Mastery

[Kacey]

What does "master" and "mastery" mean to you in the context of martial arts? Do you think it is possible to "master" your martial art? Why or why not?

This is separate from the concept of the rank of "master" or "master instructor", although your conception of this rank may easily bear on your answer.

For me:

"Othello: A minute to learn, a lifetime to master". This is the slogan on a chess/checkers/go style strategy game I played a lot as a child - but I think it is equally applicable to martial arts. There is always something else to learn, to improve, to understand.

Remember, too, that "master" is short for "master instructor", which is a different issue than "master" meaning "demonstrate complete mastery of". Also, even when referring to the latter definition, "master" (e.g. "master gunner") refers to someone with a high level of skill - not someone who has nothing to learn or no need to practice.

 

[Gemini]

What a great thread! Here's the (my) short answer.

In the age we live in, mastery of an art is almost as forgotten as the art itself. There are some that still can and do, but they become fewer and fewer. What a shame.

 

[terryl965]

In today society one can try to Master there Art but the problem lies in what one consider to be Mastery, to me one can never Master an Art that keeps growing and evolving with time so one can only train to be as good as he was the day before but striving to be better than yesterday.

 

[Xue Sheng]

It's a great book by George Leonard.

"Mastery is not perfection, but rather a journey, and the true master must be willing to try and fail and try again" --George Leonard

beyond that it is just a word nothing more.

 

[IWishToLearn]

Mastery is the highest level of understanding - the ability to personify your chosen skill to the point of being able to universally apply its principles to whatever your current situation may be.

To Master something is kind of a misnomer - because while you can become truly talented, adept, and brilliant at your chosen skill, you can never truly learn everything, because we're all constantly in a state of flux as our bodies change daily, and our experience and (we hope) knowledge grows along with the changes.

 

[stickarts]

I don't equate mastery to perfection, but to acheive a skill level to the extent that you become like one with your craft / skill.
It becomes as natural as breathing and it is to be among the best of the best. The elite.
While it can be difficult to express exactly what mastery is, you know it when you see it.

 

[Rich Parsons]

It's a great book by George Leonard.



beyond that it is just a word nothing more.

One can master "thier" art.

Once they are good enough through lots of proper practice they can continue to evolve and grow and learn, but as stated here, they also fail. Sometimes they fail in students, sometimes they fail in a technique in an application. Yet they know they have failed and they go back and work it so they can improve themselves.

As master wood worker also improves his skills over time, yet not every piece they make will be loved by everyone. Yet the process of doing and failing can lead to improvement and growth.

The idea of a master being perfect and untouchable is something that has lead to a degradation of the title or level of understanding.

The other side of the coin is also true where the title of Master is given at a certain rank just because people can perfrom certain things at a certain time or a certain way, while they may not be able to think out of the box. Innovate or improvise are other words that come to mind as well. So now people without this skill to move forward and think out of the box and grow have the title and then are afraid that others will challenge them if they make a mistake so then they do less and explain away everything as no mistake or being late or , ..., or what have you.

But these are my thoughts. So others will have different opinions and thoughts and points of view.

Thanks

 

[Callandor]

Perhaps a person could only strive to master their art but not really be a master of it. As what Xue Sheng quoted, it's a journey. A constant journey which you don't quite arrive at your destination. A journey which the traveler would be better off by enjoying the moment than by concerning herself of when she will finally "get there". In mastering the art, maybe the best one can hope is either to learn less of many or many of less.

 

[stone_dragone]

I have read somewhere recently that in feudal Japan, a student would study with his teacher for only a few months, a year at most, and then be called a master, going from there to learn on his own and live or die trying.

In other crafts, after a time of apprentice ship, a person is considered a master of the craft after producing his "masterpiece" similar to a final project.

I personally think that the term is both inflated and overused in the current usage of it. There is the idea that mastery is something unattainable, and perhaps it is in the martial arts, perhaps it not.

Based on the first two usages, it would seem that a master is made when a person is ready to go out on their own and prove themselves, but that would seem to take the current value out of the title, now wouldn't it?

 

[CuongNhuka]

Three quotes on subject:
"Mastery is something no one can attain, but everyone seeks. It's what makes us better. What makes us seek somthing new. If we could become a master of anything, like martial arts, then they would be invincable, which is impossible. No one is invincable" Sensei Wes Shockly

"I'm a master of everything. No one is better then me at anything. And in every school across America is some one who knows something I dont, and in every martial arts school theres a dozen poeple who could kick my (I cannt say)." Mr. Kastrick, my AP World History/Philosophy teacher.

"Art is that which lies in the slinder border between what is real, and what is not." A Master to his student

aside from that, i agree with Xue Sheng

 

[qi-tah]

There is a bit of a convo going in the beginner's section about the nature of "being a beginner" and when you stop being one, which i think bookends this thread quite nicely. There seems to be the underlying assumptions that being a beginner means you know nothing and being a master means that you know everything... perhaps that is not so? Maybe instead of being two extremes along a line that seems to constantly shift it's values, they are something else entirely?

 

[Tez3]

Perhaps a martial arts forum is the only place people would have this discussion these days? Everything has to be instant these days, no one wants to study anything for a lifetime. Everyone wants to be an instant expert.
I'm not sure of my answer to the question, it's something though I'm going to think about though, probably for days!

 

[tshadowchaser]

I have been thinking about the question first asked in this thread from the time I saw it.
I knew a man called master and grandmaster by all who knew him yet after a long lifetime (around 60 years) he claimed to still be learning the secrets of what he did and was still trying to do things he had yet to accomplish in the arts. He died knowing he had taught many and had promoted some to the rank of GM when he knew he was about to pass from this earth but he was still a humble man who knew there where things he had never mastered

 

[MJS]

What does "master" and "mastery" mean to you in the context of martial arts? Do you think it is possible to "master" your martial art? Why or why not?

This is separate from the concept of the rank of "master" or "master instructor", although your conception of this rank may easily bear on your answer.

For me:

"Othello: A minute to learn, a lifetime to master". This is the slogan on a chess/checkers/go style strategy game I played a lot as a child - but I think it is equally applicable to martial arts. There is always something else to learn, to improve, to understand.

Remember, too, that "master" is short for "master instructor", which is a different issue than "master" meaning "demonstrate complete mastery of". Also, even when referring to the latter definition, "master" (e.g. "master gunner") refers to someone with a high level of skill - not someone who has nothing to learn or no need to practice.

I'll most likely be long gone before I was to 'master' my art. There is so much contained in an art, it would most likely take a life time to do it and then I'd have to wonder if its still possible. As you said, I think its possible to reach a point in your training where you have a high skill level, but is the thing in question 'mastered'? To expand on your last paragraph: I can most likely kick better than someone with a weeks worth of training, so to them, in their eyes, I may appear that I've 'mastered' kicking, but the fact remains, I still train my kicks and still get critiqued on them by my teacher. Its amazing though, how we can think we've got good at something, only to be shown up by someone who knew a bit more. I really don't think the learning ever stops.

Mike

 

[Chizikunbo]

In my opinion, and understanding, Mastery is not an eventual goal, but rather a continuous journey. It is never possible to attain true mastery over art or self. If someone ever truly think they have mastered anything, than there is no need to practice, this is why mastery is a journey...

--josh

 

[JBrainard]

This has probably already been said, but I personally feel that you can't "master" anything, let alone martial arts. Striving for mastery of whatever you feel passionate about is part of the adventure and mystery of life.

 

[Em MacIntosh]

I once asked my father the meaning of life. He told me, "you spend your whole life trying to figure out who you are, then one day, *snap*, you find out." Ashes to ashes...
I beleive the meaning of life is to strive. Whatever you do, whether it be a trade, a martial art, entertainment...it is the art of the soul. It is your personal expression. Your mark. We ought to perform this art to the best of our abilities not just for how we are remembered, but for how we remember ourselves. Then you add in the equation of interaction. The free exchange of ideas, information, knowledge and skill. It is the human being's ability for foresight, to be able to cooperate and communicate that makes us the dominant life form we know of on the planet. Our brains are capable of so much we'll never know. Perhaps when you've used 100% of your brain, have found the internal fountain of youth and developed your chi well enough to stand up to a train you are a master. Perhaps once you grasp a skill well enough to competently teach others you are a master. It's up for perspective. It's your soul.