tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-52345550466307802342024-02-07T22:41:48.298-06:00Tuite and Kyusho - My Passions in TeRandom thoughts that pop in my head, usually defined more as rants by others.Lee Richardshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17653138139293202826noreply@blogger.comBlogger49125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5234555046630780234.post-12659447599272923692023-12-27T12:15:00.001-06:002023-12-27T12:15:27.773-06:00Subdivisions of Fluidity - Taika Seiyu Oyata's Bunkai and Real AbilitiesI recently was forwarded a link to an online group of people complaining that one of Oyata's interpretations of kata wasn't remotely close to the motions in the kata, particularly the footwork, and thus must be wrong. I feel that the word bunkai is commonly misunderstood and/or lost in translation. Taika would frequently discuss many Okinawan/Japanese words and concepts that he felt poorly translate into English. We frequently talk about the finished product as the bunkai but Taika's bunkai was actually the quite unique process that produced many of the interpretations or finished techniques. Most of the time, when Oyata Lineage practitioners say bunkai we are really talking about Oyo that came from Taika's bunkai.<div><br></div><div>Many people still believe that a particular kata is a single battle, whether with one or multiple opponents. Others believe it is set in stone techniques. These three moves are this, the next three are that, et cetera. Some believe that a few moves are one technique and the next ones are alternatives to the previous ones. In all there are probably a million beliefs out there regarding kata. I feel I should share a little bit about Oyata's bunkai process.</div><div><br></div><div>One of his beliefs was that kata showed you how to move you body into positions they had never been in before. Think about the first time you learned a kata, those positions throughout are mostly postures, turns, movements you had never done before. Practice that kata long enough and they feel natural. Practice longer and the changes flow. Taika would say that pauses kill you. Once you get a basic understanding of that kata, you learn another with new postures, turns, sequences. </div><div><br></div><div>I have lectured many times as well as posted videos on what we call the Oyata Shuffle. Taika thought that, if you knew how to turn every possible way (45, 90, 180, 270...) and do every possible stance, posture and motion, you wouldn't find yourself uncomfortable in a fight. Thus, you wouldn't pause. I believe the Chinese side of the art, the Happo series and Spider series greatly aid in that endeavor.</div><div><br></div><div>For Taika, one or two little snapshots of Naihanchi Shodan did not immediately turn that specific movement into a valid technique. Maybe it worked for an exact, precise attack. Maybe those two moves worked if you were perfectly aligned at 45 degrees front of your opponent, AND they had thrown a right punch, AND, they had not yet retracted the punch as it was still on its way out, AND their right foot was also forward, AND their back foot was both in range and at the correct angle to strike AND AND AND... That is a whole lot of variables for you to both get it right and make the exact historical prediction of what the kata founder had in mind, that was incidentally never written down. Learning only one specific technique for a specific series leads to the near impossibility of that exact encounter. It stifles fluidity.</div><div><br></div><div>Taika would frequently take one or two moves from a kata and say, this works pretty good under these circumstances. He would then start his what if's.</div><div>- What if they punched right but stepped left. </div><div>- What if the stepped left and punched right.</div><div>- What if they throw a hook instead of a straight punch.</div><div><br></div><div>The root of each technique began with Naihanchi, thus it is relevant in Taika's eyes as Naihanch bunkai.</div><div><br></div><div>For each question, he would draw from the huge pool of static postures. He got great at this from his Oyata Shuffle Drills. His first deviation might start with Naihanchi Shodan but deviate to Tomari Seisan or even a third kata. Picking several postures from different kata, he would find a solution to the variant. He would then dream up a new variant or 'what if' and tackle the question of how could I get essentially the same or a similar result if they do something different. This led to him being quick at changing things up in unchoreographed sessions. Later he began experimenting at changing more details such as top half of the body Naihanchi Shodan, bottom half Tomari Seisan. This eventually lead to right hand a piece of Naihanchi, left hand a piece of Passai, legs Seisan, et cetera. Subdivisions of Fluidity.</div><div><br></div><div>This Oyata Bunkai process lead inevitably to people not understanding Oyata's process to believe he was altering things, interpreting things impossibly wrong. "That kata doesn't have a forward stance!" In reality, he simply was not constrained to specific motions in a specific fight. Taika frequently said that you cannot pick a technique before the battle, only your initial response. Taika frequently picked a starting motion, a piece of a kata. There are a lot of seminar videos out there of him where he was lecturing and showed 3 or more solutions to something like a punch. Many people believed his original intent was to show all those techniques but in reality he was showing different techniques only because of slight variances in how the uke attacked. He would say I do same motion, you punch fast I hit bicep. You punch medium speed I hit forearm. You punch slow I hit wrist. I hit same spot in space, uke strike my kata position. If he asked you to punch in a seminar or demo and it was excruciatingly painful, would you punch as fast the second time?</div><div><br></div><div>With that said, people also commonly critique his demo and instructional videos.</div><div><br></div><div>Instructional Videos: In these, first and foremost realize, he really didn't want his techniques filmed. He made these old VHS tapes as students kept begging for them and it would make a little extra cash. His prime stuff was not recorded in this manner as he said if everyone knows my techniques, all my secrets, then I'm out of a job. Not saying there wasn't some great stuff in these, just saying it was not Taika at his top level. There are definitely some amazing techniques, especially in some of the early ones before he knew tapes could be played at a slower speed. Also, he always had to pull back a bit as he couldn't permanently injure the uke. If you watch some of these he will do a fast take, though not full speed, and when he walks you through it in slow motion it isn't exactly the same.</div><div><br></div><div>Demo Videos: These were mostly at seminars and tournaments before the competitions started. A lot of people think these were all pre-arranged encounters. Taika would have an idea in his head of going left, right, back or something similar. He didn't 100% know what the uke was going to do. He might point at someone and have them come up to him. He might say punch, kick or just attack. These were not painstakingly choreographed like many people assume. And, 9/10 the uke had felt extreme pain at his hand before so it is a little difficult to throw your hardest punch at the man you know can cause so much pain. Go ahead, take the shroud off and stick your tongue in the fan....I triple dog dare you. Also, if you are going to try and sell such a product, you are going to pick the people that have more dramatic reactions as your uke. I have lectured and blogged about that much in the past, drama sells. I assure though, even the uke in this world that didn't feel near the pain were always under his full control. Pain was never the goal in an encounter, control was.....but drama sells.</div><div><br></div><div>Seminar demos: These were different. These were in teaching mode and never were professionally filmed. He tended to be more reserved around people he didn't know well, kinder, gentler... If he wanted to show something more dramatically he would grab a senior student he knew and trusted. Keep in mind, he had been sued and lost substantial money for breaking someone's arm, even though it was primarily the uke trying something stupid to prove how manly they were that got the arm broken. The goal at these was to teach, to transfer a portion of knowledge. Nobody could see much less replicate him at 100% nor was that even remotely safe. Also, these were open to all ranks, including white belts.</div><div><br></div><div>Dojo Training: At Taika's dojo he had only black belts with a rare exception of allowing an ikkyu prior to their shodan test. He knew people a lot better, and mostly trusted them. Anyone in that environment will wholeheartedly tell you his techniques worked, worked amazingly well and were significantly rememberable experiences. I'd say painful but sometimes he would devastate you without pain so not all lessons required pain.</div><div><br></div><div>I could continue this for yet another hour of thumb typing, but odds are less then 5% of you made it this far. It is a shame to me that nearly 12 years after this man's death, so many challenge what they see with their limited bias based experiences.If you have never met someone like this in your life, I am sure it looks unreal. It did to me before I felt it. In the unrealistic world of 2-year yudansha, we are now 6 generations past Taika's death. I have literally trained with hundreds of martial artists in this world and yet to find anyone quite like him, nor as painful. </div><div><br></div><div>Just my 2 ¥.</div><div><br></div><div>Di </div>Lee Richardshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17653138139293202826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5234555046630780234.post-17086242500064445382021-07-01T07:36:00.001-05:002021-07-01T08:42:27.300-05:00Oyata Punch - No Squeeze<p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">This has turned into a rather large blog/rant so feel free to jump around this Three-Parter. </span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"></p><ul><li><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">History - Some Historical Context</span></li><li><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Taika's Writing's on Makiwara</span></li><li><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">The Egg - The original reason I wrote the blog...</span></li></ul><p></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: x-large;"><b>Part I: Some History</b></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">I wanted to take some time and discuss a different aspect of Taika's punch. I am specifically discussing the time of impact and how he didn't squeeze through the punching motion, impact or what immediately followed. I have talked at length and blogged at length over the last few years about how he had a relaxed hand and would constantly tell us 'Didax, didax' as we did our punches among many other things. I can even remember this exact phrase at the very first seminar I ever went to where I was paired with a hard style, Japanese style practitioner and Taika got frustrated with how tight my partner was. He took the guys glasses off, handed them to me and then made a tight fist. He said "Tight fist no good." He hit my partner in the side of the head with a tight fist a couple of times and the guy butched up and took it. He then said "Didax, didax" and did a light strike on the side of his head and my partner hit the deck... completely out. Taika walked away to help the next pair of practitioners as my training partner's friend came over and righted him. This was in the late, late 80's. But I am going to retreat a tad bit into a history lesson first. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: times;"><b>History:</b><br /><br /></span></span></p><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">1950's - 1960's - 1970's - 1980's Oyata</span><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><span style="background-color: white;"><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">≠</span></b><span style="font-size: large;"> Final Oyata</span></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span></span></span></span></div><p></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="background-color: white;">I am going to reference <b><span style="color: #990000;">Taika Seiyu Oyata</span></b> in several 'period ways' and please do not think I am disrespecting him here when I say "Post War Oyata' and other terms instead of using his full name and honorific. I am trying to simplify it and I am going to refer to things he directly told me along with others, as well as reference some of his writings. </span></span></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="background-color: white;"><b><span style="color: #990000;">Post War Oyata</span></b> was primarily interested in one thing, putting food on the table. He had a salesman approach to teaching, 'give them what they'll pay for.' He would tell us in his latter years that chasing power was something even he did in the early days. Hitting makiwara and building up those calluses on the knuckles was a bit more about bragging rights and pride according to him. Later, as he started to get students he said that he himself grew out of that as he started applying Uhugushiku and Wakinaguri principles more freely, more publicly, and began to understand his body more and more. He realized that a properly aligned and relaxed punch was much better. As he started to get servicemen paying him money he quit using the training tools like the Makiwara for <b>his </b>vanity, and began using it as a tool to use on his students....particularly the hard headed ones. Taika himself, to me and many others at class, and on numerous occasions stated that the makiwara did two things, among others. </span></span></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"></p><ul><li><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="background-color: white;">Gave him time to take a smoke break.</span></span></span></li><li><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="background-color: white;">Vented the hard headed students ego</span></span></span></li></ul><div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">Taika readily admitted in his later years that Makiwara was a good way for him to go take a break. If he just didn't want to teach anything, was frustrated with a student, needed to smoke or just otherwise wanted to walk away for a bit, he would send the student(s) off to the makiwara.</span></div><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The ego and pursuit of power by some students, somewhat backfired on Taika. He would say that he initially used this as a tool to get students 'vented' where they were a bit more relaxed afterwards, having spent their energy. Regrettably, many students misunderstood the tool and sought the ego of calluses and bragging rights.</div></span></div><div><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #990000;"><b>Immigration Oyata</b> </span>continued to use this tool with his students initially after landing in the U.S. until probably the late 80's. This was a time period where he still didn't trust a lot of people, and was trying to put food on the table. He had come to the U.S. with basically nothing but a promise of students. One common theme in the U.S. as well as when he was still in Okinawa, was that the primary clients were young U.S. Servicemen and the quest for power was at the forefront of the '<i>Perception of Karate</i>'. At this point Taika was literally a salesman. He was trying to sell his product in a foreign land, much as he did in Okinawa, and the clients wanted the Perception of Karate which was power, sparring, looking tough and with that the Makiwara was a part of that ego trip. He even had students bring a coffee can of their own urine to use as an Antiseptic. Neosporin wasn't as readily available in those days I guess. Again, Taika said this is what he did and why. I can remember in my own naiveté striking until my knuckles bled and was caught up in it as well when I first started my martial path as well as doing other things I later moved away from.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><b><span style="color: #990000;">Chinese Hand Oyata</span></b>: At some point, and I am going to guess early 90's Taika began trusting people more and trying to switch them to a more relaxed approach. He began introducing more and more of Wakinaguri's principles, the Chinese half of the art. Even though we heard the relax (Didax) mandate earlier, he began stressing it. Going back and looking at old seminars and drills now, things like 'Turtle' were there, we just didn't notice it. He had been introducing bits of Spider and bits of Wakinaguri as early as Exercise 2. Around 1995 if memory serves correctly, he introduced the first packaged version of Spider Web that most call Spider 1. There was no makiwara in his dojo at that point. There was no makiwara in his home. He pushed us to be relaxed and fluid more and more, vastly departing from what most people associate with Karate. The funny thing is, now that he is gone, I have reviewed thousands of hours of seminar and training videos during these 9 years after his death. He was using these relaxed principles and would sneak little snippets of these principles into even the oldest recorded videos we have of him.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">_______________________________________________________</span></div><div><span style="font-family: times;"><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">Part II - The Book</span></b><br /><br /><span style="font-size: large;">In 1998 Taika came out with his book, RyuTe® no Michi.</span></span></div><div><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggFKbu4kN0dr81wT3gCjejorxDpY0gpPQapa6L1cPIIUXf7B058Bbqqk-UsXpiC64XrujfmkXUi1uI27x9f7VqRT2aCm4OOpsyYGqyb-_zYS8fyGqkLWWEQPN2OtyY0nCifVVnqVariA/s202/ryutenomichi.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="202" data-original-width="146" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggFKbu4kN0dr81wT3gCjejorxDpY0gpPQapa6L1cPIIUXf7B058Bbqqk-UsXpiC64XrujfmkXUi1uI27x9f7VqRT2aCm4OOpsyYGqyb-_zYS8fyGqkLWWEQPN2OtyY0nCifVVnqVariA/s0/ryutenomichi.jpg" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><p></p><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Chapter 3 Page 34 - Taika goes into great lengths near the end of Chapter 3 to steer his students away from the makiwara in his book, as he had been doing for quite some time.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #990000;">"...it (makiwara) was originally meant to be used <b>for mental control, rather than physical development.</b> They (instructors) hoped that the excessive energy of the young people would be released as they hit makiwara. </span> <span style="color: #990000;">Modern people tend to interpret its use as training equipment to toughen their knuckles or feet, for the development of their physical strength."</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Taika goes on to discuss his early perceptions of the tool.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #990000;">"Originally, <b>I believed</b> the makiwara was a device from the ancient practitioners to teach youth the importance of self-control, not to misuse their physical aggression to harm others, through this painful training. When beginners hit a makiwara, they can instantly feel the pain in their hands which makes them understand how they'll feel when they are being hit by someone. In this way, they learn to be careful about damaging others, and at the same time, their excessive energy can be totally released."</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Taika then talks about tightening...</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #990000;">"My experience from makiwara training lead me to understand that when you hit a hard surface, one tends to tighten up their fist so tight that when they make contact, that person will not hurt their wrist. <u style="font-weight: bold;">But training in this mind set only hurts the practitioner in true understanding</u>.<b> </b>The reason is because when one trains constantly in this manner they toughen up their knuckles but their wrist starts to become weak."</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Taika wanted the wrist relaxed so he could redirect on impact. We call this <b><span style="color: #0b5394;"><a href="https://youtu.be/KoYuGJm2CnM" target="_blank">Dermal Redirection</a></span></b>, though Taika never gave it a name. Taika would constantly talk about the angles (plural) of impact and he taught us how to redirect at that precise moment of impact depending on the opponent's stance, presentation, body alignment, etc. I have talked about this a length in other publications and videos. An Oyata Punch is not straight power going in a straight line. You simply cannot finish or execute an Oyata Punch with a tight hand and a tight wrist. The common saying to punch through your opponent lacks a tiny piece of information of precisely how you go through the opponent and which directions. Taika continued....</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #990000;">"So what happens when this person hits something soft like a heavy bag or a human body? <b>They tend to overemphasize their strength. </b> This overemphasis is like a weight lifter who raises his/her maximum weight they can lift. Imagine someone adding more weight to their bar, what would occur? As this person raises the weight above their head, someone adds a half a pound to each side of the bar. Because they are already maxed out, just by adding this little amount will cause the person lifting the extra weight to collapse. The same example applies to punching technique. So with the extra exertions, the wrist will collapse more easily."</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">At the end of Chapter 3, page 35 he goes on to talk about Wakinaguri.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #990000;">"Mr. Wakinaguri explained that in the past an ancient master had a student with a bad attitude. This student thought he was very tough and got into a lot of fights. When this particular master heard about his student's actions, he devised a training method by way of a striking post <b>to punish his student</b>."</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">So here Taika tells the story of using the makiwara as punishment which he repeatedly admitted to doing with students who had the large ego and other issues he considered issues of character. He has admitted to doing this on Okinawa as well as initially after immigrating to the United States. He continued...</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #990000;">"This master did not want to teach his student a lesson by directly beating him up because he didn't want to hurt his student. One day when his student came to train this master asked him, 'Do you think you are pretty good, do you think you are tough?' His student replied, 'Yes, I think I'm tough.' His instructor then said, 'Good! I have something for you to train on. Go over there and hit that post as hard as you can.' So his student went to practice hitting this post, and after a couple of hard strikes his hands started to hurt, his knuckles started to bleed and his punches started getting weaker with every strike. His instructor said, 'No, hit harder you must hit harder.' So after a very short while his student changed his attitude toward fighting and became a better person. This is how the makiwara came into existence as a training tool."</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Whether that is the true and accurate birth of the makiwara as a training tool or part of the martial myths and folklore that swirl around this art can be debated later. But it is very clear that Taika used this as a tool, a device for various reasons and many students quite frankly just missed the point. Taika finishes out this part of the book with the following; </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b><span style="color: #990000;">"This should also tell you that the makiwara is </span><u style="color: #990000;">not</u><span style="color: #990000;"> an important training tool. Please, when one trains concentrate on all that you do and never forget about the fine details. " </span>- Taika Seiyu Oyata</b></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div></span></div><p style="text-align: justify;"></p><div><span style="font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">___________________________________________________</span></div><div><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div><b style="font-family: times;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">Part III - The Egg<br /><br /></span></b></div><div><span style="font-family: times;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-weight: bold; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwrL5gtGp0_5b7Ju7pmGPHOdqTp55wTijsL-z3poAXgyNgTe-byhH0pQXtBi_u3dY4bUiq6PwFgdBXkPPMzQSr5unbpd0veRkdojhwpxiRu8pIK1RESldb-JZdSuyynf5ComeJTGnhag/s3447/toy02.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="912" data-original-width="3447" height="110" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwrL5gtGp0_5b7Ju7pmGPHOdqTp55wTijsL-z3poAXgyNgTe-byhH0pQXtBi_u3dY4bUiq6PwFgdBXkPPMzQSr5unbpd0veRkdojhwpxiRu8pIK1RESldb-JZdSuyynf5ComeJTGnhag/w416-h110/toy02.jpg" width="416" /></a></div><span style="font-size: large;"><div><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The egg is a simple training tool I found and the original reason I started this blog during my common bout of insomnia, at 0400. The above picture is of an egg training tool and this particular tool is just a set of dog toys I found with an annoying loud squeaker inside. So first let me send you off to purchase this tool/toy if you so desire, then I will explain how to use it. Regrettably I get no finders fee.</div></span></span></div><div><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span style="font-family: times;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B085RYZVBB/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o08_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="2542" data-original-width="1237" height="521" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsqRx0ZWAUS8YPmGxUOTOzvGcpAIl0tQFbPbZdpyTUHVBZnoJ8aC_nXRxK_OX7b-Tyi7FhVrFqkS8g8-nwoWjpxThvwQRzEn7dku4YnRZJwwzNfA64abiMc0DO0w0Egluu8zQ3YIywZg/w254-h521/Screenshot_Amazon+Shopping.jpg" width="254" /></a> <br />At the time of this post the 6 items were $13.95</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div></span><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><div style="text-align: justify;">The point of this training device is to allow the student to punch a bag, a B.O.B., or even their training partner in a way that announces to the entire dojo if they are making a tight fist. Like any training tool, it should be used in moderation as it has a slight weakness. This teaches you <b>specifically</b> not to collapse and/or tighten your own fingers during a strike, however in the real world application if your hand is relaxed the item you strike may close your fingers. The angle of your strike into a belly for instance may cause your fingers to close and thus squeak the toy. As we train with this, we are looking at specific straight impacts on our target so that we can <b>focus on not squeaking</b>. Once that is achieved and you are comfortable with that, if you have a bag or other striking item that moves or rotates on impact, you can practice your Dermal Redirection after impact without squeaking (depending on the item striking). </div></span></div><div><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsrbsAG6jIFpQ4U5pgAFXjk3gj2nSYb56AGc1pAWoQh5eOBkd2U8yM75RF81t3l6PEC4A1SyAwKeBujDSgpDC3QNTml_F-wOwW0YMMCmd-BXQ8F4-VGQ6ZtCZwodRwty5UvF3lRy1DiA/s2048/tackle03.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Photo: Bag Strike with Egg" border="0" data-original-height="1179" data-original-width="2048" height="184" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsrbsAG6jIFpQ4U5pgAFXjk3gj2nSYb56AGc1pAWoQh5eOBkd2U8yM75RF81t3l6PEC4A1SyAwKeBujDSgpDC3QNTml_F-wOwW0YMMCmd-BXQ8F4-VGQ6ZtCZwodRwty5UvF3lRy1DiA/w320-h184/tackle03.jpg" title="Photo: Bag Strike with Egg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">As we place the egg in the hand, and begin striking, we want to align the radial bone and the index knuckle upon impact as shown below. I say 'upon impact' as we can be milking prior to impact and certainly redirect at the point of impact with Dermal Redirection. </div></span></div><div><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeP4YgUZ4q-9DTYuVQPSMvGZ0JPTBnB5zsO4c2D-z5lUGxcJM_tnx1qpIMKn11EuRuylgh2mMG2cBY3ZL1Awm2tTTtD4EOFJf3whOtbyq3w8STsEvd63rJMOr0HNwRNdV4zwLOoEA2Lw/s2048/tackle03b.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1179" data-original-width="2048" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeP4YgUZ4q-9DTYuVQPSMvGZ0JPTBnB5zsO4c2D-z5lUGxcJM_tnx1qpIMKn11EuRuylgh2mMG2cBY3ZL1Awm2tTTtD4EOFJf3whOtbyq3w8STsEvd63rJMOr0HNwRNdV4zwLOoEA2Lw/s320/tackle03b.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Above is showing the alignment of the radial bone (blue) and the index knuckle location (red dot). At that moment of impact, in this drill or practice, we want proper alignment so that the kinetic energy or crash energy if you will, travels through the knuckle (metacarpals) to the radial bone. The focus of this initial drill is at that point of impact we do not squeeze the hand to make a tight fist. If we do, the entire class hears you squeak. At that moment of impact, everything is properly aligned including the arm at 90</span><span face="HelveticaNeue-Light, -apple-system, AppleSDGothicNeo-Regular, "lucida grande", tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif, "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol", "Noto Color Emoji", NotoColorEmoji, EmojiSymbols, Symbola, Noto, "Android Emoji", AndroidEmoji, "Arial Unicode MS", "Zapf Dingbats", AppleColorEmoji, "Apple Color Emoji"" style="background-color: white; color: #4c4c4c; font-size: 16px; text-align: justify;">°</span> to the body, <b>Force Efficient</b>. With all proper alignment we can both absorb as well as impart kinetic energy. With full body proper alignment, Force Efficiency, all of our kinetic energy goes into the strike, we can then use other principles such as Dermal Redirection to disable our opponent, feel free to walk about the cabin...<br /><br />Below is an example of striking a Body Opponent Bag (B.O.B.) at the neck. Again, we have proper alignment and are focusing on relaxing our hand and not squeezing. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbO8uVi_fASChVKzwy7OYzNNasR0BGsjrW6uAOh0ir2IWIDU9Uhyp-tP-yX1U9LtuOxVIqDOyPku2kcNIcJ6T2sytxDk862cxkTnDQ_bXMa6ZP9ea75QB1WL8gLh4M1MDc4VJefPrPfg/s1678/Bob01.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1095" data-original-width="1678" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbO8uVi_fASChVKzwy7OYzNNasR0BGsjrW6uAOh0ir2IWIDU9Uhyp-tP-yX1U9LtuOxVIqDOyPku2kcNIcJ6T2sytxDk862cxkTnDQ_bXMa6ZP9ea75QB1WL8gLh4M1MDc4VJefPrPfg/s320/Bob01.jpg" width="320" /></a></div></div><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Once again, this is just a tool to understand a tiny part of the big picture. It is a tool to drill a student on a possible weakness of squeezing during your punch. Taika would say that when you make a tight fist, the muscles in your forearm become tight and pull in the opposite direction you are directing your punch. It also slows down your motion. Tight equates to slow and though the typical male perspective in this and other countries is that muscle equates to strength, that strength comes at a cost in technique. <br /><br />Hopefully some of you made it this far and got past my initial rant (Part I) as well as quoted bits of Taika's rant (Part II). Taika went to great lengths to steer his students in a particular direction but for years hit his head against the egotistical power hungry brick wall of those that refused to listen. Not sure why I even try to carry on his brick bashing but if even one person can move on to Part III and come ahead with a new understand maybe he would be happy. Who knows.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">/rant off</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">-Di</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">#OyataTe<br />#OyataTeInternational</span></div><p></p><div><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="background-color: white;"> </span></span></span></p>Lee Richardshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17653138139293202826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5234555046630780234.post-48176342796378746732021-06-17T08:11:00.003-05:002021-06-17T12:29:12.424-05:00Stuck in Memorization - Give up your Blanky <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhem-fiMZDZfCIvQZ7zBG7ij7nz-Qg_QVrJbcnSk_IrNTlIcvQhI2beI87ev13wmxRqYrnQkJ_swUunHNUvo_QmlhW2iAmZyFbf-XYIyrfdyQQlsC57t2rRAjgEXGmPXWOPrAebJ8FkJA/s384/LinusBlanket.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="364" data-original-width="384" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhem-fiMZDZfCIvQZ7zBG7ij7nz-Qg_QVrJbcnSk_IrNTlIcvQhI2beI87ev13wmxRqYrnQkJ_swUunHNUvo_QmlhW2iAmZyFbf-XYIyrfdyQQlsC57t2rRAjgEXGmPXWOPrAebJ8FkJA/s320/LinusBlanket.gif" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>Taika talked extensively about the 3 phases of kata. No, it is NOT Basic, Intermediate and Advanced. In the end, he hated those terms that he was lead to think were proper translations early in his immigration. These were poor translations of what he was trying to say about placing advanced concepts on foundational kata. As stated previously he did not want those terms used in the end.<br /></div><div><br /></div><div>Instead he wanted:</div><div><br /></div><div><b>Memorization</b></div><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0 0 0 40px; padding: 0px;"><div style="text-align: left;">The slow, chunky, one move one count version usually indicative of moving your feet before the hand, and rolling your eyes to the back of your head as you check the mental roll-a-dex to see what is next. This is a state many students stay at like clutching their childhood blanket or stuffed animal. Push them to foundation. For some, it is extremely difficult to trust their memory and move past watching a memorization video.</div></blockquote><div><br /></div><div><b>Foundation</b></div><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><div>This is what most people call basic but Taika said none of the kata he taught us are basic and we should be spending our life polishing these and making them smooth. There should be smoothness and fluidness to it with logical breaks depending on what you are visualizing. Things like <b>'hands before the feet ' should replace the slow clunkiness of planting </b>your foot then striking most of the time. Even during the small percent of time you are planted already, hand movements should be developed where you use small heel movements for power, thus still hands before the feet. </div><div><br /></div><div>I hesitate to use the term phases as people will begin adding a ton more labels but polishing foundation is a process. Trying to film the videos for students and not overwhelm them, showing semi smooth yet slow motion, is difficult. The laws of physics apply and some things are difficult if not impossible to do slow. </div></blockquote><div><br /></div><div><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><u>Hands Before the Feet</u></li></ul></div><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0 0 0 40px; padding: 0px;"><div style="text-align: left;">This is one of the very first things I can remember Taika yelling at a Tall Oaks camp the first time I attended. On most power based applications, your hands should land before you foot lands in application thus it needs to in kata. He would say that if you step, plant then strike you just wasted your step. You got closer to your opponent, thus in both parties range, but flushed your technique. Taika would say this was one of the main things that exposes a person's weakness and understanding of kata. He would commonly say that someone proudly announced at a tournament that they were doing Advanced Kata and they clearly didn't understand it because their feet were still going first, thus stuck two levels down at memorization. Search YouTube for advanced kata and you will find countless tournament as well as demonstration videos this way. This is just one example of putting calculus ahead of simple arithmetic. </div></blockquote><div><br /></div><div><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><u>Weapons Kata Apply</u></li></ul></div><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><div> - <b>Bo Before Feet</b></div><div>As another example, Taika was extremely fond of bo and often remarked it was his favorite weapon. Again, he would watch someone going out of their way to add muscle and power to it but still not using Bo Before the Feet. He said bo and jo were super easy to see weaknesses like this as they amplified the weakness. Add 2 (regrettably) to 4 feet of stick at the end of the motion and you can see they are stuck in memorization footwork.</div><div><br /></div><div> - <b>Stuck in the Middle with Glue</b></div><div>The 2-4' (sorry metric world) comment was that so many people glue their hands to the center of the bo only leaving 2' out front. Why not just carry one tanbo? Taika said 'This memorization! Hands must slide to give you reach and not just in the kata pokes. The strikes need reach. If your hands are stuck on the stick, your hands are stuck at the memorization level. </div></blockquote><div><br /></div><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0 0 0 40px; padding: 0px;"><div style="text-align: left;">These two examples among many, many more are why Taika hated the term advanced. There were countless examples back in the day at tournaments and seminars where Taika would shake his head as a student allegedly proclaime then performed an advanced kata and their body was stuck in memorization. In his absence I see it daily on Facebook and YouTube.</div></blockquote><div><br /></div><div><b>Technical Application</b></div><div>- I have talked about this at length but it was a long dojo and Zoom conversation with peers and students abroad last night. Technical Application is taking the foundational, core, beautiful kata that is nowhere near basic and doing things with it. Whether you are adding other bits to it from other kata (kumiawase or pairing) or using it to teach balance or turning with proper covers. You are using the hammer but a crowbar with it. You are using a screwdriver to help turn the wrench. Taika would see a problem either with a scenario or a situation and use a well deserving non basic tool we all knew to address said problem. </div><div><br /></div><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><div><b>Problem</b>: Students have poor balance</div><div><b>Solution</b>: Naihanchi Shodan with Crane Stance in each cross over.</div><div><br /></div><div><b>Problem</b>: Students are pirouetting on turns instead of covering the groin with a temporary cat stance.</div><div><b>Solution</b>: Naihanchi Shodan with 180 degree turns (later 45's S well). - Thanks Steve....</div><div><br /></div><div><b>Problem</b>: This Naihanchi kata motion works well only when outside the opponents arm, not inside.</div><div><b>Solution</b>: Add 2 moves from Pinan Godan if inside the two arms. (Kumiawase)</div></blockquote><div><br /></div><div>In summary, drop your wooly blanket, your favorite stuffed animal and move past foundation once the steps are memorized and then spend your life polishing but think about the motions. Do not get stuck in the scaffolding of memorization.</div><div><br /></div><div>- Di</div><div>#OyataTe</div>Lee Richardshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17653138139293202826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5234555046630780234.post-90893358996457301652021-06-09T07:15:00.000-05:002021-06-09T08:12:29.762-05:00Basic - Intermediate - Advanced: The Great Misunderstanding<p></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: center;"><b><span style="background: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Basic - Intermediate - Advanced: The Great
Misunderstanding</span></b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 6.0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #050505; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">This topic keeps
coming up about the changes in the kata and the terminology used at the onset
of this <b>CONCEPT</b>. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 6.0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #050505; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<table border="1" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="MsoTableGrid" style="background: #FFFFCC; border-collapse: collapse; border: none; margin-left: 35.75pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-padding-alt: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-yfti-tbllook: 1184;">
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 6.0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #c00000; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">There are no Basic,
Intermediate or Advanced kata but continual refinement and placing of Oyata
Principles upon the structural construct of Foundational Kata.</span><span style="color: #050505; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
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</tbody></table>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 6.0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #050505; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 6.0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #050505; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">In the end, Taika
tried to clarify things and get people to stop using those three terms for over
a decade. He wanted us to use <b>Foundation</b> and <b>Technical Application</b>
(Pairing/Kumi a wase). So many refused to accept this vernacular change because
they failed to understand the <i>concept approach</i>.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 6.0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #c00000; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Per Taika</span><span style="color: #050505; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">, kata should never be called 'Advanced'. The <i>principles</i>
may be advanced, but what is actually occurring is taking the original kata and
adding moves from other kata (kumi a wase). In one example, what Taika did was
say “this original sequence of moves worked for this particular technique from
an uke throwing a right punch. If he throws a left, it doesn't work so what
motions are required for the left punch?” He then added those moves from
another kata. This is just an example or a principle he used. As he thought
about different techniques he added and subtracted from various Technical
Application versions over the years.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 6.0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #050505; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">The original term
'Advanced' was given by students that did not understand what was occurring. Yes,
the early 1990’s kata videos stated Basic and Advanced but again, Taika said
this was a misunderstanding as he had left the majority of the production of
said videos to his students because the production was outside his level of understanding.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Basic, Intermediate and Advanced were not
terms Taika intended the kata to have attached to them, but <b>Advanced Concept</b>
is a better way of thinking about it. As he began showing kumi a wase
(pairings) in kata the terms by students became Basic and Advanced because they
heard him say this was advanced (thinking or concept) but missed the context.
When he added more, the term intermediate was coined, again by students, not
Taika because they did not realize this was an evolving process and suddenly,
they had 3 versions, or so they thought, of kata. Things really got messy as
this process continued for another 25 years of his life and the versions kept
piling up. I would constantly hear students in disagreements at Summer
Conference, Birthday Conference and other seminars about what was Basic, what
was Intermediate and what was Advanced.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Why?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Because it was all a moving target
of concepts, and they were missing the understanding that this was a continually
moving and evolving string of concepts and principles placed on the foundational
lattice.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is the concept that is
advanced, not the kata.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 6.0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #050505; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">What I honestly
believe Taika wanted us to do was perfect the foundational version of each
kata, and then start applying his principles to the kata and make our own Technical
Application versions for our own study.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>A big part of that missed picture can be started with the Oyata Shuffle
principle of analyzing each kata motion outside of the kata by drawing 2-3
cards from your own deck (mental or physical) of kata motions from your entire repertoire
of kata.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A good musician can improvise, others
merely read music or replicate.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Taika did
not want us to be Xerox machines as no two encounters would ever be the
same.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We need to be able to improvise during
an encounter and <b>Kata Independence vs Kata Dependence</b> is the key.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 6.0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #050505; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><br></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 6.0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #050505; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">#OyataTe</span></p><br><p></p>Lee Richardshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17653138139293202826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5234555046630780234.post-50770635207604391832020-10-19T18:48:00.008-05:002020-10-20T16:50:34.328-05:001930<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQD-6Jfx6YtUcqvGDMdX-j5634qXEMH7JJqGNqujF7-seRHdq8dB95tNXzcuRTJvoMf-pvFoKHZ8e7pgeSro8uopDSVMsaYE-JVOLXJZvyE-SxO_iuEeSXxym_qcBUJ9valplFBory4A/s778/5rLgUf_8.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="So what you are saying is, despite evidence, you do not believe the evidence." border="0" data-original-height="778" data-original-width="691" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQD-6Jfx6YtUcqvGDMdX-j5634qXEMH7JJqGNqujF7-seRHdq8dB95tNXzcuRTJvoMf-pvFoKHZ8e7pgeSro8uopDSVMsaYE-JVOLXJZvyE-SxO_iuEeSXxym_qcBUJ9valplFBory4A/w284-h320/5rLgUf_8.jpeg" width="284" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p><b>Taika Seiyu Oyata</b> used to say he was born in 1928 and that he was a Dragon on the Chinese Zodiac. He said this for decades and we can only speculate as to the reasons. I personally speculate that he did this initially as a way to get a job just after the war but it could be any one of a million reasons and he never gave us the reasons for this incorrect D.O.B.</p><p>We do know, in front of numerous witnesses at his dojo, multiple times as well as at the birthday seminar in October of 2011 with Tasshi Jim Logue that he recanted that. Tasshi Logue even put it out to some people that were not there as well as updated the RyuTe web site at that time. Taika stated he was indeed born in 1930 and that the 1928 date was not true. In conversations I had with him along with Marven Fankhauser, Lisa Ohmes and others he was adamant that he wanted this cleared up and was even tearful. I do not know why he kept the lie up so long after WWII and his time on Okinawa, probably because it had been written down in a couple of books and that was the accepted story. Taika, however wanted it cleared up before he died. He told a lot of people before he died and stressed that this was important to him. THAT is why I keep pushing the issue. Out of respect for Taika, <b>one of his last wishes was that people knew his true date of birth</b>, even if he didn't give us any reason for why he allowed people to carry on with the 1928 nonsense for over 60 years.</p><p>When Taika died, the slideshow specifically showed his date as <b>1930 </b>because that is what he wanted. The web site approved by Robin updated all historical references on the web site to show <b>1930 </b>as well.</p><p>His family knew and many students knew that was his wish to be known. </p><p>Regrettably, many senior members refused to acknowledge it then and even still now, and they put the wrong date on the headstone.</p><p>Many people refused to believe Taika before he died, <b><i>some scoffed at him behind his back</i></b> and said he was senile. After he died people refused to believe his own immediate family, Robin, Masaki and Masami. So with Robin's permission I contacted his family in Okinawa.</p><p><b>Tomi </b>(Taika's own sister) was contacted and responded to a bunch of family questions and definitively proved that Taika was born in 1930 and absolutely was not a dragon. She had the records. She later passed away but Taika's nephew has those records now. The board was sent that info but didn't care either. <b>Still a bunch of people refuse to believe Taika's own words, his sisters, his nephews, his wife, his two kids, and a host of students that also heard it and knew how important it was to him.</b></p><p>If that wasn't enough, when we were cleaning up the house for Robin after his death, a bunch of tubs of old documents were going out to the dumpster. In this were all Taika's original writings, in Japanese as well as various drafts of translations. All but the final version of RyuTe no Michi that went to press and was amended for unknown reasons by the people that helped translate it, all these original drafts in English and Japanese all show <b>1930 </b>as his birth year.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpfQ0N9HECIY18-i_zlBoFJtEqVgi-Xgx1F1bKGlxHBfCc78ax2OhWkIJFA7ziZKFriJYMWoX-lSX-CbwGgiQesTE8en_4JGNAO-dXeOTYL_SL9GyX3mh7F5fypBP0KGy43wzI19uDoA/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Oyata birth of 1930 and age of enlistment" data-original-height="574" data-original-width="896" height="277" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpfQ0N9HECIY18-i_zlBoFJtEqVgi-Xgx1F1bKGlxHBfCc78ax2OhWkIJFA7ziZKFriJYMWoX-lSX-CbwGgiQesTE8en_4JGNAO-dXeOTYL_SL9GyX3mh7F5fypBP0KGy43wzI19uDoA/w432-h277/Book+draft+age+14+joined.png" width="432" /></a></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Book draft to publisher on March 30, 1998 before one of Taika's 'helpers' changed it.</span></div><p></p><p><br /></p><p>Why did he persist so long in that story? I cannot say for sure but can only speculate. Maybe it gave him better chances at jobs being 2 years older. Maybe it got him better training chances. Maybe like kids here in the U.S. who use a fake ID to get alcohol or cigarettes it provided something tangible that he needed in POST-WWII Okinawa. We do not know.</p><p>What we do know are two things;</p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><b><span style="color: #cc0000;">Taika Seiyu Oyata was born on October 19, 1930</span></b></li><li><b><span style="color: #cc0000;">Taika Seiyu Oyata wanted this corrected before he died and felt it was very important.</span></b></li></ul><div><br /></div><div>All of the above listed evidence points to <b>1930</b> as well as every single document the family has. Passports and other ID's and paperwork over the years all say <b>1930</b>.</div><div><br /></div><div>Taika told tons of us it was 1928 or that information was handed down from one person to another but it is simply not true. Why does it matter to me so much, because it was one of many of his last wishes. He wanted to set the record straight and thus I am passionate about it. I have absolutely nothing to gain from this other than fulfilling a promise.</div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><b>1930</b></span></div><p></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p>Lee Richardshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17653138139293202826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5234555046630780234.post-90140847475727492762020-04-16T07:41:00.001-05:002020-04-16T07:44:51.403-05:00Check Your Source - People Know<div>Lately there has been a parade of Oyata experts spouting things that are completely contrary to his teachings. Absolutely stupid ignorant things like Oyata said never train or teach slow when their are countless videos of him going slow and witnesses to the contrary. Most of these people have zero to minimal Oyata Clock Hours. Please check around and verify what they say with someone that was actually around till the end....2012. People know.<br></div><div><br></div><div>People know if you never even met Taika and are spouting information based solely on what your instructor told you. Your instructor that incidentally was kicked out by Taika and his rank and titles stripped by Taika. People even have copies of the registered letters of revocation.</div><div><br></div><div>People know if your instructor last trained with Taika in the year 2000 and quit coming to classes after he recovered from surgery, thereby losing out on any updates, changes or evolution of the art for the final 12 years.</div><div><br></div><div>People know if your instructor showed up twice a year and Taika refused to do anything but 'basics' when they were around because he didn't trust them.</div><div><br></div><div>People know if nobody saw you for 5-12 years at a single seminar but now are his number one student.</div><div><br></div><div>People know if you skipped the last 10 years of training available to you and just paid your annual $50 membership.</div><div><br></div><div>People know if you were kicked out of the association by the creator of the association nearly 20 years prior and then kicked out of the funeral by his son.</div><div><br></div><div>People know and have recordings of Taika talking about you....and it isn't in a good light.</div><div><br></div><div>People know if you left the association of your own free will, were removed, revoked or simply asked to leave. </div><div><br></div><div>People know if you missed decades of training and growth.</div><div><br></div><div>People know if you only showed up for rank and spent your seminar time in the cabin, in the hotel room, in a bar, or holding up a wall.</div><div><br></div><div>People know if you claim to have trained at HQ but it was when Taika was absent in the hospital and you only made one class after his return.</div><div><br></div><div>People have copies of the HQ roll Books which include minutes in class and if you actually trained or just socialized.</div><div><br></div><div>People have records of who went to camp.</div><div><br></div><div>People have records of who hosted seminars and how often.</div><div><br></div><div>People know if you talked smack about Taika for the last few years of his life then miraculously were best friends and his number one student.</div><div><br></div><div>People know what Political Rank was.</div><div><br></div><div>People know Taika preached against makiwara and so said in his book.</div><div><br></div><div>People know Taika dropped bogu and tournaments from his curriculum as contrary to his teachings.</div><div><br></div><div>People know who financially cheated and lied to Taika.</div><div><br></div><div>People know you are <b>NOT</b> fooling anyone and how absolutely foolish you look.</div><div><br></div><div>Stop diluting and remixing Oyata's legacy to ride on the coattails of someone you barely gave any time or thought to while he was alive.</div>Lee Richardshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17653138139293202826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5234555046630780234.post-49901858404029376222020-01-10T12:00:00.000-06:002020-01-10T12:00:01.975-06:00Police and Martial Arts - Different Yet Related<br />
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt;"><a href="https://bjjmakeitmandatory.blogspot.com/2020/01/why-cops-dont-train-research-paper.html">Sourced
Article</a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #c00000; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt;">I recently read the above
article where someone talks about a survey they did of police and why police
don’t train, this spawned some group discussions with other martial artists
and I wanted to address a few things as many people end up with police in
their classes but do not have the proper police mindset to know how to train
them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They often give bad advice that
is bad because they don’t have an understanding of how police do things,
their political restraints, et cetera.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Below is loosely the response I posted in one of these groups.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I originally posted this to one group
because I was frustrated by the fact that most cops don’t train, and also by
the choices of some that do.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt;">I vastly believe that Oyata's <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">FULL</b> Art is much better and very much
suited to the way in which police do things.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Taika taught numerous cops, he had several who were dojo owners, extra
stuff that didn’t go into the normal seminars including ground.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have several videos of such.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We can discuss individually more but I spent
years 3-4 in retail security, then 27 as a cop, and counting my pre-cop time
with Officer/Shihan Mike Waddell I now have over 30 years training cops.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I've taught recruits Nationally with
N.L.E.T.C. (National Law Enforcement Training Center) as well as sit/sat on
numerous panels where trainers from all of the world discuss what cops do, what
works, what they need, et cetera..<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I'm
responsible for teaching Police Trainers via N.L.E.T.C. and have been
certifying people as police trainers as well as teaching in multiple academies
since 1998 and involved in various in-service training programs since 1989. At
KCPD's Regional Police Academy every Use of Force/Response to Resistance report
were reviewed for every single officer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The key things cops use the most during their confrontations, not
including verbal skills, is <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">wrist</b>,
then <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">elbow</b>, then <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">shoulder</b> locks.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Taika's art is well suited in that endeavor
and 99% of what I used in and on the street and what I teach recruits still to
this day.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt;">I have seen recruits come through with all
sorts of backgrounds throughout the years; wrestling, boxing, Karate, Tae Kwan
Do, Generic MMA, BJJ, Traditional JJ, et cetera.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Hell, my background that I don’t advertise is
Karate, Tsing-I, Bagua, Judo, BJJ, JJ and that’s all I can remember now that I
have formally studied in smaller doses over the years since around 1983 but I
only claim Oyata’s art which I do not consider even remotely as Karate.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I only ever refer to it as Karate when speaking
with someone that asks what I do and I don’t feel like explaining to the uneducated
person that only knows what they see on TV what Taika’s art is.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And I am in no way trying to be insulting
when I say uneducated.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I am uneducated
in a great many things.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But we’ve all
been at that party where your friend introduces you to the Soccer Mom that
wants to put their kid in Karate so you are suddenly in this conversation with
this person that has no idea what you are talking about.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Taika’s art is a hybrid of Ryukyu and Chinese
arts but saying that just confuses the heck out of anyone, even people that
have been training in the arts for years….but I digress.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The other arts I have thus experienced firsthand
as well as been exposed to thus far, all have some minor issues with the
philosophy of being a cop.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I believe (I,
I, I, I, my opinion) that they each have significant weaknesses.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A lot of these weaknesses have been
exacerbated with the advent of pocket phone cameras and everyone's arm-chair
quarterbacking of recent years.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There is
good and bad to that. Good - keeps bad cops more in check.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Bad - People with no true knowledge of how we
work become Judge Judy and executioner. One exacerbation is that many
departments won’t allow a closed fist or a carotid response because it looks
bad on T.V (now the interwebs). <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt;">Several style weakness are obvious like
kicking above the head, pinning someone face-up, focusing too much on a
non-head up position during ground work, therefor being unaware of the
surrounding environment and friends of the suspect.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I posted a link to a video in regards to this
several months back where two people that were quite well known in South
America for their in ring prowess, and had great in ring records, got hurt bad
at a gas station, well actually I believe one was in a coma for a while and may
have died.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Ring Mentality</b> and <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Contest Mentality</b>
I have personally seen get cops hurt.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not
saying Oyata’s art is perfect, but so far I find it superior in every way.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>IF I didn’t get those other parts of the art,
the little things not seen in most seminars, and actually thought what we did
was Karate then I would probably not feel the way I do.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I got a lot more from him because of my
occupation as did other cops in Okinawa before he left, NY, MN, KS, MO, CA and
probably many others I didn’t even know about.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Heck, when I first got my shodan from Taika he told me to cut my hair
because it was well over half way down my back.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He really didn’t know much about me, I came to class and was just
quiet.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When he told me to cut my hair, I
told him I was an undercover cop and he proceeded to show much a bunch of
techniques.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This was as one of his
outdoor camps at Tall Oaks.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Most
everyone had left, it was Sunday afternoon and the few of us still there got a
bonus seminar. The philosophies of that man are why I got into this particular
art, stayed in it and quite literally are why I am alive today.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I wasn’t on the street but a few months when
I disarmed a guy from shoving a sharp and pointy object into my heart with the
very Oyata technique we had practiced that very night in the dojo prior to me
coming to work.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(For those that do not
know, a Kevlar bullet resistant vest will not stop a sharp pointy object like a
knife, icepick, or screwdriver.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Most US
cops don’t wear STAB-Vest)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt;">There are key things that happen in every
market and police training is not exempt from that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One of which was all of the ground work that
led many years back to a slew of BJJ and JJ schools coming into the L.E.
market.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This came about shortly after
that first big UFC bout with the one of the Gracie’s dominating the event and
suddenly everyone wanted to be in the UFC.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>This insertion into the market was good in some ways as it did reveal
some weaknesses of techniques, for instance the old standard of using your
bodies kinetic motion to help knock a hand off your gun doesn’t work when you
are lying on your back.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What happened at
the time, is that without any stats to back them up, people on departments said
‘We got to add this!’<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Of course they received no more training
hours, so they neglected other aspects of training.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We ended up with lots of academy recruits
that were mediocre at best on the ground after a 6 months academy, but couldn’t
stand up and cuff someone or safely get them to the ground prone instead of
supine.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Of the probably tens of thousands of cops over
the years, I’ve known <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">ONE</b> that got
into a situation where a bad guy pinned him and started the M.M.A. cage fight
smack down. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I am referring to the full
smack down with intent to deprive life, NOT just getting on top for a few hits
and running off.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The cop used an
alternate tool and survived.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The M.M.A.
guy did not.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">ring</i> mentality is a one on one, get the better of you fight but
still has rules.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">suspect</i> mentality is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><u>possibly</u></i> one on one, but <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">get the hell out of there fight</b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In most cases, a punch or two fly but their
goal is to get away, not stay and fight you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>They know that more cops are probably en route so they want to get a
quick advantage and get away.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As the
good guy you are trying to detain them while they are trying to flee.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Wrist, Shoulder, Elbow and occasionally in
group activities the knee and ankle lock.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>So when asked if they are only going to spend a few hours a week what
should they spend that time on?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Taika’s art</b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Again, this is my opinion backed by 30+ year
not in the martial arts but in police training.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>But again, it is my opinion.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt;">Here is a dojo challenge for you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Put a $20 bill somewhere in the dojo, a
good ways away from the mat.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Or a
coupon for a free month of lessons.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If
your dojo is big enough maybe a few turns or hallways away.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You and your student go as far away from
that money as possible.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Stand facing
each other and at some point while having a gainful conversation about
someone’s favorite activity, sports, or anything other than politics…..try
and grab your student and get them <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">prone</b>,
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">pinned</b> in a <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">position</b> where both hands would be able to be handcuffed (I
realize most of you probably only have the fuzzy leopard skin ones).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Your students challenge is to get free
(they can kick, punch, et cetera….most anything goes within reason) and run
to the $20 bill.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If they touch it, the
game is over and they keep the $20.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Do
this with every student in the dojo and start over till you have done it a
thousand times.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt;">Then you might just understand the game is
a little different.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Screw that, vastly
different.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>People have a different
mindset when trying to turn and run that face and punch, kick, et cetera.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They don’t want to go to jail and they don’t have
a great master plan like in the movies.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Odds are, they were not expecting this confrontation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They just want to get away.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>On a rare occasion, they may be looking for a
fight but that is not normally the case.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The vast majority of police fights have two different goals.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Theirs is to get free and run, yours is to
pin and cuff.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt;">Back in the 1970’s, as police departments
got more and more organized and something called the International Association
of the Chiefs of Police (IACP) came together, cops started organizing everything
including injury reports and inevitably training.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(In
reality this started in 1893 but really the things I’m going to describe didn’t
really start happening until the 1970’s)</i><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Chief’s started talking to their peers across the nation and then across
the world.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Their lawyers converged and
started looking at liability and how to handle all the injuries, payouts, et cetera.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Prior to this there was really no Defensive
Tactics training programs that were very detailed, vetted, and organized to the
extent we see today.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(Side Note: Really
should be Offensive Tactics in most cases as we usually make the first move….to
arrest).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You pretty much came on, went
through a couple weeks of school work, were handed a baton and a gun and
scooted out the door.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Large departments
like ours searched for and found a Martial Artist, because ‘they know best’.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was really the loss of money from lawsuits
that drove departments to this and to some extent the loss of life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There was really no good formalized handgun
retention program in the United States and officers were getting killed with
their own weapons.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So departments all
over the world started doing this and got some rather screwy results.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If the martial artist came from a rule based,
one on one environment, the program reflected that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Whatever the artist roots were, the arts DNA
went down into that department’s officers, good and bad.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Later, as injuries and law suits were still
happening for many, and people still getting hurt, the IACP conferences would
have sessions where lawyers and D.T. instructors came together to compare
notes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I am somewhat over simplifying what
took many years but you get the point.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So
for about 50 years these have been refined over and over.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What is trending?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What department or group has the least amount
of excessive use of force complaints, officer injuries and other various stats
like who held onto their gun the most successfully during altercations?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These discussions, critiques and refining are
still going on today.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have been
involved in this process for 30 of the 50 years in one way or another.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt;">Now, what was the most frustrating for me
in over 30 years of training cops is that 99% of them are lazy ass shits.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The survey in this post I found interesting <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">BUT</b> sincerely not honest in the
results.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Most young/new cops say they'd
rather spend time with family and stuff like the blog said, however if you dig
deep they are spending all sorts of time doing 'fun' things, playing online games,
et cetera.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have offered free training
to recruits and veteran officers over the years and rarely do they ever take me
up on it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So that is my frustration.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I can’t get them to train free at the
dojo.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I cannot get them to come in or
stay late an extra 30 minutes for free training.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Training I am not getting paid for.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt;">In a nutshell, I would like to see cops be
more concerned about their safety.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Too
many cops get by on nothing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
personally have a close friend who came on the job with me, known him since the
7<sup>th</sup> grade.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In his first year
he got his gun taken away and in the struggle he was lucky and by complete
accident the magazine fell out.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This
particular gun had a magazine safety and even if one round was in the chamber
it wouldn’t fire if the magazine fell out.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>During this struggle over the gun my friend fell back and the bad guy stood
victorious with his gun.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Bad guy pointed
it at my friends head and pulled the trigger.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>A click was all that was heard.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He pulled it I believe three more times, tried to rack a round,
nothing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Bad guy ran off with the gun
and my friend just sat there in stunned silence wondering why he wasn’t
dead.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Guess how many self-defense or
extra D.T. classes he signed up for since that incident in 1992?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Zero.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He is alive only because the magazine release was bumped during the
fight.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He completely failed on his
handgun retention techniques even though he was just mere months fresh from
learning and practicing them in the academy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">THIS</b> is what frustrates me
and gives me bouts of insomnia.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The fact
that I’ll have to go stand out in a line and listen to bagpipes yet again.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This friend was lucky but I’ve buried others
that weren’t. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Me, at a Friends Funeral<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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REFERENCED: <a href="https://bjjmakeitmandatory.blogspot.com/2020/01/why-cops-dont-train-research-paper.html" target="_blank"><span style="background: white; color: #385898; font-family: "Helvetica",sans-serif; font-size: 10.5pt; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;">https://bjjmakeitmandatory.blogspot.com/2020/01/why-cops-dont-train-research-paper.html</span></a><o:p></o:p></div>
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<br />Lee Richardshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17653138139293202826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5234555046630780234.post-30168961752973395322019-09-30T11:29:00.001-05:002019-09-30T11:41:55.757-05:00After Battle<br />
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">I am a big fan of comedy and particularly
when it relates to my real life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Hot
Fuzz is my favorite cop movie and of course, Master Ken of AmeridoTe is my
favorite comedian in the world of martial arts.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>At this time, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/user/EnterTheDojoShow">EnterTheDojoShow</a>
has 485,000 subscribers, almost 70 million views, and 293 videos produced.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The flip side of that, the sad side, is that
the reason there is so much comedic material available to him to work with, is
our industry is just filled with bad practices, ridiculous claims and outright
fraud.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">The
big thing I want to discuss</span></b><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">, and well it will be more venting as usual which is
basically what blogs are (therapy) because it is rare that anyone wants to
respond to them……… <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">is the LAW.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></b>I could sit and just randomly scroll through
youtube and find a ton of martial arts training and demo videos that always
have a big finish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The veritable money
shot of martial arts.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What I’m talking
about is stomping the groin, breaking the arm, breaking the leg, stomping the
head and all of these other big finishes you see in so many arts….particularly
hard style arts.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My favorite is the
James Bond neck snap and all its variants.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Why?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Because it looks cool.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One of my great martial arts training buddies
has been training for decades in BJJ and his favorite saying when someone asks
why we do something a certain way is, “Cause chicks dig it.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In other words, because it looks cool and
makes us look cool……we think anyway.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">Now I am not saying that these things may
not have a time and a place, but we now live in a civilized, law-suit happy
world.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Taika Seiyu Oyata</b> used to say that you fight two battles, the one
on the street and the one in the court.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I like to think of it as three fights as there are two court rooms you
can land in.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The civil case as well as
the legal case.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">So we like to think we are the good guys
and gals.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That we are not going to be
the evil that starts a fight.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That we
will be defending ourselves or others.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>But what a lot of people don’t realize is that, depending where you live
in this world, that thin line separating the good from the bad, can move.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">Initial
Physical Aggressor<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">Many years ago, most cops arriving on the
scene of some fight would ask, “Who started it.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If they could clearly tell that, this person
went to jail.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In many jurisdictions both
parties went to jail as there are ordinances where it is illegal to fight…period,
end of story.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Well this was the status
quo for many years in law enforcement as well as once the case was brought to
court.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">Primary
Physical Aggressor<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">Well then, as always, things change.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>New terms came out like <u>Primary Physical Aggressor</u>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Here is just an example of one such definition
in a state statute.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<table border="1" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="MsoTableGrid" style="background: #FFF2CC; border-collapse: collapse; border: none; margin-left: 54.9pt; mso-background-themecolor: accent4; mso-background-themetint: 51; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-padding-alt: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-yfti-tbllook: 1184;">
<tbody>
<tr style="mso-yfti-firstrow: yes; mso-yfti-irow: 0; mso-yfti-lastrow: yes;">
<td style="border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 387.0pt;" valign="top" width="492"><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">The term "primary physical
aggressor" is defined as <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #c00000;">the most significant</span></b>, rather than the first,
aggressor. The law enforcement officer shall consider any or all of the
following in determining the primary physical aggressor: <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">(1) the intent
of the law to protect victims of domestic violence from continuing abuse; <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">(2) <span style="color: #c00000;">the comparative extent of injuries</span> inflicted or
serious threats creating fear of physical injury; and <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">(3) the history
of domestic violence between the persons involved.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">Again, just in the United States alone,
each State will have slightly different laws, each municipality or county may
have little additions to it as well as the police themselves may have certain
policies based on all of the above. Apologies to my International buddies, I don't know your divisional boundaries. To my friends in New Zealand, Canada, England and Japan.....sorry.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">Turning
to the Dark Side<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">Let’s just make up a hypothetical
example.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There you are, listening to
your favorite band at the local bar.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You
are just minding your own business and some drunk bumps into you but perceives
it the other way, that it is your fault.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>You apologize and attempt to de-escalate.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He eventually goes away but keeps
mean-mugging you (staring at you) from across the bar.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Eventually you decide to head home and go out
to the parking lot.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The drunk follows
you to the car.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He throws a punch and
you, with all your years of training, are no match for the intoxicated guy and
simply parry it, throw an armbar on him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He lands on the ground.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">He
now is incapacitated by restraint.<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">He cannot throw another punch and since
you are well trained he has no avenue of defense.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He cannot even kick.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You now decide to ‘finish him’ by breaking
his arm so that he cannot attack you or anyone else further.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">When the cops arrive, he was the <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">INITIAL</b> Physical Aggressor, but
witnesses explain that the drunk guy took a swing and that you pinned him,
whispered sweet nothings into his ear and after a few seconds, ‘snapped that
arm like a twig’.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Guess what, you are
now quite possibly the <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">PRIMARY</b> Physical
Aggressor.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You did more damage, when you
could have either let him up with a warning or waiting for the police to
arrive.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is quite possible that you
may be going to jail and even if that doesn’t happen, it is quite possible you
may lose a lawsuit in court having quite significant impact on you and your
family.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">We
ALL Need to Train Our Students for This<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">When our students first learn techniques,
they don’t take armbars, tuite and other things to the ground.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They are just learning the fundamental body
mechanics, studying the human weaknesses, et cetera.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>About 6<sup>th</sup> kyu we introduce
takedowns and pins.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In with that, we add
<u>Decision Trees</u>, <u>De-Escalation</u> and <u>Scenario Based Training</u>.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">So let us repeat the same basic scenario
with our students in the following manner;<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">We give the student a technique and they
go to the ground with their peer in class.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>While they have their buddy pinned I ask them questions or just frame
the situational training with a description of their environment, possibly
similar to the above.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I will use the
above scenario as Scenario 1.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">Scenario
1:</span></b><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">
Tavern Disturbance, Drunk Punch in the Parking Lot<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">-<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">Ask
the student to perform and armbar off of a punch<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">-<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">Once
pinned, ask the student what they do at this time.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.0in; mso-list: l0 level2 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "courier new"; font-size: 14.0pt;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">o<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">Possible
Responses:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.5in; mso-list: l0 level3 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "wingdings"; font-size: 14.0pt;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">§<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">Explain
to the opponent while pinned, that you can easily break his arm if he continues
to resist.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Say it loud enough that
witnesses hear and explain that you don’t want to hurt him but you equally don’t
want to get hurt.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.5in; mso-list: l0 level3 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "wingdings"; font-size: 14.0pt;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">§<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">Ask
someone to call the police, keep him pinned till the police arrive.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<table border="1" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="MsoTableGrid" style="border-collapse: collapse; border: none; margin-left: 27.9pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-padding-alt: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-yfti-tbllook: 1184;">
<tbody>
<tr style="mso-yfti-firstrow: yes; mso-yfti-irow: 0; mso-yfti-lastrow: yes;">
<td style="background: #BDD6EE; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-background-themecolor: accent1; mso-background-themetint: 102; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 423.0pt;" valign="top" width="528"><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">Related Story: Taika was at a tavern one
night with one of his students. It was a cold winter night in Missouri with
ice in the lot and sidewalks outside, and a nearly identical situation to the
one above occurred.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A drunk decided to
pick a fight with one of Taika’s students.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Ego’s prevailed and they moved outside of the bar….onto the ice.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>His student slipped and fell to the ice,
the drunk jumped on top of him and got a couple of punches in before Taika
came up behind, grabbed the drunks arm and pinned him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Taika said that he told the drunk, “You
want arm break?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s ok, easy do. No
problem for me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You want break or go
away?”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This was from a hospital
conversation while I was sitting in Taika’s room about a year before he
passed away.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There were a lot more
details in the story but suffice to say, Taika pinned the guy and de-escalated.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They guy wholeheartedly agreed, even drunk,
that he didn’t want his arm broken and agreed to leave.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">Scenario
2:</span></b><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">
Public Park – Student is told they are out jogging in a public park but it is
early morning and they have not seen anyone else at all until someone jumps out
and attacks them, possibly trying to steal your wallet and phone.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">-<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">Ask
the student to perform and armbar off of a punch.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">-<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">Once
pinned, ask the student what they do at this time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Note: the nature of the armbar (in this
manner) doesn’t allow a way to access and dial your phone without letting the
suspect go.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.0in; mso-list: l0 level2 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "courier new"; font-size: 14.0pt;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">o<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">Possible
Responses:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.5in; mso-list: l0 level3 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "wingdings"; font-size: 14.0pt;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">§<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">Explain
that you can break their arm if they continue to resist.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.5in; mso-list: l0 level3 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "wingdings"; font-size: 14.0pt;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">§<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">They
continue to resist.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.5in; mso-list: l0 level3 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "wingdings"; font-size: 14.0pt;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">§<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">Yell
for help – No answer<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.5in; mso-list: l0 level3 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "wingdings"; font-size: 14.0pt;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">§<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">In
fear for your life, you may damage the opponent to prevent their continued
efforts to harm you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You are in fear for
your life.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">Of course these are just a couple of
examples to get the students thinking.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We
as instructors often claim to teach Self-Defense or Life Protection arts, but I
feel we often forget this very important thing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>In police training, when you go through the police academies worldwide,
you are constantly checked and evaluated based on scenarios.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These test your physical skill, legal
knowledge, policy knowledge and checks how you hash it all out in a little more
realistic way.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Teaching your students
how to survive an attack only to end up going bankrupt or serving time as a
result of stomping the head, is a vast disservice to them.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">It is of great importance that now we live
in a society where people are more inclined to grab their cell phone and record
your fight than help you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This stage of
society has reached the point where everyone has a video camera in their pocket
that takes great videos.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These will be
used for or against you in court.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Of
note, the first part of the confrontation will most likely not be
recorded.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So if the bad guy started the
fight, the first moments captured by the time they get the phone out and
started will be in mutual conflict.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">Again, just my 2</span> <span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">¥ but I think it
is high time we ensure our students understand the legal ramification of what
we do.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That is why we teach in this
manner and do not teach to injure, maim, and break, et cetera unless it is
truly the only way to ensure the safety of ourselves or those we are
protecting.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">Lee Richards<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />Lee Richardshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17653138139293202826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5234555046630780234.post-11373506147627746012019-09-30T09:26:00.000-05:002019-09-30T09:26:27.035-05:00Snippet me Timbers<br />
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Since the inception of Youtube and other variants,
the world has been flooded with small martial videos.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A
large portion of these martial videos are made to generate interest or the cool
factor and are not at all videos designed to specifically learn from.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have frequently posted training videos in
the last decade, so that my students could have reference material when they
were hopefully home training. These are ‘learn orientated’ where I go through
something slow like a kata or teach a foundational principle nice and slow.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">A snippet is
not a training video.</span></b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A snippet is merely a small
portion of a seminar, usually under a minute.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>As more and more people have invited me to teach at seminars, more and
more of these snippets have been released and people will continue to do
so.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I always find it crazy that the
second one of these gets released and shared across the net, suddenly the
keyboard warriors descend upon the video like half-starved vultures, bound and
determined to save the world from the things they don’t believe are valid….from
their limited perspective of this vast world we live in.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">As an example, I was recently asked to teach at a
dojo in North Carolina.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I had attended
several seminars with the dojo owner and we had become friends.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We both attended each other’s classes at
seminars in the past, and when we were not teaching we usually paired up to
train in other classes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He liked what I
was doing, I liked what he was doing, and he decided he wanted his students
introduced to Taika’s art of tuite after our paths had crossed numerous times
and he had purchased and studied the Six Basic Principles of Tuite.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He requested I come and introduce the
principles in an hour and a half short seminar.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">An hour and a half is no time at all to learn
something as complex as the foundational principles that Taika Seiyu Oyata
spent a lifetime teaching his students.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In
fact, most of my guest appearances at seminars with multiple instructors are
merely 50 minutes long.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When I have
seminars where I am the solo instructor I tend to make that much longer if
possible but quite often all I can get is 2-3 hours on a regular class night.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So this seminar was a very brief
introduction.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">At one point during the class a particular technique
was taught to further illustrate a principle, particularly the 3-dimensional
attack principle used in Tuite, Kyusho and other aspects of Taika’s art.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>During the course of this class, a pair of
students were missing two of the principles in the execution of the technique.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After only 4-5 reps, that would be normal for
any practitioner, never having trained in a particular manner before.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There were 14 people, so 6 other pairings to
help, thus time was limited with each paired practitioners.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I did a very quick cleanup with them and a
third party asked if I would repeat what I just did and said for his
camera.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And thus, a 55 second <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">snippet was born</b>.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">I have kind of gotten used to these moments now and
they almost always play out the same.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The snippet gets uploaded to the net, you get a great deal of likes and
shares, mostly positive comments, and then you have the few vultures in the
world that are going to trash you for no other reason than you are not in their
art, their circle, et cetera.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">The most common things I see/hear are: <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol"; font-size: 14.0pt;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">That is not a realistic
training situation.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol"; font-size: 14.0pt;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Nobody grabs in a fight, it
just doesn’t happen.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Realism in
Training<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Now, I don’t know how these people train but in
about 40 years of running around in the martial, self-defense and law
enforcement training environment, I have never seen anyone successfully teach
something new and immediately go to the ‘realistic’ mode.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What would you do if you showed up to a knife
defense seminar and the instructor said, “I am only going to show you this
defense once, and then randomly attack you when you are not looking with a real
weapons.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Oh, and we won’t give you any
time to practice.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It sounds absolutely
ludicrous but the Snippet Snipes act like this is what you should be doing,
even though they have never trained this way and if they even are instructors
themselves wouldn’t teach this way.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Tuite is difficult.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Taika told us, it is a difficult art to attain and thus you should start
your students out early in the fundamental principles of it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>His plan, not mine but I wholeheartedly
agree.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We introduce tuite to our kyu
students within the first three classes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>There are a set of six basic principles that we like for our students to
grasp prior to ramping up a little and even then, we don’t jump to realistic
mode.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When we first start, they are just
standing arm’s length away from each other trying to learn grips and angles of
attacks.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They are just learning the
basic physics, the science of what it takes to get the proper lock-up.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They are learning how to make it work from a
position where they can more easily see their mistakes and correct them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After they get the hang of that we increase
the number of techniques, still from this same start position and every new
technique will always start from here.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It is their root, base start <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">position
of learning</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is how you teach
new people. We don’t load a fully functional gun, hand it to one student, and
tell the other go outside and when you come back in there will be someone in
here with a gun and you have to disarm them successfully without dying in order
to get your yellow belt.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">After months of training in it, and totally dependent
upon the student’s abilities, we progress to more and more realistic
training.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is never 100% realistic in
that when you walk in the dojo door you know you will be training. The only way
to go full-realistic is to put a ski mask on and attempt to mug your student as
they are leaving the University, Church, the BBQ restaurant, the bar, et
cetera.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Nobody expects the Tuite
Inquisition!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We do speed things up later,
go from different stances, random pushes, grabs, punches in the dojo, et
cetera.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But only after they have the
fundamental understanding which takes more than a handful of hours at a
seminar.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My job at a seminar is to give
you homework, not make you a master at whatever new idea I am introducing you
to.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Nobody Grabs
in a Fight……Ever<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">I’ll respond to this in three parts.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">One:</span></b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"> You are wrong, it happens
all the time, just because it has never ever happened to you doesn’t mean it
isn’t a valid technique.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was a
security officer at Kmart and was grabbed and pushed all the time with my
attempts to stop shoplifters.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In that 3
year time period I stopped about 250 people.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>About a third of them would see the little kid before them and decide
they were not going to jail, they would push, punch, and then run away.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I would chase and a ground fight would ensue.
Without fail during these ground fights I would get grabbed.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">As a cop for 27 years, all of my field time was in
the bad parts of town, the inner city and the crack haven of south side.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I took lots of reports involving assaults and
saw a lot that were involving pushes and grabs. The vast majority of Domestic
Violence (not just man vs woman) calls I went on involved grabs and/or
pushes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As a general rule, people that
know each other tend to do things like this rather than full on beat
downs.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Most rapes are not stranger
rapes, they are indeed people that know you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Strangers fight more fists and feet but if they get on the ground then
they usually grab.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Ten years into my
career I became a Sergeant and had to approve every report for my entire sector
each night.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So I had to read and respond
to many more such events.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They do <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">absolutely</b> happen on a regular basis.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">I have always love this argument, the lack of logic
in this argument based on ‘their own life’.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>In Kansas City there are just shy of 500,000 residents and it swells up
during the work day or specific events to upwards of 1.5 million.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Of all of those people in a given year, only
about 14,000 are assaulted in Kansas City per the 2018 stats provided by the
department.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Such a tiny percentage of
the people are actually assaulted. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And
yes I know, a lot of fights are not reported. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I frequently poll people during a seminar and
find that very few have ever been in a street fight during their adult
lifetime.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Kids, well, most kids get in
some sort of scrap but as adults, the vast majority of martial artists don’t
get into fights……ever.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The ones that do,
and frequently, are the ones that work security, police jobs in big cities, bouncers,
et cetera.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As I train cops worldwide to
become police trainers I even poll them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>There are tons of ‘Mayberry’ small town cops that maybe get in a scrap
once a year, as well as ‘Mayberry’ small town cops that work in meth infested
areas that get in as many fights as inner city cops.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So if the slice of the pie worldwide or even
just U.S. wide for most of my contacts is so huge and such a small teeny tiny
percentage of people are getting assaulted, and such a small percentage of
martial students are getting assaulted, how can you say it doesn’t happen.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I even had one person say they had perused ‘x’
amount of youtube fight videos and never seen it happen.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>First off, they have not looked hard enough
as I’ve seen it in videos.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How many
people have their cameras rolling before a fight?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You rarely, unless it is a mounted building
camera, get the full fight on video.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It
is someone whipping their phones out once the first attacks and defenses were
launched.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And this technology is all
relatively new, the ability to record quality video on your phone.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Humans have been fighting since the first two
knuckleheads reached for the same mastodon leg at the cave dinner table.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Two</span></b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">: Make it happen.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Taika taught as part of his art, a greater
skill of manipulating the opponent’s body to make them reach out, open their
hands, and grab.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is a lesser known
or shown part of his art because on the seminar circuit we are trying to
squeeze in the fundamentals of how a wrist lock truly works.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That is all that is feasible during a 1-2
hour time slot.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Students had to stick
with Taika a very long time and be proficient in the fundamentals before they would
ever get these lessons.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Taika had a way
of striking, punching and kicking that would loosen a fist, or cause the person
to lose their balance.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The first step of
this is learning what we call Dermal Redirection.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A falling person that is still conscious
would reach out and he would position a part of his body into the hand. I
frequently will demo some of these strikes but rarely have the time to teach in
the blocks given as the people, even if repeats, have only trained with me for
hours. When you are falling you reach out, a natural human reaction.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Usually this was a forearm you landed on when
Taika struck you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Hence, all the various
forearm grabs we practice were prep work for this sub-art of the Oyata systems.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>People always like the magical neck
knockouts, but Taika would say that just a light fuzz-out was better because
the opponent is still conscious and will grab you as they fall, if you are so
positioned.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If they grab you, you can
pin them with tuite rather than chase them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>They may grab your arm, your lapel, your hand or they may just open
their hand to reach and you catch it just like you would when practicing a push
catch.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Same…same.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Three</span></b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">: Everyone has things they
are more skilled at than others whether it is this art, a hobby, or just life
in general.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The two things I presume I
am best at in Taika’s arts, based on the fact that I get asked to teach those
the most, are straight baton (tanbo) and tuite.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Taika’s art was a combination of many things.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There are non-tuite related defenses and
offenses as well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Just because you saw a
55 second snippet of tuite and don’t truly understand it, doesn’t mean the
other parts of the art are trash.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This
is just a sample of what Taika taught.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He taught everyday hand to hand, he taught joint locks (wrist, elbow,
shoulder, knee, ankle), he taught Atemi (creating pauses in your opponent later
known as ooda loop by many), he taught Kyusho (and <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u>not</u></b> the mass marketed over exaggerated TCM stuff on the
market), he taught Kobudo, he taught Police Defensive Courses, he taught basic
Self-Defense and many other aspects of the arts.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The pond is much, much deeper than a 55
second snippet could portray.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Realism<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">I also love when people start talking about realism
in training and then their facebook profile is of them with a Nunti-bo,
naganata, manji sai, kama, et cetera.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>All these things you usually carry with you at the local Hy-Vee when
grocery shopping.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(Side Note: Most of
the Kobudo Taika taught had other purposes such as strengthening, learning to
do a milking punch, learning to break-over your wrist.)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There are a lot of things we do that are
about historical preservation, and well, just the fun of it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A friend at a seminar I attended last year
was teaching and made a very good point during his class.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was an instructor level seminar so
everyone there had multiple years.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He
said, there are numerous reasons people get into this art. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Maybe they got scared.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They were bullied as a kid.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They were entering a profession that had a
high likelihood of confrontation (police, probation officer, security, or military).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you think about your current reason, it
probably isn’t the same as your original reason.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A lot of us stay decades in the arts because
we just find it cool in one manner or another.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I find it amazing that even after over 3 decades of training, that I
still find getting better at discovering the body’s weaknesses and exploiting
them, to me that is just amazing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Even
on his death bed at 81, Taika was still learning and wanting to train and teach
while there in the hospital.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Save the World<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">What I do not understand is the Snippet Snipes who believe
that it is their duty to save the world from things their slice of life
perspective doesn’t agree with.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I see
full training video and snippets all the time that I do not have the context to
judge.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some things might stand out as
complete craziness but most often, if you truly look at a short video snippet
from a seminar, you should realize that you don’t have the full context (and
entire seminar recording) to make an informed decision on the validity of what
is going on.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Another things that is frustrating is when people
compare you to someone else in a most unrealistic manner.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have had people say that wrist locks don’t
work on them because so and so tried them and nothing happened.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Maybe so and so didn’t know what they were
doing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve even had people tell me I am
not Taika so I can’t do what he did, even though neither Taika nor I ever
touched that person in their life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So
they have no point of reference to a comparison.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I don’t purport to be Taika or do my
techniques exactly the way he did or believe I am anywhere near his equal.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That may be a goal, a lofty one at that, and
I will endeavor to get there whether I even come close in my lifetime.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But don’t compare apples and oranges if you
have never tasted either. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Numerous videos are forwarded to me for my opinion
on a weekly if not daily basis.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If it is
related to Oyata, I will give my perspective based on my experience.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If it is of something/someone I am not
familiar with, 90% of the time I do not have enough information to save the
world.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I just ignore it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I might discuss aspects of it in our weekly
shihan dai and usually we will gain some unintended knowledge by experimenting
with someone else’s situation or setup for something that I only have a snippet
of.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I think that is by far the better
thing to do.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Let your art grow from training rather than let your
heart sour from poison.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Just my 2¥<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<br />Lee Richardshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17653138139293202826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5234555046630780234.post-49148103083154313132018-06-20T08:01:00.002-05:002019-07-02T09:38:43.046-05:00Alphabet Soup for the Ryukyu Soul<br>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #c00000; font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 14pt;">Why are there so many versions of Taika’s
kata?</span><span style="color: #c00000; font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 14pt;"> </span></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #c00000; font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 14pt;"><br></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">As this question has come
up a lot recently with students, peers, and even complete strangers, I thought
I’d spend a little time tackling some of the things I learned from Taika about
this.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Taika treated kata as a way for
him to become fluid, precise, efficient as well as to teach concepts and ideas
to his students.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was much more as
well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was a research tool.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We, his regular weekly guinea pigs, were a
way he could make a modification and see what path it led him to.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He could see in us a true three dimensional
representation of what he only saw of himself in the mirror.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Taika would change things multiple times in a
class or from class to class in the same day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>You would sometimes hear him say, “I think maybe this way, try.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sometimes that meant to us that he wanted us
to think about it, but often he was just thinking about it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was looking at how we moved with each
experiment.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The flow of it all.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Taika talked about kata being alphabet.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">- You learn to spell –
Foundation<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">- You learn words -
Foundation Tier 2<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">- You learn incomplete sentences
- Foundation Tier 3<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">- You learn complete sentences
- Foundation Tier 4<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">- You learn Paragraphs -
Foundation Tier 5<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">- You learn to read a
book and make a book report - Foundation Tier 6<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><br></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">As you now can spell, you
can also read. You go away to school and teachers ask you to research.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They give you a topic such as WWII boats. In
the old days you would spend the day at the library reading, copying different
books, magazines, newspapers, et cetera. Nowadays the cheaters don't even have
to leave whatever room they are in they can just browse the internet. :)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><br></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">-
You learn to research multiple sources and piece them together - Technical
Application<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">-
You take that T.A. version and make it Force Efficient - Tier 1<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">-
You take that T.A. version and make it fluid – Tier 2<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">-
You take that T.A. version and make it apply to a different theoretical target –
Tier 3<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">-
You take that T.A. version and vary the timing for different order of attacks –
Tier 4<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><br></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-size: 14.0pt;">Note:
The above tiers are examples and <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">not
limited</b> to just the above examples.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-size: 14.0pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><br></span></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">We have different
versions and different timings of those versions for several reasons then.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was growing as he taught, and refining.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He wanted us to grow with him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>People who did not train every week with him,
would get a version maybe once a year and think that was the version they were
supposed to be doing but it was only a snapshot in time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>People made the mistake of believing that, ‘Oh,
this is the new Naihanchi Shodan’ and usually missed the entire point of the
version.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What everyone needed to ask
was, ‘What is he trying to get us to understand with this tool.’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><br></span></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Naihanchi
Crane<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><br></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">As an example, I will
tell the tale of the genesis and birth of Naihanchi Crane. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><br></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Taika had been
experimenting as always on us faithful guinea pigs and went off to a weekend
seminar at one of the affiliated schools.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>His intent was to teach what we had been working on, something using the
tool of Naihanchi but not related exactly to what came forth that weekend.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He adapted to a problem he saw.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He taught a Friday evening and all day
Saturday seminar then returned home.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We
met up on Tuesday for regular training and he told the whole class how
frustrated he was that the students there had no balance.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This had angered him that people that should
be farther along in their <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">practice</b>
and training could not even balance when they crossed over in Naihanchi.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He ended up teaching them what we later called
the Naihanchi Crane and working to perfect their balance.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He then had us work on it for a short while.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(This drill would actually spawn some other
crane/balance drills at another couple of weekend seminars where he tried
several different ways to get people to practice enough to attain balance.)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><br></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">The kata version was
quite simple conceptually.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>People had no
balance, so they needed to practice balance.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Taika took a tool, Naihanchi, which required balance on the cross
overs.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He then added an exercise to that
tool.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Every time you crossed over, the
back leg would pull up into a reverse crane.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>For those that need further explanation of a reverse crane….the back leg
pulls up until the instep of the foot rest in the back of the knee.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Taika would then make you count to 5 out loud,
slowly, then drop the leg and continue the kata.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We had to keep our knees bent, and head from
bobbing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He would explain that if the
knee pointed one direction there was no balance, but if you pulled it another
you were balanced.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This was a familiar
tool (Naihanchi) with an added drill (crane).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><br></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">We worked on it a short
while until most people’s balance improved.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>That was it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The drill was never
visited again by us beyond that day at his dojo.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That drill is a tool I use for unbalanced
students.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The problem is, most students
at that particular weekend seminar never asked Taika or understood that this
was a drill.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For months, they spread the
rumor that this was the new version and they were bequeathed it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At the next Summer Conference a bunch of
people were practicing it and of course Taika had moved on with other
drills.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><br></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Kata was a tool for Taika
and the one tool that every single student in his association should know is
Naihanchi Shodan.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That is why we have so
many versions of this kata, more than any other kata in the system.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><br></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">In truth, he would refine
his Foundational and Technical Application versions over the years but all the
other ‘Tiers in Between’ were using the kata as a tool to make the student
better.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><br></span></span></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Tier:
a layer; level; stratum:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><br></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">If you remove the initial
Foundation kata and only practice the other variations, your entire structure
will crumble.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Foundation is 1,2,3 for
memorization but has to be there, has to be precise.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you cannot have your feet properly
aligned, thereby aligning your chest, your aim will always be off in any tier
above the Foundation. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Biathlon is an
Olympic sport where there is cross country high cardio combined with
shooting.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The marksman learns a stance
in their early foundation training.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They
don’t forget that stance when it comes time to shoot during their Olympic
games.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They don’t wear roller skates or
spiked heels during the game.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They know
the stance required and have trained on it for years to allow the rest of their
platform to do what it needs to do.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><br></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Taika’s actual versions
of kata were gradually refined over years of training.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There is a misconception that there are a
bazillion versions out there.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In
reality, from numerous conversations over the final years of his life, there
are only two full versions he believed and accepted.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>His Final Foundation and Taika’s Final Technical
Application.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Everything in between were
tools for various reasons and personal refinements.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>‘Timing’ experiments were another common
tool.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Putting Foundation motions
together or changing up the timing was common.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>These were greater concepts Taika was trying to push down our throats
during his final years.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I will address
more of this in a later blog on pairings but Taika’s goal was to move us past
spoon feeding to the point we start making our own drills, our own timings, and
our own pairings.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br>Lee Richardshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17653138139293202826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5234555046630780234.post-33202787665817586342018-06-11T12:46:00.001-05:002019-07-02T09:52:27.981-05:00Cautionary Tale of Kata Reversion and False Claims<br>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">For
those that knew and trained with <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Taika
Seiyu Oyata</b>, you know that his art progressed gradually over the
years.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He didn’t stay stagnant in the
art.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There are many forms of Karate,
Kung Fu, and other arts out there that strive to remain exactly today as they
were decades or centuries ago.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This was
not Taika’s path.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He would endeavor from
the end of WWII when he began his training until his death in 2012 to make his
art more refined, streamlining body mechanics and the like.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Taika’s
first recorded images of techniques were from the 1950’s and his first video
was recorded in 1968 in the United States.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The next video was around 1978 and then he continually, every few years,
released videos of exercises and kata.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Each
version was slightly more refined.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This
lasted until June of 1991 when the Classic Okinawan Arts video series was
finalized.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There were actually 15 VHS
tapes produced, and as always, by the time they were finalized he was already
striving to refine things even more.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><br></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Of
special note, it is specifically stated within this 1991 tape series that
objects in the video were exaggerated in some places, some stances were shorted
due to the size of film location they rented on 23<sup>rd</sup> Street and the
lens they had on the camera they purchased.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>So even this 1991 version was not, for that snapshot in time, 100%
correct in Taika’s eyes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Also take into
account that Taika was somewhat camera shy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>By this time he well knew, as he had been filmed for 23 years, that
videos could be slowed down.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The bunkai
in the videos were not the crème of the crop, and there were specific endeavors
to distract the viewer like throwing a hand up in the air and shaking it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m not saying the techniques were not any
good, quite the opposite.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Taika just
felt that if he put his best stuff in a video, as history had previously shown,
people would steal his product and he would be out of business.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><br></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">On
to some key changes since the 1991 video series and why it makes it pretty easy
to see when people are professing that they trained with Taika and they
actually did not, or at least not in the last decade of his life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There were a rather large percentage of
people that either were removed from the organization by Taika from 1991 to
2012 or left on their own.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The largest
exodus occurred between 1992 and 2001 when Taika began to, ‘Clean House’.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><br></span></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Basic – Intermediate – Advanced<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">In
the 1991 videos, the terms Basic and Advanced were used to differentiate
between the two kata versions and for quite a while those terms were used and
Intermediate was thrown in there as well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>There were even <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">some</i> using Basic
1, Basic 2, et cetera.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Taika would
refine something and people would make a new kata category instead of putting
that piece in the version he requested.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sometime
after 2003 Taika announced that he didn’t like those words and they were poor
translations of what he had really meant.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The words he later chose to differentiate versions of the kata were <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Foundation</b> and <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Technical Application</b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
word Basic just gave the impression of being not important once you progressed,
but he was adamant that the Foundation kata must be retained, though tweaked
and refined.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He would gradually over the
21 years between the release of the 1991 videos to his death refine the
Foundation and tell us in class and at seminars what was the ‘now’
Foundation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When he showed us anything
related to the kata, we would clarify which version it was for.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These changes were predominately body
refinements to motion. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These are things
that made your attacks work better.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Angles, speed, et cetera were bettered.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Technical
Application was not an advanced version he said, but <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">additions</i> to the kata to make certain techniques flow better.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As an example he would add a Pinan motion to
Naihanchi Shodan to make the transition to an arm bar cleaner.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These refinements were not advanced, just
refined additions.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Depending on how you
count a kata, particularly with varied timing, it may have a different number
of moves.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To a brand new kyu student
learning Naihanchi Shodan, you might teach the foundational kata with 30
motions.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is just an example, I am
not specifying how anyone should teach and count motions.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you did an experiment, sequestered two new
students and taught one 30 motions, and the other student 48 motions, teaching
them the Technical Application version, neither would know the difference
unless they were told.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Thus, in Taika’s
perspective Technical Application wasn’t advanced, just more.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">A Few Refinements<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">A
few examples will follow but just one very important way you can tell if
someone trained with Taika in his final decade would be the stances in their
kata.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Horse stance was narrowed, not as
deep.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In the early days, we all trained
where our stance was very wide and deep.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Height disparity would dictate exactly how much farther in, but the
stances became more mobile and for me, horse stance was probably a good
six-eight inches narrower.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There was
also a key change to the balance of all stances.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Heels out!”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>That was a shout anyone who actually trained at Headquarters heard a
billion times and at many seminars as well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>That applied to horse stance as well as Seisan stance.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When I see things like several recent videos
released by people claiming to have trained at Headquarters, particularly in
recent years, and I look at the stances, I can easily tell they are fabricating
their history….well, and I was there.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Anyone else who trained there can as well and I frequently get emails of
people complaining about these claims.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It is what it is, the deceitful will always be deceitful it seems.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These stance refinements were for balance,
power and quite simply for practice aiming.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">The BOX – Stances and Twisting<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Taika
talked about a box representing the torso, or a rectangle.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You learned to be proficient at aiming by
using the Han Shin principles (see other blog by me or Tony) and for the most
part you remained in your box with your arms or fairly close to the box.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A right punch would end with your index
knuckle in your imaginary opponent’s brachial plexus…..that soft spot where
your arm and pecs meets.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The dot in the
diagram would be where that knuckle would land, relaxed fist at a 45 degree
angle.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was much like target shooting
with a gun, throwing knife, dart, arrow, et cetera.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You learned to always put that knuckle there
for basic target practice and used bottom body, side body, back body, or other
means to aim than twisting your body halves more or less than 90 degrees past
your torso.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">What
many would call a down block (we refer to the as down forearm strikes) would
put your knuckle at the bottom dot, again a right angle from your chest or torso.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It would go right where your opponent’s soft
spot connecting the leg to the torso.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You
aimed with other parts of your body.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Certainly there are parts of the kata where your hands go briefly
outside this box or the box is somewhat expanded for the head.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The above diagram is just one tiny part of the
things we were working on with him, and the ‘target boxes’ he gave us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There was absolutely no exaggerated gross
motion outside this box and at no point did you twist your upper body opposed
to your lower body to strike out at areas far outside that box.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Passai is an excellent example of this as
Taika showed how you could punch left and right of center by moving from one
Twisted Horse stance to another.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Your
upper body never left the box and your chest stayed almost perfectly still during
that portion of Passai.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I won’t go into
much more detail but this is the section near the beginning when you first face
back to the front, just after the kidney strike.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Hidden Strikes<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">The
hidden strikes that so many people attribute to ‘Advanced Motion’ were
everywhere in what Taika called foundation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>If you don’t believe me, please go back to youtube and check out the
1968 video of Taika doing the foundational 12.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>When he punched, he also covered.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Back to my original analogy of two students doing the same kata but one
does 30 moves and the other 48, the same thing applies.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you think about Tomari Seisan and the
moment you turn left at a 90 degree angle midway through the kata, you can
perhaps follow along.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you teach to
turn left with a single followed by three punches (and a shuffle in there) that
is four counts.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We teach what Taika told
us to do…….eight counts as his foundation version of Seisan.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Cover-Single, Cover-Punch, Cover-Punch, and
Cover-Punch.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Our yellow belts that learn
this have absolutely no idea that others didn’t listen to Taika or were not
around to hear it, and only do 4 moves.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>These moves are in Taika’s foundation, per his request.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Angles<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">In
the Technical Application refinements, there are numerous angle changes that
are completely missing from the 1991 ‘advanced’ video series.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Pinan Shodan for example does not start at a 90
degree angle.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Tomari Seisan’s left 90
and subsequent right 180 are completely different angles.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">These
are but a scratch on the surface of the refinements that Taika made during the
course of those 23 years.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Massive
improvements were made to our balance, ability to strike efficiently with more
force and speed, among other things.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>These were all made by Taika Seiyu Oyata, and we went to great lengths
in his classes at headquarters to ensure these amendments were clarified and
documented.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Conclusion<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Taika
did not stand still.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He constantly
refined his skills and endeavored to ensure his refinements would carry on past
his death.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The number of people who were
with him till the end are few compared to the number of people now selling
their wares.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When Taika had his cancer
scare in 2000 and the subsequent numbers were thinned, he began having a roll
book taken.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Three different people took
those records over the years and there were also records taken of who paid
their headquarters dues and who attended seminars.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Participation at said seminars, well that was
another story.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There were always the few
that would show up every 5-6 years, or less, and want to acquire
something.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><br></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">The
art progressed 23 years past the production of the June 1991 release of the
final tape series, and anyone that uses them as their gold standard needs to
rethink Taika’s philosophies.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I will
only show the technique portions to my students as I don’t want my students
reverting back 23 years.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I digitized
those 1991 videos for Taika in 1999 and Tasshi Jim Logue tried to get Taika to
authorize the sale of them in DVD version at that time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was only eight years past their original
production at the time and Taika told Jim ‘No!’<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Taika told us that those versions were not where he was now and not what
he was teaching.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That was no longer his
art.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Don’t throw away the 27 years of
progress.<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<br>Lee Richardshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17653138139293202826noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5234555046630780234.post-15560189985003686012018-01-17T12:42:00.000-06:002019-07-02T09:28:13.230-05:00Nin Tei Shō<br>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 22.8267px;">Recently there has been quite a bit of questions flying across my inbox and chat windows in regards to Taika Seiyu Oyata’s – Nin Tei Sh<span style="background: white; color: #222222;">ō</span>. As this has become such a popular topic as of late, I felt perhaps something needed to be published.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 22.8267px;">For the purposes of this article, I will be altering photographs and documents I have so that nobody can accurately copy the things later on or use them as a basis for forgeries. We have already had enough forgeries of previous scrolls, most of which were comical failures. Kanji and Kana represented in this article are not the originals brushed by Uhugushiku Tan Mei, Wakinaguri Tan Mei, or Taika Seiyu Oyata except where notated.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 22.8267px;">Chronologically, the first reference to a Nin Tei Sh<span style="background: white; color: #222222;">ō</span> was on 01-01-1947. It was at this point that Wakinaguri and Uhugushuki combined a document with both their signatures beginning with the kanji for Nin Tei Sh<span style="background: white; color: #222222;">ō</span> which is equivalent to ANNOUNCEMENT or PROCLIMATION. Below is an adjusted copy of that document with a few things cryptically adjusted and removed such as the signature chops and placed on a different background. This was basically a document stating that they were handing down the knowledge of their respective houses to none other than Mr. Seiyu Oyata. He wouldn’t have trained long with them at this point much more than a year since he didn’t meet them until after the war.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 22.8267px;">A few of our Kansas City shihan dai were lucky enough to be treated to a viewing of this document at Taika’s home. The document was regrettably not in the best of shape at the time. It had quite a few little cracks and creases now but is a wonderful piece of Taika’s history.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 21.3333px;">This document is formatted quite similar to the ones Taika released some 63 years later. The wording is quite similar and it states:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 21.3333px;">Nin Tei Sh</span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 21.3333px;">ō: Oyata Seiyu domo, kiden wa uhugushiku ke wakinaguri ke ryo ke no densh</span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 21.3333px;">ō higi o shutoku sare ta koto o mitomeru. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 21.3333px;"><span style="background-color: white;">It is then dated and signed by both heads of the two family arts.</span> </span> </div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 22.8267px;">Around the beginning of 2009, Taika had lived a lot longer than he originally had anticipated, and as one does you start thinking of the end days. He had decided to do like his instructor’s had done for him and produce Nin Tei Sh<span style="background: white; color: #222222;">ō</span> for a few select members of his organization. He would come to class and talk about it with us, and talk about how very few people would actually get them, and how it would all be kept secret until after his passing, and generally what all it meant. He had a list of possible candidates but that could change at a moment’s notice. I do quite believe that this was to be our final carrot, to whip us on and into the future. Our motivational scroll.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 22.8267px;">Two of us with some limited Japanese language education in class got to participate in helping him in regards to the project. He wanted this to be similar to what he received in 1947, but with some added words he felt strongly about. He wanted to change some wording from what his instructors had given him and was searching for words that we as Americans would understand and that would translate well. Our help was more or less lots of nodding and helping him understand how one word in English might be taken different ways, but even though it had little bearing on the final product it did give us some extra talking and discussing time with the man which was always welcome.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 22.8267px;">On 3-10-2009 we were in class working on the edge/edge version of the ‘Naihanchi Crossover’ (blog of its own) and Taika called me up to look at a piece of paper. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 22.8267px;">These are the only ones I’ll be showing that actually were in his handwriting, with the English most likely in Robin’s but I never asked for clarification. This was an early draft and before he put it in standard certificate format. Cells phones at the time had horrid cameras. Being Mr. Anal, I promptly added it to my diary and typed up the copy shown below for further research and history. There were a few other iterations, mostly playing with word order and emphasis.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 16pt;">I remember distinctly, and recorded it in my journal 03-10-2009, that <b>Chū jitsu</b>, loyalty, was one of the parts he thought was most important. He talked about that for a good ten minutes or more. He talked about how these characters conveyed more than just loyalty. He spoke of how he wanted it to convey how they had to perfectly follow his directions and understand difficult concepts.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 16pt;">Loyalty, devotion, fidelity, faithfulness<o:p></o:p></span><br>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 16pt;">Truth, reality, sincerity, essence<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 22.8267px;"><br>In that early translation, there were a few kanji and kana still missing. The previous discussion led to him adding the <b><span style="color: #cc0000;">Itsu datsu suru koto naku</span></b> shown below to the final version which would look similar to this;<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 22.8267px;">In this final version, most of column five was added;<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span lang="ZH-TW" style="font-family: "mingliu"; font-size: 18pt;">逸脱することなく</span></b><b><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 18pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 18pt;">Itsu datsu suru koto naku<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 22.8267px;">Let’s now break it down by column, and right to left as it reads.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 22.8267px;">Column 1 - ‘<span style="color: #c00000;">Nin Tei Sh<span style="background: white;">ō’<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 22.8267px;">Column 2 – Rank or Title<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 22.8267px;">Unlike his instructor’s, Taika decided to issue two different scrolls and had them made up with different sizes and formatting. One would be for a rank proclamation and the other would be for a title proclamation. Both had distinctly different mon, embossing and borders than ever shown before. One scroll was near the size of standard rank certificates seen in the past and the other was significantly larger. All of those little things that would set these scrolls apart from prior generations of scrolls in Taika’s lineage, do not appear in this article or these renderings.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 16pt;">2A Rank – On the rank certificate, the character for DAN was placed with a space just above it big enough for your rank. For example, if you were being given the rank of seventh dan, the kanji for seven would be placed just above it. There is one certificate, for reasons I will not dwell on at the moment, where one certificate was awarded but Taika didn’t want to increase the person's rank so he didn’t place a number here but repeated a title. Long story….<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 16pt;">2B Title – On the title certificate, the character for SHI was placed with a space just above it big enough for the other half of your title since they all ended in 'shi'. For example, if you were being given the title of Kyoshi, then the character for Kyo would be placed just above it.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 16pt;">Tasshi</span><span lang="ZH-TW" style="font-family: "pmingliu" , "serif"; font-size: 16pt;"> 達士</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 16pt;">Kyoshi</span><span lang="ZH-TW" style="font-family: "pmingliu" , "serif"; font-size: 16pt;"> 教士</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 16pt;">Renshi</span><span lang="ZH-TW" style="font-family: "pmingliu" , "serif"; font-size: 16pt;"> 錬士</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 16pt;">2C Name – This was the place where your name would go in katakana.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 22.8267px;">Column 3-6 – <span style="color: #c00000;">Kiden wa RyuTe narabi ni Oyata Shin Shu Ho no higi o itsu datsu suru koto naku chujutsu ni shutoku sareta koto o metomemasu.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 22.8267px;">In these three columns, Taika himself translated this earlier meaning which I showed before in my horrid 2009 phone image.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 22.8267px;">“I, Taika Oyata Seiyu, acknowledge that you have loyally mastered the secret techniques of RyuTe and Oyata Shin Shu Ho.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 22.8267px;">The final version was amended to read, “I, Hanshi Oyata Seiyu, acknowledge that you have loyally <b>and</b> <b>without deviation</b>, mastered the secret techniques of RyuTe and Oyata Shin Shu Ho.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 22.8267px;">Column 7 – </span></b><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 22.8267px;">This column merely had the date of the award. The only pre-printed kanji was for the year, month and day with space above each to place the numerical kanji values.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 22.8267px;">Column 8 – Hanshi Oyata Seiyu<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 22.8267px;">This final column was of course Taika’s name with the title of Hanshi. I personally find it interesting that he didn't use Taika.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 22.8267px;">For those that want to delve a little deeper into the kanji individual meanings, I would recommend investing in the <u><a href="https://www.amazon.com/New-Nelson-Japanese-English-Character-Dictionary/dp/0804820368/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1516207398&sr=8-1&keywords=new+nelson+japanese-english+character+dictionary">New Nelson Japanese-English Character Dictionary</a></u>. It is, in both Tony and I’s opinion, one of the better ones out there for researching. We have done the leg work for you if you wish to take that step. The next two images are of a running spreadsheet of each column, and all kanji numbers (how to find them in the New Nelson) are listed on the right. If there is no number, then it isn’t a kanji it is a kana……which if you have not studied Japanese at all might be confusing. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 22.8267px;">Summary<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 22.8267px;">There were three historical Nin Tei Sh<span style="background: white; color: #222222;">ō in our lineage</span>; one from Taika's instructors and two versions that he gave out to certain people and intended for others. His stroke was obviously not anticipated and terminal cancer prognosis had given him about three months left to tidy up loose ends like this. That didn’t happen. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 22.8267px;">So what <i>does</i> all this mean? I keep getting asked that question. Taika’s own words that he wrote (and then added without deviation) says it all. </span><br>
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<span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 22.8267px;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman", serif;">“I, Hanshi Oyata Seiyu, acknowledge that you have loyally </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman", serif;">and</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman", serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman", serif;">without deviation</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman", serif;">, mastered the secret techniques of RyuTe and Oyata Shin Shu Ho.”</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 22.8267px;">Does it mean that certificate bearers are the only ones with Taika’s knowledge? <span style="color: #cc0000;">No. </span> </span><br>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 22.8267px;">Were all the ones given out that he intended? <span style="color: #cc0000;">No, the stroke prevented that but a few (more than two) were indeed given. </span></span><br>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 22.8267px;">Were there any politics that were involved? <span style="color: #cc0000;">Yes, in one very specific incident</span>. It was his main goal to prevent that with this scroll, after being a little disenfranchised with previous endeavors, but there was something that did occur which greatly upset Taika in regard. I and others may release that info later with friends, and quite a few know about it already but at this point it is just he said, she said muckity muck that doesn’t really matter. Like any piece of paper, the proof is in the hands and in the heart. </span><br>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 22.8267px;">Is it a license to teach or promote under Taika’s name or is it just an acknowledgement of skill once achieved. <span style="color: #cc0000;">The latter.</span></span><br>
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<span style="font-family: times new roman, serif;"><span style="font-size: 21.3333px;">Does it give the holder permission to grant rank in RyuTe</span></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Roboto, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; text-align: left;">® </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman", serif; font-size: 21.3333px;">Ren Mei or Oyata Shin Shu Ho</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Roboto, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; text-align: left;">®</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman", serif; font-size: 21.3333px;"> to anyone? <span style="color: #cc0000;">No.</span> Nowhere in the document does it give that right and at the time of Taika's death all trademarks passed to his wife.</span><br>
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<span style="font-family: times new roman, serif;"><span style="font-size: 21.3333px;">Does it appoint its holders the keys to the throne? <span style="color: #cc0000;">No.</span> It is a proclamation, a written pat on the back.</span></span><br>
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<span style="font-family: times new roman, serif;"><span style="font-size: 21.3333px;">Is their only one living person (at the time of this writing) with a Nin Tei Sh</span></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "times new roman", serif; font-size: 21.3333px;">ō? </span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "times new roman", serif; font-size: 21.3333px;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">No, there were more given by Oyata.</span></span></div>
Lee Richardshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17653138139293202826noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5234555046630780234.post-24579381399413885992017-12-27T18:35:00.002-06:002017-12-27T18:35:42.508-06:00Tiered Training with Oyata - All Training Not Created Equal<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;">As there have been numerous people since Taika died a little over
five years ago come forward and start brandishing his name I thought I’d do a
short little blog about some differences in his training over the years. People are tending to throw out his name now,
as if by using it they can claim mastership over anything.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;">In the beginning, the olden days in Okinawa and the early days here
in the United States, there was a little bit of trust issues that were going
on. Taika really didn’t know who to
trust and he certainly had his share of intellectual theft from individuals,
anywhere from techniques to flat out using the name of his style. This meant that it took Taika quite a lot of
effort to trust anyone.</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;">Outside Seminar Level Contact<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;">Most people’s first level of contact with him once he immigrated to
the United States was through seminars.
During these seminars he would complete a demonstration or two,
thoroughly slamming people to the ground or knocking them loopy, but with
little to no explanation. He would then
walk around to mostly strangers and show a technique or two and then have them
try to repeat it. He would not show
people exactly how to replicate it, he didn’t spoon feed anyone. There was little to no trust built up with
the majority of attendee’s and he felt that if he gave his secrets away people
would pay someone else for his knowledge.
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;">While at these seminars, people might just see Taika on a stage, in
semi-close proximity, or if lucky actually have Taika walk over and talk to
them and their partner. In a six hour
seminar, most people were lucky if they even got 2 minutes within spitting
distance much less a hands on encounter with the man. Taika would water things, for instance;
bending the wrist of your primary hand during tuite, changing the angles of his
body, et cetera. He would quite
frequently say one thing to everyone but do something different with his
body. We have hundreds of examples of
this recorded in our library.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;"><br /></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;">Inside Seminar Level Contact<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;">As things progressed and his association grew, Taika had many
member only seminars. There was a little
more trust built up with possibly the hosting dojo owner, but not all the attendees
were people Taika knew and trusted. Quite
often there would be a large amount of kyu rank students of the host, and Taika
only formally taught yudansha at his dojo.
More on that in a bit. At these a
little more instruction might come out, a little more detail, but he was still
a very guarded man. Most attendees were
still restricted to just a couple of minutes of face time with the man. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;"><br /></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;">Dojo Level Contact<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;">At Taika’s dojo he taught primarily local yudansha and occasionally
allowed a lucky brown belt that was nearing their yudansha exam to join the
classes. At this level, the instructor
per student ratio was anywhere from 15-30 and you could expect during every
single class to get several minutes of face to face time. If you kept at it for years or decades, your
Oyata clock would get rather full.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;"><br /></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;">Secret Group<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;">Taika knew very well that even in his dojo, with 15-30 people at
any given time it was hard to separate his time sufficiently to groom people
the way he needed to so that a large percentage of his knowledge wouldn’t be
lost. He would form a smaller group and
then stress to everyone in it that it was secret and they were not to tell
anyone. Of course, he himself wasn’t
very good at keeping secrets but these again were yet another step up,
decreasing the instructor/student ration from anywhere from two to one to ten
to one. This ratio was great, however
the ability to logistically get the larger group of maybe 10 people together in
secret was difficult, particularly when only two were geographically close. Two to one groups were pretty simple if the
two lived local to him. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;"><br /></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;">Solo Training<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;">And of course the best ratio was the one on one training that
usually occurred in his basement, garage or back yard. Few lucky practitioners reached this stage
and for various reasons. The lucky may
have been picked for their special abilities, their proved trustworthiness,
basic proximity to him, or a myriad of other reasons. Those that have shared their experiences with
me have had nothing more than a basic guess as to Taika’s reasoning for
choosing them for a specific area of training.
These sessions could be related to special weapons, open hand or just
principles and philosophies. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;"><br /></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;">Summary</span></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;">Oyata clock hour’s aside, the <b>innate ability</b>, <b>determination</b>
and <b>practice regimen</b> of the participant in any of these training
settings makes it so that no two people can be precisely compared. However, the next time someone is touting
their Oyata relationship, check their clock hours. Did they go to two seminars as an outsider
compiling maybe 4 minutes of face time?
Did they go to two seminars as a kyu member, compiling maybe 4 minutes
of face time? Did they train for 1 year
at his dojo compiling a few hours of face time?
Did they attend two large seminars a year compiling about 8 minutes of
time per year face to face for two decades?
Did they train directly one on one with the man, accumulating hundreds
or thousands of Oyata clock hours? It is
really difficult to put a time clock punch card on the table and review the
reality of the training people are touting.
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;">There are far too many people throwing around Taika’s namesake as
their lineage when they only belong to the first category, or even worse their
instructor was in the first category and they themselves never even met the
man. Ask questions of them and the
people that know them. If someone is
touting Oyata’s lineage, you should see it in their body and in their
technique, not hear it in their mouth. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Lee Richardshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17653138139293202826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5234555046630780234.post-82050859319306487122017-08-03T23:21:00.002-05:002017-08-03T23:21:43.391-05:00Tanbo - French Grip and German Grip<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">French Grip and German Grip<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPN_l27D4bw7LtLitylmvu9l-tt1W7ktDmz_ICmejINAaNN3Lt4eLVWO87Tjr62chEbLgJoEq7feVN4nLi5C5OruIrHqJugugiPO6XDCscVY5zCRf2UAz6fpPozkJMohWchTsoqarVYg/s1600/drumkit.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1411" data-original-width="1052" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPN_l27D4bw7LtLitylmvu9l-tt1W7ktDmz_ICmejINAaNN3Lt4eLVWO87Tjr62chEbLgJoEq7feVN4nLi5C5OruIrHqJugugiPO6XDCscVY5zCRf2UAz6fpPozkJMohWchTsoqarVYg/s320/drumkit.JPG" width="238" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">I
know what you’re thinking. Wasn’t this
supposed to be a blog about Tanbo? Well,
yes it is. But I wanted to talk about
some theory on grip, specifically Oyata’s theories that he shared with me in
that last few years before he passed away.
I never could specifically place WHY he picked me for Tanbo. Was it because I was a drummer? Was it because I was a cop that used police
batons? Or was I just a reliable student
who was accessible to him, lived close, and he felt he could impart these
tidbits of knowledge to? Who knows? Perhaps it was a combination of these or
maybe none of them. I do believe that
being a drummer has given me a bit of insight into Tanbo strikes and captures
that I wouldn’t have had if I hadn’t spent close to 4 decades striking drums
and cymbals.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">In
the drum world, we call the grip Taika had me use on the sticks as MATCHED
GRIP. There are essentially two variants
of the matched grip when striking a drum; French and German. I’m going to use this terminology in
describing the strikes and you can substitute whatever terms you want, it
really doesn’t matter. And as always,
there are gradually blends of the two.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">French Grip (Power Grip)<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-6n0S-NQPgBf1NnyvwjLyiTybU30FsMuS8rDxZJoQBDY8LHmMYMDAYcjJQpbOpDt7pfEiyJXeQKHanF8-33-D-nBxn22rUoNu7GCtGvQvXL8AEqfK9078i1aGjXgIiBey_1rjY9lU-A/s1600/french+2.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1008" data-original-width="1600" height="125" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-6n0S-NQPgBf1NnyvwjLyiTybU30FsMuS8rDxZJoQBDY8LHmMYMDAYcjJQpbOpDt7pfEiyJXeQKHanF8-33-D-nBxn22rUoNu7GCtGvQvXL8AEqfK9078i1aGjXgIiBey_1rjY9lU-A/s200/french+2.png" width="200" /></a></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">On a drum stick, French Grip is essentially thumbs up
or thumbs on the opposite side of the object you are striking. Just like in striking a body with a Tanbo,
when striking various drums in a drum kit or cymbals, your hand turns at
different angles. This is most like a
milking punch. The pinky side of your
hand is towards the striking side and if you opened your hand, your palm would
be facing about a right angle away from the striking point. The thumb side of your wrist absorbs the
impact and helps extend the stick into the object. It can prevent the bounce or recoil if
wished. Most of the time in drumming,
you want a bounce. But in striking a
body, you probably want to penetrate and extend through your target. This grip, you could also think of as a <b>Power Grip</b> and <b>Penetrating Grip</b>. There may
be times you want a rebound in a fight, but this grip is better suited for
penetration. Unlike in drumming, you are
going to have the pad of the wrist absorbing the impact which will be in line
with your radial bone. Your pinky finger
and perhaps ring finger will curl in to help pivot the stick into the target. Probably wouldn’t have my thumb in this exact
position on a tanbo but you get the point.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">German Grip (Pivot Grip)<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvcqSae0thhdm3dOloMgtZfA9Eeg22GWwXvMsy6jn6deM9GxC2m6L2VmBNihkjAW55CqtLM4R2EOv8KktrXaxPUnaKc8gqcJ6gYX32JDl3y2i1Q33wbY15e6KbItuwBGBR8O2M1n63aQ/s1600/02+German+Drum.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="987" data-original-width="1600" height="123" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvcqSae0thhdm3dOloMgtZfA9Eeg22GWwXvMsy6jn6deM9GxC2m6L2VmBNihkjAW55CqtLM4R2EOv8KktrXaxPUnaKc8gqcJ6gYX32JDl3y2i1Q33wbY15e6KbItuwBGBR8O2M1n63aQ/s200/02+German+Drum.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;">German Grip, on the other hand, the stick goes into
the webbing of your hand between the thumb and the index finger.</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">I would call this a </span><b style="font-size: 14pt;">Pivot Grip</b><span style="font-size: 14pt;">.</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">There is a
noticeable lack of support for the stick when striking something.</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">There is nothing on the back of the stick supporting
it when it strikes an object.</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">The stick
will give way to the force. </span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Essentially,
if you opened your hand your palm would be facing towards the strike.</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">You might be thinking, “Why would I want
this?”</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">This is one of the brilliant
philosophical gifts from Taika.</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Using
this grip allows you to use the opponent’s arm, neck, leg, or torso as a pivot
point.</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">The second you strike an object,
the stick gives way to that object and starts to ‘fold’ through the webbing of
your hand.</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">If you hand keeps its forward
motion, you can let the stick switch sides, roll around the object, and capture
the object.</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">This is the major benefit of
this Pivot Grip.</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">The
kata Taika was teaching me over his last few years was a Close Quarters Tanbo
kata. The Pivot Grip is integral in
capturing the opponent. Wrist, Elbow,
Shoulder and Neck were the typical targets of the techniques from the kata. All of this was enabled by using these two
grips on the stick. Additionally, the
position on the stick has changed from the traditional Tanbo grip. Instead of holding the stick at the ends, the
grip is at the natural and optimal fulcrum of the stick. This is identical to most drum stick
grips. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">Rule of Thirds – Approximately<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwl6ir7arBT2erp50uD5X917n1rvFReTRz2ZYNaO19mu2ZuoeWU4TslSUPPjyELW4-zeFsw74J42rLir0B9Pyioq1u_wrb0Tt8n85dsVOEJ5dCscfNZKFQUacTnWyHJDU8RXm8Tvr2kg/s1600/two+thirds.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="842" data-original-width="1600" height="105" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwl6ir7arBT2erp50uD5X917n1rvFReTRz2ZYNaO19mu2ZuoeWU4TslSUPPjyELW4-zeFsw74J42rLir0B9Pyioq1u_wrb0Tt8n85dsVOEJ5dCscfNZKFQUacTnWyHJDU8RXm8Tvr2kg/s200/two+thirds.jpg" width="200" /></a><span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">In gripping the Tanbo like Taika showed me for this
kata, or a drumstick, we typically use the rule of thirds to find the Optimal Balance
Point for striking. I’m not talking
about 100% true balance in the center, but the optimal fulcrum. The front end, and inevitably the back end
when sliding to the reverse grip in the kata, should be about 1/3 of the stick
to 2/3 ratio. There are other factors
that might come into play like the type of wood (weight) and of course with a
drum stick it tapers at the end and may have a small or large bead or even
plastic weighted bead. We don’t have
that with a Tanbo. Drummers call this
isolating the fulcrum or finding the ‘sweet spot’. Finding this fulcrum point does two things;
allows an optimal amount of energy transfer and balance when striking, and
allows an optimal amount of strength when capturing with the long end. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">First,
let’s get the right sized Tanbo for our body.
Not all humans are the same size, so not all Tanbo should be the
same. The 1” thick by 24” length is
rarely going to be the right size for anyone.
Keep in mind, this is a close in, Close Quarters kata. If your stick is too long you will hit
yourself in the face trying to do some of these techniques. If it is too thick you won’t be able to keep
a good grip during impact as well as roll the stick during squeezes and
captures. (<a href="http://tuite-kyusho.blogspot.com/2013_03_01_archive.html">See blog</a>)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKKrGh4CdYDGuKd9hALGNa61ZT2rqCNl4rqkcf61jFZEKuOWtcENoqC1AbSrcXt6XpCe8Zem7_AC1bXPnVoqauZYr5O6m6GI-P28TeoysO-sl5xhPgCkd8PUJQ_Q4u-lqQukPrKZnoFA/s1600/Aft+Thirds.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="952" data-original-width="1600" height="118" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKKrGh4CdYDGuKd9hALGNa61ZT2rqCNl4rqkcf61jFZEKuOWtcENoqC1AbSrcXt6XpCe8Zem7_AC1bXPnVoqauZYr5O6m6GI-P28TeoysO-sl5xhPgCkd8PUJQ_Q4u-lqQukPrKZnoFA/s200/Aft+Thirds.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;">Since most of you do not have a drum handy, take a
mouse pad and set it on a piece of wood or table.</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">We are not going to be hitting it very hard,
but don’t dent Great Grandma’s 100 year old dining room table that you
inherited.</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Start by holding your Tanbo with a grip about
2/3 forward, 1/3 back.</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Try the French
Grip shown above.</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Now a drummer is pinching
the stick at the 1/3 mark usually with their index finger and thumb.</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">That is a pretty weak grip when hitting a
person.</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Fine on a drum that isn’t
hitting back, but not fine for combat.</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">A
better grip, and the one we use will be essentially the same however we will
use our middle finger at the point of assumed optimal fulcrum.</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Now, using your wrist only, locking your
forearm in place, lift and tap the mouse pad.</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">
</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Let the stick bounce.</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">This
requires a completely loose grip.</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Let
the stick pivot between the middle finger and the thumb.</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">This is not how you’d hit someone, but we are
finding the sweet spot.</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Count the times
it bounces.</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Now adjust your grip up and
down the stick a couple of centimeters at a time.</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">The spot you find gets the most bounces, is
the sweet spot and where your middle finger should go.</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Presuming your stick is a typical Tanbo and
straight, then you can mark the stick and just measure it to match on the
opposite side.</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Now you know the optimal
placement of your middle finger fore and aft.</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">
</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">This kata has a long end foreward position and a long end rearward
position.</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Unless you are using a tapered
Tanbo, which I don’t suggest, then these should match.</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">If you are using rattan or bamboo, these
balance points may be different on each end.</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">Power Grip Strike<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFd_uqjUAt-UQPXl-3v6m9qNZdCIZRW5DrUs7SNNPKR2UB2UiquUPMJ4bksDEvAzEHNCHgH84hM235kVRwdZ_FYxb_eeF4gWQKEdVbjp13JI0Ua5ZQu4eLaVUoio1_mqIVkaZmishckA/s1600/01+French+Pre+Penetrate.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="853" data-original-width="1600" height="106" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFd_uqjUAt-UQPXl-3v6m9qNZdCIZRW5DrUs7SNNPKR2UB2UiquUPMJ4bksDEvAzEHNCHgH84hM235kVRwdZ_FYxb_eeF4gWQKEdVbjp13JI0Ua5ZQu4eLaVUoio1_mqIVkaZmishckA/s200/01+French+Pre+Penetrate.png" width="200" /></a><span style="font-size: 18.6667px;">Once you have figured out your optimum location for your power strike it is time to hit things. I would suggest a bag rather than brother, sister, spouse or your kid. Noisy neighbors are optional. When you strike something like a bag</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijiCd07aYvloQNXLROd16_wxqAENDekUwor035ivOCj7zFMmad_H7zC4D9W4FcRtmen-Dqdd656I_ELWT03mahyphenhyphenmhk-0FDKqhk6qPetA7NUBPcVeDD0EGFA8nkggJWG11gOMmhcKbHxg/s1600/01+French+Thumb.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="773" data-original-width="1600" height="96" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijiCd07aYvloQNXLROd16_wxqAENDekUwor035ivOCj7zFMmad_H7zC4D9W4FcRtmen-Dqdd656I_ELWT03mahyphenhyphenmhk-0FDKqhk6qPetA7NUBPcVeDD0EGFA8nkggJWG11gOMmhcKbHxg/s200/01+French+Thumb.png" width="200" /></a><span style="font-size: 18.6667px;">Obviously, striking with your thumb on the back works on a drum but can be detrimental to your thumb when hitting hard.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-zFr3mScye_0HHdDP9ODic6stA703ZR3ywvI5OipdZXlp3pIcztMiXCx0Yn_clk5cRDCwoKVP94H6n482FzxIh9fIv3pHJdFFlZS43LTlweFjL8CT9zf-I7gz4ch4IhnW3cDk5OTEAw/s1600/02+German+Capture+02.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYY8CifLxekmXNb2vDeht0BNeK4M_64pGGIvVRE_ja7SIcZRrNuuh6sy7a5amsJbL-bt-591oX_rM_sB-IQQTVdDGOvSDfuWiP64bRQvwfxFpUW7g3tXoLvlj57F3zBImvvAbVY6yxVw/s1600/02+German+Capture+03.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="900" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYY8CifLxekmXNb2vDeht0BNeK4M_64pGGIvVRE_ja7SIcZRrNuuh6sy7a5amsJbL-bt-591oX_rM_sB-IQQTVdDGOvSDfuWiP64bRQvwfxFpUW7g3tXoLvlj57F3zBImvvAbVY6yxVw/s200/02+German+Capture+03.png" width="112" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: 18.6667px;"><span style="font-size: 18.6667px;"><br /></span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 18.6667px;">
This same power grip can help you hook and capture with logically, a strong grip. With the pinky side, whether long or short, you can capture an arm, wrist, neck, et cetera. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-zFr3mScye_0HHdDP9ODic6stA703ZR3ywvI5OipdZXlp3pIcztMiXCx0Yn_clk5cRDCwoKVP94H6n482FzxIh9fIv3pHJdFFlZS43LTlweFjL8CT9zf-I7gz4ch4IhnW3cDk5OTEAw/s1600/02+German+Capture+02.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="900" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-zFr3mScye_0HHdDP9ODic6stA703ZR3ywvI5OipdZXlp3pIcztMiXCx0Yn_clk5cRDCwoKVP94H6n482FzxIh9fIv3pHJdFFlZS43LTlweFjL8CT9zf-I7gz4ch4IhnW3cDk5OTEAw/s200/02+German+Capture+02.png" width="112" /></a></div>
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<b>Pivot Grip</b><br />
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
Deliberately contacting or striking while using a pivot grip (or switching mid-stream) allows you to continue through the target and wrap around and capture the item you pivoted past. Naturally, with everything in these arts, much practice needs to be made. As your grip open slightly, the strength of the grip is weakened momentarily. You don’t want to take a full brunt strike from this grip. Developing your skill with this grip is what will help make your clickity clackity stick fighting turn into a close quarters capture environment.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEic6fYNpkDVw7IVlAadbeX0QemdAoelR4ElrG8KmdzolQy3Ibn3-SrK-ZqObAFJW6qh1yRhxmVeMKorKD-1IKpj_3EBoRv8gGAGh7IbwyLTyKS5YEquCkjHcLc1DmOSj63g9Z1jsU2ydA/s1600/02+German+Pre+Release.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="831" data-original-width="1600" height="103" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEic6fYNpkDVw7IVlAadbeX0QemdAoelR4ElrG8KmdzolQy3Ibn3-SrK-ZqObAFJW6qh1yRhxmVeMKorKD-1IKpj_3EBoRv8gGAGh7IbwyLTyKS5YEquCkjHcLc1DmOSj63g9Z1jsU2ydA/s200/02+German+Pre+Release.png" width="200" /></a> <span style="text-align: justify;"> </span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHepIg3g6wcx18XMoZxr8fAgITe8qaHdV40_bmgTutjhwFcdgU33bJtLn0Lp6So-LDRB3pAcc0ppvAQpuXPJk5aznfmxcTDQYgpJingxxHdSMGW-6gbT8sQ-_FuGa8CBskebcRT4BLcQ/s1600/02+German+Web+Release.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="112" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHepIg3g6wcx18XMoZxr8fAgITe8qaHdV40_bmgTutjhwFcdgU33bJtLn0Lp6So-LDRB3pAcc0ppvAQpuXPJk5aznfmxcTDQYgpJingxxHdSMGW-6gbT8sQ-_FuGa8CBskebcRT4BLcQ/s200/02+German+Web+Release.png" width="200" /></a></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">I
could type and talk for hours on the lessons Taika gave me in regards to this,
but I’ll just stop now with this ‘beginning’ as it was the beginning he gave me
that opened my eyes to a whole new world.
Hopefully it gives you some extra things to think about and develop as
it continues to do to me.</span></div>
Lee Richardshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17653138139293202826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5234555046630780234.post-20120664164454948652017-08-03T21:36:00.000-05:002021-05-04T08:00:25.385-05:00Public Service Announcement - It's NOT a Choke <div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">After
much debate over three or more years, I have left the former association I was
affiliated with for many long years. I
am not going into the how or why, or a smear campaign. I have attempted to take the high road in many
ways, and yet I have recently heard of some people smearing me. I chose a low profile and thus have not posted anything in a year, and nothing at all since January when I did not renew.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">First
off, it was not my idea to take the entire KC group away. In all seriousness, the KC group was trying
to pry me away for 2-3 years before I finally gave in for reasons I will not
list here. I was the last one holding us
in that organization. Me, the one
certain people are wrongfully saying was the kingpin and ring leader taking
everyone away. It was a difficult
decision for me and suffice to say, was only acted upon after I felt it was
truly affecting my health. I tried hard before
making the decision, to contribute and I believe the 2016 Summer Conference is
proof of that where I invested thousands of dollars of my own money in a last
ditch effort to get some exposure for the organization. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">I
have no delusions of grandeur. I will
not ever be the best or most knowledgeable artist in the world nor in my little
circle of friends. I will not be a
master. I will not be the leader of a
world organization with a throng of hundreds or thousands. I will just be Lee, training as I always
have. Sharing as I always have. I have no idea why people want to smear
me. I am not in competition with anyone.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 14pt;">I
attempted to stay silent out of respect for Taika. People are saying I started calling and emailing
and messaging everyone in the association telling them that I was going and
inviting them to come with me. Again, I
have no aspirations of leading anyone anywhere.
I will train in my basement dojo with those that want to train there,
with my students and peers. I will
attend seminars here and there to increase my knowledge and if someone wants me
to share, I will share. I’m not
greedy. I ONLY let three close friends
outside of the KC group know I was not renewing, only after myself and Lisa
went and talked to Robin face to face. We
didn’t just send a cold letter, email or facebook message. Probably the most difficult break up in my
life. That night, I told 3 close </span><span style="font-size: 18.6667px;">confidants</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> that were out of town, only one of which was still remaining in the
organization at the time and he still remains.
None of which I attempted to recruit to become my disciples. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">Only
two people still in the organization have reached out to me and asked about it
and I have talked to them about my base reasons. I have not led a smear campaign. I have disagreements with the philosophy of
things and so I chose what was best suited for my physical and emotional needs
after it was obvious we were set upon drastically different paths. I left.
I will not voice the reasons of all the other yudansha and mudansha in
the KC area. All had their reasons and
made their own choices, many of which many months or years prior to mine. I have kept quiet for 8 months now, because it is not my place to sway others, as it should not be others' place to wrongfully smear me.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 14.0pt;"><br></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">I still support the family in other ways. I still pay with my own funds for their web site, as I have done for many, many years. I gave the reigns of that endeavor over to Masaki Oyata last year, I have no input or anything on the site. I merely pay the bills out of respect for Taika. I know my departure wasn't appreciated or fully understood by the family, but I just couldn't remain under the circumstances.</span></div>
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<br></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">If
you have heard rumors, please check with the source. I can be reached on this blog, on facebook,
via the website’s email, and most of the people who would actually read this
know my phone number. I will not wave my
sith lord hand and invite you to the dark side.
I don’t know any mind tricks. I
won’t play any games.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt;"><br></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">BLOOD CHOKE: And for those using Blood Choke as their vernacular for this or the Rear Naked Choke...you need to stop that as well. Go back and look at the Japanese (kanji) and you will see it in no way translates to the word choke. Wrong word brought back to English speaking countries by gaijin (foreigners) who had a few months in country and learned very little Japanese. It is wrong. It is incorrect. Just because your sensei's sensei who served a few months on an island said it, doesn't change the fact that it is a poor and completely incorrect translation.</span></div>
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<br></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">I
am but a simple man, rolling over into my waning years of my physical
limitations, and attempting to enjoy those years with less stress in my life.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">Sincerely,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">Lee
Richards<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">oyatate.com</span></div>
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<br></div>
Lee Richardshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17653138139293202826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5234555046630780234.post-83139474377998207752017-08-03T21:05:00.002-05:002022-03-07T14:31:13.598-06:00The Choke Misidentification Conundrum<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<b><span style="font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 14.0pt;">The Choke Misidentification
Conundrum<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<i><span style="font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 14.0pt;">Do you suffer
from CMC, there is a cure?<br /><br />UPDATED: March 7, 2022<br />Reason: Correcting Dead Video Links, et cetera.<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<i><span style="font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 14.0pt;">Education<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 14pt;">Repeatedly,
I hear the ignorant masses spouting wrong things about Choke Hold This and
Choke Hold That. Before you feel
insulted, ignorance is something we all have.
I am quite ignorant of how to get to the moon or Mars. I have a general idea but have not fully
educated myself. The math of it all is
probably a bit above me. Being ignorant
doesn’t mean I’m stupid, dumb or anything of the sort. I have just not educated myself on that
particular topic. I am ignorant in a
myriad of things including portions of the martial arts, hence my continued
study. There are a ton of people totally
ignorant of the difference in a choke and a neck restraint, particularly a
carotid restraint.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;">Choke (Chōk) - verb<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;">(of
a person or animal) have severe difficulty in breathing because of a
constricted or obstructed throat or a lack of air.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;">A <b>choke</b> is an action where you are
cutting off a person’s air supply. Most
often in the martial arts, it refers to the action of placing ones forearm
across the front of a person’s neck and squeezing to cut off the air supply by
pressure against the windpipe or trachea. Of course it can occur in other ways such as
with a bicep, leg, et cetera. The MMA
has made the leg variant popular.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8x8OoYzPfVbB8ha0AK0tDyzCOMNSmelX73nEriAXJ5gqoQM9eT2EuEM7HjtZww96TK6_VNVs00EejFdbaOeAm_5WrU9fRrWC1FL3CJNHjaU7MiRkS-tb8RmXzgH15DVeXxBfqOPGo3g/s1600/choke+3.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="106" data-original-width="135" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8x8OoYzPfVbB8ha0AK0tDyzCOMNSmelX73nEriAXJ5gqoQM9eT2EuEM7HjtZww96TK6_VNVs00EejFdbaOeAm_5WrU9fRrWC1FL3CJNHjaU7MiRkS-tb8RmXzgH15DVeXxBfqOPGo3g/s1600/choke+3.jpg" /></a><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDJ9hE3KwrxEHuF4KYt13jrMJ6IWjhYu7U_nty-L94knYe_xDB0qSCoYBGWFuFiUdBCrchCSTr-SDjZNg-rPhhnJlGL035jQepk20x1-xiJ3j7aSABZf23LEqkaRLnF9lSxZrQRirp9g/s1600/choke+1.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="112" data-original-width="116" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDJ9hE3KwrxEHuF4KYt13jrMJ6IWjhYu7U_nty-L94knYe_xDB0qSCoYBGWFuFiUdBCrchCSTr-SDjZNg-rPhhnJlGL035jQepk20x1-xiJ3j7aSABZf23LEqkaRLnF9lSxZrQRirp9g/s1600/choke+1.jpg" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhV1rPnPOIjGorvflrwy0uLImGU7mppX9piotZIjpQrdFTxfh5A2t55JeigTTWcAV6EaTxSgrnT2Z7H6-uhW6zUTFfiUJ9vAp-xcpWCJRdilttr5p4PoC8qkHPZe-bWKrpN4tuziXzCsQ/s1600/choke+4.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="104" data-original-width="121" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhV1rPnPOIjGorvflrwy0uLImGU7mppX9piotZIjpQrdFTxfh5A2t55JeigTTWcAV6EaTxSgrnT2Z7H6-uhW6zUTFfiUJ9vAp-xcpWCJRdilttr5p4PoC8qkHPZe-bWKrpN4tuziXzCsQ/s1600/choke+4.jpg" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgumQA_U6-KuomZpjAqGlDrcoWFIXd4U73plLmRKAYtE04MF6ZM42wvwJFCye5oOlxk3kxYUC09YmBvdCVWFRjXqI7sPcn1byZmwwrQ1PBZTPdeDrksmR87vcZDiQ1FePAPTCFL7zbwAA/s1600/choke+2.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="154" data-original-width="182" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgumQA_U6-KuomZpjAqGlDrcoWFIXd4U73plLmRKAYtE04MF6ZM42wvwJFCye5oOlxk3kxYUC09YmBvdCVWFRjXqI7sPcn1byZmwwrQ1PBZTPdeDrksmR87vcZDiQ1FePAPTCFL7zbwAA/s1600/choke+2.jpg" /></a> </div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;">Chokes
such as this have been popular for years in movies. You see them all the time in your favorite
spy movies and such. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;">Choke techniques have two core problems:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-size: 14pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">1.<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-size: 14pt;">They can easily result in death or serious injury.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-size: 14pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">2.<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-size: 14pt;">They can easily result in a law suit from the
impending death or physical injury.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;">In
today’s society, I cannot fathom a very good reason to teach these other than
as a matter of life or death. Maybe you
find yourself in this position and they are stabbing you in the leg or torso
with that knife you missed so you crush their trachea…..ok, but in today’s
society everyone is going to pick apart how you got in that position to begin
with, which is kind of what started this blog tonight. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;">We
teach in our dojo, <b>not to do this</b>. It is our belief, with years of Law
Enforcement experience to back it up, that chokes take longer to incapacitate
than carotid restraints take to render unconsciousness, unless you are the Hulk
and then, well, it isn’t easy being green.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;">So
what is a carotid restraint? My
classmate does an excellent job here of explaining it:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><a href="https://www.policeone.com/police-trainers/articles/6157483-Why-the-LVNR-isnt-a-choke-hold/" target="_blank">Why the LVNR isn’t a ‘Choke Hold’ </a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;">For
those either too lazy or under time restraints…..suffice to say it affects the
circulatory system, <b><span style="color: #c00000;">NOT</span></b> the airway. And note that LVNR is a trademarked SYSTEM of
instruction used to apply a carotid restraint.
The <a href="http://www.nletc.com/">NLETC</a> has a long and impressive
track record of training police officers to use carotid restraints throughout
the world <b>without</b> cases of death or
serious injury. They are meticulous in
their approach and training and that is why agencies all over the world use
them. What? But the media has you to believe that these
things are banned by all law enforcement because of the danger. Nope, quite the contrary….just like a lot of
other things you hear online. If it is so dangerous, then why are there no cases of death or serious injury with its use in over 50 years of agencies using this system as well as 130+ years of Judo tournaments?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;">The
easy way to spot the difference between a choke and a carotid restraint, as the
two sets of pictures above and below show, is that in a choke (above) the
controlling and damaging mechanism is <u>across the front of the throat</u>. <b><span style="color: #c00000;">That is a bad thing.</span></b> In a carotid restraint (below), the elbow is
in front of or in close proximity of the chin.
This PROTECTS the airway. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoux2gVlFSeQwEXy2nWvmWiyuVozdnIMHEXrxgjH1CuguKl56zLdBUHe0Lt6WUbtGZkqtfliTZ_CWay1p-3qWj9mHEoGoqWuMtSQ0WcZHS6BuHcbV1ALF2T_yZeGqWe5k2mISv0ryVjw/s1600/choke02.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1066" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoux2gVlFSeQwEXy2nWvmWiyuVozdnIMHEXrxgjH1CuguKl56zLdBUHe0Lt6WUbtGZkqtfliTZ_CWay1p-3qWj9mHEoGoqWuMtSQ0WcZHS6BuHcbV1ALF2T_yZeGqWe5k2mISv0ryVjw/s200/choke02.png" width="133" /></a> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj98ox0KWEmIYIjdCevgCpKEezPHRyWGgOIKvbnmGdouN2crm2ezBLLt-lymypLsAvMbW6tH-fegK1ubVcu6aLZm3K7bO7Syn4Y90jIwkZZkXXekJuTmmgrErIPoMJarweCxoAeXwYYKA/s1600/Choke.png" style="font-size: 14pt; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1040" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj98ox0KWEmIYIjdCevgCpKEezPHRyWGgOIKvbnmGdouN2crm2ezBLLt-lymypLsAvMbW6tH-fegK1ubVcu6aLZm3K7bO7Syn4Y90jIwkZZkXXekJuTmmgrErIPoMJarweCxoAeXwYYKA/s200/Choke.png" width="130" /></a></div>
<o:p></o:p><br />
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<b><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Good Thing – Airway is Open<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;">Who’s
at fault for this confusion?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;">The
media is part of the problem, but <b>we</b>
as martial (life protection) artist <b>are
the main source of the problem.</b> A
vast majority of us for decades have confused the two when discussing
them. They may look similar to the naked
eye, but they are completely different things.
<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-size: 18.6667px;"><b><span style="color: #990000;">BLOOD CHOKE:</span> </b>And for those using Blood Choke as their vernacular for this or the Rear Naked Choke...you need to stop that as well. Go back and look at the Japanese (kanji) and you will see it in no way translates to the word choke. Wrong word brought back to English speaking countries by gaijin (foreigners) who had a few months in country and learned very little Japanese. It is wrong. It is incorrect. Just because your sensei's sensei who served a few months on an island said it, doesn't change the fact that it is a poor and completely incorrect translation. Blood Choke came about when martial artist began getting their vernacular corrected but refused to give up the word choke, so once again they couldn't admit they were wrong and just added the word blood to the front. Again, nothing is choked off. The supply of oxygen enriched blood slows but does not cease unless you use a </span></span><span style="font-size: 18.6667px; text-align: left;">Marie Antoinette </span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: Alegreya, serif; font-size: 20px; text-align: left;">guillotine.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;">What can you do as a fellow artists? - <b>Change your nomenclature!<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;">Stop
calling things the wrong thing. Even
though for years you have heard certain things called a choke, if they are not
a choke as previously defined, stop doing it.
Review all your handouts, web curriculum, and fix it. Start correcting anyone you hear say it wrong. Do it now!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Tackles</span></b><span style="font-size: 14pt;">: The other
thing is there are commonly confused ‘take downs’ that are used by law enforcement,
security officers, et cetera that at first glance appear to be either a choke
or a carotid restraint. These are in
fact tackles that start by encirclement of the area around the neck but </span><i style="font-size: 14pt;">should not</i><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> really have any
pressure. Of course these can be
dangerous as well as a dog pile ensues or as the two or more ugly masses pile
to the ground. The death of Eric Garner
in New York started as a tackle where the officer appears to be trying to drag
Garner down with his forearm on the carotid side of his neck. Garner is larger, taller than the
officer. I’m not going to further arm
chair quarterback that event but when they go to the ground the arm appears to
be across the front of the neck for 4-5 seconds before the officer switches to
other tactics. Whether there was direct
pressure on the trachea at the time or the officer was trying to </span><span style="font-size: 18.6667px;">re position</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">, is
a debate I won’t get into. That is
beyond the scope of this blog. The party
was able to breathe as he was still able to talk and the medical examiner
concluded that no damage to Garner's windpipe or neck bones was found.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/video/2014/dec/04/i-cant-breathe-eric-garner-chokehold-death-video">Garner
Video</a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Another Case in Point:<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;">Below
is a very typical web <i>news site</i> and
can you spot the problem here? The elbow
is directly below the chin. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;">Is this a choke or a carotid restraint? - Absolutely
correct, it is a <b>CAROTID RESTRAINT</b>.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;">Can
the person breathe? YES, perfectly well,
though he will most likely be taking a nap shortly. Maybe even snoring.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Veucj15lelc">Video</a> – For those that
want to watch more of this, I’m not going to debate the several issues that led
up to the decision to use this but I will say that fundamentally, there is nothing
wrong with using this technique to restraint this individual. I have actually done a rather detailed
research of this incident and others to which I completely side with the orange
shirt. The drunk needed to go and
refused all previous reasonable attempts to comply. Don’t forget that the media only showed a
portion of the video and that the person who filmed it only started filming it
once it had escalated to a level that caught his attention and he subsequently
remembered he had a video recorder on his phone. The problem that ensued is that the <i>uneducated masses</i> that were there immediately
assume the security guard is killing the person. They wrongfully make that assessment because
they are uneducated and then begin interfering which presented a danger to the <b>carotid participant</b>. The carotid participant was in absolutely no
danger until the idiot super vigilantes stepped in.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Veucj15lelc" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="642" data-original-width="698" height="294" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuYVwKxQ1znfJayiJ3lHt4EH6-NOBRUFbqrxqUq9eRWUWVUTFt8Mk92MW9jJ-LYNjb4zO4r7L3e0zwuBBvLDDVWSojbYFYPFwibLA2-uGJSjOaIqsjIdNhVD_lVeRkUl81OfgvrdyG5g/s320/carotid.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Veucj15lelc">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Veucj15lelc</a></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Another Example</span></b><span style="font-size: 18.6667px;"><b></b></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgt3GqR7SMCnUQJGUYGEalNShVNsvlHu_EPgKDFZZzqnGyQAX4ELqb5tlBH6MHCx6-4zJPrkjC-iC0x3yTgsTopUPRD9RfKQWTpwWJLHoVdbDMsXtWQ91ep5gxWj0Ybi04wo6btIhzsWw/s1600/subway+restraint.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="680" data-original-width="538" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgt3GqR7SMCnUQJGUYGEalNShVNsvlHu_EPgKDFZZzqnGyQAX4ELqb5tlBH6MHCx6-4zJPrkjC-iC0x3yTgsTopUPRD9RfKQWTpwWJLHoVdbDMsXtWQ91ep5gxWj0Ybi04wo6btIhzsWw/s200/subway+restraint.png" width="158" /></a><b><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;">Here is the video <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hT-CrJvDEkU" target="_blank">LINK</a> that showed up today in my timeline that caused this blog. Now, the video cuts off and we can debate other things in this video like what led up to it and such, but that is a different topic for another blog. The main thing I want to address is;<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Is this a Choke or a Carotid Restraint?</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;">Well, up until the video ends, the elbow is directly under the
chin. This was a very close quarter’s encounter on a subway. We
actually practice in tighter areas like a city bus and I can tell you that it
took a little bit of skill to keep that elbow where it was. A few people
accused this practitioner of just learning this from watching MMA videos.
If he did, he is a quick study. He did a real good job of getting that
elbow under the chin and keeping it there during this short, tight
encounter. Debate the other things to your hearts content, but this is
very much a </span><b>Carotid Restraint</b>.</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 18.6667px;"><u><b>So what is the difference in the incorrectly labeled Rear Naked Choke and the LVNR</b></u></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #494949; font-family: DDG_ProximaNova, DDG_ProximaNova_UI_0, DDG_ProximaNova_UI_1, DDG_ProximaNova_UI_2, DDG_ProximaNova_UI_3, DDG_ProximaNova_UI_4, DDG_ProximaNova_UI_5, DDG_ProximaNova_UI_6, "Proxima Nova", "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, "Segoe UI", "Nimbus Sans L", "Liberation Sans", "Open Sans", FreeSans, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; text-align: start;"><u><b>®</b></u> that is practiced by most Police Officers?</span><span style="background-color: white; text-align: start;"><span style="color: #494949; font-family: DDG_ProximaNova, DDG_ProximaNova_UI_0, DDG_ProximaNova_UI_1, DDG_ProximaNova_UI_2, DDG_ProximaNova_UI_3, DDG_ProximaNova_UI_4, DDG_ProximaNova_UI_5, DDG_ProximaNova_UI_6, Proxima Nova, Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, Segoe UI, Nimbus Sans L, Liberation Sans, Open Sans, FreeSans, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 18.6667px;"> In the above technique the practitioner has their chest square to the back of the opponent. The LVNR</span></span></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #494949; font-family: DDG_ProximaNova, DDG_ProximaNova_UI_0, DDG_ProximaNova_UI_1, DDG_ProximaNova_UI_2, DDG_ProximaNova_UI_3, DDG_ProximaNova_UI_4, DDG_ProximaNova_UI_5, DDG_ProximaNova_UI_6, "Proxima Nova", "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, "Segoe UI", "Nimbus Sans L", "Liberation Sans", "Open Sans", FreeSans, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; text-align: left;">® </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #494949; font-family: DDG_ProximaNova, DDG_ProximaNova_UI_0, DDG_ProximaNova_UI_1, DDG_ProximaNova_UI_2, DDG_ProximaNova_UI_3, DDG_ProximaNova_UI_4, DDG_ProximaNova_UI_5, DDG_ProximaNova_UI_6, "Proxima Nova", "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, "Segoe UI", "Nimbus Sans L", "Liberation Sans", "Open Sans", FreeSans, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18.6667px; text-align: start;">requires the officer's arm-pit over the subject's shoulder. Why is this a major plus? It makes the arms, because they are farther forward, longer in </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #494949; font-family: DDG_ProximaNova, DDG_ProximaNova_UI_0, DDG_ProximaNova_UI_1, DDG_ProximaNova_UI_2, DDG_ProximaNova_UI_3, DDG_ProximaNova_UI_4, DDG_ProximaNova_UI_5, DDG_ProximaNova_UI_6, "Proxima Nova", "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, "Segoe UI", "Nimbus Sans L", "Liberation Sans", "Open Sans", FreeSans, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18.6667px; text-align: start;">comparison</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #494949; font-family: DDG_ProximaNova, DDG_ProximaNova_UI_0, DDG_ProximaNova_UI_1, DDG_ProximaNova_UI_2, DDG_ProximaNova_UI_3, DDG_ProximaNova_UI_4, DDG_ProximaNova_UI_5, DDG_ProximaNova_UI_6, "Proxima Nova", "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, "Segoe UI", "Nimbus Sans L", "Liberation Sans", "Open Sans", FreeSans, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18.6667px; text-align: start;"> to the technique done on the subway. Depending on size, approximately 4" longer arm length in relation to the neck. A longer arm, thus longer lever, ensures even more distance from the trachea and ensures that this technique does not restrict the airway of the opponent. Both are carotid restraints, but the LVNR</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #494949; font-family: DDG_ProximaNova, DDG_ProximaNova_UI_0, DDG_ProximaNova_UI_1, DDG_ProximaNova_UI_2, DDG_ProximaNova_UI_3, DDG_ProximaNova_UI_4, DDG_ProximaNova_UI_5, DDG_ProximaNova_UI_6, "Proxima Nova", "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, "Segoe UI", "Nimbus Sans L", "Liberation Sans", "Open Sans", FreeSans, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; text-align: left;">®</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #494949; font-family: DDG_ProximaNova, DDG_ProximaNova_UI_0, DDG_ProximaNova_UI_1, DDG_ProximaNova_UI_2, DDG_ProximaNova_UI_3, DDG_ProximaNova_UI_4, DDG_ProximaNova_UI_5, DDG_ProximaNova_UI_6, "Proxima Nova", "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, "Segoe UI", "Nimbus Sans L", "Liberation Sans", "Open Sans", FreeSans, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18.6667px; text-align: start;"> is just safer.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;">To
sum up tonight’s blog, it is </span><b style="font-size: 14pt;">our task</b><span style="font-size: 14pt;">
to correct our own vernacular and nomenclature as well as help to educate the
public. Do not let the uneducated public
and the muck stirring media continue to disparage good techniques by calling
them bad things.</span></div>
Lee Richardshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17653138139293202826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5234555046630780234.post-15762727207261583762016-07-07T05:39:00.003-05:002016-07-07T05:39:18.606-05:00Sins of Our Fathers<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-size: large;">Recently, we’ve all been tied up in the emotions of the death or our leader, Oyata, Taika. It has been an emotional ride and now as I reflect after four years I’m not sure I’ve really even started the grieving process. There has been a lot of hate, bile, ego and testosterone flung from one side of the world to the other. I’ve allowed myself to get caught up in it as well as the next practitioner. I feel it is time to move on, to let bygones be bygones, and get to the point where I can not only begin to train more effectively, but to grieve.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Once massive emotional thorn in my side that I’ve had for many years, and that came to a head when Taika passed, is all the people that hurt him before he died. There were a few people that were kicked out of the association for various reasons, some truly hurt Taika and his family emotionally, financially and in other ways. For years, I have fostered a major hate for these people and all associated with them, particularly if they were still riding on his coat tails. As illogical as it is, I think I somehow blame them for his death. That isn’t reality, isn’t even possible, but part of me feels like lashing out at them because he is gone. Well, it is time to move on. Some of these people have been gone for decades and Taika has been gone for over four years. I cannot let hate consume me. <b>Neurons firing in pursuit of training are much better spent than in pursuit of hate.<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">I’ve gradually come to this realization over the last few months, and I’ve fought it. I didn’t want to let go of the hate. I wanted to hold on to the hate, to feel as if I am defending Taika’s honor. After going to a grief counselor to deal with the fact that I can’t grieve when I’m still dealing with this mental cancer, I have to just move on. This is no longer a concern of Taika’s as he is gone, why should I let it tear my heart apart.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">So where is the ‘Sins of Our Fathers’ part? Recently, a friend in the art was called out for his association with a former student of one of these blacklist refugees. I found myself analyzing and researching the situation a bit because any time any name from that black list came up; I immediately went into defensive mode. I had to step back and ask myself ‘why’? There are a handful of people that Taika kicked out. Many others left with a not so pleasant standing with Taika. I won’t say I’ll ever forget but I can move on. I should move on. I’ve never really liked the phrase ‘Forgive and Forget’ as you should never really forget. Learn from your mistakes and others, but keep moving. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">When someone would leave the association for whatever reason, their students would only ever hear one side of the dispute that brought upon the departure. They wouldn’t hear Taika’s side, only that of their instructor. Put yourself in their place for a moment. Imagine your first instructor, and how they were probably almost a god in your eyes. Many students never even met Taika or if they did it was just a fleeting glimpse at a seminar. Maybe they went to test for Shodan and he was in the room when they tested, yelling or tasking them on some mission. Now suddenly, your instructor sits everyone down and says we are branching out on our own. He give you a story about ‘creative differences’, being stifled, whatever. It doesn’t matter. You don’t personally know Taika, but you have known your instructor for months or years. Most likely you are going to believe your instructor and follow along blindly. Now keep in mind, 10, 20, 25 years ago there was either no internet as we know it today or it wasn’t nearly in the social state it is today. In one profound instance, an instructor was kicked out and told his students for 19 years that he was still training with Taika. Those students believed him. Very few students ever stay long term, so hundreds if not thousands of people march on by only hearing their instructor’s side of the story.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;">I can remember in one instance, where an instructor was expelled by Taika. Taika personally contacted the students and gave them a chance, gave them a choice. He told them his side, and said they could either stay in his association or stay with their original instructor. If Taika gave these people a chance, shouldn't we?</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Back to my friend getting called out, after a bit of digging, I found that the person, who I myself had associated some bile with……was never actually in our association. I was caught up in the hype as well, guilty as charged. This person doesn’t even make claims to have been in our association on his bio unlike many others out there. He <i>had</i> been a disciple of someone who Taika separated from; let’s just call his instructor Mr. Big. At some point, not too long after Taika’s separation from Mr. Big, this student smelt the bull and separated from Mr. Big as well. Shouldn’t we commend that person for smelling the bull and leaving the person Taika had an issue with? Others didn’t leave Mr. Big and are still knee deep in that association. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">As I began to research further, I finally realized that I have had numerous students over the years that originally came from these other splinter groups. I’ve had students from at least four different associations, probably more, that were founded by people that were either kicked out of the association or left under shaky grounds. My tutelage of these students gave them a chance to see how Taika’s art had grown since the departure of their former instructor. It gave them a chance to finally hear Taika’s side of the story. In each case, it gave me a chance to further spread Taika’s unique art.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large; text-align: justify;">As a group of people that profess to be dedicated to spreading Taika’s art, his philosophies, his techniques…..it is time we move on. I’m not saying we need to put the whole band back together. There are some things that can’t be mended. I cannot forget what some people did but I must seriously limit the blame to them and not their followers. This is probably the hardest thing I have had to consider since Taika’s death, but</span><span style="font-size: large; text-align: justify;"> </span><b style="font-size: x-large; text-align: justify;">I will never be able to move on and grieve if I cannot forgive the students for the sins of their masters.</b>Lee Richardshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17653138139293202826noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5234555046630780234.post-19839206552715647992015-12-04T06:41:00.001-06:002015-12-04T06:41:38.172-06:00Your Instructor is not a God - Neither Was Mine<div align="CENTER" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: medium;">Over the
last couple of years I have had people debate me online, in emails
and face to face about things they </span><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>know</i></span><span style="font-size: medium;">
to be true about their instructor. This is usually centered on what
their instructor has told them about their expulsion from RyuTe® Ren
Mei by the founder Taika Seiyu Oyata. </span>
</div>
<div align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div>
<div align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: medium;">Let’s face
it; people don’t like to be wrong. They usually don’t like to
make ‘life mistakes’. I have yet to know a single expelled
person that didn’t make disclaimers about their expulsion.
Whenever Taika would remove someone from the organization, it was
never for anything small or petty. It was always for some major
character flaw or a plethora thereof. In almost every case, there
were warnings and chances given by Taika leading up to the expulsion.
These expulsions were for many things over the years; money,
physically inappropriate relations, integrity issues, drug problems,
adultery, as well as others and combinations thereof. It was
Taika’s organization and he was free to expel them for any reason
he chose, and he never did it lightly or because of some big
conspiracy. Let’s face it, none of the other yudansha in the
organization were coordinated or spiteful enough to plant drugs on
someone, hire an underage girl and her mother to tempt an instructor,
entice someone to steal money from Taika or cheat him out of money,
tempt someone to make yudansha certificates to promote people without
Taika’s knowledge, host secret seminars and advertise that Taika was coming when he knew nothing about the seminar, or a myriad of other infractions that occurred.
</span>
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<span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div>
<div align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: medium;">What
frustrates me and others that remain in the association is the very
common fiction that ends up being spread. The lack of logic that
oozes from these stories is maddening. But we see it with every
other conspiracy in every other situation that floods the web
nowadays so why I expect any more from the testosterone driven market
of the martial world is I guess my fault. I’ve recently had second
and third generation students of expelled people challenge my
interpretation of their instructor, or instructor’s instructor’s,
relationship with Taika. </span>
</div>
<div align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div>
<div align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: medium;">Please, I
beg of you people, look at things from a logical and evidentiary
view. Challenge what your instructor is saying. I did, yes I said
it. I did not always take what Taika said at face value, he was
human. I’m not saying I didn’t trust him, but there was always
room for misinterpretation with the language and cultural barriers in
place. Plus I am a cop and a historian, so when he’d tell me
something I’d want the bigger picture, more facts to go with it. I
asked questions, I looked for evidence in many ways. I validated
information. When he would tell me something like the island his
father was the mayor of, where he grew up, I researched all the
information I could find on that island. It was just fascinating
information that was now readily accessible due to the internet. </span>
</div>
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<span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div>
<div align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: medium;">If your
instructor claimed to be Taika’s favorite student and still trained
with him, why for 19 years did Taika never show up at a single event
hosted by your instructor’s instructor? Why were there in 19 years
no pictures or videos of the two together? Why was he kicked out of
the funeral he was asked not to attend in the first place? Why did
his flowers so offend the family they threw them in the dumpster at
the funeral home? And a special note on that action, requested by
the immediate family, it was the giant capital letters on the cards
with the name of the expelled member’s organization that was
offensive. It was as if every florist was expressly told that those
words and only those words should be in all capital letters. That
was like a slap to the face of the family trying to grieve mere days
after the death of their father and husband. If your instructor(s) quit coming regularly or at all to classes in 2000 (after the first surgery scare), and you hadn't even started training by that date, then don't expect me to not sigh in total disgust at your inaccurate 'facts' about what occurred in my presence during my time with Taika. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div>
<div align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: medium;">I know there
have been people asking questions and figuring this out in the past
because people had frequently left these peripheral factions in
search the real McCoy, one Taika Seiyu Oyata. Numerous times over
the years people would train for a while in one or more of these
groups hoping to meet Taika and then being crushed when they learned
the truth after a senior member reluctantly pulled them aside because
they were asking too many questions about Taika. These questions
could embarrass their leader. Some choke it down and continued to
study with the expelled, and I don’t fault them for that. Many of
the expelled were very talented practitioners that just made poor
decisions during their crossroads with Taika. They were forced to go
a different direction and that is fine. Their skills didn’t go
‘poof’ and hopefully they learned from their social mistakes.
Continuing to train with them is their choice. My question remains
though, if some people can smell the bull, then why don’t others?
If the red flags are there, if the evidence is obvious to some, then
why do some people who never met Taika in their life or if they did
they went to one or two seminars before their instructor was expelled
which amounted to either being in the same room with him once or just
walking in proximity to him, want to argue over knowledge they do not
possess. The simple truth is they believe their first instructor was
an infallible god. </span>
</div>
<div align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div>
<div align="JUSTIFY" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: medium;">None of my
instructors over these decades were infallible nor gods. They were
all humans who made mistakes. Taika would talk to me many times
during our car rides or while training about the mistakes he made in
his life, from childhood to the final days. He was a mortal, though
a very talented one.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div>
<br />
<div align="CENTER" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: medium;"><span lang="en"><b>Ask
questions freely of the master or superior for you must strive to
understand what you are learning.</b></span></span></div>
<div align="CENTER" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: medium;"><span lang="en"><b><br /></b></span></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: medium;"><span lang="en">There are many people that saw Taika. There are many people that trained at one of his events. There are many people that trained in his presence. There are many people that actually had a hand on moment with the man. There are few who stuck with him to the end, kept their promises to him, and actually are performing the art the way he taught it in 2012. </span></span></div>
Lee Richardshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17653138139293202826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5234555046630780234.post-73897722278817598942015-10-14T17:03:00.000-05:002015-10-14T17:03:07.032-05:00Notebook Club<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXv2olMmPtQFb4x0GD5HdQG9ElCVcNVuhxSwbL_Afvv-FVbCYc6qkSGjn8n9xU-yzhlB8Y_UgRZ7xIHkdL_Ia-_CHDbcLZ7n4xGjMrOzoTpecZRKOmK3aDDixE-YBYt3SzFQ8rwBXEVA/s1600/CAM00021.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXv2olMmPtQFb4x0GD5HdQG9ElCVcNVuhxSwbL_Afvv-FVbCYc6qkSGjn8n9xU-yzhlB8Y_UgRZ7xIHkdL_Ia-_CHDbcLZ7n4xGjMrOzoTpecZRKOmK3aDDixE-YBYt3SzFQ8rwBXEVA/s320/CAM00021.jpg" width="183" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">One
of the earliest things I learned in this art, and was reminded of during my
last blog is that, just about any class can become overwhelming. It is difficult in a 1-2 hour class to
remember everything you are taught, much less a weekend long seminar. What I found when I started training at Taika’s
dojo and even before that when I was just going to seminars he put on, is he
liked to keep your cup running over. In
fact, I would always hear people saying how they couldn’t remember a tenth of
what he said. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">My
remedy for that very early into the 90’s was going to the local book store and purchasing
a ‘blank lined book’. I took this to class
with me every time, and wrote notes as I went.
Constantly jotting things down.
My last blog had some footwork scans that I had made for my notebook
from one of Taika’s early Spider Web classes at his dojo. As I saw it, the people that took good notes
tended to remember things better. Taika
would notice. Openly in class he would
kid me about it but later at his house he would always stress that I should
write stuff down. He actually told me to take good notes so I could retain his art and surprisingly, to write a book later on. I even practiced my Japanese language skills, as limited as they were.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">I
would write down notes during class. As
soon as I got home or to work after class, I’d add more notes and clarify any
short hand. I would often go into work
the next day and have a co-worker at the academy take pictures of me doing the
fixups or no drills. I would then print
them onto sticker paper, cut them out and put them in the book.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">Early
days I drew stick figures and really ugly drawings, later on I used photos on
sticker paper and even at one point I had little footprint rubber stamps made
that I carried in my notebook bag along with a protractor and other tools of
the trade. Yes, I’m one anal geek.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEit8RhB9qxJCv3C-RIXQiHR-mXBlKaMiGGlcK9HD7KlYtFcI0dhY5o7GX1fiu1MuWFzOwdDN8AJkb3DUAktY1Ybcimivpus-hNEoPKDEE06dMm0stzGbgokSckE_C9JUzhybTccIl0Z-A/s1600/__4602089.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="103" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEit8RhB9qxJCv3C-RIXQiHR-mXBlKaMiGGlcK9HD7KlYtFcI0dhY5o7GX1fiu1MuWFzOwdDN8AJkb3DUAktY1Ybcimivpus-hNEoPKDEE06dMm0stzGbgokSckE_C9JUzhybTccIl0Z-A/s200/__4602089.gif" width="200" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;">Now
if you go back and realize I did this for 25 years, and extrapolate out the
math of not understanding but maybe a 10</span><sup>th</sup><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> of what Taika was giving
me at the time, you can see that I’ve only scratched the surface of
understanding all that I wrote down. I
have many years’ worth of research and training on my shelves. I
still go through my books and find notes to both make sure I have not drifted
from his teachings, and to see what I’m forgetting. I have thousands of documented hours of training, and even just stories, language and history notes from Taika. These are my cherished treasures. </span></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">Taika is still alive, in my books and in
my heart.<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
Lee Richardshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17653138139293202826noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5234555046630780234.post-26530259983866097522015-10-14T16:16:00.000-05:002015-10-14T16:16:06.255-05:00Polishing Kata<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
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Well, there have been numerous
blogs out there talking about 101 ways to practice your kata. I just wanted to share a little bit of Taika’s
Polishing Principles that I was lucky enough to take part in.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>Learn the Skeleton<o:p></o:p></b></div>
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<br /></div>
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When first learning the form, get
the basic patterns down. The floor map,
basic directions faced, which stances are used, just the general form. Taika sometimes called this the skeleton form
or scaffolding or even foundation. At
this stage things don’t need to look pretty, in fact they may be somewhat
awkward or ugly. Get the pattern down
and memorized.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>Pick a Piece to Polish<o:p></o:p></b></div>
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Taika would stress this and
luckily my first instructor passed that tidbit on to me from him before I even
met Taika. It sounded to me, a musician
for probably 15 years at the start in this particular art, common sense. As an instructor I don’t see it as common
sense for all of my students, but I’ve had different life experiences that most
of them. <o:p></o:p></div>
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As a musician, you would sight
read a sheet of music. You would most
likely find problem areas in that song that were difficult. Let’s say measure 24 of the song Tom Sawyer
by Rush was a booger of a drum fill, striking multiple toms in rapid succession
with quite a bit of cymbal and foot action going on as well. As a musician I was taught by various
instructors over the years, to just work on that part for next week. I would work on that part, nice and slow, dissecting
it. I might write down some sort of analogy
or mnemonic to memorize the pattern and/or timing of it. I might write out a sticking diagram that
worked best for the situation. I would
dedicate time and energy working on that one little measure out of several
hundred in a piece of music. Then I
would try to play the whole thing, and most likely find another spot that was ‘lacking’.<o:p></o:p></div>
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It made perfect sense when Taika
shared this with his students. If you
learn a brand new kata, whether open hand or with a weapon, you need to polish
the little pieces. After they have the
skeleton, I tell my students to pick that piece that feels uncomfortable and work
on it. Only after it begins to feel
smooth to them, should they then perform the whole kata again to see if that
helped. Bit by bit, brick by brick you
build something. If you try to tackle
the entire thing all at once, you cannot help but choke on it. Taika was the greatest, most talented, most
natural life protection practitioner I ever met. Taika did not choke on a kata. He took it one bite at a time.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>Take a Piece in a New Direction<o:p></o:p></b></div>
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<br /></div>
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So now you took that piece and
polished it within the kata. Now it is
time to take it out of the kata you found it in and polish it in other
directions. I just did this in my last
Bo Kihon session with a new student. He
was working on some hand changes, trying to make them polished. I then had him, as he knows Renshu Dai Ni
(Exercise 2 for those fans of Tasshi Logue’s blue book), use the footwork from
that exercise. So now he is practicing
the hand changes with the three bo strikes/captures in the four basic
directions. North, South, East, West. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVHPb4K2pXXW0QcYcdX2yuDukRfd6javzWqCNOepxuemXAhsREo1gA7YcP4_Il8O1Nfn4Gn7myDTMouHx-RG8pVfDH9DgfMYGomVSe1NM6GbReMRyflUiY4odG5Pk04fL3mUYWfaFwrA/s1600/polish-01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="362" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVHPb4K2pXXW0QcYcdX2yuDukRfd6javzWqCNOepxuemXAhsREo1gA7YcP4_Il8O1Nfn4Gn7myDTMouHx-RG8pVfDH9DgfMYGomVSe1NM6GbReMRyflUiY4odG5Pk04fL3mUYWfaFwrA/s640/polish-01.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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Now that was his homework till
the next bo lesson. As you can imagine,
this can be challenging. You are now
stepping in different directions, left 90, right 180, left 90, and right 180
over and over again. This is different
than the kata, you repeat the snapshot of the kata till it starts to feel
smooth and then you pull it out of the kata and into this pattern. This will pull you out of your comfort
zone. I think one thing Taika did as an
instructor with us on a regular basis, if not always, was keep us out of our
comfort zone.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Now this new student knows Renshu
Dai Ni, but he is way too new to know any of the various Spider Web
patterns. For anyone not knowing what
Spider Web is, it is a series of exercises that Taika learned as one long
exercise. The exercise was designed to
be a way to essentially go in about any imaginable direction, with about every
possible hand/foot combination you can imagine.
So I will give him a portion of the footwork, when he next feels
comfortable.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiUJVevaPmATjDW2vIHPlvZ59TW7bCjumn-z7pOx4c0aAvoFC0JBwTIH67c787VSdeCkboOIaY5D66UJvpQMPGqqRVHwVm4v1eFDHVQIR5Y3y6_D5hWT8f6KfygbJFh_AcQ-qnjVXKbQ/s1600/polish-02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="432" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiUJVevaPmATjDW2vIHPlvZ59TW7bCjumn-z7pOx4c0aAvoFC0JBwTIH67c787VSdeCkboOIaY5D66UJvpQMPGqqRVHwVm4v1eFDHVQIR5Y3y6_D5hWT8f6KfygbJFh_AcQ-qnjVXKbQ/s640/polish-02.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<o:p><br /></o:p></div>
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<o:p><br /></o:p></div>
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Above we have a tiny portion of
one of the Spider footwork patterns. This
is just the North Side of the Mid-Line facing out. You can do this entire drill starting facing
the north side of the midline, the south side, the east side, the west side, or
even at the angles. There are a myriad
of other patterns and those within this system know this is but the tip of the
iceberg. There are patterns facing out
of the web, patterns facing in, and every combination imaginable. So if we again have the student take that
piece of the kata they are working on and do it over and over again. They will eventually get thousands of reps in
of the hand changes, strikes and joint locks they are practicing with the top
body with every possible combination of the bottom body. They should be refining and polishing that
technique for thousands of reps. Now put
it back into the kata.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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Once you are comfortable with any
of these foot patterns, most likely you have only been performing the feet in
one simple way, for instance, stepping forward each time. Now start over with the first pattern
stepping back each time. When that gets
comfortable, step forward, step back and change that pattern up to your hearts
content, or until nausea is induced. All
this can be quite mentally challenging.
Then try it with ‘switch foot’.
That will tell you great things about the power you have in your upper
body.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<b>Off the Grid<o:p></o:p></b></div>
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<br /></div>
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Now they are getting proficient
at 45, 90 and 180 degree angles. Well,
it is time to take them off the grid.
One exercise Taika had us do in class back in 2012, as we were working
on a whole slew of ‘upgrades’ to what he called Technical Application Tomari
Seisan, was point us in a new starting direction. That direction wasn’t necessarily 45 or
90. It was amazing how much this could
throw you off when you had been performing that kata in the same dojo, always
starting facing east for over a decade.
East was the direction his chair was sitting. So that was naturally the direction we faced
when we would normally start, bow to him, and begin the kata. Of course, there was some confusion as we
attempted Seisan at an odd angle. You
would feel yourself, at least during the turns if not the three strides in each
direction, trying to realign yourself with the world. You wanted, craved those 45 or 90
angles. Once you started to get the hang
of it, but nowhere close to being polished, he would change things up
again. You would come to your first turn
and he would give you a different angle to go than was preprogrammed into your
head after a couple of decades of practicing the kata. In Tomari Seisan your first turn is normally
180 degrees, then your next turn is 90, then 180, then 90, then 180 then
retreat 90. Try it 90, 45, 90, 45,
90. Or worse yet, 45, 120, 90, 45, 90,
120. You can see how this can get quite
challenging. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<b>Summation<o:p></o:p></b></div>
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<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
I believe Taika was trying to
prepare us for any situation, and push us way beyond our comfort level. A real encounter will most likely not be be
comfortable and at precise, pre-planned angles. I don’t think there was ever a
time training with him, that I felt I was even nearing a comfort level. It wasn’t until feeling the loss of this
great man, that I realized how well he had pushed me. During a class I would, if lucky, just start
to formulate a plan in my head as to how I can practice whatever he was
teaching me. I would know that there was
no way I was going to leave his class with any comfort in the pattern or
technique. And just as I began to
formulate a plan for later training that night when I got home or the next day,
he would change it. He would pull the
rug out from under me. This forced me to
(and others) to persevere and grow. Thank
goodness I kept great notes.<o:p></o:p></div>
Lee Richardshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17653138139293202826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5234555046630780234.post-86405717778391104572015-06-21T10:28:00.003-05:002015-06-21T10:28:42.761-05:00Force Efficiency Drill<div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9bnGdNY-yGjuqP5HrHp0BhQ3j1senraF_VetB-0WsJ0b0HBtvjHQAL0I7sJf7rpP6MG56s8ZCdz8UUSXsvgEiCpv9pMvzKDRAD5Hs3VuF5riBkhTx9IpYc8SznBLXanVSwok1YJzUSQ/s1600/instructor-becky.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9bnGdNY-yGjuqP5HrHp0BhQ3j1senraF_VetB-0WsJ0b0HBtvjHQAL0I7sJf7rpP6MG56s8ZCdz8UUSXsvgEiCpv9pMvzKDRAD5Hs3VuF5riBkhTx9IpYc8SznBLXanVSwok1YJzUSQ/s1600/instructor-becky.jpg" /></a><span style="text-align: justify;">This past week I was working in our Oyata Te class (Shihan Dai) with intermediate and advanced principles of Tuite. During this session we were all discussing the direction the chest faces in relation to the Principle of ‘X’. This is what we refer to as Force Efficiency and is the sixth basic principle of tuite. As we discussed how different stances point your chest in a different direction, Becky (one of my higher ranking long term students) recommended when we do our begging warm up drills in class, instead of calling out ‘Right Back Stance’, ‘Left Forward Stance’ and other combinations, I should call out a direction that I want their chest to point to. </span><b style="text-align: justify;">BRILLIANT!!!</b><span style="text-align: justify;"> This is what I love about Oyata Te, everyone throwing out ideas and training together and Becky comes up with one of the most brilliant ideas I’ve heard in a while. So here is the drill as it is evolving in my head since the brilliant spark of inspiration by Becky.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjymRPjXhYw4XDhjCWGMN4oOgA2sJ-L2shx9R7UYvsN8FqmoZcAu3JoUow7RD3F61qnHaPbGmhdMZz6tRBLAmyNWtJ6ty_Isup5vc1o-Bq2CShOu5IRh2zd-lj8Aw6Fmlw7EXAE5ZszxA/s1600/Force+Direction+-+Left+Back+Stance.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; display: inline !important; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjymRPjXhYw4XDhjCWGMN4oOgA2sJ-L2shx9R7UYvsN8FqmoZcAu3JoUow7RD3F61qnHaPbGmhdMZz6tRBLAmyNWtJ6ty_Isup5vc1o-Bq2CShOu5IRh2zd-lj8Aw6Fmlw7EXAE5ZszxA/s200/Force+Direction+-+Left+Back+Stance.png" width="125" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjF4HqdoeoY_QePcnFfcrqBpeX7Iazvn2mpNtn_XaDGNYY26Q3BIXoGzQp-xHoZ7-bWV-auMnk9WV7328UyeC3ijncBwAbGjxmF0F5P_x85EepL__gXnMeeNGX32XwWvwlNQXI9qzASxQ/s1600/Force+Direction+-+Step+Stance.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjF4HqdoeoY_QePcnFfcrqBpeX7Iazvn2mpNtn_XaDGNYY26Q3BIXoGzQp-xHoZ7-bWV-auMnk9WV7328UyeC3ijncBwAbGjxmF0F5P_x85EepL__gXnMeeNGX32XwWvwlNQXI9qzASxQ/s200/Force+Direction+-+Step+Stance.png" width="173" /></a><o:p> </o:p> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpBSCwT1OfXtYxMBtg5U9iKvY3e6y1LP8vkH8hv4k0cogDLyOekk91PSODzM_mnj9gu8ji1QT7h9p9n1rrzuNqcidUzUCYgj-fHRFSlEcbVQSTgfgQoaxy8FN8vttnfALOgCXVtTm42A/s1600/Force+Direction+-+Natural+Stance.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpBSCwT1OfXtYxMBtg5U9iKvY3e6y1LP8vkH8hv4k0cogDLyOekk91PSODzM_mnj9gu8ji1QT7h9p9n1rrzuNqcidUzUCYgj-fHRFSlEcbVQSTgfgQoaxy8FN8vttnfALOgCXVtTm42A/s200/Force+Direction+-+Natural+Stance.png" width="200" /></a></div>
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Above are just a few examples of
stances and the direction of the chest.
The left one is basically what we call a Left Back Stance or Left Cat
Stance position. You see that, if the
top is considered <b>North</b>, then the
chest is aimed at <b>North</b> <b>West</b>.
In the middle you have a Ready Position but you could say other stances
have this <b>North</b> position such as
Attention, Natural Stance, Forward Stance (Seisan) and Horse Stance. The three above are obviously not all the
stances represented and obviously you can reorient any stance to face any
direction.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>Phase One - Orientation<o:p></o:p></b></div>
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Armed with this knowledge, it is
time to make your students (and maybe even yourself) a little more aware of how
to apply their Force Efficiency. As an
example, have all the students’ line up and for the geographically challenged,
point toward the North wall. Or you
could just for the exercise name the front of the dojo as North. Most people are rarely aware of the compass
directions once inside a building so it doesn’t really matter. Now, instead of calling out stances for them
to practice their foundational drills, call out directions and explain that when
you call North they must pick a stance and have them settle into any stance with
their chest square to North. As a group
they may be tempted to mimic each other as typically, instructors call out a
stance and everyone does the same thing in formation. In this Force Efficiency training, every
student could be slightly different, as long as all of their chests face the
same direction. Explain this and stress
to them that different is fine. You are
trying to make them more aware of their chest direction. It doesn’t matter if their neighbor is in a
different stance. No cheating off your
neighbor. <span style="font-family: Wingdings; mso-ascii-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-char-type: symbol; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-symbol-font-family: Wingdings;">J</span> Don’t worry about hands. You might even have them close their eyes
then open after they are aligned. That
way they are not tempted to follow their peers.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>Phase Two – Hands and Feet<o:p></o:p></b></div>
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Now that they have the idea down,
start everything from the Natural Stance.
We train most of our starting conflict scenarios as starting from a
Natural Stance. The thought is that most
confrontations that the average person will find themselves in doesn’t start
off like a tournament bout in fighting stances, but that is a discussion for
another blog (or just read four or five of Tony’s). Everyone starts in Natural Stance facing the
front of the room. Pick a technique you
are going to practice such as Upper Forearm Strike (Upper Block for those
outside our school). Tell everyone that
is the technique and that they will execute the technique while moving into a
stance that points their chest to the correct direction you call. So instead of counting out Ichi, Ni, San, Shi……
I will be calling out directions. After
each call, I will review everyone’s chest position and make any corrections,
then state ‘Return’, then they will return to the Natural Stance to simulate
the next attack. There is no ‘wrong
answer’ of a stance as long as their chest is pointing to the correct heading. Well, crane stance might be a wrong answer as
it is really only practiced for balance. <span style="font-family: Wingdings; mso-ascii-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-char-type: symbol; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-symbol-font-family: Wingdings;">J</span><o:p></o:p></div>
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A little background about how ‘maybe’
we have differed for a while than most Karate type schools. We used to do the standard hand techniques
in formation like everyone else.
Everyone standing in a horse stance and doing strikes, punches, blocks
and such in horse stance but one day Tony and I discussed how this deep horse
stance was rarely ever a stance that you struck from, or at least not in the
manner we were doing it. So we started
having the students do it only in formation until they tested for 9<sup>th</sup>
Kyu. The idea was, they learned early
the deep stance and built up a little leg stamina. Once they reached 9<sup>th</sup> Kyu, we
then moved them to a natural stance, and the instructor would call out what
stance we would be moving to such as a Right Back Stance. They then would pivot back at a 45 degree
angle and execute whatever hand technique or even kick we called, pause for a
2 count, then return to Natural Stance.
We’ve done that for quite a while and think it has worked quite well
and is more realistic. It has made our
students a little more practiced and relaxed during combination and tuite
practice. Taika would always say, don’t
waste your practice time. So here we
are not just making the students do hands only in a deep stance, they are
learning from 9<sup>th</sup> Kyu on to move their body when they move their
hands.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>Phase Three – Conservation of Motion<o:p></o:p></b></div>
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At this point, they are hopefully
heading in the correct direction but is it an efficient transfer of
stances? What I mean by that is, I can
start in a Natural Stance facing <b>North</b>
and get the call for <b>North East</b>. What is the most efficient stance to get me
to North East? I could do my best ballerina
impersonation and pirouette 270 degrees to North East or I could just drop my
Right Foot back to a Right Back stance and poof, my chest is aligned. At this point, start to look for not only
correct Force Efficiency but also look for time and energy efficiency. <b>Conservation
of Motion.</b> <o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>Phase Four – Daily Integration<o:p></o:p></b></div>
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Now let’s start putting my blogs
together. <span style="font-family: Wingdings; mso-ascii-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-char-type: symbol; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-symbol-font-family: Wingdings;">J</span> I’ve spoken about ‘finding time’ to train
before. Whether you are standing on an
elevator or standing in the kitchen, finding time to train when you have work,
honey does and just ‘me time’ to worry about is sometimes difficult. Today, I was playing with this while putting
the dishes away. Yes, I know I’m
obsessed and probably a tad bit on the crazy side, but as I put dishes away I
was going to every corner of the kitchen….every drawer….every cabinet. Each time I went to a different location, I
tried to use a different stance to square my chest to that object. After doing about every combination of that,
I began trying to offset my chest at a particular angle. So the first few times I faced the cutlery
drawer I had my chest dead parallel to the face of the drawer. Then I began turning my chest at a 45 degree
angle to the face of the drawer as if using the Principle of ‘X’. Yes I know, I’m crazy. I won’t even tell you about the exercises I
was doing to strengthen my calves while doing this…<o:p></o:p></div>
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To sum up, I see great potential
in this exercise and am so proud of the spark from Becky. You never know where inspiration is going to
come from. I truly believe that this has
great potential to prepare my students and myself to better apply the Principles
of Tuite and Kyusho. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Lee Richardshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17653138139293202826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5234555046630780234.post-48907749424231962962015-06-18T14:54:00.001-05:002018-05-07T07:26:07.603-05:00Chi Balls of Fire<br />
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">Since
Taika’s death, the question of whether he believed in Chi, Ki and Traditional
Chinese Medicine has come up. In fact,
I get questions about it every month or two.
To answer my perspective on this question I need to give those that
don’t personally know me a point of reference of my relationship with Taika,
as well as another student I am going to quote.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">Lisa
Ohmes and I were close to Taika. And
when I mean close, I don’t just mean in proximity though that was a domino
that led to the closeness we had. Lisa
and I took Taika to the bank, drycleaners, DMV, various stores and anything
else you can imagine. We took him to restaurants
and sat and ate with him. We spent
hours with him a week talking, and handling his daily life and business. We had constant conversations with him in
our cars, waiting in line at places, during all sorts of regular weekly
situations. I spent time teaching him
to shoot, taking him to a range where we both had memberships, and shooting
guns. All this is in addition to the
time we both spent in his basement, back yard, garage and dojo training in
RyuTe®. We would even talk on the
phone at times. We spent hours in
hospital waiting rooms, and even more in hospitals as test after test was run
in his final years. We talked in these
various manners about RyuTe®, members past and present, his wishes for his
art, life in general, the United States, Okinawa, family (real and extended),
other styles of ‘martial arts’, and a myriad of topics throughout your
standard encyclopedia. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">Though
some will take it that way, the purpose here is NOT to brag. It is to specify that Lisa and I talked to
Taika on a regular basis and for many, many years. Though we
certainly didn’t know everything that was floating around in his head, we
accumulated a lot of knowledge about him over the years. One topic that came up several times for </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 18.6666660308838px;">both of us </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14pt;">was
the topic of chi, ki and the mystical energy that is taught by many in the
industry.</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14pt;">Absolutely, </span><u style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14pt;">without a
doubt</u><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14pt;">, Taika did </span><b style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14pt;">NOT</b><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14pt;"> subscribe
to this.</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14pt;">He considered it ‘Snake Oil
Salesmen” techniques.</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14pt;">He would bring
this up as he was frequently asked about it while teaching seminars.</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14pt;">He would talk to me and Lisa at length
about how it wasn’t any mystical energy that caused his knockouts.</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14pt;">He was striking specific locations on the
body, with specific amounts of penetration, at specific angles and with
specific follow through.</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14pt;">I can
remember him talking about these others who taught and delved into T.C.M. and
other such stuff he called nonsense.</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14pt;">I
distinctly remember someone asking him if he struck pericardium this or
triple warmer that or stomach this before he made his neck strike leading to
a knockout.</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14pt;">He proceeded to knock
someone unconscious without touching any other point on their body.</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14pt;">None, nada, nill.</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14pt;">Others would comment over the years on how
the Bubishi referred to specific times of the day to attack certain
organs.</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14pt;">He would laugh and say, “You
think I no knock you out at night?”</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14pt;">Or
something to that affect.</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14pt;">I personally
witnessed the same nerve techniques equally affective at any time of the day.</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14pt;">From day class, to night class, to
afternoons at his house, to early mornings at a seminar.</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14pt;">His favorite phrases for these topics were,
“Bullshit” and This Stupid”.</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14pt;"> </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">How
much did it bug him? I’ll tell you
this and won’t name any names, but there once was a high ranking instructor
in our style. This instructor had a
previous background in a heavy CHI touting style. He was supposed to be teaching RyuTe® but
Taika found out he was having his students dwell into chi and showing them
things that Taika viewd as ‘parlor tricks’.
Taika disaproved each of these with science. For those that don’t know, Taika was
actually a well-educated man who went to college, yes college, for
engineering. (Another tidbit from a
conversation in a car). When this instructor didn’t stop these
shenanigans, he was kicked out of the association. Yes, booted. A long time instructor, and very high
ranking, who failed to listen to Taika and stop teaching chi/ki. If that doesn’t tell you how he felt, I
should just give up at this point.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">Taika
believed in body mechanics and science.
He believed in being fluid and relaxed. He believed in directing your <b><u>KINETIC</u></b> energy to a target,
and redirecting there. I’ve had people
ask me to explain things like the curling hand motions in Shiho happo no Te
which they perceive as ‘gathering ki’.
I can assure you that ki gathering is <b>not</b> what Taika was doing.
These small hand motions are easily explained in grab releases and
positioning. Taika would be very
unhappy with any of his followers heading down the wrong path, and even more
unhappy if they were leading others down it.
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">Some
people will never believe me, no matter how hard I preach from the
pulpit. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">At least I got it off my chest
and my conscious is clear.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">Di<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br />Lee Richardshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17653138139293202826noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5234555046630780234.post-70432963571174867122015-06-18T14:43:00.003-05:002015-06-18T14:43:54.023-05:00Burn Out<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">First off, don’t
fret. Burn out happens to pretty much
anyone that trains in anything. It
happens to us at work, so why should the recreation we love the most be any
different. Recently, a really close
friend has hinted about being burnt out.
It has been quite a while since I got this dreaded feeling about the
art, or at least the overwhelming feeling.
I believe I get a ‘tad’ burnt out more frequently but the big burn outs
have only happened for me once or twice in my thirty some odd years in budo.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Realize that
everyone gets burnt out to varying degrees.
You can’t tell me Taika never did.
I know for a fact he quite frequently got frustrated at a myriad of
things from student failure to just the repetitive grind of life. So knowing that you are by no means alone in
your feelings can help. Everyone knows Taika
started training just after WWII and trained till he died in 2012. But not everyone knows that he quit teaching
out of a dojo for a while and was a small engine mechanic during that
time. I’m not saying he quit training,
but he did quit teaching. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Next, try to identify if
there is a particular thing that is burning you out? Or a stack of them? See what you can do to decrease those
things. Is it the grind of kata? As a new student, sometimes we start studying
things like kata and it doesn’t feel realistic and becomes a grind. I can remember getting bored with things I
was shown and being too afraid to ask the instructor about it. ‘Ask questions freely…..’ is part of our
principles of training but we sometimes put the teachers up on such a pedestal
that we can’t say anything to them. I
try to give my students a few little bits of bunkai or reality related to each
kata the second we get them all the way through it. That way they have a little glimmer of hope
at the end of the tunnel.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Is it the negative people
around you? Is it the negative
stories? There are a myriad of things
that can contribute to this common problem.
Those last two are there because, since Taika’s passing, we saw his
predictions come true. There have been a
host of disrespectful actions, ego flare ups, and negativity spill out all over
the place. Maybe it’s time to unplug
those facebook friends, whose timelines are pissing you off.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Try shifting gears. If you have had one or two primary weapons
you train with for a few years, pick something new. Go into it with a mindset that you don’t have
to master this thing; you are just looking for some variety. I was myself rather burnt out on bo, my
favorite weapon, many years ago. We were
not learning anything new with the weapon, and I wasn’t getting any tutelage,
fixups or corrections. Out of nowhere
Taika began training me on some amazing tanbo changes that lit a fire under my
gi. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">How about a book? There are tons of aspects of the arts that
most students completely neglect. Stay
in the art by reading some cultural books like <u>Customs and Culture of
Okinawa</u> by Gladys Zabilka. It is out
of print now, but you can find numerous used copies on Powells.com, Amazon.com
and BarnsandNoble.com. I found that
reading books about Okinawan culture, religion and even the language gave me a
greater insight into Taika’s world. I
know for a fact that this opened up several doorways with him for me as I would
engage in conversations with him while driving him places that he was at first
shocked about. He didn’t think us
American’s understood some things about the islands he came from. This knowledge caused him to open up and tell
me stories about Kita Daito where he grew up.
They gave me a different perspective and helped me through my minor
burnt sessions. You can search for
online books on Okinawa, Ryukyu, and other key words and find a ton of topics
to read that can be a temporary placeholder for the monotony in your
training. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">If nothing seems to work
and you are still seriously thinking of taking a Burn Out Hiatus, set a distinct
goal. Make it one month, two months, or
something like that. Place your return
date on your calendar and have your friends in the art hold you
accountable. Ensure they understand that
during your hiatus, you want their friendship but no mention of any drama or
other reasons that may have drove you to your hiatus. One of the biggest problems with taking a
vacation from the arts is that 95% of the people that do (highly unproven non
statistic based guess from decades in the arts) don’t ever come back. Many people just get out of the habit and
can’t get back, others feel embarrassed as their peers have continued on. During your hiatus you may lose skills and
not keep up with the pack. It is quite
likely that with your new, fresh boost in morale and energy given to you by
your hiatus, that you will catch back up quickly upon your return. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 115%;"><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">Nintai</span></b><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
Lee Richardshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17653138139293202826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5234555046630780234.post-11414333996825609342015-05-11T16:10:00.000-05:002015-05-11T16:10:06.429-05:00Non-Linear Striking<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">I've already posted at length on Taika's view of the Makiwara as a training tool, or rather an attitude tool. And I've already talked about people not listening to Taika's wisdom at length. So those posts are in previous blogs but I wanted to add a little more information, but not totally give away all of Taika's pearls. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Since those previous posts, I've heard a lot of counter arguments about how the makiwara helps to build power, and yes, indeed it can. One of the problems Taika had with it, and why he preferred newer technologies was the linearly restricted motion it teaches. As Taika became more aware of what worked, and he became an uncertified Dr. of Kinesiology, (the scientific study of human movement addressing physiological, mechanical, and psychological mechanisms) he learned how the body resisted attacks. Simply striking hard and fast in a linear direction, did not achieve the results he was looking for. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Many of the Six Basic Principles of Tuite have a symbiotic or similar relationship to the Basic Principles of Kyusho and the Basic Principles of Atemi. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-large;"><b>Basic Principle Five: Three Dimensions</b></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWCWX1DbApoLhAO-2hNtJmp5YSyhxRksCrhs7i8q9nnWWuohewAmPjg7yncqtoH27yUbJ31uSGKFdpd0WT5a1iuZdAHcpWT7kuqbE6cS1uKBpFVCr0dPjWPCwyxbGEB-nD_vInwKJ9hg/s1600/questions+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="98" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWCWX1DbApoLhAO-2hNtJmp5YSyhxRksCrhs7i8q9nnWWuohewAmPjg7yncqtoH27yUbJ31uSGKFdpd0WT5a1iuZdAHcpWT7kuqbE6cS1uKBpFVCr0dPjWPCwyxbGEB-nD_vInwKJ9hg/s320/questions+2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">If you think about how an opponent reacts to force, a direct linear strike can be resisted…..to a point. Obviously you are not going to hold up well to a .40 round coming out of my Glock. (But think about what a bullet proof vest does to displace that energy and reverse that principle.) We all probably did it as kids; trading blows to the belly, chest or torso. If you tighten your abs, and a punch comes in straight and hard, the force knocks you straight back. To a point, this can be resisted. And keep in mind, yes I am absolutely aware that this isn’t realistic training. So many other things are going on during an attack; body position, Atemi, body reaction, et cetera. But if you play the trading punches game, you can see that you can get pretty good at absorbing a straight attack, depending on your threshold of pain. There are quite a few styles out there that practice this art of absorbing until their bellies (or other items I wouldn’t would want to train with) are black and blue. Did you ever see Taika make a tight fist and punch someone straight in the belly unless he was deliberately showing what ‘not to do’? I didn’t. Such topics were usually followed with the comment, “Dis stupid.” Even watching old seminar videos from my naïve pre-Oyata style days, I have picked up on his different approach. He stressed a lot about being relaxed. But there was some very deliberate attack misdirection along with mental misdirection (he didn’t want to give away everything). </span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">With Taika, you really had to work at looking at all the little details. If he demonstrated a strike 4 times in a seminar or class, I would pay attention to 4 different things while watching him. Usually, I’d first pay close attention to his footwork. Then maybe hands, then torso, then an overall view. If he continued on and demonstrated the same thing a few more times I’d look at overall head position and all the other little nuances. The great thing about reviewing thousands upon thousands of old seminar videos is the ability to track all these little nuances. Tracking the path of the hands, the feet, and the torso. We have this modern gift of technology. When Taika learned from Uhugushiku Tan Mei and then Wakinaguri Tan Mei, he didn’t have that benefit. I also have thousands of pages of notes I took during training sessions over the course of a quarter century, where I took detailed notes on positions of his body (to the best of my artistic abilities). </span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">So now back to all the extreme analyzation. Look back at how makiwara are made. They don’t adequately allow for non-linear motion, unless someone has invented a new one I have not seen. The board allows for a forward back motion, and because it is essentially like a lever in the ground, a slight arc as it goes forward and back. Perhaps if the post was on a ball bearing type assembly that could also move up and down, it would allow for more training of non-linear motion. </span><i><span style="font-size: x-small;">Patent Pending :)</span></i><span style="font-size: large;"> I could spend months trying to develop this idea, along with a lot of money, when a Body Opponent Bag will pretty much get me there. I got my first one (slightly used) on Craig’s list many years ago for $70 after conversations with Taika. When Taika would strike me, not mutually exclusive to the torso, it was never in a linear fashion. The strikes would have amazing power, but completely different from a brute force tight fist. </span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #990000; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-large;"><b>Power is Not Brute Force</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Taika would put fist on my belly, relaxed. He would say ‘Ready’, then go. His fist wouldn’t close. He wouldn’t even really move his body during this demonstration. I would most definitely ‘go’. I would most definitely feel the effects as I went to the ground. I would most definitely feel the power and respect it. I have demonstrated this to student’s over the years and it doesn't ‘make any sense’ in our strength based American culture. We think of Arnold Schwarzenegger when we think of power. We think muscle. I teach my students from day one, not to think the American way. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">To wrap up another one of my ramblings, be open to new ideas. Analyze, research and try new ways of doing things. We learn in many ways as human beings. Trial and error is one of the main ways. We cannot always be spoon fed, at least not any more. Taika gave up training with the makiwara decades ago and got continually better at striking as he aged. Does that make you wonder? It did me.</span></div>
Lee Richardshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17653138139293202826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5234555046630780234.post-41832262410251853932015-05-11T14:56:00.000-05:002015-05-11T14:56:10.986-05:00Oyata Family Tomb<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;">It
was mother’s day still in the United States when Lisa Ohmes and I met up with
Taika’s Great Nephew Satoshi and Great Great Niece Yuika.</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Satoshi is a wonderful person who graciously
invited us out for some history and a tour of several important places in the
Ryukyu Kingdom.</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">First stop, we were
taken to the Oyata family </span><i style="font-size: 14pt;">shinju</i><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> (</span><i style="font-size: 14pt;">haka</i><span style="font-size: 14pt;">) tomb.</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">The
original tomb had been located near Taika’s birth island of Henza, but his
sister Tomi had wanted to move it closer to where she was living in her later
life. The old tomb was in need of some repairs and
the drive was a bit long for the current family. Satoshi found a new location early in this
century and Taika began bringing money back to Okinawa between 2000 and
2007. He special ordered marble from
China and the new family tomb was finished in July of 2007. Taika’s parents, and a lock of hair from
Taika’s eldest brother Akio, were then placed at this new site. (Akio was killed during the battle of Pearl
Harbor but his mother had a lock of his hair.) Tomi was then laid to rest when
she passed away last year.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">Satoshi
bestowed on us a great honor by not only taking us to the family tomb, but
allowing us to take part in the Okinawan custom of paying our respects to Taika’s
family. The rest of the Okinawan family,
and Okinawa in general, do this once a year in April. This is called the <i>Seimei </i>or <i>shimi</i> in the
Okinawan language. It was quite an
emotional moment for us all as we gave our offerings of awamori, burned
incense, burned our ‘paper money’, and Satoshi said a prayer. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">Afterwards,
Satoshi took us a few steps southwest to show us what was so wonderful about
this new location. This location had
quite a beautiful view of the ocean and a public park/beach which Taika and
Tomi loved.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Our
next stop was to Taika’s birth island, Henza.</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">
</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">As discussed on the history page of ryute.com, Taika was actually born
on Henza, which at the time was not connected at all to Okinawa.</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Before the island was connected by a bridge, they
had to take small boats when visiting the mainland.</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Satoshi said that Tomi would talk about how
she would be so scared when they would take the trip in a small six person
boat.</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">On this island we drove through
the small village where Taika was born, though sadly the original home is no
longer there.</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Satoshi also took us to
the original family tomb.</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">This was followed
by a tour of Henza, Miyagi and Ikei islands.</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">
</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Shortly after Taika’s birth, the family moved to Kita Daito island.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">Satoshi
then took us to a wonderful Japanese restaurant where we ate until we couldn’t
eat any more. We then discussed a little
about Satoshi’s life and how he works at Kadena air base. He is essentially a base Police Officer or
Base Security. He has been doing it for
17 years. Satoshi then took us on a tour
of the base and we exchanged police stories.
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBVvjE3XB4vac8N7H64D6lZoKgO97Tn6WhMDG6ky0HRYfR5zGrcHBOmS1tcUyMAiQxDjoCyTTBbUV7GJPR5XNOW_HXNCI5VhTDaOjofq574hPstsR49x4S_rEjC3ysjJ6Yq76gYTlJ5Q/s1600/IMG_1516.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBVvjE3XB4vac8N7H64D6lZoKgO97Tn6WhMDG6ky0HRYfR5zGrcHBOmS1tcUyMAiQxDjoCyTTBbUV7GJPR5XNOW_HXNCI5VhTDaOjofq574hPstsR49x4S_rEjC3ysjJ6Yq76gYTlJ5Q/s320/IMG_1516.JPG" width="180" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;">He
drove us all around the island that day, sharing stories of the family and
ending the trip at Okinawa’s new Aeon Shopping mall, a brand new, huge indoor
mall in Chatan.</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">In all, it was a
wonderful time, cut short by the impending Typhoon.</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">We all had to scurry our separate ways to
brace for the storm and gather resources.</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">
</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">It is a wonderful thing knowing that Taika’s family carries on in the
Isle of Smiles, Okinawa.</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">Lee E. Richards & Lisa A. Ohmes<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">May 2015<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
Lee Richardshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17653138139293202826noreply@blogger.com0