Martial Views post Isshinryu's Heritage Called Into Question highlights one of many allegations into the claims of many arts origins.
I once had a man who was enrolling his child in one of my schools ask me, "Is this a traditional art?" The question left me grasping because I could not answer in one word (yes or no), but tried to explain that TKD was, in my opinion a descendant of Japanese and Okinawan influences, to be conservative. He replied, after smiling at my obvious inability to be succinct, that "tradition" is a very relative term. Whew!
Does it really matter if your style was really passed on from the monks who lived on air and could walk on it as well? Or is a punch just a punch, no matter what label we give it?
1 comment:
Traditional is a funny question. I took karate for a long time, and wondered about that myself. Certainly the rituals that surrounded my art was traditional to some degree. However the actual training I am sure has evolved from what was originally taught. Consequently what is being taught is new compared to what it began at. Just my thoughts. www.martialartsevolved.com
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