Martial arts. What is it all about? The cool moves?! Being really strong?! Becoming a ninja?! Well that’s the answer I tend to get from my children or from some of our younger warriors! If you ask me, it’s all about respect. Respect for yourself and respect for others.
“Respect yourself and others will respect you” – Confucius
I often talk about this in class and like to have discussions with our students about who we show respect and why? There can be some very interesting answers, but I always finish by saying that we could have summed the answer up in one word, EVERYONE. Treat others as you wish to be treated and show respect to everyone, always. This is a mantra that I live by, encourage my children to live by and teach all my students to live by.
“Show respect even to those who don’t deserve it; not as a reflection of their character, but as a reflection of yours.” – Dave Willis
This is one of the greatest lessons that can be learnt through studying martial arts, it enables you to grow as a person, because as your respect for yourself and others grow so does your self confidence. Developing a high degree of self respect means that you see things in a different light, this can be a game changer for a child. The bed time that you feel is too early, is to ensure that you have a decent night’s sleep, which you need to be happy, healthy and grow stronger! Once you start to see discipline as a way of respecting yourself, it turns the negatives into positives. This can then be applied to other aspects of life such as eating well and having regular exercise. This is the way of the warrior and the path to success! Once the warrior mindset has been adopted it enables you to respect yourself, your family, your friends and your teachers. Respect your successes and your failures, especially your failures, as these will teach you the most valuable lessons about yourself on your journey through life.
“Strength does not come from physical capacity. It comes from an indomitable will.” – Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi
Having an indomitable spirit and the perseverance to keep going when others give up, the courage to push through your limits into the unknown and to carry yourself with integrity, showing others courtesy, as you develop your self control, all stems from understanding the value of RESPECT. Look forward to seeing you in class, remember to bow. :smiley:
Instructor Matt