What Traditional Martial Arts Can do and Fixed Forms Can’t

After all, a martial  arts instructor would not tolerate spoiled brats and they have very effective ways of teaching these energetic kids that they must learn how to restrain themselves. These traditional disciplines teache values such as sportsmanship, attentiveness, teamwork, and most especially, obedience.

But beyond the aggressive purpose of orthodox martial arts lies civilization and harmony. It does prove then that one can fight and at the same time make peace. After all, according to the general wisdom of ancient masters, the toughest fight of the person is one that is being fought within. Unless one is successful in conquering the self, he or she will always remain powerless and empty. He or she must find a way to overpower weakness and fear.

I tend to somewhat agree with this statement but at the same time I also believe that you have to look at the purpose of the given martial art. Is it created as a sport art or a self defense art. If it is indeed intent for competition then it should in theory be able to compete against mixed martial arts in the octagon, but if the sport is created for self defense a lot of other rules apply.

I must mention that this was all done in a very friendly manner and there was no “he is an outsider lets smash him up mentality”. Even though I could throw this guy around and choke him out with a little bit of maneuvering I quickly realized that as a MMA guy I was used to taking the guy down and controlling him until I could transition into a position where I could finish the fight.

Perhaps the biggest difference in the two, MMA and traditional Martial Arts, is the difference in how they view combat. The mixed martial arts training is focused daily in anticipation of pitting his skills against another formidable fighter. There is no doubt in the MMA fighter’s mind that he will be in an aggressive and potentially dangerous position. Meanwhile, the traditional Martial Artist trains a life time hoping to achieve the self discipline and restraint needed so that he never has to test his skills in live combat.