Читать книгу Traditions. Essays on the Japanese Martial Arts and Ways онлайн

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The kind of martial artist we refer to as a traditionalist can be forgiven for this deficiency in his character. It is not easy, after all, for traditionalists to analyze their own faults, for a couple of reasons. The most obvious one is that the complexities and depths of the budo forms they follow far exceed the “eclectic” fighting arts that have been created recently. It is tempting to become complacent. Budoka learning under the tutelage of experts can see firsthand the immense power and skill possessed by their teachers. Frankly, many of them simply cannot imagine that anything could possibly be bad about a system that turns out such masters. A second reason why many traditionalists don’t spend much time in the contemplative process of ryomi is that the criticism of their arts is by and large, inutterably ignorant. “What’s all that kata stuff got to do with real fighting?” ponders some self-appointed critic, who might just as well ask an auto mechanic what value a drive shaft plays in making a car go. Under such less than inspired criticism and with no real competition in the physical sense, it’s understandable that the traditionalist might get the idea that he’s a purist, the consummate example, faultless.