Dao of the Day

A good warrior is never violent
A good fighter is never offensive
A great victor defeats his opponent,
but not by challenging him.
A great commander is humble.
This is called the power of non-contention.
This is also called using the power of others.
To follow this is to follow the pattern of the subtle law of the universe.

-Dao De Jing Chapter 68
from The Complete Works of Lao Tzu, translation and elucidation by Hua-Ching Ni.

The 52 Blocks

Lyte Burly demonstrating the skull and crossbones block

Interesting video article today on NYTimes.com about "the 52 blocks". They profile Lyte Burly of the East Village (see his youtube videos here) and Daniel Marks. Marks' website has this to say about the history of the 52:

52 Blocks, the only existing martial arts form originating from the United States, originates from Caribbean and Southern US (Gullah island) warrior traditions. Similar to its Brazilian counterpart, Capoeira, the fighting style was initially suppressed during slavery because white slaveowners feared potential rebellions of disenfranchised African-Americans. After Reconstruction, the art form followed the African-American migration Northeast and into the margins of large urban centers. Urban prisons, because of their ethnic breakdown as well as their social code, actually provided a more fertile ground for the art to expand, especially in allowing novices to dedicate themselves to ongoing training intensively. It was within the prison system that 52 evolved, fusing with urban dance and boxing tactics.

Apparently Rashad Evans is familiar with the 52 as well! Here's a video clip of Rashad talking about his fighting influences.

 

Quote of the Day: Lyoto Machida

"If you have a dream for your life, you can achieve it. It's a possible!"

Pure inspiration. Traditional karateka everywhere rejoice.

Martial Arts NY now on Twitter

Now you can follow us on twitter. Our posts are also over on the right hand side of all blog pages - take a look!

34th Annual Zhang San Feng Festival

张三丰 Zhang San Feng

The 34th annual Zhang San Feng Festival will be held June 4th-7th, 2009 at the Nevele Grande Resort in the Catskills region of New York. Named for the mythical Daoist hermit regarded by many as the founder of tai chi (太极拳 tai ji quan), the annual Zhang San Feng Festival is a time honored event begun by the late tai chi Grandmaster Jou Tsung Hwa, and held for many years at his legendary 103-acre Tai Chi Farm.

In recent years the Festival has evolved into a world class event which brings together some of the best and brightest teachers and authors in tai chi, qigong and the related arts, to teach three days of incredible and informative workshops. Each night also includes exciting evening activities. This event will be a treasure trove of opportunity for all interested in Tai Chi & Qigong, from beginners to advanced.

World Tai Chi & Qigong Day founder, Bill Douglas, will be delivering this year's keynote address at the Festival on Friday evening, June 5th. Bill will also be adding his unique energies to the event by joining the other master instructors in teaching a few workshops throughout the weekend. WTCQD will have a table at the conference as well, where Bill will demonstrate his Sitting Qigong.

The early-bird discount for Festival registration ends May 15th - to register go to taichifest.com

Kickboxing Smoker on Saturday, June 13th

From David Ross of NY Sanda -

I've decided that in the interests of keeping everyone in the region active and building the community I will use the gym to hold a "smoker" event on Saturday, June 13th.

• ONLY KICKBOXING STYLES (Mauy Thai, San Da, International, American)
• ONLY AMATEURS
• FULL EQUIPMENT (head gear, shin pads, etc)

"Smokers" - 3 rounds with no decision. You may be able to fight more than once (ie if there are 4 people at 146.9 you can fight twice).

Since I will be insuring the event and have medical staff present, I am asking that everyone pay $10 towards the costs. That's $10 to fight at least once, upwards of three times. Spectators will also be $10.

Register at http://www.kingofsanda.net/
If that link is not working, try http://www.angelfire.com/sd2/kingofsanda/

Let's keep our students active and build our community ties!

David A Ross
New York San Da
www.NYSanDa.com
(212) 239 8619

New York Fighting Championship

The New York Fighting Championship is a new organization putting together... you guessed it, a fighting championship. Not exactly sure what rules they'll be using - clicking on the link for "Rules" give you a list of links to other organization's rules. Take a look.