Martial Arts Articles by Anthony DiFilippo

Anthony R. DiFilippo is the owner/director of the Ryukyu Kodokan Dojo and webmaster of Silk Road Enterprises - www.silkroadenterprisecn.com. He has been a student of the martial arts for over thirty five years and holds yudansha grades in Koryu Uchinadi Kenpo Jutsu and Okinawan Shorin Ryu karate. In 2001, Anthony R. DiFilippo was appointed the Africa Shibucho for the International Ryukyu Karate Research Society and Africa Region Style Head for Koryu Uchinadi Kenpo Jutsu, under the auspices of Hanshi Patrick McCarthy. (Biography) (Read Articles)

History - An elaborate code of movements of the arms and hands, and a flowing posturing of the body, "kata", meaning form, model or structure, uses ritualistic movements to illustrate and record techniques of self-defense. Although we know that the legacy of old style karate kata can be traced back to China and is an offspring of quanfa traditions, its birth and evolution evades modern researchers.
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Basic Concepts - The art of karate is a brutally effective method of self-defense characterized by grabbing, squeezing, pressing, twisting, bending, leveraging, breaking, and chokes and strangulation attacks, which are directed to joints, muscles, tendons, ligaments, bones, pressure points, and blood vessels and commonly used to bring about compliance through pain, limiting motor functions, or causing unconsciousness. (Read Article)

Old Style Karate - Imagine that you are walking home late one dark and humid summer evening. It has been a tiring day and you are eager to get inside, close the door and go to bed. As you wander along, thinking only about reaching your house you hear rapid footsteps behind you. A quick glance over your shoulder reveals a man approaching. He is moving quickly towards you. There's no one else in sight - no one on the street except you and the stranger. The house suddenly seems a long way away. In less than an instant, he grabs your hair from behind and pulls you towards him.
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Thought is not uniquely human, but it is unique in the level of thinking power that mankind possesses. Man is a reflective and thinking being, with a power of thought beyond imagination. No other species on earth can think about thought itself. Man can reason, can form alliances or create enemies.
Our thoughts can provide us happiness or sadness, self-determination or dependence, health or illness, prosperity or failure. Thought has power - everything that we witness in this world is but a phenomenon of thought.
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On the time scale of the history of the world, one person’s lifetime is a mere flicker of a flame. We're born, we live, and we die. This truth places the question of existence right at the forefront of all human thought. What is the purpose of my own existence within the greater scheme of things? - Or does the finality of death make life meaningless? These questions have been contemplated since the dawn of human creation. The need to find answers to such questions is found in humankinds need to feel we have a purpose, a connection to others, and a sense of being part of something much greater than ourselves. (Read Article)

The common human response to falling is the most dangerous. Although most people instinctively protect their heads, they will reach out to catch themselves and break an arm or wrist. Apprehension causes them to tense their body when makes it more susceptible to injury and causes the forces of the fall to travel through the body to the brain causing dizziness or even unconsciousness. (Read Article)

Introduction: The roots of Asian society lie in the careful attention given to reflective thought on the needs of all society and in the conscious development of effort as a process of spiritual awakening or enlightenment (kaigan) for everyone, working in relationship and harmony (wa). This is embedded in the East and is particularly visible in Japanese culture. Traditionally, the teaching of classical Okinawan karate also integrated the principles of kaigan and wa and was imparted through close one-to-one care, attention and guidance given to a student by a master teacher. This was central to the teaching tradition of the old karate masters and formed the core of the karate Program. (Read Article)