I find that when people begin martial arts, they do it for 3 main reasons:

1. To get in shape.
2. To learn how to defend themselves.
3. For self-confidence.

The third option is the silent, unspoken thing that both of the former two are in pursuit of, and may not even know that they are in pursuit of. Often a teacher, by focusing in on the third option and treating the student as a serious individual, will find that the beginner gains self confidence through the simple friendly contact between two people (teacher and student), both physical and intellectual. It's a private acquaintance, and few of us have private acquaintances. We have friends (which are often conditional, based on politics, socioeconomics, religion, values, etc.), we have family, and we have teachers. But a true teacher/master is one that is uninterested in that surface persona of a teacher. He's really into the contact between two learners, and looks to pass on some knowledge. In the West, this is often difficult without application to a capitalistic process. Still, somewhere in this exchange, self-confidence can find its exigesis through self-knowledge and self-realization. On a psychological level, I'd like to make a distinction between self-confidence and egotism. Self-confidence is a learning and involving process, not a thing viewed in hindsight and reflection, typified by the Western : "Self-confidence? Yeah, I got that a long time ago..." kind of mentality. Rather, self-confidence is a thing maintained, not attained. In the case of Rudy Abel and 1bad65, I think we see how two once-self-confident individuals from two different traditions deviated into egotism, which is really symptomatic of a break in self-confidence and a discursus into insecurity. Most asian martial arts have a traditional link to Buddhist and Taoist practices. I don't think this is any kind of coincidence. The pursuit of self-knowledge, which is really the pursuit of nothing, since the self is the mind without "grasping" onto its "selfness" (for lack of a better term, perhaps "ego" would better apply). Although the "mysticism" of Taoism, which focuses on immortality via alchemy, might be considered egotism or self-grasping, the mysticism of the practice and ritual is what holds one's fascination and diligence--it's not the imortality. Both of these religions are rather inimical to the western world in its capitalistic enterprises, which are both symbolic of the deification, and perhaps reification, of samsara. So, in a way, the western viewpoint is the antithesis to the eastern viewpoint. Choosing which one is suitable to your life is really dependent on your life. But I think we'd all be loath if we did not think that eastern philosophical principles, imposed...perhaps ingrained in martial arts, have affected us all in very beneficial ways.

1. They get us moving, exercising, etc....which the western world tries desperately to keep us from doing, with their pushes for all-access television, the deification of politics and the importance placed on "being in the know" and "always being in communication", whether by cell phone, internet, cable TV, etc. In effect, the western world eradicates our senses of privacy and roots us to certain "ports"--the cable TV jack, the internet cord, wireless reception, and cellular hot-spots.

2. The acceptance of relaxation. As we all know, the first thing we are taught in martial arts (all martial arts) is to relax. Even if we tighten up, it's a conscious movement. In the west, we're always stressed, always distracted, always occupied, and so we slink around like frightened felines, always tense and constricted. It's the same reaction of any wild animal to city life. It's a recognition of the strange and the estranged. It's only ironic that we don't see this in ourselves and in our postures.

3. Focus. RAther than focusing on a goal or productivity, we focus on being present in the action of something small, rather than on trying to become a bigger cog in an even larger machine. In a way, the eastern view gets us to accept our smallness, and to find meaning, balance, and edification in this smallness. The ego--that which drives us to "higher" or "more productive" goals, often only squanders its focus by ignoring hte present in anticipation of the future. We know the eastern view when we try to master the basics, and then learn new movements, yet see in them mere modifications of the basics--basics that are then reinforced, manipulated, and transformed, yet always rooted in the present action. The basics drill in us not a foundation to be transformed into a skyscraper, but rather an eternal foundation that will always be preserved in the present moment.