Martial Arts: Body Mechanics

A Simple Lesson in Body Mechanics
By Christopher Caile
A mistake made by many karate-ka and other martial artists is improper pelvis and hip alignment in their front leaning stance. More

         Martial Arts: Traditional Chinese Medicine

Treating “Old Injuries:
By David Bock, C.Ac. Dipl.OM, FABORM
Martial artists often have old and lingering physical problems that might be helped by Traditional Chinese Medicine. While TCM uses terms that are unfamiliar to most readers, its ancient insights and treatments can often be helpful when Western medicine fails. More

         Martial Arts: Samurai: History: Architecture

Tracing Samurai Culture in Kanazawa
By Deborah Klens-Bigman, Ph.D
Unlike some Japanese cities that have spectacular historic castles that dominate the city view, Kanazawa hides it historic sites. If you search, however, you can find old samurai-class houses from the Edo period (1603-1867) and the walled Nagamachi district where old earthen walls shielding the homes behind them. More

Martial Mania
The Vocabulary of Self-Defense
By George Donahue
I like hanging out with martial artists and karate ka. There is a lot of nobility in their hearts, a lot of wisdom in their heads, however humble they are. On average, too, karate practitioners and the martial artists I've met have tended to be more generous than usual and one of the best interventions we have within our power is to make living conditions better, or at least more hopeful, for those who are doing without. More

Kagami Biraki: Renewing the Spirit
By Christopher Caile
Kagami Biraki, which literally means 'Mirror Opening' (also known as the 'Rice Cutting Ceremony'), is a traditional Japanese celebration that is held in many traditional martial arts schools (dojos) usually on the second Saturday or Sunday of January.

Pankration: Martial Art of Classical Greece
By Paul McMichael Nurse, Ph.D.
What is also not generally known is that there existed in the ancient world an unarmed fighting art known as pankration, a blend of Hellenic wrestling, boxing, strangulation, kicking and striking techniques, as well as joint locks.

A Half Century Of Budo,
Part 1
By Jarmo Osterman
Christopher Caile has practiced karate and other martial arts including aikido for over 50 years. In 1960 he introduced karate to Finland. This is his story.

Kata As The Foundation Of Practice
By Christopher Caile
It was a secret old Chinese family fighting art within which kata served as the foundation of practice.

A Half Century Of Budo,
Part 2
By Jarmo Osterman
In addition to being an accomplished practitioner of karate, aikido and other martial arts, Caile has for decades researched karate, its history, kata and their applications in the US as well as Japan and Okinawa. In his professional life Caile has also been an entrepreneur, writer and journalist.

Goaisatsu – Greeting as a Gesture of Respect
By Deborah Klens-Bigman, Ph.D.
It may not be a western custom, but if your teacher is Japanese, proper etiquette suggests that you should show up to greet him or her upon arrival.

Enter The Bubishi - Part 1- Introduction & Origins
By Victor Smith and Christopher Caile
It was an obscure martial arts text, but it was the prized possession of many early pioneers of modern karate, something so secret that it was shown only to the most trusted students.

Kata, Bunkai & Calligraphy
By George Donahue
Should karate kata applications should be practiced outside karate kata exactly as they are performed in the kata, or whether they should be modified to meet variations in the situation.

Kyudo: Way Of The Bow - Part 1
By Raymond A. Sosnowski
Kyudo, or way of the bow, while derived from one of Japan’s oldest martial traditions is not practiced today as a martial art, or a sport, but as a form of spiritual practice associated with Zen.

The Study Of Iaido
By Deborah Klens-Bigman, Ph.D.
People study the art of drawing the sword for many reasons, some of them are complicated.