I am not my instructor.

One of the first things I told my group of new students was that my goal is to make them better martial artists than I am. Of course, I didn't mention that I'm also working to make me better than I am currently. I'm slowly coming to the light on an idea and like so many other things you learn, it was right there all along. I just wasn't ready to see/understand it until now.


I am not my instructor. For a long time my goal was to pursue him. To be as good as he is. Well, that's only the start. My goal should be to become as good as I possibly can. To just become as good or better than any one person is really setting limits for myself. Now, my instructor may be the best, most effective practical martial artist I have met. Sure. But, I don't want to stop there. And what if I never get 'there'? What if he is always better than me? He has a head start so it would only be natural that as long as we are both making progress then he will be leading me. But, paths can split and they can re-connect later too. I recently found this to be true in a visit to an old dojo.

I rarely get to train with my first school. I only recognize a few faces anymore. Luckily the head instructor and his family are around still. Good guy and an excellent technician. I owe them a lot. But I do not owe them for any understanding of practical martial arts. It's the kind of school that made you really good at everything but the 'martial' part. On a recent training went as usual but something was different. They were looking deeper into techniques. We talked afterwards and it seems the instructor has discovered some practical influences that made him want to know more. They are just scratching the surface but it's a step forward. A big one. The art just got deeper for everyone he teaches from this moment on.


So, I don't think we should train to become a carbon copy of anyone else. After a point if I am still training to match someone's ideas of "perfect" or "complete", then I am not maximizing my own study. Different body types and experiences. Different strengths and weaknesses. I have to find the best possible way to train for me. And the most appropriate goals. People study for a variety of reasons. And within those reasons they each count a variety of ways to advance.


The goals can be the same but the route that you take to get there may be wildly different. This goes back to the idea of strategy and tactics. A takedown that works for one guy in class may not be the best option for someone else in the exact same situation. It's just a reality. I address this in class all the time.

I tell my training partners that I am going to show them a number of ways to do a technique. Say, to defeat a lapel grab. After all there are numerous ways in our forms that demonstrate this. We will practice them all in the most effective way we can. We will play with them and see what works and what does not. I don't expect you to use all of them anytime someone grabs you this way. That would actually be a real problem as too many answers for the same stimulus cause a freeze. Pick your favorite and do it well. Don't worry about how I do it or how my instructor does it. Try the technique. If it's a keeper plug it in as your chosen tactic for responding to the situation then train it until it is your own.


If we look to kata as a guide we see this exact process. This is why there are small differences in katas. Why one style does it with the arm turned this way and another with the arm turned that way. This individuality used to be encouraged in traditional arts.

We have lost a lot on the journey through time. And one of the most important missing pieces is the time and encouragement to play with your techniques. There is so much to learn and I know there have to be some standards but, only sticking to the standards will not keep the method of fighting alive. Take it out of the box and work it until it fails, tweak it then work it again!  Failure is the beginning of competency. This is how you feed your art. This is also what sets me apart from those before me. Ironically, it is also one of the things that connects us to the past.

I know that traditionalists equate this to the idea of "Shu, Ha, Re" or "Copy, Perfect, Transcend" and I'm sure that it is. Like I said, I'm just really starting to understand it...again. Funny how perspective changes with time and experience.


Just a thought as you continue forward in your training. Your instructor is there to guide and teach. He corrects you at first and gets you to a point where you are ready to learn on your own. This time is invaluable! After enough serious practice you begin to see that if everyone painted exactly like Monet, it would not be art, it would just be paint by number.


More martial ramblings.