Some martial arts classes are nothing but constant motion - long repetition of the same techniques over and over again. Almost no talking, no explanation. Drills and Kata are done by observing the instructor and mimicking his/her movements while the instructor drifts around the class correcting everything. This was my original dojo in suburban Chicago. It was many traditional dojos I have trained at across aikido and kenjutsu particularly. However, in my original dojo, for every hour I spent on the mat I had at least another hour of self-study “homework”. Sometimes books to read or VHS (in those days), sometimes meditations to do, sometimes lectures or discussions. I kept detailed notes and we always brought a notebook and pen to training. Always.
My teacher required us to be versed in history and philosophy of warfare/combat and to read and study constantly (in addition to my schoolwork). Often he would host discussions and once I became Deshi (disciple) it was constant. Every car ride or meal would have these dialogs and I knew to come prepared. This has formed the foundation of my approach to studying martial arts since then.
If you've been to one of my classes you quickly realize I have my own way of teaching that is a bit different from other dojos. We cover at least three subsystems in each session, but we have almost two hours of class time so I don't feel hard-pressed to rush through thousands of reps. Instead, I try to give background and context for the techniques, frameworks, patterns or drills we do rather than just do them mindlessly. To me, it's very important to emphasize the WHY of what we do.
Like any skill, at the beginning martial arts is awkward and requires our body to learn entirely new ways of moving. We struggle with even basic movements and battle our own frustration. Watching our instructors seemingly effortlessly demonstrate each technique doesn't really make us feel any better, and we often forget that they went through the same process themselves once, eventually practicing the techniques enough to become proficient. In this stage of learning, rote memorization, muscle memory to be exact, is the usual goal. We are laying the foundation and building the scaffolding for a future in martial arts. In music, this would be the equivalent of just playing the scales and chords over and over. It's important for our fingers to move seamlessly on the fret or keyboard. At the same time, this is why so many people (including me) quit music practice. Good music study is far more than just putting your fingers on the instrument. That is just one component.
I emphasize the why because I want to prepare students from day one for a future that will allow them to go beyond the drills I teach them. I want them to understand how the human body works, its strong and weak points. I want them to learn how to use their own bodies correctly to generate power and control distance. I want them to understand timing and cadence, and to truly appreciate the importance of strategy and tactics in fighting. In the end, I want them to look at all martial arts with the eyes of a professional - someone who understands at a glance what is going on. I want them to become self-learners, able to absorb content, ideas and inspiration effectively from any sources available. In music, these are those musicians who can improvise and pay by ear, who can read music but also write music - musicians with their own voice and playing style - comfortable across genres and instruments.
These are students who will one day be excellent instructors, with the depth of knowledge and understanding to prepare future generations to carry on our legacy - that of Punong Guro Fred Evrard, Guro Lila, Guro Ben and the rest of our legendary instructors. As Sigung Bruce said "the highest technique is to have no technique". Of course this is not possible at the beginning, but it is a worthy goal to move beyond drills or patterns into pure movement and expression. FLOW, after all, is the goal.
Achieving this worthy goal requires far more than just rote muscle memory. It requires a bit of academic study, a bit of theory, a bit of culture and a bit of philosophy as well as 10,000 hours on the mats themselves. I am grateful that PG Fred instilled these in all of us. His deep, lifelong study is reflected in the many excellent books he wrote, as well as the many hours in class and at camps which he shared with all of us. We were always free to ask questions, and free to discover answers on our own, too. Most of us spent a lot of time outside of class training, but also reading, watching, attending seminars and documenting our journeys. These were all important to develop our eyes. This is how we learned to truly see the journey and to better appreciate it.
So no, I don't teach a "Kali-cize" class. If people want that there are many other dojos or studios for it. What I do teach is the distillation of 45 years of martial arts study (18 of those in Kali Majapahit) and training with some of the world's greatest martial arts instructors. I am still constantly learning new material and studying/researching to deepen my own understanding. My goal in every class is to provide full access to my knowledge and experience, in the hopes that it makes each student's journey richer and their understanding more complete. I hope they will come to love Kali and the martial arts as much as I do and enjoy a lifetime of discovery as I have done.
See you at class
