sábado, 31 de janeiro de 2015
sexta-feira, 30 de janeiro de 2015
quinta-feira, 29 de janeiro de 2015
quarta-feira, 28 de janeiro de 2015
segunda-feira, 26 de janeiro de 2015
domingo, 25 de janeiro de 2015
sábado, 24 de janeiro de 2015
quinta-feira, 22 de janeiro de 2015
Desfazer a inconsciência comum
DESFAZER A INCONSCIÊNCIA COMUM
E então como poderemos ver-nos livres deste tormento?
E.Tolle: Tornando-o consciente. Observe as muitas maneiras como o mal-estar, o descontentamento e a tensão nascem dentro de si através de críticas desnecessárias, de resistência ao que é, e da recusa do Agora. Qualquer coisa que seja inconsciente desfaz-se quando você a ilumina com a luz da consciência. Assim que você souber desfazer a inconsciência comum, a luz da sua presença brilhará de forma mais intensa, e será muito mais fácil lidar com a inconsciência profunda sempre que sentir a sua força. No entanto, a inconsciência comum poderá não ser fácil de detectar ao princípio por ser tão normal.
Habitue-se a controlar o seu estado mental emocional pela observação de si próprio. "Sinto-me à vontade neste momento?" é uma boa pergunta para fazer a si próprio com frequência. Ou poderá perguntar: "O que se passa dentro de mim neste momento?" Esforce-se por se interessar tanto pelo seu interior como pelo seu exterior. Se conseguir corrigir o interior, o exterior seguir-se-á. A realidade primária está dentro, a realidade acessória está fora. Mas não responda imediatamente a tais perguntas. Dirija a sua atenção para dentro. Olhe para dentro de si. Que espécie de pensamentos produz a sua mente? O que sente? Dirija a sua atenção para o corpo. Há nele alguma tensão? Assim que detectar que há um baixo nível de descontração, que o ruído de fundo está a aumentar, veja de que maneira está a resistir, ou a recusar a vida — ao recusar o Agora. Há muitas maneiras das pessoas resistirem inconscientemente ao momento presente. Vou dar alguns exemplos. Com a prática, o seu poder de auto-observação, de controlar o seu estado interior, ficará mais apurado.
✦ Eckhart Tolle ✦ O poder do agora p55
E então como poderemos ver-nos livres deste tormento?
E.Tolle: Tornando-o consciente. Observe as muitas maneiras como o mal-estar, o descontentamento e a tensão nascem dentro de si através de críticas desnecessárias, de resistência ao que é, e da recusa do Agora. Qualquer coisa que seja inconsciente desfaz-se quando você a ilumina com a luz da consciência. Assim que você souber desfazer a inconsciência comum, a luz da sua presença brilhará de forma mais intensa, e será muito mais fácil lidar com a inconsciência profunda sempre que sentir a sua força. No entanto, a inconsciência comum poderá não ser fácil de detectar ao princípio por ser tão normal.
Habitue-se a controlar o seu estado mental emocional pela observação de si próprio. "Sinto-me à vontade neste momento?" é uma boa pergunta para fazer a si próprio com frequência. Ou poderá perguntar: "O que se passa dentro de mim neste momento?" Esforce-se por se interessar tanto pelo seu interior como pelo seu exterior. Se conseguir corrigir o interior, o exterior seguir-se-á. A realidade primária está dentro, a realidade acessória está fora. Mas não responda imediatamente a tais perguntas. Dirija a sua atenção para dentro. Olhe para dentro de si. Que espécie de pensamentos produz a sua mente? O que sente? Dirija a sua atenção para o corpo. Há nele alguma tensão? Assim que detectar que há um baixo nível de descontração, que o ruído de fundo está a aumentar, veja de que maneira está a resistir, ou a recusar a vida — ao recusar o Agora. Há muitas maneiras das pessoas resistirem inconscientemente ao momento presente. Vou dar alguns exemplos. Com a prática, o seu poder de auto-observação, de controlar o seu estado interior, ficará mais apurado.
✦ Eckhart Tolle ✦ O poder do agora p55
quarta-feira, 21 de janeiro de 2015
terça-feira, 20 de janeiro de 2015
segunda-feira, 19 de janeiro de 2015
10 Differences Between Okinawan Karate & Japanese Karate
#10 Differences Between Okinawan Karate & Japanese
Karate
Question:
Do you know the difference between
Okinawan Karate & Japanese Karate?
I
didn’t.
Until I decided to actually visit
Okinawa – the birthplace of Karate.
Wow.
Since then, I’ve revisited the amazing
island over a dozen times, mainly for Karate research. I even lived
there in 2009, studying Japanese language.
So I
can assure you…
There
are MANY differences between Okinawan and Japanese Karate!
Today,
I’ve decided to reveal 10 of them for
you.
Sounds
interesting?
Check
‘em out:
#1. Higher Stances
Okinawan Karate has a lot of high
stances.
Why?
Because
it’s natural.
For many people, this is good news!
Deep Karate stances can often feel
“forced”, especially for tall Westerners, and tend to be painful for
knees/feet/back.
(Particularly if done wrong.)
To put
things into perspective, an Okinawan zenkutsu-dachi can be half the length of a
Japanese one.
Perfect
for lazy bastards like me!
But…
Will these kinds of high stances build
leg strength and stamina?
Not
really.
That’s
not the point either.
The stances of Okinawan Karate are meant
to be practical when applied in self-defense, since they can be
quickly and effortlessly reached from your everyday stance.
That’s
the point.
#2. “Why” Over “How”
If you
practice Karate in Okinawa, you will often hear the word “imi”.
“Imi” translates to “meaning” in
English.
Hence,
in Okinawan Karate, the meaning of a
technique is often more stressed than how the
technique is actually executed.
The Why
is more important than the How.
Japanese Karate, on the other hand, is
often more focused on the How rather than the Why.
How
come?
There
are three main reasons for this:
1. The meaning of many techniques was lost during the
historical transmission of Karate from Okinawa to Japan. If you don’t know the Why, it’s more sensible to teach the How.
2. The purpose of Japanese Karate is not aligned with the
purpose of Okinawan Karate anymore. Historically speaking, Japanese Karate was
molded to suit the spiritual Way (“Karate-Do”) of contemporary martial arts
like Judo, Kendo, Aikido etc., with the main purpose of developing the
character of its participants (through the How). The purpose of Okinawan Karate
has always been mainly self-defense oriented (the Why).
3. The level of martial knowledge , i.e. biomechanics of
Budo, is much deeper in Japan. Many techniques of Japanese Karate are
influenced by other, more established, Japanese martial arts where the optimal
movement patterns are well-researched.
For
example, a Japanese sensei will go very deep in details of a kata.
(How to
twist your hips, how to adjust your feet, how to shift your
weight etc.)
But an Okinawan sensei
will often remind you of the purpose of a kata instead.
The
“bunkai”.
Get it?
#3. No “Osu! / Oss!”
In Japanese Karate, the verbal command “Osu!”(pronounced “Oss!”) is used
sometimes.
This phenomenon has also spread to
the West, and is even getting popular in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and MMA
nowadays too.
But…
I’ve NEVER heard
the term “Osu! / Oss!” being used in Okinawa.
Why?
The
reason can be found here:
The
Meaning of “Osu” / “Oss” (+ When You Should NEVER Say It)
Okinawans generally
use the word “Hai!” instead.
#4. It’s Not a Sport. It’s a Lifestyle.
When
Karate was introduced to Japan, many things changed.
For
instance, people started competing.
Most people don’t know this, but
Japanese Karate practitioners actually changed many kata and added tons of new
kumite techniques, for the sole purpose of scoring points in competitions.
Trust
me; you’ll never see an Okinawan sensei teach you a spinning hook kick to
the head!
Don’t get me wrong though; people
in Okinawa compete too these days. But there’s a big difference in their
approach.
In
Okinawan, Karate is not a sport.
It’s a
lifestyle.
Like one of my Okinawan friends, a 7th
dan Shorin-ryu sensei, once told me:
“Karate is part of our cultural identity”.
It
truly is.
Karate’s heritage is everywhere in
Okinawa, and it’s such a natural part of their culture that it
simply makes no sense to compete in it.
A
growing bamboo does not compete with the bamboo next to it.
Right?
#5. Chinkuchi Over Kime
In
Japanese Karate, the concept of“kime” is super
important.
You’ve
probably heard the term.
The
word “kime” comes from the root“kimeru”, which literally means “to decide” or “to fix”.
Kime
signifies that instant stop at the end of your technique.
(Read
more: What is “Kime”? Dr. Lucio Maurino (World
Karate Champion) Explains & Demonstrates)
Now check
this out…
In Okinawan Karate, there is something
else:
Chinkuchi!
You see, in Okinawan Karate it’s not
important to freeze the technique quickly.
It’s
more important to transfer all of your energy into the opponent – like a
shockwave. And in order to do this, you need an explosive release of full-body
power.
Have you ever seen the famous
“one-inch punch” by Bruce Lee?
It’s a
perfect example of chinkuchi.
(Read
more: Chinkuchi – Another Exotic Okinawan Karate Word)
It’s
all about power.
#6. Kobudo Weapons
Japanese Karate is mostly empty-handed.
But in Okinawa,
almost every dojo has weapons on the wall.
Why?
Because they practice Kobudo – the art
of handling Karate’s ancient combat tools.
The 10
most common Kobudo weapons are:
·
bo
·
sai
·
tonfa
·
nunchaku
·
kama
·
timbe/rochin
·
tekko
·
kuwa
·
sansetsu kon
·
nunti bo
Now, I’m not saying Okinawan Karate is
an art with weapons.
But a
long time ago, rural Okinawa was a very dangerous place.
Most thugs carried weapons.
And if
you’ve never practiced with weapons, it’s hard to defend against one.
Therefore, old-school Karate masters
were also masters of Kobudo.
(Related
reading: Exposing The Lost Secret of Matsumura’s
Mysterious Bo Staff)
Like Nakamoto Masahiro, 10th dan
Okinawan Kobudo, once told me after we finished training in his dojo:
“Karate
and Kobudo is like brother and sister.
Never separate.”
These
days, most Karate dojos in Okinawa practice very little Kobudo.
But
trust me – they know something!
In Japanese Karate, it’s practiced even
less…
If at
all.
#7. Old-School Strength Tools
Okinawan Karate masters always promote physical
conditioning.
Because
if you’re weak and frail, you simply cannot defend yourself optimally!
So,
they developed tons of crazy tools to strengthen & condition
their bodies.
This gear is still being used in
Okinawan Karate today.
Some of
my favorites are:
1. Makiwara –
a swooden, springy, punch board wrapped in straw. The saying “a dojo without a makiwara is not a dojo” should
tell you how important this impact tool is in Okinawa.
2. Chi-ishi –
a stone weight attached to a short wooden stick, made to be swung around
the body to strengthen arms, wrists, hands, core and back.
3. Ishi-sashi –
a hand-held concrete weight in the shape of a padlock,
originally made of stone. It’s used in the same way as a modern
kettlebell, but with a Karate twist.
4. Nigiri-game –
big ceramic jars filled with sand, which you grip around the rim (one in
each hand) while walking in different stances to strengthen your
grip, wrists, arms, legs and core.
5. Tou - a
standing bundle of bamboo tied together at the top and bottom. You strike it
with your forearms, fingers and elbows (almost like a makiwara) but also with
your legs, to condition your shins.
In Japanese Karate, you rarely see these
training tools – except the makiwara.
But in
Okinawa, you find them in every corner of the dojo.
They
are essential.
#8. Tuidi Techniques
Next, we
have something called “tuidi”.
While Japanese Karate approaches
combat from a long distance range, Okinawan Karate prefers a shorter,
closer, range.
Here’s
where tuidi comes into play.
Tuidi
is the Okinawan method of grabbing, seizing, twisting and dislocating
an opponent’s joints.
Quite naturally, this aspect of combat
also involves other nasty things like choking, unbalancing, throwing, trapping
hands, hitting pressure points and nerve bundles etc.
These
things are rarely taught in regular Japanese Karate classes.
Why?
Because,
again, Japanese Karate was heavily influenced by pre-existing martial
traditions when it was introduced from Okinawa. The original, short, fighting
range was changed to a longer one – and concepts like “maai” (engagement distancing) were borrowed
straight from Japanese samurai sword fencing (Kendo).
Therefore,
the concept of “tuidi” is not as important in Japanese Karate.
But in
Okinawan Karate it’s still being practiced.
A
common Okinawan exercise for practicing tuidi is called “kakie” – a sensory flow drill,
often called “pushing hands” in the West.
(Related
reading: 2 Forgotten (But Deadly) Techniques of
Okinawan Karate)
In
fact, when you closely examine old-school kata, you will see that the bunkai of the kata movements make much more sense
in the close range than the long range.
Try it
and you will see.
9. Individualization Over Mass Training
As you might have figured out by now,
Okinawan Karate has many unique quirks.
To
truly understand it, you have to experience it up close.
Basically,
you need personal attention directly from a sensei.
This is why Okinawan Karate is hard
to teach a big group of people at once – you simply cannot give
adequate individual attention to a group of 50 students or more!
Japanese
Karate, on the other hand, was tailored for huge groups.
Why?
Because that was the goal when Karate
was introduced to the various universities around Tokyo, Osaka and Kyoto in the
middle of the 20th century.
This
phenomenon, along with tournaments, is the reason why many movements of
Japanese Karate are bigger and more simplified than Okinawan Karate
movements.
They
need to be easily seen by huge masses of people!
In
Okinawan Karate, it’s the opposite.
In fact, the average Okinawan dojo has
room for like 10-15 people. This spartan training environment actually adds to
the focus of individualization over mass instruction.
(Read
more about training Karate in Okinawa: The Practical Foreigner’s Guide to Training Karate in
Okinawa – The Birthplace of Karate)
Sadly, this is the
reason many Okinawan masters can’t make a living from Karate.
They
don’t have room for enough students.
10. Uchinaa-guchi
Lastly, here’s something you might have
noticed throughout the article:
Okinawan
Karate has its own language.
“Uchinaa-guchi”.
(Literally: “Okinawan mouth.”)
Many
Okinawan Karate terms I’ve mentioned so far – like “chinkuchi” and “tuidi” –
are not Japanese words. They are ancient terms of the Okinawan language.
Some
other popular ones are:
Muchimi,
Gamaku, Meotode, Chinkuchi, Machiwara, Ti, Shinshii, Toudi etc.
(Those
of you who attended my KNX14 seminar will recognize the first four).
This
language is still used by traditional masters in Okinawa.
For
example; when I went to Okinawa last summer, I learnt a new kata called Tomari Chinto. In one particular technique, my
sensei told me to have a spring-like upward movement, called “hanchaatii”. Huh? I was clueless! What did he mean?
When he saw my confusion, he quickly excused himself and
said it in proper Japanese instead; “hana ageru”.
Now I
understood!
This goes to show that Uchinaa-guchi is
still very much alive today.
But
it’s never used in Japanese Karate.
Only in
Okinawa.
_____
Makes
sense?
Thanks
for reading my friend! ; -)
/Jesse
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