - i think.





... i also think that Unarmed Martial Arts can prepare one for weapons training, and more than that - can be used in these / for example: kicking during swordplay /.


... military affairs and philosophy, such as Sun Tzu's Art of War are also among thoughts of the Martial Arts Philosophy.

Sun Tzu, Sun Pin & Mechanics of Wars.

There are many wars in today's world.

Some things never change.


Wisdoms on wars - on strategy & tactics - can be found in many books.

First treatise - 'Art of War' - was written by Chinese General Sun Tzu, about 2,500 years ago.

One of 'Art of War's' interpretations was done by Sun Pin - another member of the Sun family - in his book: 'Military Methods'.

These books are studied and present in today's wars, some of ideas are still present in today's military training across whole world, including 'U.S. Marine Corps'.

Knowing these wisdoms can also be useful in all aspect of one's life.


This is a short mind-map of the wisdoms of Sun Tzu and Sun Pin, so we can try to understand what's really going on when wars happen, so we know how mass media manipulates us into thinking that 'we are winning', 'god is on our side', 'enemies are fanatical tyrants'.


Sun Tzu's 'Art of War'

1. Preparation for War.
1.1. Meticulous Preparation.
1.2. Analysing Scenarios.
1.3. Taking steps that have chance of success.
1.4. Misleading and Deceiving enemy are the Essence of the War.

2. Art of War.
2.1. Performing.
2.1.1. Prolonged war harms the nation.
2.1.1.1. Resolution of Conflict should be quick.
2.1.2. Motivating people to overcome fear.
2.1.2.1. Punishments and Rewards.
2.2. Defeating enemy without battle.
2.2.1. Suffering minimum of losses.
2.3. Starting war when victory is sure.
2.3.1. Strong defence position, opportunity for attack.
2.3.2. Every opportunity can be used for achieving our goals.
2.4. Attacking in the most appropriate moment.
2.4.1. Proper size of our forces, proper amount of men.
2.5. Combining conventional and nonconventional methods.
2.6. Key to victory is Flexibility.

3. Strategy.
3.1. Reconnaissance and holding advantageous position.
3.1.1. Taking advantage of enemy's gaps.
3.1.2. Strategic Advantage.
3.1.3. Terrain Reconnaissance.
3.1.3.1. Constant development of defenses.
3.1.4. Victory is for those who suprise enemies.
3.2. Using spies.
3.2.1. Knowledge about enemy, about competition.
3.3. Preventional tactical rules.
3.3.1. Don't force enemy 'to the wall', to the desperation.
3.3.2. Don't get caught by apparent, false benefits.

4. Warfare.
4.1. Carrying activities without fear.
4.1.1. Avoiding being carried by emotions.
4.1.2. Sacrificing individuals for benefit of many, for totality, for whole.
4.1.3. Avoiding anger and spite.
4.1.4. Reasonable risk.
4.2. Terrain, Landform.
4.3. Leading on basis of spying, reconaissance and analysis.
4.4. War is affair of great importance.
4.4.1. Start war only after giving it serious thinking backed by analysis.
4.5. Flexibility and acting quickly.
4.6. Flaming, attack.
4.6.1. Confusion and destruction.
4.6.2. Rumours and insinuations.

5. Military Methods.
5.1. 'Fluent in carrying warfare will conquer those who are easy to be conquered'.
5.2. Uses among competition and rivalry.
5.3. Rigtheousness is motivating factor.
5.3.1. Helps in everyday struggles.
5.4. Building defenses using only available resources.
5.5. Preparing for sudden, suprise attack.

6. People.
6.1. The most important factor.
6.2. Winning loyalty by uniting views and opinions.
6.3. Officers of lower rank.
6.3.1. Respect and backing by ordinary soldiers, by privates.
6.3.2. Trust of superiors.
6.4. Focus on loyalty.

7. Leaders.
7.1. Fighting only when victory is sure.
7.2. No pressures from outside.
7.3. Waiting for events to unfold.
7.4. Taking advantage of external factors and terrain.
7.5. Avoiding terrain that is difficult to pass through.
7.5.1. People who are stuck are easy targets.
7.6. Managing an Army.
7.6.1. All of leader's inclinations are immediately affecting people.
7.6.2. All of faults and emotions affect the team.
7.7. Leader has to:
7.7.1. Keep the inner balance.
7.7.2. Define organizational tasks.
7.7.3. Assign appropriate resources into project's realization.

8. Motivating.
8.1. Disciplining people.
8.2. Punishments and rewards.
8.2.1. 'More than enemy, he fears his leader'.
8.3. Preparing mindset for victory.
8.3.1. Awareness of renunciations and seriousness of the situation.
8.3.2. Avoiding fears and doubts.
8.3.3. Inclination for sacrifices.
8.4. Friendly relations between soldiers.

9. Competition.
9.1. Strong enemy.
9.1.1. Dividing enemy forces.
9.1.2. Keeping enemy ignorant, unaware.
9.1.3. Forcing enemy to fight on large front.
9.2. Masterfully leading and controlling of the army.
9.3. Physical and moral weakening of enemy.

10. Carrying Activities.
10.1. Precisely set moment for starting activities.
10.2. 'Be like water'
10.2.1. Hardness and Softness.
10.2.2. Submission with Decisiveness.
10.3. Freedom of commander's activities from ruler.
10.4. Basic mistakes in leadership:
10.4.1. Smart leader instantly takes advantage of these.
10.4.2. Have fundamential importance.
10.4.3. Inevitably condemn for loss.

11. Measure forces by intentions.
11.1. Ten times stronger - surround enemy.
11.2. Five times stronger - attack.
11.3. Twice as strong - divide your troops.
11.4. Equal armies - battle.
11.5. Lesser forces - outsmart enemy.
11.6. Significiantly lesser forces - avoid.

Who's worthy of Good Training?

Years ago i've read that without compassion and good will one won't go far in Martial Arts.

... i sympathized with this idea, but could not find reason, didn't understand why.


Then, years later, a thought came to my mind.

When student doestn't care for Respect, for Philosophy, for Compassion, for Culture, for History, for important Names and Traditions ... is he/she worthy of good training?

Probably not.


That's one of many reasons, that's why aspiring martial artist should:
- one should follow traditions and customs of School(s) in which one practices,
  - traditions/customs may or may not include:
    - one should meditate at beginning of training,
    - one should bow when one enters Dojo,
    - one should learn and use Japanese (well, in case of non-japanese martial arts, one
      should choose other, appropriate language) words that are used in training and combat,
    - perhaps more,
  - different Schools may have different traditions/customs,
- one should not get late to training,
- one should study Culture, Names, Philosophy, History, Traditions of Martial Arts,
- one should be nice and gentle, help others instead of releasing anger in fight,
- one should be compassionate to other students and teachers,
- one should be respectful.

These practices are a signs of one's etiquette and respect.

Certain Martial Arts Schools do not train at all people without etiquette. 'Please go out'.

Certain Martial Arts Schools have secret lessons reserved for the best student(s) as well.

Martial Arts & Guru Yoga.

One of the goals of Martial Arts is to be better person than a day before training.

Since a short while, i've trained Shaolin Warrior Qi Gong, vol. 1.

Part of this practice is focus, to breathe ... taking in what's nice with inhale, and exhaling bad things.

... i have imagined taking in what's best of the Teacher, the person who trained on a Shaolin Warrior Qi Gong DVD film.

... then i've noticed similarities between Him and Buddha Karmapa 17th Trinley Thaye Dorje - Qi Gong Teacher is young, has oriental looks, has short hair.

... then i imagined that i'm receiving lessons from Buddha through him, that blessings flow from Buddha's Heart to my Heart with inhales.

... then i imagined that i'm exhaling what's worst in certain Martial Art Master(s), getting rid of them.

... i understood that this practice is a form of Guru Yoga, practice that allows a student to develop Teacher's Precious Qualities.

... at first it's in heart, in mind ... later also in speech and in body.

... in my Mind, being nice, compassionate, polite and good person is more important than ability to beat someone efficiently.

Enai.

What is Enai?

... i have insights - thoughts appearing in mind - that Enai is greatest gift from a succesful Martial Arts Teacher for a student. it's best lesson from a Teacher for a student, which lesson depends on Teacher & Student.

... it's not given lightly.


Is 'Enai' a classic, universal word in Martial Arts?

... i don't know (not everything that appears in mind is true).

... but, even if it's not - it can be (or so i think).


What 'Enai' means in Japanese?

... checked in the internet. it means: gain, get, find, earn, acquire, can, may, able to, profit, advantage, benefit.

Know Yourself, Know Enemy.

1. 'Know Yourself, Know Enemy'.

It's a key to victory - either in a 1-on-1 fight(s) or between larger forces.

This wisdom was used to win in conflicts between armies, many times in history.

Knowing oneself is more important than knowing one's enemy - but knowing enemy is also a very important factor to win.

In this article, however - we'll focus on 1-on-1 fights.


--
It's important to understand when and how to use which subpath, among ones listed below:


2. 'Know the Arts, Know the Ways'.

Certain Martial Art styles have advantage(s) and disadvantage(s) against other Martial Art styles.
One's training should include this knowledge both during planning phase, as well as in training's execution.


3. 'Know the Team, Know Synergy'.

Team might involve teachers, sparring partners, dietician, etc.
Synergic team is more than sum of it's parts.


4. 'Know the Risks, Know Solutions'.

One should work both on strongest point of one's Martial Arts, but also on weakest ones.
Also, one should pay attention to one's team, their strong/weak qualities.

Risks can be managed, brainstormed ... and proper training/weapons can be attempted to address these.
Worst Risks - one's weakest points - should be addressed first, and the most seriously.


5. 'Know the Costs, Know the Time'.

Weapons can be expensive, training as well. Hiring training assistants and teachers, renting a training place, buying punching bags, ... - everything costs.

The most often it's the most cost-efficient to just join a particular Martial Arts School, who has most of these costs already covered. The choice of school/teacher should depend both on one's training needs and on school's training offers.

One's time is precious as well, can be considered as part of costs needed to pay for a succesful training.

One should estimate how much of one's time he/she can give certain part(s) of one's training, then plan training accordingly. Same with equipment as weapons, training place, punching bags, etc.


6. 'Know the Ego, Know the Mind'.

Martial Artists sometimes meditate.
Martial Artists sometimes transcend, surpass themselves.

.. i've heard that highly skilled Martial Artists, who have body and mind conditioned for combat - see fights similar to a game of chess. They observe enemy, speak mantras in mind ... and their trained body reacts quickly and precisely to mantras, without much of time-consuming thinking or decisions.

Buddhists sometimes practice Martial Arts as a way to surpass their own Egos. They fight to protect physically-combat-weak friends, and sometimes help to Protect important Teachers. Surpassing one's Ego, achieving Liberation, involves forgoing one's glory and just doing it for others.


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There's also 'false path':

7. 'Know the Money, Know the Way'.

It's a way of traitors, taking bribes.