CompleteMartialArts.com - Martial Arts Teaching Tales of Power and Paradox: Freeing the Mind, Focusing Chi, and Mastering the Self

• The teaching stories in this book are based on the lives of martial arts masters and are meant to inspire questions and insights for the student.

• Written for martial artists and anyone interested in Eastern religions such as Buddhism, Zen, and Taoism.

True martial arts should never be confused with simple combat techniques. Rather, martial arts are a way that an individual, after a long and difficult apprenticeship, can gain a profound understanding of the true nature of reality and one's place in it. Over time the apprentice discovers the laws governing the subtle forces of life and realizes that their mastery is only possible after one has mastered oneself. "He who has mastered the Art doesn't use his sword: he compels his adversary to kill himself." This quote from renowned sword master Tajima no Kami perfectly expresses the paradoxical nature of martial arts teachings in China and Japan. These teaching stories are not moral fables; in fact they have nothing to prove. Their purpose is actually to inspire questions and insights that will aid the student to achieve self-realization.

Most of the stories in this book are based on actual events in the lives of martial arts teachers who have achieved legendary status. The almost superhuman abilities of some of the masters described here are evidence of the secret powers that can be wielded by those whose martial arts training is not simply the learning of physical techniques but involves the mastering of the subtle energies of the mind and body. Master of the Art of Archery Kenzo Awa could hit the center of a target even when shooting in total darkness. Assailants of Tai Chi master Yang Lu Chan found their blows did more damage to themselves than to their would-be victim. By reading--and comprehending--the tales in this book, we can acquire the same essential knowledge that these masters had--that extraordinary forces are within the grasp of those who have achieved inner peace and self-mastery.

Please do yourself and the world a favor and expand you mind and soul. Read books such as this, books on spirituality, religion, philosophy, science, art, Toaism, and anything that stimulates your brain!! Read Salinger, Vonnegut, Jim Harrison, Cormac McCarthy, Watch great movies like Sling Blade, Miller's Crossing, of Pulp Fiction. FLEX YOUR HEAD !!!!!!!!!!

Many of these tales were already familiar to me as our Sensei recounts some at each training session, more or less. The book only has one major drawback, there isnt enough of it. It left me wanting more.