Author:
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Martial arts
Languages : en
Pages : 474

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Book Description

Author: Carol Fuller
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1315448068
Category : Psychology
Languages : en
Pages : 135

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Book Description
Martial Arts and Well-Being explores how martial arts as a source of learning can contribute in important ways to health and well-being, as well as provide other broader social benefits. Using psychological and sociological theory related to behaviour, ritual, perception and reality construction, the book seeks to illustrate, with empirical data, how individuals make sense of and perceive the value of martial arts in their lives. This book draws on data from over 500 people, across all age ranges, and powerfully demonstrates that participating in martial arts can have a profound influence on the construction of behaviour patterns that are directly linked to lifestyle and health. Making individual connections regarding the benefits of practice, improvements to health and well-being – regardless of whether these improvements are ‘true’ in a medical sense – this book offers an important and original window into the importance of beliefs to health and well-being as well as the value of thinking about education as a process of life-long learning. This book will be of great interest to a range of audiences, including researchers, academics and postgraduate students interested in sports and exercise psychology, martial art studies and health and well-being. It should also be of interest to sociologists, social workers and martial arts practitioners. The Open Access version of this book, available at http://www.taylorfrancis.com/doi/view/10.4324/9781315448084, has been made available under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives 4.0 license.

Author: Michael DeMarco
Publisher: Via Media Publishing
ISBN: 1893765458
Category : Sports & Recreation
Languages : en
Pages : 150

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Book Description
What martial arts are associated with Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, and Myanmar (Burma)? What makes them unique when compared with other Asian martial systems? This anthology is a convienent collection that focuses on the martial arts of these areas, such as the familiar art of Muay Thai, and lesser-known arts of Than Quyen of Vietnam, Burmese bando, and Cambodian leth wei. In chapter one, the David Allan brings readers inside the Lumphini Stadium in Bangkok to witness the fighters’ kickboxing skills and etiquette through text and photographs. He also records how musicians play and the locals participate in each event, with emotional exuberance of cheering, and betting. Jeremy Skaggs wanted to go to Thailand to train with some of the top Muay Thai fighters. His chapter allows readers to relive his experience through text and superb photography. He reports on his travel to Thailand, daily training routines, daily life there, and a night at the Lumphini Stadium. Chapter three by Jason Tran presents the origin and functions of That Son Than Quyen’s “spirit forms” as inspired by real and mythic animals. This is accomplished by contrasting Than Quyen with Chinese imitation styles, tracing the development of Vietnam religion and superstitions, and exploring the impact of geographic and cultural elements. In the next chapter Scott Mallon recounts excursions he made into Myanmar and Cambodia to learn about their indigenous martial arts firsthand. He reports on the Muay Thai-like systems and their similarities and difference, along with the special cultural atmospheres where these arts are found. Excellent photo coverage highlight the martial artists. Loh Han Loong’s chapter goes beyond the common views of Thai boxing by critically examining the way Muay Thai is portrayed in nonacademic sources, such as articles and websites. The manner in which Muay Thai is framed in popular culture is not simply the result of historical facts, but is a way of creating the Thai nation myth and the uniqueness of Thai culture. The lengthy final chapter by Dr. Winborne focuses on the bando system. His chapter explores ancient Burmese fighting traditions and their evolution to modern-day martial arts practices. Bando is a seamless amalgam of striking methods, grappling techniques, weapons approaches, and healing strategies from the Southeast Asian country currently known as Myanmar. This comprehensive self-defense system is reviewed and analyzed based on documented viewpoints of prominent masters and practitioners. The philosophy and principles that undergird the bando system are discussed as well. This anthology offers a concise overview of the history, cultures, and combative systems associated with the geographic areas of Cambodia, Myanmar, Vietman, and Thailand. Familiar or not with these martial traditions, readers will be find the chapters informative and photography delightful.

Author: Barry Allen
Publisher: Columbia University Press
ISBN: 0231539347
Category : Sports & Recreation
Languages : en
Pages : 269

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Book Description
The first book to focus on the intersection of Western philosophy and the Asian martial arts, Striking Beauty comparatively studies the historical and philosophical traditions of martial arts practice and their ethical value in the modern world. Expanding Western philosophy's global outlook, the book forces a theoretical reckoning with the concerns of Chinese philosophy and the aesthetic and technical dimensions of martial arts practice. Striking Beauty explains the relationship between Asian martial arts and the Chinese philosophical traditions of Confucianism, Buddhism, and Daoism, in addition to Sunzi's Art of War. It connects martial arts practice to the Western concepts of mind-body dualism and materialism, sports aesthetics, and the ethics of violence. The work ameliorates Western philosophy's hostility toward the body, emphasizing the pleasure of watching and engaging in martial arts, along with their beauty and the ethical problem of their violence.

Author: Paul Bowman
Publisher: Disruptions
ISBN: 9781783481286
Category : Sports & Recreation
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
This book disrupts disciplinary boundaries to make a case for the future direction and growth of martial arts studies as a unique field

Author: Fan Hong
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781351167802
Category : Asia
Languages : en
Pages :

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Book Description
"The reawakening of Asian martial arts is a distinct example of cultural hybridity in a global setting. This book deals with history of Asian martial arts in the contexts of tradition, religion, philosophy, politics and culture. It attempts to deepen the study of martial arts studies in their transformation from traditional to modern sports. It is also important that thisbook explores how Asian martial arts, including Shaolin martial arts and Taekwondo, have worked as tools for national advocate of identities among Asians in order to overcome various national hardships and to promote nationalism in the modern eras. The Asian martial arts certainly have been transformed in both nature and content into unique modern sports and they have contributed to establishing cultural homogeneity in Asia. This phenomenon can be applied to the global community. ?The chapters in this book wereoriginally published as a special issue in the International Journal of the History of Sport."--Provided by publisher.

Author: Michael DeMarco
Publisher: Via Media Publishing
ISBN: 1544823096
Category : Sports & Recreation
Languages : en
Pages : 148

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Book Description
In contrast to the overabundance of writings about martial arts that are often promotional and misinformative, there are rare works by scholars that are praiseworthy for their sincere, unbiased approach to writing. This is the very definition of “scholarly.” This two-volume anthology brings together the best scholarly works published in the Journal of Asian Martial Arts on the topic of teaching and learning Japanese martial arts. In this second volume, you’ll find eight chapters that dive deep into Japanese martial traditions, combining aspects of history and culture that explain how teaching methods developed and evolved. Chapter one asks: What defines and gives meaning to the practice of karate? The Dr. Wingate looks to the ideology of karate as presented in the writings of founder Ginchin Funakoshi and traditional Japanese martial arts as “ways” of self-cultivation. This ideology is often greatly different from the ideology held by modern practitioners. This chapter explores the differences. Next, Dr. Donohue comments on the ideological complex surrounding training in the Japanese martial traditions. These systems, while remaining relatively uniform through time, have, in fact, been subject to considerable philosophical interpretation and emphasis. Why many practice martial artists has little to do with the essential nature of these arts. Dr. Grossman presents a thesis in his chapter that we can arrive at a deeper understanding of any martial arts—using aikido as an example—if we consider it to be a symbolic form of communication, as well as a martial art, and utilize the science of semiotics to translate the “message” encoded in the “body language” of aikido techniques. A photographic technical section illustrates this process. The next chapter by Sakuyama Yoshinaga discusses the potential growth for learning in children. How can adults provide the best learning environment? The author believes that inspiration comes through subtle emotions of the human heart, influencing others. The theory is found in ancient samurai traditions and applied by the author in teaching Shorinji Kempo. Chapter five by Dr. Dykhuizen point out how Asian martial arts are being practiced in cultures other than those within which they originated. Specific information concerning how practitioners from different cultures understand them becomes increasingly useful to martial artists and martial arts scholars. This chapter summarizes findings of an investigation among aikido practitioners. The Japanese Imperial family is said to have been given three symbols of authority by the gods: a mirror, a jewel, and a sword. Dr. Donohue uses this symbolic structure to discuss varying perspectives on the Japanese martial arts. Each aid in our understanding and appreciation of the multifaceted dimensions of the martial arts. In his chapter, Dr. Edinborough examines how Japanese martial arts, specifically the approach developed by Inaba Minoru, can be functionally understood as a form of art. Through referring to the aesthetic theories, the article examines budo as a means of organizing experience, recognizable alongside painting, dance, theater, and literature. The final chapter by Marvin Labbate looks close at the training hall. Dressed in a uniform, students line up in a ready position, come to attention, sit, meditate, and bow. This ritualized pattern is performed at the beginning, during, and at the end of each class, but what does it mean? In this chapter, each element of the ritualized pattern will be discussed to provide a clear understanding of its original intent. If you are interested in Japanese martial traditions, you will find much in these eight chapters that clarify why the arts are taught according to a longstanding tradition—and also why there have been evolutionary changes in the instructional methods. There is sound logic for the old traditions, as well as for the changes. The scholarly research presented in this anthology will improve a teacher’s way of instructing and help a student understand what to expect out of his or her studies.

Author:
Publisher: Quill Driver Books
ISBN: 9781884956584
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 942

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Book Description
Perhaps the best-kept secret in the publishing industry is that many publishers--both periodical publishers and book publishers--make available writer's guidelines to assist would-be contributors. Written by the staff at each publishing house, these guidelines help writers target their submissions to the exact needs of the individual publisher. ""The American Directory of Writer's Guidelines"" is a compilation of the actual writer's guidelines for more than 1,700 publishers. A one-of-a-kind source to browse for article, short story, poetry and book ideas.

Author: Jonathan Clements
Publisher: Robinson
ISBN: 1472136470
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 304

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Book Description
'If I had to pick a single general martial arts history book in English, I would recommend A Brief History of the Martial Arts by Dr Jonathan Clements' RICHARD BEITLICH, Martial History Team blog From Shaolin warrior monks to the movies of Bruce Lee, a new history of the evolution of East Asian styles of unarmed combat, from Kung Fu to Ninjutsu Folk tales of the Shaolin Temple depict warrior monks with superhuman abilities. Today, dozens of East Asian fighting styles trace their roots back to the Buddhist brawlers of Shaolin, although any quest for the true story soon wanders into a labyrinth of forgeries, secret texts and modern retellings. This new study approaches the martial arts from their origins in military exercises and callisthenics. It examines a rich folklore from old wuxia tales of crime-fighting heroes to modern kung fu movies. Centre stage is given to the stories that martial artists tell themselves about themselves, with accounts (both factual and fictional) of famous practitioners including China's Yim Wing-chun, Wong Fei-hong, and Ip Man, as well as Japanese counterparts such as Kano Jigoro, Itosu Anko and So Doshin. The history of martial arts encompasses secret societies and religious rebels, with intimate glimpses of the histories of China, Korea and Japan, their conflicts and transformations. The book also charts the migration of martial arts to the United States and beyond. Special attention is paid to the turmoil of the twentieth century, the cross-cultural influence of Japanese colonies in Asia, and the post-war rise of martial arts in sport and entertainment - including the legacy of Bruce Lee, the dilemma of the ninja and the global audience for martial arts in fiction.

Author: G Hurst I
Publisher: Yale University Press
ISBN: 9780300116748
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 260

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Book Description
This unique history of Japanese armed martial arts--the only comprehensive treatment of the subject in English--focuses on traditions of swordsmanship and archery from ancient times to the present. G. Cameron Hurst III provides an overview of martial arts in Japanese history and culture, then closely examines the transformation of these fighting skills into sports. He discusses the influence of the Western athletic tradition on the armed martial arts as well as the ways the martial arts have remained distinctly Japanese. During the Tokugawa era (1600-1867), swordsmanship and archery developed from fighting systems into martial arts, transformed by the powerful social forces of peace, urbanization, literacy, and professionalized instruction in art forms. Hurst investigates the changes that occurred as military skills that were no longer necessary took on new purposes: physical fitness, spiritual composure, character development, and sport. He also considers Western misperceptions of Japanese traditional martial arts and argues that, contrary to common views in the West, Zen Buddhism is associated with the martial arts in only a limited way. The author concludes by exploring the modern organization, teaching, ritual, and philosophy of archery and swordsmanship; relating these martial arts to other art forms and placing them in the broader context of Japanese culture.