Hi,
My name is Stephen.
I have been studying traditional Karate
and kungfu since I was 16. I have 2 black
belts and one black sash.
I’ve read all of the responses, and I must
say that many were very intellegent, many
weren’t. So I will give my humble opinion
about whether forms are useful for modern
western fighting.
I believe the first thing any MA practioner
must understand about fighting, at least hand-to-hand or weapons fighting (guns excluded) is that human beings have all fought
the same way since before recorded history.
Yes, I know that each culture has a form of
fighting, but if you look at them closely the
only thing that we can do is punch, kick, or
grapple. The Chinese way of fighting is the same as the African way of fighting, we only
assign different names to them.
Now, the other thing is that each culture’s
form of fighting has developed set routines (forms) to pass on what the originator of the
system wanted the warrior to learn. This is
true of all cultures. Some do them as dances
(i.e. capoeira) some as set pattern. The important fact that we forget is that the
originator of the form could sure as hell fight with it. I don’t believe for one
minute that the founder of the Black Tiger
system of Kung fu created forms for the
system simply for his health. He/She had
to defend himself and his family with what
he knew of his form or system. Not only that,
but obviously his students felt he/she could
fight with what he/she knew or else they would not have been the master’s student.
The problem is not forms, but the people who
teach them AND the people who learn them.
Specifically, and I am speaking from experience, many times the people teaching
the forms have no godly idea how to fight with them. They’ve memorized the movements
to get promoted, but they have know idea what the movements are for. So if the teachers don’t know how to use the forms
how in god’s name do we expect students
to be able to use them. It is equivalent to
being able to read, but not understanding what you’ve read.
On the other side of that coin, students
perpetuate this travesty by not asking questions of the form, or of their instructor. The first rule of learning anything is not to take anything on blind
faith, but verify the truth for one’s self.
Many times, when a form is tought out, a student will blindly follow the instructor’s
comments on the form, practice the movement
in a preset situation, and leave with a false sense of security about the effectiveness of the technique from the form.
What a student must do, and instrustors must,
allow this, is ask questions of the for.
Actually STUDY the form and not just memorize
it. Repetition fosters memory, not skill.
How does one study a form? You have to break it down into its component parts and ask of
it “What is going on here?” or “What principle is contained in this movement?” The second question is probably the more important. I say this because every technique contains a principle or concept that makes it work. Once you understand the
principle or concept, YOU DON’T NEED THE
TECHNIQUE ANYMORE!
For example, I have a 1st degree black belt
in Shaolin-Do Karate. A couple of months ago
I was sparring with a 5th degree black belt
in the same system, but from a different
school. In our system we have several praying mantis forms in our system. I have not learned any of them! However, I have seen them on video tape. I study them, and when I come across an idea I try them.
Long story short, using what little I knew
of the one mantis form I’ve studied on video
I mopped the floor with this INSTRUCTOR of
a much higher rank. He knew the same form
and could do it beautifully. But he could not use it. I DON’T EVEN KNOW THE FORM! But I can use it because I know what the form is
trying to teach.
All I am trying to say is that at each level
when studying forms, actually study the form.
Don’t just memorize it, don’t just take your
instructor’s word or interpretation of the
form as gospel truth. Analize the form, ask
questions of it. Play with it. Try and fight
out of a particular stance. You don’t learn how to ride a bike by not sitting in the seat and pushing the peddles. And you won’t
learn how to use your forms by not trying
to use the movements on an opponent.
Good Luck
Stephen
[This message has been edited by kungfukid (edited 06-07-2000).]
-ED