February 28, 1997
Black Belt Candidate Test
My philosophy of the martial arts is that it sets down the basis for human health. This health follows three realms: the physical, the mental, and the spiritual. If followed appropriately, a student of the martial arts can develop happiness through attaining a healthy base in these three areas. These three areas are not independent of one another and each plays an important interactive role with the others. One must work in all three areas to reach one's level of satisfaction and overall health.
If a student is physically fit, then he or she will feel good about their health. This transforms into a general good feeling about life. Most major issues in a person's life can be subsumed under the premise of fear of death and dying. If a person is physically fit, then the prospects of death are further away. The martial arts provides a structure which is beneficial for physical well being in two important ways. Number one, it provides physical enhancement through the actual training that a student receives in class. This training is attained both through aerobic exercise and through stretching. Number two, it provides motivation to stay physically fit when not in class. A student realizes that he or she must stay fit and respect their body outside of class or else lose their physical enhancement from class to class. In other words, a student must obey the rules of the martial arts as a lifestyle, not just in certain situations. This physical health also goes beyond physical training and enters into physiology. In other words, enhancing your other energy source: food. When a student eats better, he or she feels better and can further enhance their physical training. This is also set out in the rules of the martial arts. To put this in perspective, since joining the OHTC Martial Arts organization, I have worked out more outside of class including weight training, aerobic activity, tennis, stretching, eating red meat once a week instead of whenever I wanted it, and consuming way less of foods and drinks that do not benefit my health. The framework of the martial arts assisted in changing my thinking about these items and I feel more energetic and healthy than I have for a long time.
If a student is mentally fit, then he or she will feel good about their life. This transforms into a general good attitude about the world and those in it. If one feels good about himself, then he transfers this into other areas of his or her life. If one does not like himself, then his relationships will fail and not be healthy for him or her and the other person involved in that relationship. This involvement with the world provides for better mental health. The opposite side of this, if not involved with the world, provides a negative framework for personality disorders. In addition, if a student gains a stronger mental health along with the physical and spiritual healths, then he or she becomes healthy in a well rounded way. For example, if a person is only physically fit, then his or her mental health will suffer if it is not worked on by the individual. They will have problems in their relationships since their focus is only physical. This will eventually lead to poor physical health since their mental health is poor and unable to assist the physical self in compensating for inevitable issues such as age, muscular breakdown, etc. Having only physical health also provides for detachment and a poor sense of self. This is why it is important to ensure that a student works on all three areas.
If a student if spiritually fit, then he or she will feel good about their sense of being. Having a sense of being is extremely important. The physical and mental parts are irrelevant unless one has a sense of being. A sense of being comes from a sense of being a part of something that is "bigger" than you. This does not deal primarily with religion. Religion is spiritual to some, but some who spiritual are not necessarily religious. If one does not have a sense of being, then they cannot belong.
The OHTC Martial Arts organization helps me with a sense of belonging and hence a spiritual side. I have made a good friend and mentor through the martial arts. This assists with my sense of being. My philosophy of the martial arts, therefore, deals primarily with the point that the martial arts is not only the basis for a physical, mental, and spiritual laiden life, but that it also helps achieve these states in the martial arts student.
