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Latest blog posts from Martial Views

Top Ten Most Annoying Things in the Martial Arts
We all know the virtues of the martial arts and ways. But whether you're a newcomer or a longtime devotee there are undoubtedly some aspects of martial arts culture that gets under your skin. In the tradition of the Late Show with David Letterman I've compiled a "Top Ten" list of what I've found...
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Published 4 days ago

Know Thyself
Those who know others are intelligent; those who know themselves are truly wise. Those who master others are strong; those who master themselves have true power. Those who know they have enough are truly wealthy....
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Published a week ago

Evolution
I swiped this image from Striking Thoughts. Perfect!Change is good. Or is it? Over the past several years we've seen a major shift in what people refer to as "martial arts." Currently, MMA is in vogue, and already there are thick boundaries drawn between what is considered nouveau and the...
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Published 2 weeks ago

Where Great Minds Meet
The Convocation Of Combat Arts has been established by quality martial arts bloggers for their legion of readers. Everything from training techniques to philosophy will be open to discussion. All styles welcome. Come join us!
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Published 3 weeks ago

The Shogun of Harlem
Prolific actor and Academy Award nominee Samuel L. Jackson has been slated to play the streetfighting heavy in a remake of the 1985 flick The Last Dragon. Set in the mean streets of New York, a young martial arts upstart must get past the evil Sho'Nuff - the Shogun of Harlem (Jackson) - to...
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Published 4 weeks ago

Delinquency and Martial Arts
There are no bad boys. There is only bad environment, bad training, bad example, bad thinking. - Father Edward FlanaganThe Jiu-Jitsu Sensei Blog had an interesting piece about gang members and their less-than-noble reasons for learning martial arts, particularly MMA. In the past, street kids from...
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Published a month ago

Feel The Power
Recently I came across a good read that I thought could be relevant for martial study. Power vs. Force is a book that describes how power, as per author David Hawkins' definition, is of the authentic variety, whereas force belongs to the antiquated self-serving agenda which is typical of the...
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Published a month ago

Choose Your Weapons
I've never been a huge fan of traditional Okinawan weapons (kobudo). After all, karate - the empty hand way - forgoes the need for anything besides relying on the human body as a means for self defense. Kobudo is a bona fide fighting system unto itself, so when it's taught alongside of karate (as...
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Published 2 months ago

Think Big
There's this guy from my area that runs a karate school out of his house. A basement dojo, I'm told, can be a rough place to train. At any rate, this particular fellow checks in at 6'8 and weighs 315 pounds. A friend of mine knows him from the old days. "Years ago he came to train with us because...
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Published 2 months ago

Striking vs. Grappling
Do you train in karate or some related style? How often do you work ground techniques at your school? Most karate students train on a traditional wooden deck, so if some rolling or grappling moves are required, somebody is recruited to go into the back room to pull out some small cheesy mat to...
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Published 2 months ago

Kata: Doing It Right
For anyone who has been a regular reader of this site, you may know that my views on kata (forms) training are somewhat divided. Kata has some uses which I'll state, but from much of what I've seen they've survived largely due to their convenience for belt promotions, tournaments and a way to use...
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Published 3 months ago

Keep Going
Once, a friend of mine asked me what I would do after I earned my shodan. "What is there after black belt - do you keep going?"When you think you've reached the summit, you're not even halfway there!Do not believe thatThis is all there is.More and moreWonderful teachings exist -The sword is...
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Published 6 months ago