I was reading an interview with a BaJi teacher in Ohio - he discussed how in China, martial arts were for the rich. If you were rich, you could afford the best teachers, spend time training. That even today, the wealthy appreciate the health-giving and self-defense aspects of CMA. But in America it is not as appreciated so much, so you teach who you can.
Comments?
I know a great many people whine about the cost of lessons or thier teacher trying to make money… what is wrong with a teacher making a living?
I’m sure that’s true, at least to some degree. But of course “back in the day” you could make a good living as a skilled MA, so it was a valuable trade to learn. Currently, kungfu-centric job opportunites are slim pickings.
Nothing is wrong with it. Heck, even Mc Dojo teachers have alot to offer thier clients. It’s when you get guys claiming to be the best of the best, charging outraguous rates, and delivering substandard Chung Moo Quan level martial arts that you have problems.
Many feel in the USA, you have to offer total Mcdojo material to even keep students, so the hard core guys look down on you as a a sell out. They never stop to think that the 70 yearold in your Taiji class has had tremendous beniffits from your teaching after his heart attack. They never think about the 11 year old ADD kid that got off ridelin because you gave him a good dose of structured exercise in a format he really enjoys. Or the single mom who has refound her energy because you taught her a good holding set. Or the 17 year old girl who fought off an agressive boyfreind because you taught her how to use a few techniques from a form you learned out of a book, or the 10 year old who took on and adult that jumped her 21 year old brother, and gave him the fighting chance he needed to save both their asses.
All the above are real case story’s of some of my students when I taught, the last one bruised the guys ribs and knocked the wind out of him with a jumpside kick and everything (Sounds like she hit him in the floating rib from behind and to the side). I got the story from her, her Mom, AND her brother who came in to class to thank me for teaching her to do that.
The way I see it, just charge a fair amount,work on having enough students to pay the bills, and make a deacent living. There is no reason why you shouldn’t be able to do this and make darn near six figures if you market right.
The answer is NO. Chinese martial arts were/are about WAR. China has had its warrior class whose chief responsibility was readiness to protect king and country and to kick assiduities when necessary. The Yang family (of the Yang Spear technique) is an example of this. The guy may have meant the ruling class. Money did not make it in those days; skill and ability did, as evidenced by the Wen Wu examinations.
And WAR was in the special interests of the ruling class. The ruling class could AFFORD to train and PAY soldiers. Money has always been a factor one way or another. But in later days it was quite true that it took some kind of benefactor to get to choose which schools you went to.
Not everyone was a begging monk teaching along the path. This whole mythology is movieland stuff. because even the begging monk was given all that he required. Shelter, food, firewood, maid service .
I have had about a dozen students who were on Riddelin that got off of it after spending a few sessions taking classes from me. This also includes D-F grades going to C-B and even A’s here and there. All I really did was train those kids harder than the rest of the class. Lots of holding postures and such.
To be honest, from my teaching experiance I don’t believe in ADD at all. I think it’s just a poor diet and exercise issue. Those kids need physical discaplines that require alot of concentraition and such and they need more raw fruits and veggies than most.
In fact, of the kids I delt with that were on ridelin because of ADD only one didn’t improve dramatically because of the training, and it turned out he had some exceptional home life issues with his family.
ADD is a crock of sh!t. If you read the diagnostic guidelines, you could fit it to almost any body. Once again, a drug company has tried to create a catch-all to make money off the unsuspecting. Snake oil kind of stuff.
However, there ARE compulsive disorders that can be treated by ridalin, but there are many other methods that should be tried first.
Most of the kids put on ridalin are at the reccomendation of teachers (when did THEY go to medical school?), and are representative of our countries unwillingness to enforce discipline amongst our young. Lazy teachers + lazy parents = drugged kids.
I beleive RD’s story - he gave those kids what they needed. They should not have been on the drug in the first place.
ADD and ADHD are not a crock of sh.it, but there does seem to be a lot of people diagnosed with it who likely shouldn’t have been.
Ritalin isn’t exactly what I would call a safe drug to be distributing so freely, it has in fact become a large problem for narcos all over because of the all to quick distribution of it by doctors.
Every year, disorders are pinpointed and drugs to wayley the disorder are created and distributed. Every year, wrong diagnosis of various symptoms and diseases are made.
This is because the person at the very bottom of the graduatin class in medical school is still a doctor. Should standards be raised again? Maybe.
Consider that it wasn’t so long ago that insane people were thought to be possessed by demons as opposed to having whacked out brain chemistry or severe depression or even environmental poisoning, etc etc.
They should not have been on the drug in the first place.
Which is my point. They never had ADD. Exercise and discipline doesn’t help an ADD child at all.
ADD is not a crock of ****, but it IS completely overdiagnosed and adderall and ritalin and simlar drugs overperscribed.
I know because I was/am ADHD, back before it became popular to label every bored kid with the disorder. You never really outgrow it, but you learn coping mechanisms…and it’s got its upsides too…
Monkeyslap, apparently you haven’t been keeping up on your kungfu movies. The poor could learn kungfu by showing up at the doorstep of a famous master, pestering him non stop for a few days and showing some stickwithitude. either that or cleaning up after him for months on end, or even years!
Since we have gone off topic, I will indulge a little,
If you know someone with ADD and ADHD, remove sugar from their diet. All forms of it. Take away the hidden sugars as well-- cereals, sodas etc. Replace it with a vegetable rich diet (I’m not excluding meat though that would not be a bad idea, I’m saying that it should be vegetable RICH). Any kind of sugar should come from fruits. You should start seeing a change within 2-4 weeks. I have also heard that wheat should be eliminated as well.
A proper education is an essential part of being a functional human being. Sadly, so many are ignorant. Note that ignorant is NOT stupid, it is lack of knowledge, ie ignorant of the facts…
People blather on about 'warrior classes" when talking about China. They confuse Japanese Bushi (ie samurai class) with the realities of China. Chinese proverb says a soldier is not made of a good man. Chinese Confucian society looked down upon those who engaged in physical labor, and upon the martial arts class. Military officers were restricted from advancing to levels of political importance. Most military men were not officers, they were basicly a slave class and terribly mistreated. Thus, the many uprisings and rebellions in which the military played important roles…
TCMA was chiefly the realm of those dis-affected from society at large. The poor, those in marginalized professions, criminals, military, “hit men”… To argue otherwise not only defies the historical record, it defies common sense.
Advancement in Chinese society was based upon exam system. Exam system required intense study under tutors only the rich could afford. Only the rich could afford the time to memorize everything that Conficius ever said. Other than that, illiteracy among most Chinese prevented advancement in the exam system…
Most Chinese even TODAY think that if you do martial arts, most likely you are affiliated with some gang or low life activity. Face it, even Lion Dancing is basicly a “shake down”…
With the fall of the Qing Dynasty in 1911, the exam system fell. A lot of rich and influencial people had resources and time on their hands. Many turned to martial art as a “cool hobby”. But being priveledged and spoiled, they didn’t want to work and wanted the “secret” short cut…
Fighters who were poor and wanted to be rich were willing to teach total crap to rich people in exchange for being accepted in polite society and for substantial payments. They were also willing to “dumb it down” to the LOWEST level. Or they would drag their unsuspecting rich client along with dumb ideas about “cultivating chi to fight”. This is thus the very essense of so much of the BS and poppy cluck in the arts…
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