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This Newsletter will carry items of interest to many people. Mostly there will be information on martial arts but we hope to also have information on herbs, various health practices, and more!
We will be posting new articles here when possible and we will also be leaving old articles which we have received compliments on. Our Newsletter starts with a quotes section and after that you will find any new and old articles we have.
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MARTIAL ARTS ETIQUETTE, PHILOSOPHY, AND VARIOUS QUOTES
"The one who says it cannot be done,
should not interrupt the one doing it" - Chinese Proverb
"Promises may get friends, but it is performance that keeps them" - Owen Feltham
"A boy becomes a man when he learns to walk around a puddle instead of through it"
"Every great man is always being helped by everybody; for his gift is to get good out of all things and all persons" - Ruskin
"Nurture your mind with great thoughts, for you will never go any higher than you think" - Benjamin Disraeli
"The worst thing in your life may contain seeds of the best. When you can see crisis as an opportunity, your life becomes not easier, but more satisfying" - Joe Kogel
"Those who speak do not know, and those who know do not speak" - Lao Tzu
"It is better to be careful 100 times than dead once" - Mark Twain
"Imagination is more important than the accumulation of knowledge" - Albert Einstein
"A bamboo door can believe it is a wooden door and never know the truth"
"The wind turns a ship from its course on the waters, the wandering winds of the senses cast a person's mind adrift, and turns their better judgment from its courses. When a person can still their senses I call them illuminated" - A Sanskrit Poem written in India about 200 BC -
"A man is born gentle and weak.
At his death he is hard and stiff.
Green plants are tender and filled with sap.
At their death they are withered and dry.
Therefore the stiff and unbending is the discipline of death.
The gentle and yielding is the discipline of life.
Thus an army without flexibility never wins a battle.
A tree that is unbending is easily broken."
- Lao Tsu -
Please feel free to submit your ideas and quotes.
A Vessel of Honor
The following writing was doing by Dorothy Jean West and has many good points for us to consider, read it and see what you get from it - thanks for your contribution!
Vessels must be prepared to have value (here we could consider ourselves the vessel)
Vessels must be empty
A Vessel must be ready
Finally, you should meditate and think on these things, contemplate on what you offer and give in a positive way, perhaps you need to be more positive and offer more positive things, you may then receive more positive things. Do the things that occupy your mind and thoughts enhance, encourage, and build you up? (and the others around you).
Why are these things important, because the things that take place in your mind, that occupy your thoughts and heart are manifested in the real world and can beneficially or adversely affect not only you but others and the entire world around you.
Remember, nothing that is good and of worth tears down, nothing good or of worth is achieved without giving of yourself, and nothing good or of worth is gained without battles scars.
Written by Jean West
Bury Me with Soldiers
I’ve played a lot of roles in life
I’ve met a lot of men
I’ve done a lot of things, I’d like to think
I wouldn't’t do again
And through I’m young, I'm old enough
To know someday I'll die
And to think about what lies beyond
And beside who I would lie
Perhaps it doesn’t matter much
Still if I had my choice,
I’d want a grave amongst soldiers
When at last death quells my voice
I'm sick of the hypocrisy
Of lectures of the wise
I'll take the man, with all the flaws
Who goes, though scared and dies
The troops I knew were commonplace
They didn’t want the war
They fought because their fathers
And their fathers had before
They cursed and killed and wept
God knows
They’re easy to deride
But bury me with men like these
They faced the gun and died
Its funny when you think of it
They way we got along
We'd come from different worlds
To live in one where no one belongs
I didn’t even like them all
I'm sure they’d all agree
Yet I would give my life for them
I know some did for me
So bury me with soldiers, please
Though much maligned they be
Yes, bury me with soldiers
For I miss their company
We’ll not see their likes again
We’ve had our fill of war
But bury me with men like them
Till someone else does more
- Author Unknown Soldier
"Dao" or "Do"
By Bill Wilson
Dao, also spelled Tao, is a very important concept in ancient Chinese thought,
and is often translated as "the way" or "the path" but these words do not
do justice to the true meaning. In English we use the word `way' to describe
concepts like - course, method, manner, mode, means, practice, fashion, technique
or style. These tend to lead us to believe that way is a method of action,
but in Chinese thought, non-action is of equal importance in the dao.
The other commonly used term is "path" and can be equally misleading. For
example, one might inquire "the way to Denver", and yet the path could be
a multitude of responses. Responses could range from head north on I-25 to
giving specific latitude and longitude coordinates. Those that understand
the backwoods of Colorado, understand that there many types of paths one
follows in the wild, as well as many different methods of marking those paths
so other can follow. The art and science of tracking animals and other humans
that have gone down a path ahead of you is an art and science unto itself.
And yet those of us that study this method soon find that the natural paths
created by natures engineers, like the deer and sheep, are the most economical
and easiest to use when traveling. It seems most animals are very in tune
with nature and automatically follow the dao.
In problem solving, we usually brainstorm and identify several ways to solve
a specific challenge, and then try and select the best way. While there
are many solutions that will work, we assume that there is one course of
action that is better than all the others. This one method would include
every little detail of this particular course. This one best method could
be described as the dao.
Many times the word dao or do is added to another word to describe a new
concept. For example, jiang dao is the word for "to preach" or "to speak
the dao". In Japanese language the concept of dao is translated as do and
is used in many of the martial arts to describe the total aspect of the way
of their martial art. For example, judo, karate-do, or kendo, implies that
their martial art form is a complete and well thought out art form that includes
aspects of mental, physical and spiritual training.
Lao Tzu once stated that the dao that can be explained is not the dao. This
is in reference to the idea of the dao is a constant and changing thing,
and one can experience it, and use that experience to understand it, but
if you try and collect it to study or analyze it, it is no longer the dao.
Take for example the martial arts teacher or student. It is impossible to
teach students to defend themselves against an attacker in the street, because
combat is alive and constantly changing. Yet we can share principles and
concepts that may enable the student to go with the flow and adapt to a specific
situation, and increase their ability to find the proper path at that time.
This leads us to the concept of karate-do; the way of karate. Many people
believe that the path is different for each of us, but has common roots.
This is why we spend time to work on goal setting and values clarification
with our students. Your path must be congruent with your personal values
and goals, and only then will your karate training begin to experience the
do aspect.
The path of karate-do is hard to explain and even harder to experience. Each
of us needs to find a good Sensei (one who has walked before), to help guide
us down this path and to remind us when we step off the path. I can assure
a new student that the benefits of self-confidence, higher self-esteem and
the overall success they will experience in their life because of this journey
will be well worth it, but it is them that must keep putting one foot in
front of the other along the path of black belt excellence. As you begin
or continue along your path in karate-do, I wish you the very best in your
journey and hope your journey is as blessed as mine has been and more.
THE MARTIAL ARTS INSTRUCTOR
Author Unknown
The relationship of the instructor to the training hall is very difficult to define, as it encompasses many varying aspects of life. The instructor must flow through the student in many levels of communication and reach to the far corners of his life. The instructor is a father and at times , a mother; an advisor and a chastiser. The instructor though different, is the same as everyone else. He is human and deserves respect, for he has traveled very long upon the way.
The instructor is a good teacher. By this, it is meant that he can convey the appropriate knowledge to his students at the correct time in the best manner. He must be able to see them and their problems as they seldom can - impartially. The instructor shows no favor. As progression is attained he becomes harder on those who progress. He is kind but firm to the beginners on the path.
He advises in an appropriate manner on the inner spiritual aspects of the art. He always has a friendly ear to listen, but is not outwardly moved. Many people are unable to see the instructor properly. They tend to seem him as a teacher or friend. He is neither. He is both. He is more. He sees a student in a free way, unmoved by the external face or appearance, and helps in the best way. If he has to be hard, he is so. If he has to be soft, he is so. His attitudes are in the best interest of the student.
Often the instructor may test his students by taking views diametrically opposed to theirs and watch their reaction. He will seldom openly praise. In the martial arts, silence is the best praise. He will note what affects the student in and out of the training hall, how he acts towards his friends, family, fellow students; and act accordingly. He will say nothing when he should speak. He is kind and understanding. He can be hard. He can be compassionate. Through all these externals, his heart is forever with them. He listens when they speak and understands their feelings. He is unmoved but can move charitably if necessary.
He is active in a subdued way. He gives while others take, and asks no reward. He is sad. He is happy. He is let down. He is uplifted. He holds to the way, for that way is him.
Through outside may change, the instructor does not; though he can adapt at will, he inward ideals are always there.
He may be abused, but he thanks in return; blamed or criticized, he persists. He persists when there is no reason to, that is why he is a Master.
On the average, it takes 2,000 students to produce one good master/martial arts instructor.
If you have one - take good care of him.
- AUTHOR UNKNOWN -
The following is an article written in the form of a poem and is very interesting, read it and see what it means to you.
THE LESSON
When the Wind came
The Tree had not learned to bend
So it broke
The Wood was retrieved
to make
an Oxen Yoke
The Ox would not lead
where it was told to go
Refusing to Learn
what others had to show
The Seeker's cup was too full
The Guide could put nothing in
So left to himself
he became an Aimless Wind
What does this mean to you
if you will not Listen and Learn?
The Ox they killed and ate
and the Tree they Burned
Written by Dorothy Jean West, Sifu
Dorothy Jean West, recently had this poem published - Congratulations!
Things that are in the Events Calendar that you won't want to miss! Go there now and read about:
Many interesting seminars to be held by King's Kung-Fu Association and Universal Fighting Arts Federation.
New classes coming up in Tai Chi Chuan, Qi-Gong, and Herbology
Demos locally and at the Orange County Fairgrounds
Keep coming back to this page, we have some very interesting
contributions already lined up for you to read!
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