why is it hard to get a good sparring community, where martial artist can spar, fight, and exchange knowledge?
aside from the competition world and business side of combat sports,
why does it seem difficult to get fighters to work out real challenges? without the ego, and ugliness of school/style rivalry (I know 'dojo/kwoon challenges' got ugly in the past) ..isn't the martial art community mature enough to handle open challenging/sparring? or have people really been pacified beyond repair? or is a matter of saving face when it counts? because I know some people turn down challenges, not because they are afraid, want money, or are incapable, just for honor, they say. how is that honorable when we are all students?

for instance if someone came to your school tomorrow and challenged it, most schools would turn it down, even for light sparring or a display of technique, master to master, you rarely or never see them do monthly style exchanges with other styles of schools of their own styles? is it really just ego or is it something about a code of honor among fighters that we dont know about?

theres a nice scene in the Grandmaster (2013 version) where Ip Man is offered a cigarette by the "Brother in the South" of ('Gong Yutian') the Northern Master who gave Ip Man his fame during the "crack the cookie" fight.
the Brother, in so many words, basically tells Ip that by offering him the cigarette, and Ip smoking it, that his work is done in the shadows, so the face of his family remains untainted.

In retrospect, Ip Man was looking to see the 64 hands again, and the Daughter of Gong Yutian wouldnt show him again (after previously beating him) etc....

my question is, how much of martial arts was realistically lost this way? and how much are great arts allowed to be misunderstood because the ones that know them just wont display them for the sake of display, or education.

also, what was the Brother of Gongyutian trying to say, with the play on the elements? I kinda get it, from my perspective, where Im from if someone offers you a smoke, and you take it, you do somewhat give them the respect. What I dont get is why they wouldnt just exchange styles, if Ip Man is a respected martial artist, and is approaching as a student, what did the brother have to lose by sharing? How does a family lose face by sharing? Ip Man didnt say "kiss my feet and show me them 64 hands" lol....he was pretty humble about it, at least to my perception. I know there were standards back then, and still today, I might now understand, so thats why Im asking. thanks

Amituofo