mma & traditional arts

There is still a place for traditional arts and hopefully always will be. Although mma has caused many people to view traditional arts as being less effective in combat and the UFC etc makes much of the general public believe that mma is the best training method for fighting. The problem is many martial 'artists' trained in traditional arts don't wish to compete in sports where they smash the opponents face in etc its not the martial way, also self defence is very different to the sport of mma. I think mma is popular at the moment but in time people will see that martial arts in the traditional sense offer so much more than just teaching how to pound someone and that it is about gaining total control over your body and eventually your mind. I believe traditional ma are here to stay.... touch wood :D

Imo traditional arts ARE less effective in training for combat as mma training is only concerned with training to fight. (Ok maybe for sport not self defence, but are you telling me the mma guys couldn't beat 90% of the people in a street fight?) I believe they would stand a far better chance than most traditional guys. This is mainly due to the fact that they don't train for any mental/spiritual development, they only train to be better fighters and they use science not tradition to dictate their training methods, plus fighting is their profession. Also a lot of traditional arts (not all i know, but most) don't use full contact, some no contact at all. The only way to truly become a better fighter is to practise fighting!!! - Back to the topic - Yes it will and has caused tma to take a back seat, is there still a place for tma? Yes i think so, there will always be people who dnt wish to practise fighting only and prefer the tma way, however it will loose more and more popularity imo. Things need to evolve, mma evolves tma’s dont imo. As for the mma is brutal and concerned only with fighting view and is not martial - Yes it is 'martial' and there is a wealth of technical ability and training needed to compete in mma and mma isn't just about pounding someone’s face in yes fighting is at its core but its about training and learning the most effective techniques, and yes it does train your mind as well.

I do appreciate the ability of mma athletes, although I do not believe that they will ever or should ever cause tma to fade away. Mma would not exisist if it were not for tma, mma is not that different to tma it is just a narrower sport context competitive side of tma impo. Theres not one technique used in mma that hasn’t come from tma. Of course tma don’t evolve as much as mma sport training and yes they rely on traditional values/techniques but this doesn’t make them any less effective in fact it is being part of this deep tradition that many traditional martial artists value and make a conscious effort to maintain, believe it or not un armed fighting has not changed that much over the years, as long as we have two arms and legs the principles will remain similar. are you telling me the mma guys couldn't beat 90% of the people in a street fight I’m sure they can handle them selves in a self defence situation but so can many traditional trained martial artists. fighting is their profession I think like many people when thinking of mma you instantly think of the mma professionals such as those in media covered events such as the UFC, these are at the top level of their sport, obviously they can defend themselves but if comparing these you must compare them to martial artists at the top of their art, can they defend themselves yes of course they can. There are many amateurs and people just learning mma, if comparing to the typical tma students it is important to only compare these to the mma students not the athletes in for example the UFC. Trust me tma do practise fighting they are based around this concept. As mentioned I am aware of the technical ability needed for mma as the techniques and principles came from tma’s. Yes it does train your mind I’m sure it does but you were the one that said they don't train for any mental/spiritual development, they only train to be better fighters Imo tma do have more values and as you said include other aspects as well as fighting. I think the mma vs tma debate will always surface but I believe as mentioned they are both parts of the same circle just at opposite ends, they are a sport/art with much in common yet still with many differences and hey... it always makes for a good debate, as for mma causing tma to fade I don’t think this will happen and as mentioned i certainly hope it will not, they will both have times when one is more popular than the other but the cycle will continue to circle and hopefully both will survive and we will always have the awesome martial arts. Here’s an interesting poem from G. Funakoshi (not to get to traditional or anything :lol: but think it’s ironically relevant. To search for the old is to understand the new. The old, the new this is a matter of time. In all things a man must have a clear mind. The Way (DO): who will pass it on straight and well?

I think MMA competitors are awesome athletes but do feel that it is more for the youngsters and that TMA can offer something for the young and the more mature practitioners :oops: TMA can be done by anyone at all different levels and can be practised well into old age, also as I think Tommy was saying, some people (me included) are interested in self defence and have no quarrels with hard training in kumite etc but still would not wish to purposely injury my opponent just for competition/money/fame etc. I like to practice self defence as seriously as possible but only would wish to use it when there was no other option. I also prefer TMA values and although MMA is great entertainment and I personally may be able to see positive sides in it, I believe to some extent it does glorify violence in many individuals who watch it especially those who watch it but are not involved in martial arts, again I would like to stress I believe that MMA does not set out to do this, but I’m afraid I think it will with many of the younger generation. p.s. I know there is a difference between MMA training and MMA events such as cage fighting, it is the former I am talking about, however this is quite a controversial topic and boxing or movies etc could also be thought of by some like this, but the NHB events with the elbow, knees etc striking when on the floor, little protection and no breaks in the fights (for their safety i know, but many don't) and the cool image of some MMA events imo have a greater influence on some people. For the reasons mentioned I believe MMA will not take over and eventually eradicate TMA or at least I hope it doesn’t. In fact I hope they both survive and continue to be popular as they can be great sports/arts but I feel caution should be used in the production/advertisement and media coverage of MMA if MMA can keep its martial arts integrity there should hopefully be no problems. Jen

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