Product Review: Japanese sword, tanto

In my opinion there are two sorts of sword collectors: the display artist and the appreciator.

I'm not saying the 'appreciator' doesn't also display and enjoy the aesthetic of their swords but there is a distinct difference between the appreciation of swords for their intrinsic, historical value and the appreciation of swords for only how they look hung on the wall.


I was approached by Swords of The East to write up a product review and as my initial interaction with James at SOTE was very good I thought…why not! SOTE sells all manner of swords, katana and tanto as well as other historical replicas. James has a very professional manner and I was impressed with his customer service. He kept me up to date with the whole delivery process and I received it when he said, although I had a nasty surtax surprise of 35 Euro-bucks to pay for the delivery to Brussels. Ho-hum.

For a glossary of sword parts follow here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_sword#Anatomy

And so to the tanto. This musashi ceremonial tanto is delivered in a cloth bag within an ornate box and includes a with a jade ornament with tassel. The tanto itself certainly seems to have all the right features on it such as a hamon and yokote but it just doesn't feel the real deal to me. The blade isn't quite straight (although it does fit snugly into the saya) and the proportions of the tanto handle and the blade don't appeal to me with the tanto blade seeming too thin to me. Furthermore the shitodome fitting (where the hole on the side of the scabbard is) is not of the highest quality. In short this is a modern, Chinese made display tanto and not my cup of tea. I would put the money for this towards something more expensive but authentic.

The positive side to this, though, is that when you buy this tanto from SOTE you'll get good service and frankly, a piece of kit at a reasonable price. It's pretty and those people looking for an ornate 'hanger' probably won't be disappointed at all.

Guinness World Record for Breaking Tiles

Congratulations to Lisa Dennis's Guinness record on tile-breaking! She smashed 1000 roof tiles in 83.98 seconds. Although I respect this woman I don't feel that breaking is particularly useful and is something I've never really enjoyed doing. Does any martial artist really look forward to breaking tests? I've broken tiles, bricks and wooden boards but I don't think it's necessary for testing *martial arts* prowess.

She's got guts, that's for sure and a fighting spirit which are both needed for martial arts development but you can do this without smashing tiles. Equally you can prove you have these qualities in other ways more related to martial arts practice.


The line we were fed when told to break masonry was that we had to prove the 'destructive' power of our technique and to do this we had to smash through a variety of building materials in a kind of frenzied demolition exercise. I'm sure I've destroyed the equivalent of a garden outhouse in my time but for what purpose?

It hurts, it damages your bones and gives you calluses on your hands. We train our bodies so that when we need it in a self defence situation we are ready but actually I aim to never get into a situation where I need to use it. It would have to be a case where I was pushed into a corner and I was physically threatened. As I said though my aim is to avoid this and up to now, it has worked.

I'm sure the work I put into training my body in technique and body movement would compensate for slightly softer knuckles.


http://www.croydonguardian.co.uk/news/localnews/11111981.Taekwon_Do_ace_smashes_roof_tiles_for_Guinness_world_record/

Karate is not about beating up the other guy

I didn't say this, Geoff Thompson did…
Check out this interview / lecture. Fascinating insights into one man's journey in the martial arts and how it can help you to master your fears.

Exercise reduces dementia

BBC article here.

"Exercise 'significant role' in reducing risk of dementia, long-term study finds"

…so keep on doing that thing folks! It'll not only help fight the flab but also protect your brain. It's just one more reason to keep on exercising (as if we needed one!).

Over my many years of training I've found martial artists to be particularly driven in what they do and very often they don't need a 'reason' to go to training; it just happens. It's cold outside, it's raining, you're bored with your training schedule at the moment but still…you go.

And now you can rest assured that it's doing you good in lots of other ways you never thought about before.

Tae Kwon Do Nun!

Yeah you read that right. It's a nun who kicks ass in the name of the Lord! No I'm not blaspheming, it really is the story of a black belt nun who gives tae kwon do lessons in Singapore to kids recovering from cancer.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-24478533

Linda Sim sounds a redoubtable woman and a caring person who has dedicated her life to helping others first, as a nun, and now through martial arts.

A touching story and an illustration of how martial arts gets under your skin and stays with you. Regardless of how long you spend away from any given martial art that you once dedicated yourself to,  something still remains.

Picture reference: BBC

Be grounded like the….robot!

Wow!

Check out this military, humanoid robot and its abilities to not only walk across uneven ground but can also balance and resist attempts to push it over.

It's interesting to see it make tiny adjustments to balance its centre of gravity just like a human would. As martial artists we do this all the time: thinking about being grounded, centred and having the flexibility to change our position in different environments.

From the videos I've seen it isn't able to do a mawashi geri

….yet.

Yoga for prisoners, and commuters

"We're really responding to a need the prisoners are expressing for something to help them with the tremendous amount of mental strain and mental pressure that they're under," says Sam Settle, the charity's director.

Well if it cuts the strain and mental pressure of prison life then yoga has something to say to the millions of people who are put under stress and strain by their daily commute! Yoga is time to empty out the stress and just sense your body. Time away from all that other crap. It's great to stretch and to feel your sinews, your bones, your blood flowing.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-24272978

Plus it can have added benefits as ex-con 'Nick', says:
"Nick, who spent six years in Villa Devoto, has no scientific evidence to offer. But he's convinced that yoga saved his life."

If a scumbag drugs-baron can turn his life around with yoga, there's hope for us all!

German 'Mensur' fencing profile: a student's tale.

I first read about 'Mensur' as a sport in a book about sword fencing: 'By the Sword' by Richard Cohen. I found it a strange practice in that there was no footwork, no body displacement, no closing distances or strategy. To me it seemed just like a whacking match! Two opponents stand almost toe to toe and whack each other with live swords. Nils Hempel explains in the BBC article that it is much more about self-discipline and honour. Here he talks intelligently and openly about why he studies Mensur, although he doesn't mention anything about unprotected sword fighting and the pride of a Mensur scar...

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-23975881


An older video showing a Mensur duel

Marines Martial Arts Demonstration

One comment: "Sweet!"

Mindfulness: taking time out for you

A great TED talk here from a guy called Andy Puddicombe about how we can bring meditation into out lives. It just takes 10 minutes a day! For me I often feel I don't have time for meditation. This video tells of Andy Puddicombe's story and gives a few tips about how to appreciate life, the present moment and how to make time for those ten minutes a day.

Mindfulness and being in the present moment is essential for the martial arts practitioner. Martial arts training can be really good at bringing us into the moment. Thinking of nothing else. There is nothing else, just the technique. Just the breath. Just the movement. No thought or at least a clear and alert mind. No thought I suppose is brain death! In this video Puddicombe highlights that mindfulness is about stepping back, with a "relaxed, focus mind". Nothingness can be a void…next step: sleep!

This constant training in the martial arts helps to relax and focus.

New Year, new resolutions...

Exercise more this year…But is it worth it?

This BBC article claims that not everyone appreciates what level of activity or how often they should be doing exercise in order to see health benefits.

It also touches on Jamie Timmons' research into high intensity 3 minute weekly workouts. (Can three minutes of exercise a week make you fit?).

Whatever the health benefit I know I'll be back to a regular workout regime this year...because I like it.

We all have fighter's fists.

You might not consider yourself a fighter. More a lover perhaps? Well according to researchers at the University of Utah we may have fists which have evolved for fighting as well as loving.

"They found that the structure of the fist provides support that increases the ability of the knuckles to transmit "punching" force."

Not being a scientist myself I can hardly refute these findings but I must admit it seems a weird way of going about research. Is the University of Utah in need of some self-promotion? It seems to me from reading the article that they measured the force of a fist strike and a palm strike and conculded that the ….

"force per area is higher in a fist strike and that is what causes localised tissue damage [in the opponent]"

I could have told them that. In this article it states that the force delivered by the open palm and the punch were equal (or at least not greatly different), but that the buttressing of the fist and the boney knuckle protrusions caused the damage.

Surely this is a side-effect of having a fist which can manipulate tools. A serendipitous (well, not for the punched receiver) effect.

Can we deduce that elbows evolved for striking because they're hard and boney?

I'm back...

…in white.

“A beach body at 90 is no longer a dream”

Goodbye Ninjas...

Well, well. It seems the most secret of martial arts is finally hanging up its dogi. Or maybe that should be tabi. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-20135674

It's an interesting article and accompanying video (apart from the obligatory Japanese silliness at the end) but I always thought ninjutsu was a fairly popular art now. I'm sure the folk at the local college who I see doing ninjutsu will be a bit disappointed. Any ninjas care to comment?

Drawing of a mother and her children at the Taekwondo Olympic Tournament

Don't stop exercising, old boy!

Exercising in your 70s may stop your brain from shrinking and showing the signs of ageing linked to dementia, say experts from Edinburgh University.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-20026099

Wished you had more time to execute a technique? You probably do...

"Researchers at University College London have found that an individual's perception of time does seem to slow as they prepare to make a physical action."


http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-19477623

Obesity hastens brain decline

Always interested on physical health and how this impacts on our minds, here's an article about how a muffin top may be linked to dementia in later life….

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-19323061

Awareness in the city

A big reason why I haven't posted much over the past year is that I've moved house. And city. And, in fact, country. No reason not to let my martial arts practice slip, but I need to prioritise get involved in a club I like with a teacher I respect and I think this takes some time.

In the meantime I've been thinking a lot about perception in the city: physical awareness and personal space in an urban environment teeming with people. Can you feel another person's energy, or intentions on a packed tram (By energy I mean stance, intent, strength…)? City life requires a different level of awareness; I remember seeing something by anthropologist Desmond Morris (Human Zoo) who says that the amazing thing about human city life is not that occasionally people come into physical conflict with others, but that it is so rare! After all there are a lot of emotions, egos and agendas walking around being surpressed in isolated cocoons amongst crowds of commuters.




So I've noticed something rather cool walking around and commuting in the City and that is I can be amazingly perceptive. I can feel people approaching from behind, I can see who I need to avoid and I can hear aggressive noises even above the normal hub-bub. I find that in itself quite startling in itself as there is so much to distract me such as other people's conversations, the muzak, adverts, the trams, the traffic…The rub is this though: I need to pay attention. If I don't and am not 'aware' (or awake if you like) then this ability diminishes. It doesn't disappear but I may perceive someone behind me when they're much closer than I would if I were calm, centred and aware.

I'm not advocating walking around in a constant state of alert like an urban Bruce Lee or a Buddhist monk, but knowing this can help us turn on our sensitivity when it's needed such as when it's darker, when you're alone on a tram or when you're walking through a ropey part of town. Maybe it's natural and we tend to switch on anyway at these times, in which case: all the better. If you have to work at it, here's a good technique which I read about in Dead or Alive by Geoff Thompson. If you want to stay alert in any environment make a running commentary in your head about what you can see and perceive around you (hear, smell, feel), thus 'switching yourself on'. For example it might go something like this, "pavement on left is broken, man walking dog coming towards me (big build, small dog), noise of jet overhead, I can hear a car approaching from behind and I can see a bus at the stop in front of me. Another pedestrian comes into view down the street; a woman with a buggy…." And so on.

Evidently you can't do this all the time but if you're feeling like an awareness switch-on in the big City, this might well be a good place to start.