The Empty Hand in the world of Firearm

The Hero pulls out a gun and the Villain does as well. Bam Bam Bam and the Villain is dead and the Hero wins without breaking a sweat. We have seen this in many of the modern movies. So, does that mean that the good old hand to hand combat is dead? Not at all.

So, what is it that still makes people gravitate towards the nearest Martial Arts Club? What makes them so curious about it? What really is the charm of Martial Arts?

Interesting training methods

Improving in Martial Arts can be done only through regular training. But some times, it can be rather monotonous when there is no dynamism in our training methods. Even scientific studies suggest that having dynamic training methods can improve our performance by leaps and bounds. It is like our muscles get bored with the same old training methods. We need changes in our training regimen.

I have formulated some simple training regimens to make everyone’s  training very interesting.

Knowledge and Practice

Most of the practitioners know most of the techniques and even the counter attacks and everything required during the fight. But when it comes to actually using that knowledge, most of us find it difficult. And that can be frustrating during a fight. Even I had difficulty to apply my knowledge when it actually mattered.  That is when I came across a quote by none other than Bruce Lee.

Mind: Our Ultimate Strength.

Mental strength sometimes can be more important than the physical strength. If you think otherwise, ask people who suffer from nervousness.  Being mentally strong is not easy as being physically strong. You can do a bunch of exercises and be physically strong, but mind is more complex than that. Mind is like a room which is a maze where the walls are made of mirrors. It is more incomprehensible whenever you try to understand more. You just see the reflections of what you see in there. But there is always more to it than just the surface that we see.

An extended version of “Be Water my Friend”

Empty your mind, be formless, shapeless—like water. Now you put water into a cup, it becomes the cup, you put water into a bottle, it becomes the bottle, you put it in a teapot, it becomes the teapot. Now water can flow or it can crash. Be water, my friend.
~ Bruce Lee

I am sure many of you have read this and many have seen the interview video where Bruce Lee explains how being like Water, we can be more versatile as a fighter. So, in this post, we will see about other aspects of nature.

The Advent of MMA

All of us know the meaning of ‘Mixed Martial Arts’. It is an integration of more than one Martial Art. It is usually a composition of Striking and Grappling. A person who has practiced Striking will have to learn Grappling and vice-versa to make himself a complete warrior. That’s right! I used the word ‘warrior’ and not fighter. We are not any common fighters. But that’s another story. Now coming back to MMA, we have read many stories on how it started. But, I have my own theory of how the advent of MMA might have taken place.

Horse Stance

At the first instance, everyone wonders what is the purpose of Horse stance. It is practically impossible to fight in this stance, other than used as a transitional stance. You are bound to be more surprised when you see Shaolin Monks(on T.V or Internet or lucky enough to see them live) staying in this stance for hours.

Kata: The Essence of Self Defense.

I am sure many of the Martial Arts students were taught Kata(forms) within three or four weeks of joining. But many of us[including me when I joined] usually wonder what use will be a Kata, which is just movements which involve many types of blocks, punches and different kicks. There are around 100 different types of Katas across the various styles of Karate.

Philosophical Bruce Lee

Many know Bruce Lee as a Martial Artist, an Actor, the Founder of Jeet Kune Do(J.K.D), his moves with Nunchaku. But many do not know the Philosophical side of Bruce Lee. His posthumously published book “Tao of Jeet Kune Do” is an ultimate treasure of Philosophical thoughts not just for Martial Artists, but for everyone! Anyone who has read it are bound to agree with me. Here are some of his words,

Martial Arts at an outset

We all have seen movies based on Martial Arts and have been fascinated with all the moves done by the actors. What we really don’t understand is the real concept of performing such move. We[including me] watch the movies and appreciate. A little more effort is required to understand the real purpose.

Learning Martial Arts is not just about practicing and performing impressive moves. The real intention of the art you are practicing is to understand the moves so that you can perform it when you need to save your life! When you learn the Art, it is important that you ask your instructor to explain the concept so that you learn it the right way.