Is the Art of MA lost

[Sapper6]

When I was coming up through the ranks I learned training only for fighting was training what was referred to as the dirty hand. True Martial Artist must give back to society, Give to the church, Help those who are less fortunate. Do something which is selfless not selfish.
GIVE BACK. I believe for me personally the longe rI have been blessed to have been on this earth the more I have come to realize just how fortunate I am. When things are bad, I know there are those out there much less fortunate. The better, cleaner I live my life the more spiritual I have become the better I understand the Arts and the better my techniuqe has become. I truly believe no matter how good you may be until you give back and expect no personal gain nor return. You will will never attain your true potential until you simply Give back.
Pride, UFC, ISKA are not even good entertainment as far as i am concerned. Would you sit outside and watch someone beat up another human being????????? Why watch it on TV then? I choose not too, I have seen them them but am no longer interested.
Thanks

San

it's safe to say the Art is alive and well within yourself. great work! keep it up!!! when the desire dies, the Art within will sure follow. :asian:

 

[Marginal]

The graceful Art and fluent movements of old is all but gone everybody that comes to my Dojaang does not understand why we teach the history of the Art, they are basicly looking for cardio Karate or Taboo (Billy Blanks stuff), the general public have been brained wash into thinking MA is about a game or a sporting event. The lack of respect people have for the Arts just makes me wonder where will it be in a Houndred years or so. I would love to see everyone opion about there point of views on these subjects.

Terry Lee Stoker

A lot of this is cyclical. Things will rise, things will fall, and things will rise again. It's just teh nature of the beast. Can't cross over into an uninterested population without conceeding a lot to that new population. Some of that will grow, a lot of it'll die, some won't bother with the new population slice at all, and continue on as they have been, some of those will grow, some will not.

 

[Jerry]

The graceful Art and fluent movements of old is all but gone everybody that comes to my Dojaang does not understand why we teach the history of the Art, they are basicly looking for cardio Karate or Taboo (Billy Blanks stuff), the general public have been brained wash into thinking MA is about a game or a sporting event. The lack of respect people have for the Arts just makes me wonder where will it be in a Houndred years or so. I would love to see everyone opion about there point of views on these subjects.

To some extent, I believe you must take the chaff with the wheat. There are a limited number of people interested in a cultural art. If you took away cardio-karate, you would not (I believe) have these people in looking for the cultural art... you would simply not have them at all.

It is possible to convert people (I started in MA for fitness and abandoned it years ago in favor of fighting arts), but not everyone will be in it for the same thing.

I think the danger of an art dying off is more about whether there are some people with the interest in the art and culture finding it and preserving it than whether there are a lot of people interested in something else (hope that makes sense).

 

[Phoenix44]

the masses will never understand the true enlightment one's get from hard physical and emotional training that comes from there style.

In all fairness, why would they? It really doesn't matter what you pursue, but it takes a dedicated pursuit to obtain enlightenment in any field, and that is not something for "the masses" but for the disciple.

"The masses" believe the sliced white stuff you buy in a plastic bag at the supermarket to make sandwiches with is "bread." Unless they've worked at it, they probably have never tasted real hand kneaded home baked bread.

And look at the sampled crap that people call "music" these days.

A friend of mine sums it up this way: "Any martial arts is better than no martial arts." (And sometimes I use Wonder Bread, too.) But if you're looking for everything the martial arts has to offer, you have to look for it, and it's there.

 

[arnisador]

A lot of this is cyclical. Things will rise, things will fall, and things will rise again.

Yes, absolutely. Interest the 'art' side waxes and wanes. It's an old phenomenon.