Dear Students, Teachers and Friends,

Congratulations to everyone that attended the tournament this
weekend. Everyone looked great, including the Sensei's. The students
don't get to see their teachers perform at top level too often.

Next week my Shorin Ryu teacher is coming to town and we will be
hosting a seminar at the Bijou school. The seminar will be 9:00 am
to 11:00 for all students and then in the afternoon from 1:00 – 3:00
for black belts only. Cost for the seminar is only $40 and
afterwards you will understand why Kyoshi Smith in considered one of
the top karate teachers in the country. There is also training
available in Denver on Thursday and Friday night, please contact me
direct if you want information.

Our Black Belt testing and training weekend is coming up April 16th
and everyone that is planning on testing for black belt or any
degree of black belt needs to contact me and let me know. You can go
to the web site for more info and to print out your application. If
you are coming in from out of town, please call in your reservations
now, as there are other events going on that weekend and things are
filling up quick. To get your free breakfast and the $69 a night
rate call (719) 598-5770 and tell them you are with the American
Black Belt Academy event. We have limited space available so please
go ahead and register on-line to insure you will have a place, Go to
our web site at www.americanblackbeltacademy.com and look in the
special events section.


Quotes of the Week
Do not struggle. Go with the flow of things, and you will find
yourself at one with the mysterious unity of the universe.
-Chuang Tzu
"The ancient scholars studied for their own improvement.
Modern scholars study to impress others."
Confucius
Seeing it once is better than being told 100 times.
bai wen bu ru yi jian
- Zhou Chongguo, Han Dynasty
or,
A picture is worth ten thousand words
By Fred Barnard (American), March 10,1927

.


Lesson of the Week

The 5 Element Theory

The foundation of modern martial arts stems from deep-rooted Chinese
theories and philosophies. Some of the more prevalent in our style
is the yin-yang theory, the 5 element theory, the 8 primary angles
of attack, and the 18 postures. Like the child's game of rock,
scissor and paper, each of these theories has an effect on the other
and wins against another given specific timing and situations.
The 5 elements are water, fire, wood, metal and earth. There are
productive consequences in the 5-element theory as well as
destructive elements and these theories have been used in the
strategy and tactics in the martial arts for healing and self-
defense for thousands of years. A basic understanding of the
productive cycle would be:

The Productive Cycle
Water Produces Wood
Wood Produces Fire
Fire Produces Earth
Earth Produces Metal
Metal Produces Water

While the destructive side of the equation would be:

The Destructive Cycle
Water Destroys Fire
Fire Destroys Metal
Metal Destroys Wood
Wood Destroys Earth
Earth Destroys Water

The analysis of this flow chart and which techniques or principles
are beneficial and which are harmful is the root of most of the
healing and martial arts systems from China. These same principles
are used in other areas to analyses for accomplishing goals and
objectives as well.

To understand the reason why one is taught certain techniques in the
martial arts school, all one has to do is study the classics and the
principles will become evident. To break down a complex problem into
small workable pieces allows a person to begin to solve the
situation. The 5-element theory allows a person to see situations
from a smaller yet integrated perspective, and for them to begin to
see the outcome before it happens.

For example, a person that has a very strong earth element is a
person that used to serving others and it is something they do
without complaint. They are at their happiest when they are helping
others with one thing or another. This rushing around looking after
other people could lead to a feeling of emptiness or being
unfulfilled in oneself because of all of the energy and time taken
up by other people.

The wood element, however, describes a person that has the
characteristics of someone who is well motivated and organized,
someone who is a scrupulous planner; perhaps they might be self
employed or a director of a company, someone who is used to having
things mapped out ahead of them. They are people who like to be
pushed and their abilities tested and stretched. A wood element will
be totally dedicated to anything that he or she pursues this may be
to do with work or the family, this can be taken literally to the
point where that person would lay down their life for that cause.
So if a person that was heavily influenced by the earth principle
began to find themselves feeling uncomfortable with all they are
doing for others as the sacrifice of themselves, they would need
only to apply more wood activities into their lives to rectify the
situation.

The understanding of the many forces at work at any given time and
how we can manipulate outcomes by trying to stay balanced between
all these elements is one of the major goals of any martial artist.
Like a sailor trimming the sails, the modern martial artist uses the
ancient principles to stay balanced on the path towards their goals
and objectives. Understanding the counters and correct applications
of these principles is one of those steps toward black belt
excellence.

Respectfully,
Terry Bryan