Principles of traditional martial arts

Tradition

Tradition can be defined as the sum of knowledge and experience that is passed down from one generation to the next. Everything begins and ends with tradition, since it is not the dead body of an idea but instead its living, breathing spirit. The students are taught the core values until the moment they decide to outgrow, complement and reshape them, leaving their own personal mark in the “updated” version of tradition that the younger generations will inherit.
Discipline

Discipline is the first degree of apprenticeship. It can be a habit or an ad-hoc decision. In martial arts the students may not initially understand tradition, but they accept discipline because of their desire to learn. The students follow the teachings of their masters until they understand enough to respect tradition and willingly commit to it. If they do not then they will most likely become disappointed and stop their journey.
Respect

In time the master earns the respect of the students, as a personality and a regulator of tradition. It is only then that the master’s training and teachings reveal their true meaning. At this point discipline becomes a conscious choice for the students and not a forced one.
Commitment

As the years go by the students who understand the spirit and the true meaning of martial arts, commit to the Do, the way of learning. This commitment is not verbal or written down in a piece of paper. It is an internal realization that cannot be forced or triggered from outside stimuli.
Loyalty

Loyalty is the next degree of apprenticeship. Through their commitment the students have grown certain and confident in their beliefs and training. Fear and doubt have been limited as much as possible and the relationship between master and disciple enters its most fertile phase, that of philosophical insight. It is now that a talented and charismatic disciple can move on to the final stage of reforming tradition.
Innovation

Transformation through Tradition. It is at this stage that the apprenticeship of the student comes full circle. Tradition as a living and evolving entity transforms through the excellence of its regulators, who intervene and modulate through their spirit. These interpositions usually affect the form and rarely the true essence of tradition. Through these changes tradition becomes validated again. The student has now become a master and the circle begins anew with a fresh generation of disciples.