Way of Life or Something else?

Movies are especially bad at skewing the conception of the martial artist's way of life. They show us martial artists steeped in ancient tradition, practicing arcane rituals. One almost gets the impression that a religion surrounds the thick fabric of the art. This makes for a compelling movie character, because it builds a framework that provides the martial artist with depth.

Martial Arts do have traditions and rules, but what a martial art is is based more on who is teaching and how they teach than the style itself. If you remember the definition of a martial art, it is simple a set of combat techniques. This is definitely something many people will argue with me about, but the core of the every art is designed around how to hurt or redirect people and avoid getting hurt by people. Some styles lean one way, some the other, but they still focus on the assumption that there are people out there that may just want to hurt you, and here is how to deal with them.

Stripped of any of the trappings of the arts, the techniques themselves cover a huge variety. There is at least a dozen ways of hurting your opponent with your hand (reverse punch, straight punch, backfist, jab, roundhouse punch, hammer fist, knife hand, ridge hand, spear hand, palm strike, etc...), and these techniques can be applied in numerous places on the body to great affect. There are wrist locks, wrist throws, choke holds, arm bars, knee bars, toe holds, finger locks, leg chokes (a.k.a. triangle), kicks, punches, pushes, head butts, pressure point attacks, and many others. No one can master all of the techniques, so the arts specialize in areas of interest.

So an art is basically just a package of a subset of the techniques and how to perform them, since some styles emphasize different applications of similar techniques. You can't just teach someone the knowledge of how to hurt other people by itself, though. First, the vast majority of the techniques require practice. Few people can just walk into the classroom and do a flying side kick. You have to do it over and over and over, and in some cases it takes years of practice. Most, and arguably all, martial arts provide a framework for practice. Second, if you're going to teach people potentially deadly techniques, you must also teach them responsibility. The goal is self-defense, but like any weapon, there is always the potential for misuse. For instance, Tae Kwon Do has a variety of ways of accomplishing this. Mutual respect is a huge focus of any class, where all ranks treat each other with the proper etiquette. In my classes, any breach, no matter how insignificant, is grounds for a round of pushups. It is just as important for a grizzled veteran about to test for his black belt to show respect to a beginning white belt as vice versa. There are some sayings that go something like "Respect has to be earned." Respect is a basic premise, and must be maintained. Most styles also have a set of rules, and usually involve things like respect, mutual cooperation, assisting the weak, always finishing what you start, etc. In other words, it is good advice. But in the martial arts, it's a bit more deeply rooted than advice. This is the way of life. Live by sensible rules grounded in common sense.

There are other things as well. Those that have been in the martial arts for a while realize that as you progress you reach plateaus. Stopping points. Skills that seem like they cannot be refined any more. Practice hard, however, and you will push past. Learning the value of hard work, and the rewards that it entails, are invaluable lessons. If you know the value of your work, you will appreciate the value of other's. People that are used to getting everything for free do not realize that, and those that do will have more respect for those around them.

So yes, there is a way of life for the martial artist. It's a bit different for everyone. Just about anyone who has gone all the way to black belt is just a little different than they used to be. I would guess that the vast majority are for the better, knowing what they do about hard work, respect, and the dangers that lurk out there.