The First Six Stratagems

To win one hundred battles is not the highest good. The highest good is to have the enemy soldiers submit without fighting.

-Sun Tzu 

The Thirty Six Stratagems was originally a collection of military and political wisdom collected by early Chinese scholars and warriors. At their heart, the stratagems teach three principles fundamental to ancient Chinese military thought.

1. Know all you can before battle.
2. Use the mind before resorting to violence.
3. Win without fighting.

The original text of the Thirty Six Stratagems was very brief. Usually four Chinese characters arranged as a mnemonic device to help convey the concept of the stratagem, and a few lines of classical Chinese. It was patterned in many ways off of the I Ching (Book of Changes), an ancient Chinese tome of philosophical and some would say mystical knowledge.

Since that time, the Thirty Six Stratagems have been reprinted and reanalyzed from progressively modern perspectives and a number of scholars have supplemented it with commentary on the different stratagems and their historical and modern applications. One commentary, written by Hiroshi Moriya, was published in Japan in 2004 and then subsequently translated and republished in english in 2008. It is to that translation, called The Thirty Six Secret Strategies of the Martial Arts, that we turn today.

The stratagems are listed under six headings, mirroring the hexagrams of the I Ching. Each has it's own application, but the individual stratagems attain even greater depth when taken as a part of a whole. To understand the Thirty Six Stratagems, one must consider the words of the translator William Scott Wilson in his forward;

"The Thirty Six Strategies of the Martial Arts considers the world as a dynamic field of energy, constantly moving and flowing, in which conditions may call for one strategy now, and another depending upon the changes in the physical and psychological environment. Indeed, an intended strategy may evoke changes itself, and a different strategy may be required as circumstances evolve. One must avoid rigidity at all costs and be totally aware of the grid of activity and its psychological effects on both one's enemy and oneself."

He further compares understanding the Thirty Six Stratagems to the way that Confucius described the I Ching in his own commentary on that work.

Ah, the Book of Changes
You should keep it within reach.
Its way is frequently shifting.
Changing and moving without stopping anywhere,
Flowing through the six Emptinesses,
While rising and sinking without constancy
Shifting mutually between the hard and the soft,

You cannot make it into fixed law;
It only marches on toward change.

There is, however, a method to its coming and going;
Inside and out, it would have you know apprehension.

It also makes clear sorrow and grief and their causes;
And though you have no great teacher,
You should face it as you would your father and mother.

At first, follow the words, then,
     if you can fathom their direction,
The consistent rules will be there.

But if you are not quite the man,
The Way will be in vain, and go nowhere.

The Thirty Six Stratagems are not perfect solutions to every problem. But taken as a whole they give the reader an insight both in to classical Chinese military strategy, and in to how to defeat one's opponent without having to resort to violence. As Master Tatum once said, "the goal is not ever to have to fight."

Today we will discuss the first six stratagems.


Strategies for Victory in Battle
1. Obscure Heaven, Cross the Sea
The essence of this stratagem is to disguise your true intention with obvious, clearly identifiable actions. Let the opponent see what you are doing, but not what you are thinking. In this way, you program him to associate what he sees with what he believes is happening, and then strike when he defends against what he expects. In karate, a physical application of this strategy is to repeatedly follow a wheel kick with a backnuckle. Again and again. Wheel kick then backnuckle. Then, when your opponent believes the backnuckle is coming follow with a low strike instead. Let him see you coming, but keep your true intentions hidden from view.

2. Surround Wei, Help Chao
When confronted with a more powerful opponent it is not always advantageous to confront him where he is strong. Instead, attack where he is vulnerable and force him to change his position. Then when he moves to respond to your attack he will be vulnerable where before he was strong. If your opponent has a strong high guard, attack low. When he drops his hands to protect his body, his head will be open to strikes.


3. Borrow a Sword to Make Your Kill
There are two applications of this stratagem. First is to allow a third party to defeat your opponent. The second is to use your opponent's strength against himself. Either way, the concept is to allow the strength of another to do your fighting for you, while you stay relatively safe and away from the conflict. In self defense application, this could be allowing the bouncer to toss the guys who were hassling you at the club instead of fighting. Borrowed Force is a reflection of the second application of this stratagem. By allowing your opponent's force to power your strike you use his strength against him.


4. Await his Tired Steps at Your Leisure
This stratagem teaches you to marshal your strength while allowing your opponent to expend his. Literally, it means to wait in a position of strength while your opponent comes to you. A physical application of this stratagem would be the "rope-a-dope" strategy employed by Muhammad Ali against George Foreman in the Rumble in the Jungle. By allowing his opponent to tire himself chasing Ali around the ring and attacking him where he was comfortable and strong, Ali was able to wait until Foreman grew tired and then attack him from a superior position.


5. Take Advantage of the Fire to Plunder the Goods
This stratagem is for attacking from a superior position. When you have forced your opponent in to an inferior position, you take advantage of his weakness and attack with your strength to finish him with a decisive blow. A physical application of this stratagem would be striking the opponent to a vulnerable position and then applying a finishing move. For instance, knocking the opponent down with hand strikes and then finishing with stomps instead of allowing him a chance to regroup and rise to his feet.


6. Be Heard in the East, Attack from the West
This stratagem is similar to the first in that the essence is to shift the opponent's focus from your true target. The difference is that in this stratagem, the sound "heard in the east" is a deception. There is no true attack in the east. Instead, the plan all along was to attack from the west. Feints, fakes, and misdirections are all physical applications of this stratagem. Showing a high line strike and then attacking the legs while the opponent is guarding the head is an example of "being heard in the east and attacking from the west."


These are only the first six stratagems. There are thirty more. But these six stratagems give you an example of the kind of approaches they contain. Know the enemy. Disguise your intentions. Do no more harm than necessary. If possible, win without fighting. When fighting, maneuver the opponent to disadvantageous positions from which he can not defend. If you understand these stratagems, and are able to flow seamlessly between them, if you understand the "method of coming and going," you will never be imperiled in battle.

Drills -
Beginner: Practice attacking where your opponent is not blocking. If he is blocking outside, attack inside. If he is blocking high, attack low. Attack the opponent where he is vulnerable, and not where he is strong.

Intermediate: Allow your opponent to come to you. Force him to attack you where you are strong and to expend his energy against your defenses. When he is weak, counter with your strength. When he is tired, counter with your energy.

Advanced: Practice feints, fakes, and misdirections. Obscure heaven, cross the sea. Fill the opponent's mind with clutter. Force him to chase your actions until he is constantly moving out of position. Then attack with decisive force. Where he is unprepared for attack, deal a powerful blow.

The Value of Karate

To search for the old is to understand the new.

The old, the new

This is a matter of time.

In all things man must have a clear mind.

The Way:

Who will pass it on straight and well?

-Master Funakoshi Gichin

In his Master Text, Karate-Do Kyohan, Master Funakoshi leaves behind what he believed were the "profound aspects of karate." Among these were basic stances, basic hand and foot techniques, throwing, weapons, sparring, and the patterns that made up his curriculum of movement. But before he discusses the technical aspects of his karate style, the Master describes the benefits of training in the Way.

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The Value of Karate

"AS ATHLETIC TRAINING

The Nature of karate is such that it requires the body to move in all directions, in contrast, for example to the emphasis on the arms in rowing or the legs in jumping. There is absolutely no need for concern about one-sided development of the body in karate, and the fact of uniform development may be considered to be one of the benefits of karate.

In most cases, only a minute or two is required to complete a kata. Moreover, as one continues to practice, the movements become quicker and the training as a whole more vigorous, so that one can get ample exercise from a relatively short period of time. This is an ideal form of exercise for the many people today who complain that they would like to exercise, but they just do not have the time. the little time required is, therefore, a second major advantage.

Almost no other form of exercise, be it judo, kendo, archery, swimming, or horsemanship, can be performed at any time or place as easily as karate. Most sports require a  large area, equipment, or a partner, and in this regard as well karate is the most adaptable. No specific area, equipment, or even partner is necessary, for it can be performed in a garden, living room, hallway, at any time or place that one feels the desire to practice. This is the third significant advantage of karate.

Usually, exercise suitable for men is not suitable for women, and that for women is probably not enough for men, that for people recovering from illness is not enough for healthy people, and similarly, sufficient exercise for healthy young people is too strenuous for older people or young children. Karate however, may even be practiced by the physically weak, by women, children, and by elderly people. In other words, since each individual may adjust the exercise to his own capacity, and with each unit of exercise being of but one to two minutes duration, there is no danger of overexertion or physical exhaustion. Moreover, as the body is built up and the technique become more skillful the movements naturally become more powerful, so that the amount of exercise becomes sufficient even for the healthy young man in his prime.Thus, the amount of exercise increases naturally as the training progresses, a point I would cite as the fourth athletic merit of karate.

The fact that karate may be practiced either alone or in groups is a feature unique to it. Finally, even considered purely from the standpoint of physical techniques of practical value, the individual hand or foot movements, each with its own meaning, and the many variations in the various kata sequences become challenges to learn. While enjoying and being engrossed in their study on this basis, one accrues their benefits almost without realizing it.

The value of karate as physical training may easily be demonstrated by scientific tests, and even after a year or less of practice, one can easily see for himself the tremendous improvement in his condition over its state before karate training.

My esteemed teachers, the late Masters Shishu (in Japanese, Itosu) and Azato, were both very weak in their childhood, but after starting to train in karate as a means of improving their health, they developed so much that they seemed like different people compared to their old selves and lived to become famous, in our times, as old Masters. Master Shishu lived to the venerable age of eighty-five, and Azato to that of eighty. Master Azato's own teacher, Master Matsumura, lived to be over ninety years of age. Other contemporary karate experts such as Masters Yamaguchi, Aragake, Chibana, Nakazato, Yahiku, Tokashiki, Sakihara, and Chinen, have all lived to be over eighty. These examples are indicative of the role of karate as a superior method of maintaining one's health.

AS SELF-DEFENSE

Almost all living creatures have some mechanism for defending themselves, for, where this development is incomplete, the weaker are destroyed and perish in the fierce struggle for survival. The fangs of the tiger and lion, the talons of the eagle and hawk, the poisonous sting of the bees and scorpions, and the thorns of the rose and Bengal quince; are these not all preparations for defense? But if the lower mammals, birds, insects, and plants each have such specialization, should not man, the lord of creation, be prepared as well? An appropriate basis for the reply to this question is provided by the statement: We should have no intention of harming other people, but we must try to keep out of harm's way. To protect oneself, one must find a method that will give the weak the power to defend themselves against stronger opponents. The power of karate has become well known in these times for its effectiveness in breaking boards or cracking stone without tools, and it is not an exaggeration to assert that a man well trained in this form of defense may consider the whole body to be a weapon of awesomely effective offensive power. 

Finally, although karate does have throwing techniques, it relies principally on striking, kicking, and thrusting techniques. These movements are much quicker and can escape the untrained eye. Block-attack combinations are executed simultaneously, and weaker individuals, women or young boys, do have ample strength to control a more powerful opponent with them. In short, among the advantages of karate as a means of self-defense are these: no weapons are necessary; the old or sick, or women, are able to apply it; and one can protect himself effectively even with little natural strength. These points combine to make karate a form of self-defense without equal.

AS SPIRITUAL TRAINING

Karate is no different from the other martial arts in fostering the traits of courage, courtesy, integrity, humility, and self-control in those who have found its essence. However, most of the martial arts, since their practice is harsh from the outset, are not suited to individuals of weak constitution, poor build, or weak character, and such students, generally speaking, will lose spirit and drop out early in their training. Moreover, it is possible for a student, because of physical weakness, to train so conscientiously that he overexerts himself to the point of injuring himself or becoming ill, his body not being able to keep pace with his will, and early failures of this sort are encountered as well. For these reasons, many people, being physically weak, have had to give up hope of training in the martial arts, even though such training and its developments of bravery and a solid, firm body could be of special importance to the constitutionally or spiritually weak individual. It is, therefore, important in this context as well that karate can be practiced by the young and old, men and women alike. That is, since there is no need for a special training place, equipment or an opponent, a flexibility in training is provided such that the physically and spiritually weak individual can develop his body and mind as gradually and naturally that he himself may not even realize his own great progress.

This flexibility of training also makes possible great strides in spiritual training. For if training in any martial art is discontinued after half a year or a year it can hardly be expected to lead to any degree of spiritual training. An insight into this art, a mastery of its techniques, a polishing of the virtues of courage, courtesy, integrity, humility, and self-control to make them the inner light to guide one's daily actions: these require at the least ten or twenty years, if possible a lifetime of devotion to the study of this art. In view of its adaptability to continued training, I consider karate to be the most suitable of the many martial arts in leading to fulfillment of the need for training of the spirit."

To make the body strong, keep it safe, and polish the virtues of the spirit. These are the principle benefits of training in the Way recognized by Master Funakoshi.

Drills -

Beginner: Focus on your athletic training. Practice pushups, crunches, swimmers, grippers, lunges, and squats. Get stronger and more fit. Remake your body.

Intermediate: Focus on your self-defense training. Practice grabs, gouges, claws, low line kicks. sweeps, and scenario training. Get more capable and more confident. Be responsible for your security.

Advanced: Focus on your spiritual training. Practice meditation, trance, breathing, focus, mushin, and state management. Learn to control your energy and direct it according to your will. Discipline your mind.

Modern American Martial Arts Curriculum

We now have our full curriculum through the first two ranks here on our website available to view for free! Just check out the toolbar along the side of the page and follow the links to see the 32 Class Yellow Belt Curriculum and the 32 Class Orange Belt Curriculum. Our method covers everything you need to learn to defend yourself against modern violence, and it all begins with your first class! Check out the curricula, instructors feel free to use whatever drills or activities you like, and students try some of those activities out with your training partners! Always make sure you have competent instruction and train safely.

Enjoy this sneak peak at what we do here at Modern American Martial Arts, and never forget that the real answers won't be found on the internet. The real answers are all on the training floor!

The Martial Way and the Art of Nō

Zeami Motokiyo was a Japanese aesthetician, actor and playwright. He is best known as a Master of the Japanese theatrical art of Nō, a classical form of highly codified musical drama. His father Kan'ami Kiyotsugu taught him the art from a young age, and was eventually succeeded by him as the Master of the Kanze school. Between 1400 and 1418 he compiled his notes on his art and collected them in one volume known as the Fūshikaden, or “The Transmission of Style and the Flower.”

Zeami never specifically defines what the Flower is, although it is at the very heart of the Fūshikaden. In seperate passages he describes it as “that which makes the performance interesting,” and “that thing which has not been lacking.” The closest he comes to a definition is when he states that “The Flower, that which is interesting, and that which is unique-these three are the same at the heart of the matter.” In essence, the Flower is that spark which makes the practice into something more, into a thing which transcends mere physical movement and oral performance and becomes not only an art, but a Way.

This classic work has many important teachings relating to the art of Nō, but a deeper reading reveals truths which apply to our practices of the martial ways. The name of the art itself comes from a word variously translated as skill, talent, or ability, and the practices and discipline of the Nō actor have interesting parallels for the martial artist.

In Chapter Five of the Fūshikaden Zeami speaks to the very heart of the Way, and what it takes to keep it strong.

Praising the Deepest Principles

“I hesitate to expose these secret teachings to the eyes of those generally outside of our art, and am writing them down here rather as precepts for our descendants. Nevertheless, I do have one basic intention. When I look at people who practice these days, I see that they make light of our art, follow practices outside of our own Way, and even when reaching a high level in the art, imbue themselves with a single night's enlightened performance or momentary fame. I can only lament that they have forgotten the wellspring of our art and lost its current, and that the true Way is perhaps already in decline. If you take care to follow the Way, place great important in the art, and leave your own self-interest to one side, however, you should be able to grasp the grace of its character. In our art especially, though its ancient customs are handed down from generation to generation, there are on occasion performances that are successful due to the actors' individual strengths, and these things are difficult to put into words. But in the continuation of our style, the Flower is passed down from mind to mind.”

Here Zeami speaks of the importance of the art in a sense that extends past the practitioner throughout time. While there are successes due to the “individual strengths” of one actor or another, to Zeami it is not the individual performances which are the true legacy of Nō, rather it is the ancient customs handed down “from mind to mind,” the continuation of the style, and the Flower. It is not the achievements of its practitioners which makes the art a Way. It is the “grace of its character.”

“It is simply a fact, then, that many actors-whether due to a contentious attitude or a lack of understanding-learn only one style, do not know a full range, and dislike the style of other schools. Yet this is not a true dislike, and merely reflects their shallow willfulness. Because of this attitude, an actor may gain a reputation for one particular style for a short time, but his Flower will not last long, and he will not have the confidence of the public. A master of the art who has achieved public acclaim will make an interesting performance regardless of which style he employs. Every style and fundamental form has its own character, but what makes them interesting should be common to all of them. What makes the spectator see the performance as interesting will be the Flower.”

In the martial ways there are adherents of ground fighting. And knife fighting. And street fighting. And sport fighting. And it is common for some practitioners to disdain those styles other than his own. But this is a mistake. It is a reflection of weakness and fear. The true follower of the martial way has nothing to fear from the teachings of others. He looks instead for what he can learn. He seeks to discover those things which “should be common to all.” And rather than limit his approach to one specific style and allow intention to interrupt his action, he is fluid and adaptive and will be successful “regardless of which style he employs.”

“Nevertheless, no matter what kind of style is assumed, the truly skillful actor should allow for no openings or lapses in concentration. The actor who aims to perform only one of these styles is one whose technique will never reflect a true grasp of the essence of the art.”

So we see that not only must the practitioner be prepared at all times to be fluid and to adapt, but he must also be constantly focused on his task. He must allow for “no openings or lapses in concentration.” His mind must be clear to his task and no matter his environment or circumstances he must bring his skill to bear.

“For this reason, you should not forget the way you were as a beginner and, according to the time and place, should perform with the simplicity of the observer in mind.”

It is important to always remember “the way you were as a beginner.” As we train and practice we develop habits which limit our ability to think and act. We develop tendencies and intentions and patterns. But the beginner is uninhibited. He reacts to the stimulus that he is exposed to without distraction and his mind is empty and clear. It can be difficult for the experienced practitioner to return to this state of no-mind, but it is in this state that he will be most able to freely express his skill. He also must always practice his basics with diligence, for true combat ability is found in understanding the simplest movements, and executing them with proper form.

“Having both understanding and masterful achievements, however, is like having both the Flower and the seed. Even an actor who has a grasp of the art may fall out of favor. But if he does not lose the Flower he should not suddenly be cut off from the Way. And if the Way is not cut off, there should come a time when he will once again meet success.”

In each of our journeys there will be times when we will stray from the path. Life, family, work, and the demands of a modern life in a civilized world will pull us away from the ancient practices and traditions. But once the student develops the Flower within himself, he will not lose it when it is gone. Rather the seed will rest within until such time as “he will once again meet success.” In this way he will return to the path time and time again throughout his life and need never fear that he will be "cut off from the Way."

Zeami finishes his work with this simple sentence. “This is for the sake of the Way and for the sake of my clan, and in no way for any benefit of my own.” It was not for his own legacy that he wrote the Fūshikaden, it was for those who would come after him. It was his instruction in following the Way, intended to help those who would follow understand both their art and their responsibility to it.

Each of us who have benefited from the “Transmission of the Style and the Flower” owe a responsibility to those who came before us to pass that knowledge on. Just as the art of Nō is “passed down from mind to mind,” the martial arts are passed down hand to hand, instructor to student. The path extends away in both directions from each who follow it, into the past and into the future. We each have a role to play in the continuation of our practices, so long as we “take care to follow the Way, place great important in the art, and leave our own self-interest to one side.”

In Praising the Deepest Principles Zeami lays out the most important aspects of his teachings. The Way is greater than the individual. Discover those things which are common to all styles. Be focused and mindful at all times. Remember the mind of the beginner. Understand the Flower and you will never be cut off from the Way. The teachings are not for our own sake but for the sake of the Way. These are Zeami's deepest principles. This is the essence of his instruction. And each is an important lesson for the martial artist to internalize.

Drills -

Beginner: Practice your style and the teachings of your instructors and study the lessons of your art. Zeami writes “It is the very life of Nō never to make light of the fundamental principles of the style you follow. If you did so, you would be a weak actor. It is precisely by going deeply in to the essential forms of your own style that you will be able to know a broad range of styles. The actor who thinks he should know a broad range of styles and thereby ignores his own, will not only fail to have a presence of his own, but will most likely know even less about other styles. In this way his Nō will be weak and his Flower will not last for long.” Study your art with utmost seriousness.

Intermediate: Remember the mind of the beginner. As you advance to more difficult and sophisticated techniques, continue to practice the simple movements which are the foundation of all things. You are only as good as your basics. Even the most complex applications are built from the foundation of the beginner. Do not become rigid in your behaviors and your practices. Keep your mind free and "act without acting" in a state of no-mind.

Advanced: Be a part of the continuation of the Way. Transmit the Style and the Flower to the next generation as it was transmitted to you. Hand to hand. Mind to mind. For the sake of the Way, and not for any benefit of your own. Be “the wellspring of the art” for a new generation of students.

The Spirit of the Warrior

Thomas Cleary's Training the Samurai Mind is a collection of excerpts from texts on bushido drawn from twenty two writers over more than four hundred years. It is a discussion of the thoughts, beliefs, cultural influences, and teachings that gave birth and form to the martial culture of feudal and post feudal Japan.

In one chapter he presents some of the teachings of Saito Totsudo. He doesn't tell us much about Totsudo, describing him as "a scholar of classical Confucianism" born in Edo, who worked as an educator in the service of a lord. Throughout his life he was given political appointments and even courted by the shogun Tokugawa Iesada, but education was his calling and he would return to it again and again until his eventual retirement in 1859.

In one section, Totsudo discusses the virtues of the Warrior's Spirit.

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"Once the manner of a warrior is proper, it is essential to cultivate the warrior spirit. While maintaining the manner of a warrior is for the purpose of cultivating the warrior spirit, insofar as manner is a matter of external appearance, however awesome it may be, it cannot be relied upon on a deep level. When the spirit fills your being like blazing fire, that is rather more reliable.

Thus, it is when the warrior spirit is effective that the manner of the warrior is truly firm. Even if your physical strength is above ordinary, if your spirit flinches you can't face opponents effectively. However skillful you may be in martial arts, if your spirit flinches you can't use them against opponents. So, it is when filled with spirit that intelligence and courage are effective.

For this reason a horse is not prized for its color but for its sturdiness, in a warrior it is not sternness of appearance that is valued but strength of spirit that is approved.

It is this spirit that plunges into the thick of battle. What speaks directly and criticizes severely right in the ruler's face is also this spirit. When your dignified manner in everyday life is so dashing that people are in awe of you, that too is due to being filled with this spirit.

If you are not filled with spirit, you become gutless. Once you are gutless, you'll be spineless too. What use is a spineless warrior?

In recent times the manner of warriors has deteriorated greatly some being soft, some being mean. How can men like this perform the role of shield and citadel? They might as well break their bows and arrows and swords and give up the samurai profession. Even those among them who are said to be warrior-like may seem impressive when suited up and wearing their swords, but most of them while outwardly stern are inwardly soft. They may contemptuously rebuke weak people like widows and widowers, but when they encounter strong people they remain silent where they should criticize. How could such timid samurai be right-hand men of nobles and lords?

These bad habits all come from pampering oneself and being greedy. Confucius said of a certain man, "He is greedy - how can he be firm?" So if you want to be firm and unflinching in spirit, first you should control desire, as it says in the Book of Changes (I Ching). It is only out of greedy desire that you think you might as well flatter your superiors for the sake of a profitable salary, or you think you might as well bow your head to merchants for the sake of money.

Mencius said, "Shame is a serious matter for a man." A samurai without a sense of shame shouldn't be called a warrior. Warriors of old "could be killed but not disgraced," considering it a serious detraction for a warrior to be shamed, determined not to be dishonored even if they're killed. So even if they were executed for a crime, they considered it an honor to be allowed to cut their own stomachs. They disdained being tied up, as a disgrace to the corpse.

Generally speaking, the sorts of men who are to be punished are not good people, so there should be no question of honor or disgrace. The reason such men were nonetheless so brave is that in the past no warrior, whether good or bad, was shameless and clueless in the way of the warrior.

The fact is that it is by having warriors that a nation stands, and it is by having spirit that a warrior stands. If a warrior's spirit is not strong, that's like ginger that's not spicy. What flavor is there? With only warriors like this, it's the same as having no warriors - how can the nation stand?

Anyway, that spirit comes from having a sense of shame and forgetting desire. This is what is called the heart of honesty and integrity. When you forget desire, you don't shirk your duty even if it's bad for you personally, and if you have a sense of shame, you won't be fazed by anything, even the prospect of being killed. This way you won't be afraid of anything in the world. Isn't this strengths?

Mencius said, "A man of will doesn't forget he may wind up in a ditch, a brave man doesn't forget he may lose his head." If samurai always keep this maxim in mind as a protective amulet, they will not lose the sense of honesty and integrity. Not losing the sense of honesty and integrity, they will also become courteous and just."

Thus does Totsudo describe the aspects of the warriors spirit. Courage. Integrity. Justice. The warrior should have a sense of personal shame and forego desire. He should treat the weak with respect and the powerful with honesty. He should comport himself with honor and his spirit should fill his being "like a blazing fire."

Only then will he be able to truly express his martial training. Only then will "intelligence and courage be effective." Only then will people be "in awe of you." And never forget that if you use violence as a means of conflict resolution, you too "may wind up in a ditch."

That is the true spirit of the warrior. That is the difference between a common thug and a Martial Artist. That is the expression of the Way.

Drills -
Beginner: Cultivate the spirit of the warrior. Comport yourself with honesty, even in small things. Do not allow deceitfulness to enter into your nature.

Intermediate: Forego desire. Control your appetites. Be frugal with your resources. Be selfless and giving,  rather than greedy and grasping. Eat to live, don't live to eat.

Advanced:  Practice integrity. Say what you mean and mean what you say. Demonstrate the same values in yourself that you admire in others. Be an example for others of the Warrior's Spirit.

Navigating the Shadows

Joe Hyams was a Hollywood columnist and celebrity biographer. He worked with many famous celebrities from the early fifties on and was one of Master Parker's earliest kenpo students. In his 1979 book Zen in the Martial Arts he describes studying with many different martial arts Masters, and the lessons he was able to take away from his training and apply to life. He died in late 2008, and was remembered as a beloved author, family man, and friend.

In Zen in the Martial Arts, he describes an episode where his instructor taught him an important lesson about the nature and genesis of fear, and what we can do to overcome it.

Making a Friend of Fear
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"It was only a bare foot, but I was unable to keep it from landing someplace on my body. My breath was labored and my arms and legs felt like lead weights. Every time I moved, that foot seemed to find an opportunity to land with sufficient force to knock the breath out of me. If I were not careful, it might dislocate or even fracture my jaw. My opponent had hands, too, but it was his feet I feared.

When the match was over, I was completely exhausted. My mouth was dry, and I was perspiring profusely. Master Han, who had been watching the kumite, called to me. I went to him, bowed, and stood silently awaiting his comment.

"You cannot run away from fear in the dojang," he said. "In fact, it's a perfect place in which to learn to face fear. Most of the time we generate our own fears, and this is especially true when we confront an unfamiliar situation that shatters confidence. And this is what happened to you today."

Suddenly, without warning, his foot swept up from the floor toward my head. Without thinking my hands flew into a guard position and I took a huge step backwards and out of range.

"Don't move!" he commanded. "I'm not going to hit you."

Again his foot snapped up, stopping a whisker's breadth from the right side of my haw, then speedily reappearing at the left. I heard the snapping sound of his gi trousers as his foot grazed the top of my nose. I was trembling, but I had not moved.

"Good," he said. "Remain still and composed, secure in the fact that you are in no danger."

I did as ordered. For the next few moments I heard only the snapping of the gi as his foot whipped around my body, always stopping short of making direct contact.

"You must develop the confidence to handle fear," he said. "I will have a student practice kicking at you every day that you come in, with instructions that he is never to make contact. Until your fear of being kicked becomes familiar and you develop confidence, stand still and do not react. In time you will no longer be afraid. This I promise you."

He bowed to me, signifying the end of the lesson. Later, when I had changed into street clothes and was about to leave, Master Han beckoned for me to enter his office.

"I have a story to tell you," he said. "When I was a boy growing up in Korea I was terrified of the ferocious tigers that still live there. During the early stages of my martial arts training my master, who knew of my fear, told me that while meditating I should visualize myself battling a tiger. In the beginning, the tiger always defeated me. Then I began to go to the zoo in Seoul and study the tigers there, familiarizing myself with their habits and movements."

"In time, I realized that although the tiger was fearsome indeed, he did have weaknesses: he did not have complete mobility of his jaws, and he relied strongly on his hind legs for tearing at his opponent. I began to work out strategies for my imaginary bouts with the tiger, to find ways of exploiting his weaknesses. Soon I occasionally won a a skirmish, and my fear of tigers began to disappear."

Master Han smiled and gestured toward the walls of his office. "Now you see the walls here are covered with pictures of tigers. When I am alone, I study one of the pictures and imagine myself in conflict with the animal. Sometimes I win and sometimes I lose. But I am no longer afraid because they are familiar to me. In the heat of combat I am calm, which is as it should be because I have discovered that fear is shadow, not substance."

It took me many weeks of constantly facing the kicks of Master Han's students before I realized that when I was afraid. I was usually frightening myself, and that my own fears were only one aspect of a situation which could just as well be viewed without trepidation. When I accepted the fact that I was frightening myself, I became less afraid."

Fear always and only comes from within. That doesn't mean that there aren't some things to fear! Fear is a healthy evolutionary instinct. It keeps us safe. But we can't allow it to prevent us from taking action. When we are afraid is when it is most important to think and act with clarity. Learn to make a friend of fear. Learn to experience it, and to embrace it, and to use it as motivation to move on. There is no shame in feeling fear. But remember the words of Keisuke Miyagi.

"Is ok lose to opponent. Must not lose to fear."

Drills -
Beginner: Practice striking the shields with a partner. When you are holding the shield, focus on feeling the incoming force of your partner's strikes. Focus on sensing their energy and intention, and embrace the feeling of incoming aggression. Identify something that you are afraid to do. Maybe it's taking a trip or trying a new experience or getting a new job.

Intermediate: Practice sparring with a partner. When they aggress with strikes stand strong and defend your position. When you feel your eyes closing and your face and shoulders turning away focus on keeping your eyes open and focused on the opponent. Research what would be necessary to overcome your fear. Do you need special training? A guide? Specific resources? Take steps.

Advanced: When engaged in combat in the dojo, practice until you are exhausted. Then begin training again with a fresh opponent. When he becomes exhausted, begin again with a new fresh opponent. Train safely, but continue in this fashion, defending yourself against stronger faster attackers as you grow weaker and slower. Learn to embrace the fear of being overcome, and to continue to find ways to fight regardless of the circumstances. Never give up. Never stop. Confront your fears. Change your life. What was once impossible is now just the last step in your journey. Look forward to your next challenge and confront it with confidence.