The Law of Specificity.

 The Law of Specificity is interesting from a Training to Street perspective.

We all know a person cannot make their legs stronger by doing pull-ups, they need to work those specific muscles.

The same thing applies to Training; what you train comes out in the heat of application. If you train to take someone down whilst giving them a hand and helping them up afterwards what do you think you will do when it counts?

This is why I often take issue with training that is extremely impractical, especially when the Instructors tout the practicality of that which they teach.

Some might say these people are doing no harm, I call bullshit on that perspective.

I have often heard ‘Oh it seems impractical, but it is actually training practical muscle memory’ or ‘Yeah, it seems silly, but there is reason behind it so we keep doing it.’

Why? What reason? What practical muscle memory would involve a move that has you surrounded by people in the center of a circle, requires you to jump into the air, tuck your knees, and spin in a specified direction to meet an attack? Why not just turn around and meet it? 

Does it give a good workout? Sure. Don’t present it as a practical drill though, one could get the same type of workout for the same muscle groups doing other exercises specific to building muscle and cardio without meeting an attack.

The mind requires specificity when it is necessary to act quickly without conscious thought.

In this realm specificity is often synonymous with simplicity… That has been my experience in nearly every aspect of life.

Most who would not agree are touting the same things as those Instructors I illustrate above, they have skin in the game and seek to profit from it or they have devoted so much time to it that they do not wish to feel as though their time had been wasted.

Look at what you are doing, honestly, look at it, question it, rework where reworking is necessary with the thought in mind that someone’s life might just depend on this someday.

It could be a paying Student, your niece, your nephew, your wife or husband, your children.

Get your head out of the heirarchy soup that is determined by an Organization seeking to preserve itself and start really thinking about the people who come to you for guidance… They matter more.

For Students… Start questioning, start challenging, start picking at the bones of the system.

If any aspect is found wanting, ask why. If no answer is given, go somewhere else.

Forget About Bunkai.

 The Bunkai Craze… It was taking off in the early 2000’s with books by Wilder and Kane, Iain Abernathy, followed by a whole slew of others that sought to capitalize on a niche market of books and seminars.

They were not wrong in their approach, it opened MANY doors, led to deeper thinking and tremendous growth, always a good thing.

The word ‘Bunkai’ means analysis, though, and does not refer to specific Applications of a Kata. Kaisai No Genri was, and is, the driving force behind the Wilder and Kane approach, but there is always something left out in open transmission of principles.

This is to give a taste in order to drive the seminar and private instruction market. Yes, it is a market, people have to make money in this world.

Wilder and Kane are great guys, but they are not stupid, nor was Toguchi Sensei, who held more knowledge back than he let on in this regard.

The Bunkai Craze seems to have tapered off a bit and many within this niche have become homogenized in their approach… Perhaps it is because there is not a lot more that can be said other than ‘get to the floor and train.’ 

Maybe, maybe not.

In my limited exposure to Ti I have come to realize the practice of Bunkai is rather surface level and specific Bunkai really do not exist.

Forget about Bunkai. 

There is a flow, a line, which can be applied at varying distances in a fight, striking, grappling, throwing, an underlying dynamic strategy that can be understood if one looks to footwork rather than stances… If one really knows how to apply Body Mechanics as the driving force rather than the normal stop-and-go we find in Karate.

Wilder and Kane did touch upon this aspect by pointing out the 1 then 2 aspect of training that a Karateka should overcome… Points rather than lines, jerky robotic motions rather than flow.

Static drills might be okay in the beginning, but these have continued into the higher belt ranks. Even when one explores various aspects like Hikite and their Kata change to reflect this these are still, ultimately, stop-and-go Kata driven from one point to another.

Dachi do not exist, Tsuki do not exist, Geri/Keri do not exist, Uke does not exist…. Bunkai does not exist.

It is said that someone who knows can tell if a person truly understands how to utilize something by watching their Kata.

The same thing is said in Ti. When a Ti Practitioner views the Kata of another they can tell if they know any Ti and, thus, can apply what they are doing just by how they move.

Tenshin is central… Perhaps the oldest Kata is Training the principle of Sankaku Tenshin. Where do you move in relation to your opponent? At what distance? How do you enter and close the distance? How do you set it up? What is the end game of your strategy? How do you get there?

It has nothing to do with stylized movement, nor does it really have to rely on Kata… Such things are meant for TRAINING in a way that allows for the principles to sink in.

Original Okinawan Martial Arts HAD NO KATA and, thus, NO BUNKAI.

Forget about Bunkai.

The Meaning of Authenticity.

 Just recently I came across a book with the words ‘Authentic Karate’ in the title, I did not buy the book, enough of those line my shelves and utilize space on my device as it is.

Having recently trained with a fellow practitioner of Ti out of my back yard my perspective is ever changing, just what IS Authentic Karate? 

The words can be expressed in different ways. Maybe it means an ‘unchanged’ form of Traditional Karate that follows strict standards of practice? Perhaps it means a form of Karate that is Authentically expressed on a personal level? Maybe both?

Most Titles are like click bait, meant to catch the eye and draw in the consumer for further review before clicking the ‘buy’ icon.

Much beyond that is cookie cutter information, save for a few cases, if you have seen one then you have likely seen them all… Albeit from a slightly nuanced perspective.

I have a hard time really getting into book study on this subject anymore as it seems the same things are repeated over and over with very little depth or growth beyond a certain point.

Perhaps that is due to a lack in the present terminology, but one could seek to remedy that through further elaboration and, indeed, further study under people like Jan Dam of the Genten Kai who utilizes terminology absent from Modern Karate altogether (not to mention the depth of concepts that seem absent).

I get asked how my Goju is coming along a lot by one of my Karate Teachers whenever I talk about Ti… As if Goju was an actual thing and had to conform to a strict standard beyond which it could not grow, or that it were somehow meant to be separate from Ti.

Does Authentic Karate fit in a box or does it contain the box as a root?

I practice from a small circle, or wheel, that spirals outward and in many directions. There is NO Goju insofar as a style or system of Goju is concerned. There are only the principles and from those one does not remain static or stationary so as to decay and lose spirit over time.

It occurs to me that the mind is easily ensnared by that which has been romanticized, wrapped in a nice package, with very little done to explore the depths and the root.

In my view there is value in everything, just as everything is flawed. The Authentic is not so much linked to history or Tradition, although that is part of it, but more about the heart.

I know very little about anything, so take or leave my opinion as you like, it cannot be helped how things are.

You want to learn Authenticity, take care of some plants and animals, get close to nature, you will see just how Authentic something can be… Being truly itself, yet according underlying principles and building blocks.

Nature is a strange thing and we are arrogant to think our views mean anything beyond our own noses.

Unspoken.

 The notion of focus is seldom more than a catch phrase for many, even higher ranking Instructors.

What does it mean to be deeply focused? Does it mean to be so immersed in one thing that all other things aside are ignored or unnoticed?

Can Focus, Awareness, and Adaptibility go hand-in-hand? 

We may be getting too hung up on words and their respective concepts if we answer in the negative and have all manner of well thought out reasoning why this is so.

Sometimes our intelligence can make us stupid, ignorant, and maladaptive.

We can say Focus means giving full attention to a single thing to the exclusion of all other things,yet we can also say that Focus is simply being present, fully attentive, and fully aware, encompassing everything.

It really isn't that complex, it really doesn't need hours of contemplation followed by hours of deep philosophical discussion... Just be fully present, be fully aware, do things with intention... To put your whole self in everything you do without breaking that focus.

How you do anything is how you do everything... An old saying coined by a Stoic, or possibly comendeered by him, but no less true.

Whether we call it Focus, or something else it does not really matter.

People place too much emphasis on words, definitions, concepts... Not enough emphasis on actually doi g anything.

Words like Karate and Ti, which give rise to specific ideas, yet are nothing really special... Just words... The meaning is in silence, in the action, unspoken.

The Essence of Ti's Non-Existence.

 There is some Ti in Karate, yet no Karate in Ti... This has been told to me several times and I do see what they mean.

Karate is like learning to write block letters in Grade School, Ti is like cursive or even Calligraphy on a deeper level.

I am no expert in Ti as I have only been training it for a couple years now, and I doubt I will ever reach the level of expertise as my seniors and our Teacher.

I do, however, feel as though one would need some grounding in Karate in order to train Ti to any degree.

It is not something that is meant to be stylized, compartmentalized, or organized into a cirriculum like Karate. 

It is more akin to what Musashi meant when he referred to 'Heiho,' or so I have read, yet feel this to be true.

There is no 'technique' in Ti, there are no 'stances' or fixed 'postures,' no broken points. Nothing to classify as a block, a punch, a kick, or, put another way, no Bunkai or Oyo whatsoever.

There is functional form, there are lines, but these are continuous flows without breaking poi ts and one utilizes whatever is given from which to flow.

Karate will break things down on a first grade level, but really is only a pathway towards something beyond fixed forms and all that. This has been lost or repressed somewhere along the way and because of this there is no difference in seeing how a Kata is done between a low level senior and a high ranking so-called Black Belt.

At least in the majority of cases, although there are some exceptions who seem to have grasped at the root... I am not altogether convinced that they did not train Ti to some rudimentary level.

With exceptions to this rule there comes exceptions to every rule, not everyone will understand Ti, nor will they be able to utilize it properly, especially if they cannot let go of previous notions or seek to promote themselves as anything special... This tends to get in the way of learning anything.

Ti, like any Martial Practice, is prone to some seriously big headed people that do not truly seek to learn Ti as Ti, but seek the label of Ti to add to a brand they are attempting to market... Very much a Karate mindset... Seeking to be a founder of some system or other that incorporates Ti and i flate rank as well as ego.

Seeking titles over training, some higher place in the heirarchy where one can pretend to know, yet dole out bad information.

Then there are those who seek the knowledge only to pretend it is their own, shunning their Teacher in order to i flate themselves so as to procure greater book sales and seminar attendence... Again, doling out incorrect and/or incomete information.

Ti does not purport to be anything other than what it is. 

It is not some moral path, it is a combative science, although Genten No Ti draws heavily from the Okinawan Philosopher Tei Junsoku, who does espouse some highly moral, almost Stoic, teachings.

There is no talk of Ki/Chi, nothing mystical, yet in its' down to earth, grounded, and practical approach to all things it is, indeed, very mystical without the added 'woo' one would normally find associated with an Asian Martial Art.

Okinawa was a spiritual society with a belief in animism and intrinsic spirit, but the head of spirituality was the realm of female shaman, this had nothibg to do with Martial Science... Although both were, and are, highly respected.

Much to the chagrin of another Goju Ryu Karateka I had interacted with, Ti, in its' purest form, has no Kata... If a Kata is used it is nothing more than a tool... It follows different pathways, different variations, one should be able to move in infinite lines along a tangient... As a sphere, within a sphere.

So, no technique, no stances, no Kata, no Karate... Ti exists within and beyond the point of really knowing for certain... Other than the attitude... A Tijigaya is always ready... Not that that applies to me, but certainly an ideal to shoot for.

Cling to the other stuff all we like, ultimately that which sits stagnant and u changing is dead.

Winds of Change.

 It has been some time since the last post was made. 

My focus has been elsewhere these days, as it is certain the focus of most out there has been on other, more trying matters.

Still training regularly, but the poi t of writing the same things over and over again just felt useless, meaningless, and to be ho est my heart was not in it.

Even now I cannot even watch videos or read books on the subject, let alone write, but still I train as I always have. The media just seem to say the same thing over and over again from differing perspectives that reach the same conclusions.

Then one finds the pointless bickering back and forth over this and that, useless if you ask me, train more, talk less.

Then there are the formal classes where one shows up in Karate Gi, bows, counts in Japanese, refers to the Teacher and Seniors by Japanese Titles and follows customs in the Dojo set down by an Imperialistic Japanese Mindset and Culture that is borderline cultish... Something completely foreign to Okinawan Karate. Even so-called Okinawan 'Masters' that teach abroad have adopted this, some to a pretty extreme level.

I have been teaching my children, on and off, since the time they started walking.

My Daughter has experience in Genten No Ti and Toguchi-ha Goju Ryu Karate, among other things I feel the need to pass on.

It is more of a Family thing on my part.

She recently started attending Karate Classes at a local health and fitness center taught by a Senior Student of Teruo Chinen.

She seems to be taking to it pretty well and I felt it would be a good experience for her to be around peers who also train, but I find myself scoffing at some of the things they do... Focusing more on how things appear rather than how they work, or why.

I am not going to criticize the way things are done as this is how it has been done for some time in Karate. I have also trained with the late Mr. Chinen as well as the Teacher of this class, Bob Davies.

I did learn some valuable things, albeit I ceased attending classes under Bob Davies as I found them to be contrary to my own training even though they are also training Goju Ryu.

It was not so much the main body of what they teach that was contrary, but all the side drills they impliment, which seem counter intuitive and would not truly serve me in good stead... It was more a question of practicality than anything else.

Mr. Chinen was also very strict in his teaching, perhaps too strict, whereas Mr. Davies is not, perhaps a bit too lax.

Even now there seems to persist a cult of personality surrounding Mr. Chinen, whom has made some very questionable claims in the past... A great Karateka he was, but he was not all that he claimed to be and really had set this Organization up around himself, marketing his heritage and embellishing with claims that simply were not true.

One could say this about nearly every Karate 'Master' however, many are or were truly colorful personalities that knew how to market themselves and behaved quite contrary to the morals they purported to be central to Karate.

It is a good thing to train Karate and, I feel, Karate is outgrowing these colorful old 'Masters' (read flawed human beings) as Students become Teachers in their own right and actually follow, as best they can, the morality picked up through the Karate framework. Maybe, maybe not.

One could get the same from any endeavor, be it MMA or even working wood or some other skill/art.

Karate, itself, is not what many take it to be.

It is mordern, a 20th Century creation marketed, now, as a sport and, before, as a physical activity within the Okinawan School system.

Tode was different, even more, Ti is different. Though one can contain the other, the latter is not contained in the fore.

So the romanticization of Karate is unwarranted as those who propagated it up to this point were its' flawed creators during a time of assimilation to Japanese Imperial Culture.

That does not mean it has no value and lacks practicality, quite the contrary, it has been effective for many people in many situations and has produced very good and upright people who, in turn, pass it on in many different ways.

So, I still feel it is a good experience for my daughter as it was, and is, a good experience for me.

It helped me overcome many challenges in life, it has been useful on a practical level, and it has allowed me to meet some truly great people.

Ti is another level to that and I truly feel one must first become proficient in Karate before even thinking about learning Ti, one is not the other, but there is some overlap... When one learns Karate in order to forget it.

My hope is that my Daughter learns, keeps learning, then forgets. There is no need to become so wrapped up in all of this that it becomes who you think you are.

It is only a root aspect of life meant to help one improve all other aspects of life, it is NOT who you are, just something you do. Nothing special at all.

I do not talk about Karate or Martial Arts with very many people. Some might say I am not open about it at all outside that circle, despite having been training for thirty years, I have done other things for much longer.

Sometimes I feel embarassed by it when people put me on the spot and I want nothing to do with it. When my wife brings up teaching my Children more regularly I change the subject... Then, after time has passed, I go and teach them something.

This is partially due to the view that Karate is only for children, so it is not really looked upon seriously in an adult conversation, and partly due to my knowing that much of it should not necessarily be taught to children without good moral grounding first.

I don't do rank, I don't really do formality, and I do teach in some very indirect ways... Sometimes my children do not even know they are being taught, and this has helped them become better little people. At some point they have to leave the nest though.

Hopefully I have armed them with a good moral compass, a good example, and a good bullshit detector.