Full disclosure: A few weeks ago, as we moved into another new year, I’d planned to expand on the concept of Kaizen and began writing a very different blog. However, as I penned the first draft, my thoughts shifted from Personal Development to Other Development, and the relationship between Budo and Benevolence. The term budo...
Out with the old and in with the new! In Japan, where the new year is a time to purge and purify, rituals abound: from burning last year’s o-fuda (御札) amulets that bring luck or good health, to joya-no-kane (除夜の鐘) ringing a temple bell 108 times. Other customs to ensure a happy, healthy and...
On October 30, 2019, a massive fire destroyed the main structures of Shuri Castle on Japan’s southern island of Okinawa. Surrounded by stone walls, the complex is largely comprised of wood edifices, and the cause of the blaze is believed to have been an electrical problem that was likely accelerated by recently reapplied lacquer....
Written by Cezar Borkowski, edited by Kyoshi Marion Manzo. To understand the development of Okinawan Kobudo and specifically the important role played by the bo, we must examine historical facts and popular folklore. The bo is an ancient implement employed in early Shamanistic rituals. At the religion’s core is the sanctity of seji or a...
Fluctuating fitness, age, and injuries, are challenges that will face every lifelong student of combative arts. To counter these obstacles, the serious martial athlete will research all methods of performance improvement, and there are many effective physical fitness regimens that can add punch to our techniques, including weight training. That is, the right type of...
Chu usachiyu ruu duu uyamee. Revere your ancestors, and they will respect you in kind. (Ryukyu proverb) If religion is a set of teachings, rituals and beliefs shared by a group or community aimed at facilitating a relationship with a deity, then spirituality is a person’s link with the transcendent questions that confront human...
For decades, I resisted any and all attempts to define the Northern Karate system in simplistic terms. What martial art do you teach? Karate? Certainly. What style? We practice Shurite forms….and Nahate kata…and Hakutsuru and Nipai. Kobudo? Yes. What type? Matayoshi…and Ryukyu…and Yamani…and Mura. Some BJJ/MMA? Absolutely. What about Indonesian and Filipino combat systems?...
Ikigai can be described as the food or fuel of life. It is similar to what the French call raison d’être, a “reason to live”, and rather than merely surviving, making your earthly existence a work of art. The Greek philosopher Heraclitus (535 –475 BCE) used the word logos to illustrate principle, plan, formula...
To decode martial-speak, we need to delve beneath the surface of simple translation and widely accepted definitions, and discover a deeper sense of popular terms. KARATE空手 On the surface: empty hand. The modern name karate is composed of two characters. 空, ku or sora, signifies “sky” or “void” and 手, shu or te, means...
My journey as a martial arts educator began serendipitously when I was a skinny teenager, and a sensei at the YMCA asked if I could lead warm-ups and perform basics in weekly classes. After a few short months, she retired, and I inherited the program. The rest, as they say, is history. Over the...