Combate Sports=Negative Energy?

[PeacefulWarrior]

Hello all!

It's been quite some time since I've stopped by.  This is one of my favorite places on the internet, although it has changed SO much since its humble beginnings.  I used to frequent the forums a lot and, in fact, I was once a moderator here.  Anyhow, I have an interesting question.  As of late I have become quite interested in martial arts.  It sort of came about as I have been working out more and getting myself back into good physical condition (I havelost more than 20 lbs in the last 6 months or so).

As I have become more interested in martial arts, namely jiu-jitsu (Japanese for "the gentle art") I have also become intrigued by mixed martial arts (UFC, PRIDE, etc.)  I cannot help but wonder, however, how this might negatively affect me spiritually.  Mixed martial arts isn't that dangerous, but it is full of big egos and negative individuals. 

What do you all think?

Anyhow, it's good to be back and I pledge to stop by more often to check out what people are talking about.

-Daniel

[Nay]

It is wonderful to see you again Daniel!   You and your family are looking so happy and healthy!!   I'm so happy for you all. 

My opinion on the martial arts thing is.... it seems you already have misgivings so that is a heads up.  I too would be weary of the ego drive and negative individuals.  Are these people at the place that you are taking lessons?  Surely there are other locations without so much of the negative stuff?  Do you think you can ignore it and take only the positive?  Are you afraid you might become one of those individuals?  btw, I don't think you could.  Someone with your kind nature and mindset would be a perfect example of what martial arts should be all about.  Hmmmm... perhaps YOU would be a good example for those negative nellys.   

Take Care Daniel and yes please come by more often!! 

PS.. LOL. sorry about those rapid fire questions.. Just read back what I wrote.. 

[Stookie]

I think that martial arts like jiu-jitsu are excellent ways to bring body & mind together and develop skill, stategy, & discipline. I wouldn't hesitate to learn real martial-arts. I practice tai-chi myself.

But mixed martial-arts is a different story. It's not about body and mind as much as it is making the other guy hurt. It turns from self-defense to butt-kicking. I agree with you in that it's a battle of egos as much as strength.

[cainam_nazier]

Dude, long time no see.

Well I could and have gone on for lengths of time about this, however i will try to keep it short.

I would have to say that on a whole there are very few bad forms of martial arts, only bad instructors and/or students.  This I believe holds true for the mixed forms as well.  There are a couple of forms that I am aware of that are banned in many places and finding a teacher for those arts is difficult at best.  However the only reason they were banned is because of the nature of those particular styles.  That being said any style can be twisted and turned into a bad form.  But that is the work of the teacher.  But even the most dangerous styles can be taught in a positive manner.  At least that is my belief.

The larger part of the puzzle is the mind set of the student.  If they are looking only for the negative aspects of a style they will find it.  On the flip side even the worst teacher can produce a good student.

As long as you have a clearly defined idea of what you are looking to get out of it then I would not worry about it.

[PeacefulWarrior]

Hey!  Great comments!  This is why I love this place.  Well, I am not currently attending any particular dojo/gym.  My workouts are at a local gym (non-martial arts gym) and in my own garage.  When talking about the "negative people" I mean those on the televised fights.

I think the bottom line is that there is "opposition in all things."  In other words, it's all what you make of it.  All of you simply reinforced what I already felt was true, but sometimes it's nice to hear it from others.

I am most interested in staying in shape and being able to defend myself and others from dangerous people.  Personally, however, I find it hard to keep my pride in check sometimes and I sort of switch from being this very passive, loving person to a very aggressive, puff-my-chest-out kind of guy.  Blame it on my days as a football player and my dad I guess....jk!

Anyhow, it's nice to stop by again and see the place is up and running, despite the many speed bumps we've had in the past with the hosting/servers, etc.

-Daniel

[Stillwater]

Hmm, intersting topic:

I am currently involved in a Tae Kwon Do and Jujitsu group at my university, and I think that although it may depend partially on the positive crowd here, I feel a general feeling of trust and discipline pervades the group. It is true that some of the techniques we practice strike me as downright brutal, but anyone having those techniques practiced against them is first given fairly rigorous training in how to fall safely from any angle, and all of our members seem well attuned to the safety of one another. The drilling of the kata feels more like dancing, with the oppenent being a superficial extension, thus giving sparring more an air of "who can overcome the other by discipline", rather than a clumsy show of force and stupidity.

I think if you can find a group you feel comfortable with, you can gain a balanced and spiritually healthy experience indeed. I believe you are right in sepperating the individual practioner from the art itself, as I think negativity almost certainly enters through the simple perversions of egos.

[jalef]

i do taekwon do and kung fu for about 9 years now and i observed a very positive effect of martial arts. in all cases it is like this: if a person takes martial arts seriously then this person is after years of training more kind, respectful and so on. even if this person starts off as a 'negative person' serious martial arts training will have the same effects. there are people who do martial arts since 10 years for example but are a**holes. i noticed that these people dont take it serious: they dont do the exercises with full power and dont train regularly.

you say that its brutal so it has have to do with negative energy (you didnt say it literally but im sure you meant it like that ). fighting in real martial arts has nothing to do with negativity. it is about perfection of the body and the mind, reflexes, strength and so on. a true martial artist would never just start a fight because he doesnt fight to hurt his opponent. i think the important thing here is the intention. the intention to hurt someone is negative, but not martial arts.

so the only thing you have to ask yourself: what effect will it have on you? are you going to take it seriously or is it just somethig you wanna do against boredom? why do you want to do martial arts? is it because you wanna know you own boundaries or is it because you wanna to pay off the old bully in aýour neighbourhood?

[Rodentmouse7]

wow if you want a martial art to complement spiritual discipline then..

DO TAI CHI.

now.

dont ask questions.

ive been doing it for 4 years now and couldn't count the number of benefits ive gotten from it,
ive also trained in muay thai, karate and wing chun and none of them are as:
deep,
complete,
holistic,
multilayered,
invigorating (mentally/spirtually/physically)
or sophisticated as tai chi.

seriously, along with yoga and the kabbhala, i think its one of the most profound sciences ever developed by civilisation.
At it's heart it goes beyond mere fighting tecniques and seeks to align you with the forces of nature surrounding us, so you feel as though you dissapear- into the 'void' which taoism calls the tao

by that, it teaches to 'drop' your pelvis and suspend your head to make your spine straight which is called 'rooting', when its right (body aligned/weight dropped/ muscles relaxed) you kind of stop feeling the pull of gravity because you're letting your lower half 'drop' while you susped your upper half which balances the pull of gravity. 

It obviously hard to explain because tai chi is all about FEELING and developing body intelligence, which is a different thing entirely from intellect.
e.g. you drop a pen and go to pick it up, the non-tai chi person would probably arch there back and sweep it up...
whearas the tai chi person would think "how can i pick this pen up using the least of amount of energy by letting gravity do most of the work for me",  thats just one tiny example of a completely unrealted physical movement being infiltrated by tai chi principles, once you practise for a while, the principles infiltrate every physical movement you do... that's why its MORE than a martial art.

most martial arts are about learning how to fight,
tai chi is about learning how to move.