Tree of Many Branches
Sadder still is the fact that these students had all been the victims of violent crimes. They were looking for a realistic and effective self defense program, and wound up with instructors who assured them they would be able to deal with any attack after training with them. "
I have recently read a great deal of internet media where martial artists discuss their various systems. What surprises me are the two categories these individuals appear to fall into: the first are those who seem to be critical of anyone who is not associated with their system, style, or discipline (howsoever they may characterize it); the second are those who are teaching – or attempting to – with little or no evidence of practical experience in their area of “expertise.” Both kinds of exploits in the field of the martial arts are disappointing to say the least.
Those in the first category – I will call them ‘the complainers’ – are simply an irritation. They are usually younger people who lack the background to recognize how immature they really sound. I would recommend dismissing them completely. As a general rule, they are short of the valid information they need upon which to base their comments. Nevertheless, they typically create no problems other than what they can stir up through the internet.
There is, however, one group that has caught my attention that purports to confront other martial arts’ groups in order to challenge them to fights, all with the stated intention of proving the other’s system as invalid. I would recommend calling the police if they show up on your dojo doorstep. Although it is likely they will make an event of this on the internet afterwards, the truth is that there is no real good way to handle individuals of this nature.
Should you do agree to let one of them train with you, one of two things could happen: you may hurt one of them or they may hurt one of your students. So, consider that they may report you to the police or, perhaps, even sue you at a later date if they get hurt in your dojo. So again, my advice is that you call the police and get them out of your dojo if they should show up. There is no place for ones like them in serious martial arts study.I consider those to be found in the second category listed above to be more dangerous, principally because I have personally trained students who have previously been in the care of these types. These students came to me to learn realistic self defense, and many of them had trained with instructors who had taught them downright invalid techniques. Not only were they extremely dissatisfied with what the other instructors had taught but, additionally, they often commented that they did not think what they had learned worked in a real-life attack. Follow-up research into the other instructors made it readily apparent that none of them had any true practical experience in the martial arts.
Sadder still is the fact that these students had all been the victims of violent crimes. They were looking for a realistic and effective self defense program, and wound up with instructors who assured them they would be able to deal with any attack after training with them. One of the instructors went as far as assuring the student that, with the training he would provide, this student would be able to disarm an edged-weapon attacker without being cut – 100% of the time. In my opinion, this alone is criminal. There is no way to disarm an edged-weapon wielding attacker all of the time without being injured, and no instructor should give this assurance.
Never train with anyone that tells you this is possible. What you can do is learn how to effectively deal with an edged-weapon attack, and dictate where the attacker will cut you. Nonetheless, chances are that you are still going to get cut.Training someone in edged-weapon defense, or in self defense in general, is serious work. You must assume the student is training in this area in order to avoid a violent attack. Teaching students invalid techniques will get them hurt, raped, or killed. A student in search of this kind of training should not get short-changed by an instructor who cannot provide it proficiently. All instructors should have the integrity to refer a student to other more qualified instructors when their skills and personal experience do not meet the standards of what the student seeks to learn.
That this continues to go on all over the country is particularly disappointing. It appears that money is more important to some instructors than providing quality training. My advice to the student who is looking for this class of training is simple: ask questions.
The very first question you should ask is whether the instructor has practical experience in the area of realistic self defense. If the instructor has not been in a situation where s/he is fighting for her/his life or personal safety, s/he should not necessarily be teaching you. At first glance this position may rub you the wrong way, but there is no easier way to put it. Would you want to learn to SCUBA dive from someone who has never been in the water? Would you want to learn to sky dive from someone who has never jumped off a plane? The situations some of these students have faced are much more dangerous than SCUBA diving or sky diving. Why would anyone consider getting training from another in an area this other has no practical experience in?
There are numerous emotional and physiological processes that occur during a personal attack. If you have never experienced these processes, you truly have no business teaching someone how to deal with them. To do so is a matter of ego for most instructors, however, and this can result in their students getting hurt, or worse, because they simply did not have the intimate familiarity they needed to teach.
You can also ask the instructor’s students about the effectiveness of their training. And ask about the instructor’s known background. These are, after all, valid questions that should have valid answers. If you find an instructor who has not addressed these questions, leave immediately. Most reputable instructors will discuss these matters openly.
In closing, make sure you get the right instructor for your personal needs. There are many schools that teach classical martial arts that may not be right for you. Do some fact-finding on an instructor you are considering, and take the time to find one that is qualified to teach what you are looking for. Keep the SCUBA diving and sky diving analogy in mind. Take no chances with your safety.
You may also feel free to contact us for assistance or clarification if you need it. Several of the principals of Hsin Lu International are career police officers with practical experience in the field of armed or unarmed combat. They are prepared to refer you to someone in your area that will give you the training you deserve.
