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The Martial Arts
Martial Arts is a term employed to describe different systems of hand/foot fighting and self-development. Many styles can be traced back more than 20 centuries and their popularity is evidenced by the fact that today, martial arts are practiced by millions of people worldwide.
These arts originated in Asia and were originally used as a means of empty-hand self-defense. Ultimately, they were infused with spiritual teachings and evolved into the martial arts as we know them today....an important character building tool. The "bully" mentality often associated with the martial arts is a misconception.
We focus on positive values and the discipline and respect cultivated in each student carries over into every aspect of their lives including work, study, and the various relationships forged throughout a lifetime. The body, spirit, and the mind are conditioned to work as one and to achieve great results. It isn't mystical or magical but is instead the product of special, determined people prepared to dedicate themselves to the task of becoming the best people they can be.....people who will meet the challenge of martial arts training.
If there is one man who could be credited with popularizing
karate, it is Gichin Funakoshi. Funakoshi
was born in 1868 in Shuri, then the capital
city of the island of Okinawa. He started
practicing karate while in primary school
but didn't begin his mission of spreading
it to the outside world until he was 53.
Funakoshi always believed kata was the secret
to becoming skilled in karate.
Gichin Funakoshi, seen at left, was the
creator of shotokan Karate
When he moved
to Japan, he brought 16 kata with him: five
pinan and three naihanchi, along with kushanku
dai, kushanku sho, seisan, patsai, wanshu,
chinto, jutte and jion. He made students
practice the pinan and naihanchi forms for
at least three years before he allowed them
to progress to the more advanced kata. The
repetitious training paid off, though, because
his students developed the most precise,
exact karate taught anywhere.
This essay was excerpted from The Weaponless Warriors (Ohara Publications Inc., 1974).
A more complete history can be found here