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CALLIGRAPHY

  Boxing using the feet as well as hands.  Kickboxing is an American expression to describe a type of combat which is in no way a form of Budo.  It is widely appreciated in Japan, The US, and many western countries and contains a blend of Savate, Thai Boxing, Chinese Boxing, and elements of Kyokushinkai Karate.  This type of realistic training is popular among various groups, like the US Armed Forces, who have included it, as well as other Martial Arts from around the world, in their "Close-combat" training syllabi. As with full combat, the blows are really struck and not pulled.  The aim is to knock an opponent out by almost any possible means apart from blows with gloves, groin protection, and ankle guards.  Combatants fight for three ten-minute rounds and continue until there is a knock out.  Contestants are frequently insured and some have been paralyzed or handicapped for life.  Such is the violent nature of this form of combat.  Regardless of its extreme reputation, the spectacular nature of the contests draws a large audience.  In today's sport, more safety rules and gear help reduce injuries as Kickboxing endures popularity due to its cardio-vascular, muscular, and mental benefits.

  More accurately, Karate-do, this art utilizes the bare hands and feet and has developed over the centuries.  It began when the Chinese occupied Okinawa, part of the Ryukyu chain of islands, in the sixteenth century, and forbade the inhabitants to possess weapons; this interdict was repeated later under a Japanese occupation.  This style of fighting was inspired by similar Chinese techniques, which originated from those practiced at the Shaolin temple by Buddhist monks.  It was intended as a means of defending ones self against brigands and invading troops. At that time the peasants trained in secret and, little by little, they invented various techniques which enabled them to defend themselves against attack to good effect.  Their centuries of contact with the Chinese also brought the Okinawans some knowledge of the rules and  techniques of Chinese boxing, known as Kempo.  this was another system of fighting with the feet and hands, using striking techniques without actually grappling with an opponent.  Efficiency was the order of the day, aesthetics and moral aspects played  little or no part.

  The followers of Full Contact fighting cite the tough and rough-and-ready methods of these early Karate techniques as a justification for their own equally hard approach.  On the other hand, in the early days, the fighting techniques were meant for real combat, Jutsu; they are hardly justifiable in times of peace.  There were also several styles of Karate named after the places in which they were practiced; Shuri-te, Naha-te, Tomari-te, etc.  Then came Funakshi Gichin (1869-1957), a Karate student and later teacher, ho tried to unify the diverse styles of Okinawa-te and spread them through Japan as a form of Budo.  To this end, he staged demonstration tournaments in the main towns of Japan to show Karate techniques; notably in 1917 and 1922.  The young people of Japan responded with enthusiasm to this new Okinawa-te.  they saw in it a method for attaining a type of invulnerability, or at least a superior physique.  Such possibilities led themselves to a wave of ultra-nationalistic feeling which was being promulgated by those directing Japan's future.

  The exercises and contests which took place inside the Dojo at that time were extremely violent.  Blows were actually delivered and not 'pulled.'  The contestants wore no protection of any kind.  It was then that Funakoshi Gichin's son, Funakoshi Yoshitaka, in friendly opposition to his father, developed from the deadly Okinawa-te a sporting method which he called Karate-do.  This was completely separate from Karate, the -do suffix expressing the idea that this new approach was not intended for a warrior, but had the aim of physical and spiritual development.  He transformed the techniques of Okinawa-te imported by his father into gentler techniques; blows were not fully delivered.  He codified them along the lines already followed by Judo.  Thus, Karate became a discipline analogous to Judo, but maintained its own characteristics: using the feet, hands and legs to deliver Atemi blows to the vital points (Kyoshu) of an opponent, and refraining from the grappling and throwing methods typical of Judo and Ju-Jitsu.  Funakoshi Yoshitaka was the true 'Father' of modern Karate.  After the fall of the Japanese Empire in 1945, the American authorities banned all Japanese combat sports with the exception of Karate, as they regarded it as a form of Chinese gymnastics.  according to certain writers, American soldiers wanted to learn Karate techniques to improve their own close combat fighting skills.

::BULLDOG JEET KUNE DO/ KALI

        The Filipino Martial Art perpetrauted by Robert John Valentin and his students is generically known as `KALI' , and is grounded in elements of the respective systems of  Remey Preseas, Edwin Pagan Garcia Jr., Robert Chapman, and others.
          As most practitioners of Kali also follow Bruce
Lee`s art and philosophy of Jeet Kune Do, there is much cross training in other non-Filipino systems. Thus, practitioners of Kali avoid limiting labels or names to their expression of the Filipino Martial Art. Grabbing concepts and techniques from other sources, they integrate these into their own expression of the art. Over time however a common training progression
and teaching method has developed and the term BULL DOG JEET KUNE DO/ KALI (or the Bull Dog Jeet Kune Do  expression of the Filipino Martial Arts) came about.                   
       While the basic techniques and drills may vary little among practitioners of the art, each instructor reflects on their own experience and self discovery to adjust the curriculum and training. The Weaponry of the system is not only empty hands, but single stick, double stick, blades, and flexible weapons that are interchangeable with one another and are introduced early on so that the student can see the relationship
between empty hand and weapon techniques. Also there are different ranges of combat including Long, Medium, close, and ground range.
          Beginners start off with the single stick and empty hand to get a solid foundation of the art and see the relationship between armed and unarmed combat. There are also kicks, sweeps, take downs, pins, trapping, and joint locking to complete the system. The curriculum is not such that a student has to perfect everything in one category, or have perfect form before they are allowed to move on to another area, however a functional working knowledge of the use of the single stick and application of the basic techniques of BULL DOG JEET KUNE DO/ KALI is a must so the student has a foundation on witch to grow from and reach their own self discovery.

   Arnis, Escrima, and Kali are all names for the native fighting arts of the Philippines, specifically the arts that use weapons.  European sword fighting, mostly Spanish with some evidence of Italian and possibly other European countries, influenced native fighting styles when mercenaries fought (and possibly taught) there.  The most popular legend concerning the art is that Datu (Chief) Lapu Lapu killed Ferdinand Magellan in personal combat.

  Arnis, whose name is derived from the Spanish expression "Arnis de mano" (harness the hand) is from the northern part of Luzon Island.  Escrima is from the central Philippines, such as Cebu City.  Kali is from the southern island of Mindanao.  Some claim that, since Mindanao was never conquered to the extent that the rest of the Philippines was, Kali (the older of the three) more closely resembles the original, pre-Spanish arts of the area and is more complete and covers more combative possibilities.  Some claim that the word Kali is a part of a modern attempt to marginalize the Spanish (and European) influence on Filipino martial arts.  Some go as far as to refer to Kali as "Filipino-American" style.  Most people tend to say that words do not matter.  Every village, and often every master, has a distinct style, so people tend to ask, "Do you study Illustrisimo, Caballero, or Cabales style?" Not, "Do you study Escrima or Kali?"

  Kali is more of a "warriors art" while Escrima and Arnis are "soldier arts."  Escrima and Arnis were developed as streamlined, simplified ways to teach people to fight off Spanish invaders.  Some say that Kali is a Blade art, while Escrima and Arnis are stick arts, but this is a matter of contention.  A distinct feature of all the Filipino arts is their use of geometry.  Lines and angles of attack, defense and movement are important. The Use of the hands and feet, to do two things at the same time, requires a lot of training. Most Filipino arts, Kali in particular, stress the importance of disarming an opponent by destroying the attackers weapon.

   There are many different styles of Filipino martial arts, but general categories can be drawn along the lines of range.  Largo Mano styles tend to prefer staying at long distances from opponents, and using well timed and placed strikes to the hands to disarm the opponent. Corto or Serrada styles are the opposite, tending to crowd into their opponents, where the opponent will hopefully be uncomfortable and unprepared. Other styles prefer the Medio, or medium range, which is between Largo Mano and Serrada.  There are also styles , such as Lameco Escrima, that address all three ranges.  The name even comes from these ranges; (La)rgo Mano, (Me)dio, and (Co)rto.

   The different Filipino styles typically cover some or all of the following areas: single stick (or long blade); double long weapon; long & short; single dagger; double dagger; palm stick/ double end dagger; empty hands; spear/ staff; long weapons; flexible weapons (whip, sarong, etc.); throwing weapons; projectile weapons; and healing arts.

   Some arts, such as Sayoc Kali, focus on the knife almost exclusively.  There are others, such as some lineages of the Balintawak Eskriima, which focus almost entirely on the single stick.  This focus in certain lineages or styles may be the origin of the notion that Kali is more "complete" than Arnis or Escrima.

   Filipino styles normally classify attacks not by their weapon, or their delivery style, but by the direction of their energy.  For example, a strike to the head is usually analyzed in terms of "a high lateral strike."  A punch to the midsection is treated much the same as a knife thrust to that region would be.  Students learn to deal with the energy of an attack, and then apply that knowledge to the slight variations that come with different lengths and types of weapons.

   Filipino arts place great emphasis on footwork, mobility, and body positioning. The same concepts  are applied at different ranges, making the understanding of range and how to bride ranges  very important.  The Filipinos make extensive use of geometric shapes, superimposing them on a combat situation to teach combatants position utilization and movement.  Some styles emphasize line cutting (Wing Chung), while others are very circular (Aikido).  Some are long range while others move inside as soon as possible.

  Other sub-styles include: Latosa Escrima, Serrada escrima, Dumog, Panandiakman, Panantukan, Sikaran, Balintawak Escrima, Modern Arnis, Garimat Arnis, Inosanto/ LaCoste kali, Sayoc Kali, Doce Pares, Pekiti-Tirsia Kali, Pamban Arnis and many more.

   'Science of Softness', techniques of combat taught by the Bushi during the Kamakura period in Japan.  it was intended for disarmed warriors, so that they could defend themselves against enemies who were still armed.  This art developed from the ancient techniques of Kumi-tachi as described in the Kanjakumonogatari, a Buddhist work dating from the thirteenth century.  Over the centuries, various schools of Ju-jutsu developed such as Wa-jutsu, Yawara, Kogu-soku, Kempo, Hakuda, Shubaku; each being part ow the 'Way of archery horsemanship.'  They improved on the more primitive techniques and combined them with movements and countering grips taken from Chinese methods of combat as well as specific techniques used by the peasants of Okinawa.  A reciprocal movement took place when Ju-juts was exported to Chine by Chuen Yuanbin, a Chinese poet and diplomat sent to Japan, when he returned to his native land around 1638.  Ju-Jutsu became a martial art only in the Edo period, when Japan was at peace.  Numerous schools created by Ronin (masterless Samurai) spread their techniques throughout the country.  These were codified only with the dawn of the Meiji period (1868-1921), from the time when the samurai were no longer permitted to carry swords and feuds were forbidden.

   The essential principle of Ju-jutsu is to conquer the enemy with all means and minimal fore.  This demands from its followers a strict conformity to various disciplines. In fact, the older art of Ju-jutsu for warriors, as distinct from its modern descendants aimed to annihilate the enemy.  This principle intention led warriors to use all kinds of dangerous, often fatal, techniques.  Ju-jutsu was first practiced by the Samurai and then by the Ninja, and finally spread to the remaining populace to become an offensive technique mainly used by bandits.  From this stems the bad reputation which it has never lost.  this is why Kano Jigoro, in adapting the gentle techniques of Ju-jutsu to create a new sporting system, called this system Judo, to distinguish it from the deadly art of JU-jitsu.