The Japanese perception of martial arts.

[unkokusai]

But training under a sifu raised in china and being only 1 of the three caucasians attending (the rest chinese or vietnamese) I ifnd it hard to not be prejudice against Japanese martial arts,.

why?...............................

[syn]

Because most of the students talk alot of crap about japanese MA.

I just don't pay attention to it though.

[Shaolindynasty]

With the younger generation the most popular MA is offered by sony playstation. I think this is true around the world.

[GeneChing]

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[Jimbo]

I know it's silly to respond to a 12-year-old thread, but the closest anybody can do in generalize about what "the Japanese" or anyone else as a group views something, as people (yes, even Japanese people) are individuals with individual thoughts and opinions.

My experience from living in Taiwan over a near-decade period of time is, I saw and trained with some CMA students who were from Japan, and several of them were more dedicated (and more skilled) than many of the Chinese/Taiwanese students. Most of the Japanese practitioners I met took the CMA they were studying very seriously, and tried to analyze and organize what they were learning almost to an OCD level. And not just for the execution of basics and forms, but also for understanding the applications. There is much in that attitude to respect.

That was back in the '80s and early '90s. I'm sure that overall, things have changed. I'm sure that MA-wise, most of the interest lies in watching MMA, and following various MMA stars; and even with such interest, most likely very few of those spectators actually train in any MA, including MMA, themselves.

In Taiwan, the most popular MA by far was Taekwondo. Kendo and Judo were also popular. There was lots of CMA, but less organized than TKD or JMA. From my own observations, most MA training was seen as a youngsters' pastime, which usually ended either upon completion of university or mandatory military service (whichever came first) and entry into the work force. At that point for most that I knew, MA became something they used to do, or only as an occasionally-revisited hobby. The typical person you meet there will know (or care) little to nothing about MA.

Not too different from the U.S., where in recent years, MA is mostly marketed to kids, and few will continue even into their teens, much less adulthood. But there are tons of people who avidly watch MMA.

[GeneChing]

I was just looking for a Japanese Martial Arts thread to post the latest sweeps. You know how much I like thread necromancy here. The 'samurai' ones are specific to museum exhibits and such. Actually, I'm a little embarrassed for our OT subforum that there isn't a general Japanese MA thread.

[GeneChing]

See our WINNERS: The Book of Samurai Autographed by Antony Cummins thread