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This question has
been
around for centuries and perhaps it is one of those questions that
keeps generating controversy and futile, useless arguments and will
continue to do so for years to come.
A street fighter
in a
tough neighborhood would not be too concerned about this. He would
know his environment well and know when to fight, when not to fight,
and whom to fight. Probably he would not be constrained by morality
nor any type of honor. His only objective would be survival.
Last year there
was an
article written by a former Tae Kwon Do classmate. The article
talked about a particular Tae Kwon Do style, and one of the
statements was “we have the best style”. At first I shook my
head, smiled, and remembered my days when I did not know any better.
Quite a statement I thought considering the number of good martial
arts styles and systems there exist in the world. After reflecting a
bit, I tried to find some veracity in these words. I thought if he
expects to use his techniques effectively and prevail or survive in a
real situation, then certainly he needs to be convinced his system
would work in all situations and environments. In that context the
style may be the best..for him, but what about other styles?
If you were to ask
a boxer
this question, what kind of answer do you think you would get? Or even
better get in the ring with a boxer and see what happens. If you ask
a Karate master, or a Wing Chun practitioner, or a Brazilian
Jiu-jitsu black belt, what do you think their answers would be? How
about an MMA veteran? Their answers would be, Boxing, Karate, Wing
Chun, Jiu-jitsu, and MMA. One more time I ask this question, who is
right? How can I know? And one more time I answer, they are all
correct.
The mistake many
people
make when engaging in this type of argument is that they fail to
realize that this question is not an absolute question but rather a
very personal one, a relative question. So you should ask relative
to what? Martial arts styles and systems were developed by different
people from different cultures all over the world and at different
periods of time. Martial arts systems are dependent on the
environment, the opponent, the particular situation, the prevailing
culture, and on the practitioner.
You might be the
best
kicker in the world, but kicks will not help you if you are fighting
in 5 inches of mud or snow, or if you are surrounded by obstacles or
the terrain is so unforgiving (or slippery) that raising your leg
would compromise your balance. You could be wearing tight or heavy
pants that day. Kicking requires more space than boxing. Similarly,
you may be the best grappler, but if you find yourself in a
knife-based culture where fighters are used to carrying more than one
concealed knife, you may not be able nor have a desire to grapple
under these conditions. A weapon changes the whole situation and
narrows down the menu of available techniques you may use. Does this
mean that kicking and grappling styles are to be discarded? Definitely
NOT.
Let's use a
college
education again as an analogy to illustrate the point. We tend to
think that the university makes the student and the professional when
it is the other way around. Prestigious universities try to attract
the best students because they know they will make them look good. For
instance since Albert Einstein graduated from The Swiss Federal
Polytechnic School, this particular school would attract the best
scientific talent without much effort and especially if there are no
other schools offering the same programs. In all this we tend to
ignore that Einstein's brilliant work started while he was working as
a clerk at a patent office.
Similarly, if a
French
fencer beat an Italian Fencer in the world championship, it would
mean that French fencing is a superior fencing style. Most talented
young fencers would practice French fencing until the day the
championship goes to an Italian or a Spanish fencer.
The
martial art
does not make the martial artist. The martial artist makes the
martial art. If you can make your martial art work for you
consistently and effectively, and you prevail, then for the rest of
your life you will have found the best martial art. The fact that a
grappler today beats the kicker or the trapper beats the boxer, does
not guarantee that the roles will not be reversed tomorrow. The UFC
has proved this.
So when someone
says
“Aikido
or Wing Chun or Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu is the best martial art there
is”, he is stepping into dangerous waters. These are all great
systems, but to make them work in all situations will take a great
practitioner. So what he is really saying is that he knows of a
practitioner who is an outstanding martial artist who found a way to
use
Aikido (or Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu or Kali) tools effectively. This
individual has discovered a set of techniques that fit his physical
and mental attributes and bind them together.
What you really
want to
learn is the method this individual used. What process helped him to
find his self expression regardless of the art. So, if you were to
say instead “Kali or Karate or Aikido is the best martial art for
me”, you would be on the right track to finding the best martial
art.
St Louis Kali
Silat
Martial Arts – March 27th, 2011
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