Barack Obama to Sign Black Belt Certificate!

How Politics Ruins the Martial Arts

So how would you like your black belt certificate signed by Barack Obama? Cool, eh? I mean, the president signing your black belt certificate!

Except, you see, the president doesn’t know Karate. Or AIkido. Or Tai Chi Chuan or Krav Maga or…he doesn’t know ANY martial Art! He merely signed your martial arts promotion so you woujld vote for him!

 // How valuable is your black belt certificate now, eh?

Now, we know this is satire, except, let’s look at a little history behind the martial arts satire.

In Korea, back in the forties and fifties, the martial arts flourished. Some of the most powerful Karate int he world came out of that era. Then a fellow name of Choi Hong Hi decided that Korea needed its own martial art. So he invented Taekwondo. It wasnt’ very good, as evidenced by three facts.

One, the forms were changed after that, better forms were made.

Two, a lot of people wouldn’t go with the new system, they felt that it wasn’t as good as the old.

Three, in Korea Taekwondo is taught to people as sort of a baby system, and the real martial arts are taught later on, and, I hate to say it, in a lot of cases, only to people of the Korean race.

It’s true. A rank form of racism. In the martial arts.

But you will have a hard time proving it, the Koreans certainly won’t opt to it.

But, that is just one instance of a martial art being changed for political reasons. Something that really worked being thrown out (or reserved, in this case) while a lesser art is foisted upon people to create ‘nationalistic pride,’ among other things.

In communist countries, a few decades ago, only the military, or communist party officials and their family, were allowed to learn Martial Arts. Another instance of martial arts by politics.

Let me make a point here: in this country there a LOT of people who think martial arts should be regulated, and this goes down even to the selection of techniques that is taught.

And, here is the cruelty behind this bonehead reasoning…these people propose regulation so that the government won’t regulate us.

Regulation of art, of martial art, for politics.

Well, you know my opinion. As the owner of Monster Martial Arts I believe in going to a flesh smacking dojo and eschewing ALL politics. And, when you have your basics in, heck, as soon as you start, you should start exploring other options, and ordering a course from me, testing in the martial arts by video with me, is ABSO-FRIGGIN-LUTELY free of politics.

It’s the knowledge that’s important here, not who signs your certificate, or whetehre you have filled in the forms in triplicate, or whether you show proper depth of bow to some bonehead who stopped learning martial arts a decade ago, when he figured out he could get people to bow down and throw money at him.

Just my opinion of course. You’re certainly free to go get your black belt certificate signed by BarackObama…heck, it’s not like politics could really hurt the martial arts, right?

Check out Matrix Karate if you want a TOTALLY non-political martial arts system.

And don’t forget to subscribe to this blog in the sidebar.

The Truth About Martial Arts Testing

Martial Arts Testing has Some Problems

I recently came across the most interesting discussion concerning Martial Arts testing for belts. It was interesting because it was well thought out, concerned, and because I disagreed with most of what was said.

Sometimes I will make a comment, but in this case I am prompted to tell the truth about Martial Arts testing. What makes this particularly juicy is that the people involved in this discussion were nibbling at the edges of what I did a lo-o-ong time ago, and which is more in keeping with the true spirit of the martial arts.

Originally there were no belts, which doesn’t mean there were no ranks.

Gichin Funakoshi introduced belts which, I believe, came from the a method used by swimming teams.

The first two belt ranks were white and black. This expanded to white, green, brown and black.

Some fifty years ago ranks and belts exploded. Ed Parker and Kenpo Karate led the way with a rainbow of colors. Taekwondo expanded the colors even further.

Now, this is the way it happened, but, there is an incredibly valuable piece of data missing.

I began studies with Kenpo, and was introduced to the belt system, and found it valuable in encouraging people to study.

Isn’t it interesting that people have to be encouraged to study?

But, when I went to the Kang Duk Won, I wasn’t encouraged to study. We had four basic belts, white, green, brown and black, further delineated by stripes, and nobody much cared.

Simply, people who cared about flashy belts left the school, and only the faithful, the ones who didn’t need to be encouraged to study, were left.

Nowadays people treat the martial arts like a business, structure everything around sales and promotion, and the belt is held up as the goal.

Fact: the belt means nothing.

Fact: knowledge means everything.

But these two facts seem to have become twisted, and the belt means everything, and knowledge means nothing.

I didn’t understand my Kang Duk Won instructors thoughts concerning belts, and I didn’t care. I was one of the faithful. I worked out till I bled, and there was no middle ground. There was no entertainment, and freestyle while recognized as a game, was treated like life or death.

Not to beat somebody else up, but to hone your own skills.

Interestingly, this type of freestyle brought one to mushin no shin (mind of no mind), which is an intuitive method, and it was a science, and it was TOTALLY combat effective. When people say their art is not combative effective, or not useful on the street, I know they didn’t study the real art, but rather an art that entertains children.

When I became an instructor I awarded rank according to forms and techniques learned.

As I progressed I realized the inadequacy of that, and I stopped giving out belts. For years I gave no martial arts tests, simply gave a person a black belt when he had the knowledge.

This thing of knowledge is quite interesting.

The number of forms learned, of techniques done, has no relationship to martial arts knowledge.

And I could ascertain the depth of knowledge a person had by simply looking at him.

Just to mention a couple of the actual criteria:
how deeply does a person ‘screw’ himself into the ground when doing his forms and techniques.
Or, what level of intuition has the student progressed to.

And there are other criteria, all coming from the removal of the student from his body.

I know, sounds crazy, but the awareness that is a human being becomes removed from his body through the method of doing the martial arts forms and techniques correctly.

Emphasis on ‘correctly,’ as it requires an experience of physics beyond the normal ‘fist in the face’ ‘apple falls on the head’ physics. This is an entirely different set of physics which I have seen only a few dozen people demonstrate, and none of whom actually understood.

Now, fees. I charge little, if at all. The rationale here is: how can I charge somebody for what he already knows? What he already paid for, and not just in money, but in sweat and blood?

Yet I had one fellow come to me and said he was required to pay $800, plus plane fare to Japan, plus lodgings and meals and all, to take a martial arts test.

For what?

Three old guys would sit behind a table and watch him demonstrate for an hour, then pass or fail with NO comment on why he was passing or failing!

Obviously, these guys loved themselves…and wanted his money. And they called themselves masters.

Anyway, as time went on I got back into giving not belts, but checklists, and then I would just work people to the bone, making sure they screwed themselves into the ground during form and technique, that they reached intuitive levels of freestyle, and other things.

And, eventually, I made these checklists public, selling them as courses, and here an interesting thing happened. Knowledge became able to be transcribed on paper.

Yes, the student still has to work, and those students in it for the entertainment or the belt and so on will have problems.

But a student who actually reads the courses, does the courses, gets the knowledge.

And they usually stop needing to be entertained and become the faithful.

This became an immense and tremendous boon to ANYBODY who possesses these courses.

It eliminated guesswork. It gave workable knowledge.

It enabled the true art to be passed on even if the instructor didn’t have all the knowledge, as it passed on the knowledge to all involved.

Then I come across discussions on how to test.

Man, there are hundreds of theories out there, but all passed on being able to monkey see monkey do a form, and none having to do with the perception of knowledge, of how to actually increase the students awareness.

So I say this: stop entertaining. Get brutal. Search for knowledge and not belts. Award rank for knowledge and not memorized skits.

This is the only way to the true art, and it is the way martial arts testing should be.

What Happened to the Black Belt, and What has been Done About It

A Black Belt in the Church of Martial Arts

When I started the martial arts I wanted to be a black belt in the worst possible way. I thought that was mecca, the ultimate, better than anything in the world

So I went to work. I signed up at a Karate school and I put in the time. Interestingly, I was to learn that it took more than time. It took a precise bit of knowledge.

To be precise, I spent a couple of years in one system (Chinese Kenpo), then several years in another system (Kang Duk Won Korean Karate), before I achieved Black Belt. When I got it, however, it was better than I had ever imagined

Interestingly, as the years passed, I realized that I had struck it rich, that all Black Belts were not the same, and that I had lucked out.

You see, the standards of what it took to reach Black Belt were all over the place. One fellow I knew got a black belt cause he could fight good. Another got it because he lent the instructor money. Honorary black belts were passed out to people who didn’t even study the martial arts. To be honest, real black belts were actually, in spite of there being so many of them, a rarity.

Eventually, in spite of hype and glamour, being a black belt didn’t mean much.

Oh, it meant somebody had sweated a lot, maybe, if they were lucky, but there was no single standard whatsoever.

Now, when I achieved a Black Belt in the Kang Duk Won, that system was directly derived from the instructors BEFORE Funakoshi. It wasn’t infected by the folly of tournaments, the shame of politics, or put together with other arts to corrupt its pure workings.

When I achieved Black Belt, when I studied at a specific branch of the Kang Duk Won where the art had not been corrupted, something happened to the students who made it. Simply, they changed.

They achieved something I called CBM, or Coordinated Body Motion. When this happened they began to move their bodies in totally different ways, and there was a feeling of massive energy within. This was usually accompanied by other phenomena, such as dreams, intuitive experiences, and so on.

All of what I have said here has guided me to establish a different standard for Black Belt.

To be sure, if somebody CBMs, I consider them a Black Belt in the old sense. I value that, I prize that. I consider that art of the highest form.

But, interestingly, I don’t make that the thrust of my teachings.

You see, so many people can’t make that step, or, at least, it will take them too long. They don’t have the proper teacher or teaching, even if they are a good student.

So, in putting together my temple (Church of Martial Arts dot com) I am focusing on making sure the student has the knowledge, and therefore the best possible chance, before I start pushing him towards any kind of CBM focused study.

I know that some will disagree with my path, but consider the alternative: 999 out of a 1000 students not making it, being shunted into some weird idea of what a black belt is, putting the emphasis on winning trophies…versus the forging and perfection of character that the Martial Arts are.

Thus, consider the steps necessary to progression in the Church of Martial Arts.

A Postulant is somebody who seeks. This is a fellow who is casting about, and frequently doesn’t even know for what. He encounters Monster Martial Arts or one of my other sites, is intrigued and orders a course or two. If he is ready, if he is a seeker of the true martial arts, something will ignite in his soul. I always know these people, even if only by email, because they start ordering more courses. The courses are inexpensive, they are usually whole arts, and the student starts to ‘drink’ them.

Sometimes people write and tell me what is happening, and sometimes they remain aloof and afar, yet their interest is flaming. Whatever the type of student they are, they are learning the truth about the how and the why of the martial arts. They are learning the physics, and many write to me and tell me how they have changed their art, restructured it, in piece and in whole format, to make it make sense.

And sometimes I receive letters telling me of experiences they have had that let me know that, whether they know it or not, they have CBMed.

Oddly, I get a big kick out of this anonymous relationship we have. I don’t have to be standing over somebody’s shoulder, and by this I mean I don’t need a big organization, to make sure that they are getting the truth of the martial arts.

The art is an art, and though we often, and especially in the beginning, study it as a group, it is a personal undertaking. You are becoming an artist, you are becoming something more than human. You are forging and perfecting your character.

These people who ignite, who begin ordering courses and learning the truth of the martial arts, I call Novices.

A Novice, or novitiate, is a beginner. More important, he is not now a seeker, for he has found the truth; now he is running up the path of the martial arts to the truth of himself as fast as he possibly can.

Now, if a person was to visit me, study under me, and by this I mean at the Church of Martial Arts, the course would be quick and to the point. They would be put on a list of martial arts forms and techniques that are all and completely matrixed

If a person doesn’t have the opportunity to study with me, they need merely go through the eight original Matrixing courses.

Do you see what I have done here? I have resolved the martial arts not to a random, whimsical study of what somebody thinks is cool, or has a bit of workability for an odd variety of people, but to a comprehensive and complete body of knowledge.

Knowledge. Art becomes science. The Way becomes a series of steps that are complete and to the point.

Once a student has completed either of these two methods, either the checklist at the church or the eight matrixing courses, they are considered a monk.

And, a person who has completed novice training in the Church of Martial Arts has a sure and certain knowledge of the complete martial arts, and this includes Karate, several varieties of Kung Fu, Pa Kua Chang, Tai Chi Chuan, and more.

The standard here is in the comprehensive knowledge that can be found nowhere else, and certainly not in the speedy frame of time I recommend.

At any rate, once a person has become a monk, and having a thorough knowledge of the martial arts on the whole, he is ready to pick his specialty. Perhaps he will delve into esoteric Kung Fu, perhaps he will concentrate on Karate, perhaps he will shift into weapons, or some other field of martial arts.

Whatever the Monk chooses to do, he will be well prepared, and he will be assured of his success in his further studies.

If you are interested in a non-religious look at the True Martial Arts, please visit MonsterMartialArts(dot)com.

If you are more interested in the religion, please visit the Monster, then head on over to the ChurchofMartialArts.com.

Is a Black Belt More Experience or Knowledge?

When a person earns a Black Belt, how much is experience…and how much is actual knowledge? Interesting question, eh?

The reason I ask it is because when I realized how long it takes to earn a black belt, I started looking at how much of what the typical dan rank is depends on knowledge, and how much depends on experience.

Now, experience brings a certain degree of knowledge. But what if you could separate that knowledge and teach it purely…how much experience is really required?

The answer, surprisingly, is not a lot.

Let’s say a fellow trains for 3-4 years…when you break it down he has maybe three to four months of knowledge, and the rest is experience.

Yes, experience counts for something.
But, knowledge counts for more.

I found that when you give that three to four months worth of knowledge to a student, that student moves up to 60% to 70% of the three to four year black belt. And his progress gets even faster after that.

The unfortunate fact is that some of the three to four year fellow sometimes gets upset. Hey, he studied ten times longer! What he knows should be ten times more significant.

Well, fortunately, most martial artists see the logic here, and understand what I am doing. That’s part of the whole picture of the Black Belt, you see…having the mental strength to last three to four years breeds a smartness not experienced by people without that strength of discipline. So most Black Belts are interested in what I am saying, and can put aside any pettiness. If this question interests you, then drop by Monster Martial Arts and pick up a free book.

Failing the Black Belt Test, and Passing It for Forty Years

I stared at the candle in frustration. I punched, and it flickered, but it wouldn’t go out. This was the last step of my black belt test. I had shown crackling good forms, deadly accurate form applications, and my freestyle had been rugged, down and dirty, and prevailed.

But the candle…oh…f***!

My instructor asked me if I had had any trouble putting out candles before.

“No,” I answered, staring at the lighted beast. “I can put it out ten out of ten, but now…” I shrugged, and suddenly I looked at him.

He was staring at me, and I suddenly knew that he was looking right through me, seeing every work out I had ever done, every aspiration I had ever had. He was studying, under my skin and bone, the real me.

“Don’t worry about it,” he said, and made a notation on the testing form.

A half hour I found out that my scores were high, and that the candle didn’t matter.
More than that, he had looked into me, and I had not been found wanting.

And, near 40 years later, I can put out a candle from over a foot away. It’s on youtube under aganzul.

Oddly, I seem to be unique.

How weird. I’m not unique. I just got pissed off by failure and spent a few decades making up for my lack.

I think my instructor knew what my  failure to put out a candle was going to do to me, and I think he knew that someday I would create Monster Martial Arts. Maybe he knew that, and knew that my dedication to the martial arts went far beyond a Black Belt Test.

Barack Obama to Take the Black Belt Test!

I’ve said this before, got in trouble for it, actually, but…we should require our politicians to pass their black belt test before we even nominate them.

There is the common sense notion that people in public office, being generally disagreeable people, should learn to fight.

And, there is the lauded concept that instead of voting, we should just set up rings and let our elected officials fight for what they believe in.

Of course, then we would only have young men in congress, which is probably not a bad idea. After all, would you rather cheer for some young stud who is fighting for a purse, or for some old corruptionist who is cutting your purse?

You think I am being silly? Hey, it’s good enough for England. Contenders for the thrown are expected to have military service.

Can you see Barack passing his black belt test breaking a few boards with a well placed kick? Or how about Barney Franks learning how to choke out a mugger? If those guys could do that I might even think about trusting them. Maybe.

Anyway, head on over to Monster Martial Arts. Get your own black belt, and then we’ll talk.