Everybody Was Kung Fu Fighting

A comment on a FB thread about cherry-picking martial arts techniques brought this up.

People want to get a neato move they can plug into what they know, and while that is possible, it usually doesn’t work that way.

Handing you the steering wheel without the car isn’t useful if you need to drive somewhere.

Went to a seminar once that featured some world-class teachers offering SE Asian arts — mostly silat, some kali and escrima. Easy to see how similar these are when compared to, say, Japanese or African styles. 

Similar SE Asian roots, but not the same.

You have to go with an open mind, but the more training you have in a system, the harder it is to accept something that goes against your training.

Not that it is necessarily bad, but that it doesn’t mesh with what you know, you won’t be able to integrate it into what you have, even if you agree with its efficacy.

Teacher shows you a thing, It runs contrary to what you have, You won’t voice it, to be polite, but you will think it: Dude, if I try that against my guys, it will get me killed.

Maestro from this kali style shows you some stick stuff. Hold it like this, and swing it thus.

Cool.

Done, moving on.

Next guy, from a different kali style arrives, and you step up with your stick. He looks at you as though you have turned into an upright pig. No, no, no! you don’t hold the stick *there!* Hold it this way!

Yes, Guro.

Third guy starts his session. And you know where this is going, right?

This is one reason why cherry-picking similar styles is a problem. The Maestro’s grip works because of the rest of what that style does; the Guro is doing something different, for which his grip is more appropriate. Third guy, same-same.

None of them is how your teacher offers it.

A style will have underlying laws, principles, and what you do adheres to these, else there is no consistent system. Not a question as to whether it is good or bad, but that there will be a more-efficient or less-efficient way to move, and the goal is more.