Sunday, June 3, 2012

Discovering Matsura Seizan

While hanging out at Barnes and Noble, I found a book called "Secret Tactics" by Kazumi Tabata.  It covers insights, rules, and philosophies of martial arts masters, including Miyamoto Musashi.  However, the one guy who caught my attention was Matsura Seizan.  His rules and insights were very simple and practical, such as the fact that you should listen to your teacher while still keeping an open mind to other ideas.  He also said that any opponent can be beaten and that you shouldn't care who your foe is; your goal should be to take them out as quickly and efficiently as possibly.  Or, as he put it, "with one blow."  He also said that there is nothing mystical about kempo.  You get good through discipline and experience gained through a lot of fights.  Some of the more esoteric among us might be disappointed that the truth is that simple, but the fact of the matter is that it is.  So many people are under the impression that martial arts experts have some sort of bizarre mystical power or superhuman talent.  That is really only true for a select few.  The majority are simply hardworking, studious individuals who, through creativity and practice, discovered efficient ways to do away with assailants, thugs, and bullies.  There is still much about Matsura that I really don't know.  However, thanks to Kazumi, I have found out that it is in my best interest to learn as much about him as I can.       

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