Ok I've spoken about the art side of martial arts
but how does the martial side also help to improve your life?
Honesty
When you start training a style, you must learn to be honest with yourself,
because at the end of the day, your progression is not through passing
grades, it's through being honest about your weaknesses and overcoming
them, they cant be swept away.
When you can be brutally honest with yourself, things change in many
ways and help with matters other than just the martial arts.
Martial arts is not just about fighting, it's about life and
maintaining the quality of your life so to enhance your health and a
greater feeling of well being.
A good martial artist is a well balanced individual.
When your honest with yourself you can learn to be honest with others.
Loyalty and Respect
Loyalty and Respect cannot be commanded, not really, they have to be
earned, and it works both ways. Student to Student, Student to Teacher,
what ever. You can never benefit from training with a teacher, student
or fellow student if you cannot respect that person and you are not
loyal to them.
Respect ok, we can all get our heads around that one, but loyalty?
How does that work?
One aspect of being loyal to someone, is about not letting them down,
because they have put their trust in you. In training, students that
are loyal to each others needs often train well together, help each
other progress and often become fast friends.
If you can learn Loyalty and Respect in martial arts, you can apply
it outside of training too.
In Conclusion
Fighting is always the last resort, when all else fails and reason
goes out of the window.
A true martial artist is not a thug. The person that goes in one end
comes out very different at the other.
Because when you can be
Honest with yourself and others
Respect yourself and others in your life
Be Loyal to your beliefs and friends especially those who need and depend
on you
Then you are on your way to becoming a human being
And that my friend is what being a Martial Artist is all about.
