If you have one, what is your ultimate goal with the martial arts?

Question

I'm asking about many many years down the road. What are you looking to get out of this lifestyle? There should not be any wrong answers save those that are insecure, and belittle others.

Answer 1

I want to see the impact I made in people's lives.

I have a student who is 30 y/o, in great shape, has brothers into boxing, mma, Muay Thai.. you know the rest.

They told her that she was not going to learn anything from "traditional" MA, because of the whole "unrealistic" rap.

She has taken 4 classes so far and she told me she wants to be my student "always". She has studied at "traditional" schools before but never stood longer than a month.

She never learned how to punch from her brothers nor from the other places she attended.

She told me she has learned more applicable theory under me than with all others combined.

I explain this to illustrate how your friends and family members, have you in their realm, in their reach, and don't appreciate that you have this vast knowledge that you are willing to impart with them, and they reject it.

I would love to see my son taking over when I don't want to do it anymore. That will never happen.

The worst thing about it is that you see their lives and know that if they would have endured, they would lead much more productive and upright lives today.

I hope to stay active enough to teach my Grand Daughters my art.

I want them to feel the legacy and the impact. I want them to feel privileged and honored to have been handed down pure artistic history.

It feels good to me now... the impact I will make in people when I am gone.

Answer 2

Well, I hope to earn my black belt in a few years. That will be quite an accomplishment and I'm looking forward to it.

I guess that's kind of the generic answer, so I will go with something else also. Being involved in the martial arts has taught me so many things about discipline, self confidence, how to lead, and much more. I now have a passion for the arts. I guess my goal is to learn all that I can, continue to be involved for the rest of my life and maybe someday, be able to share with others what I have learned.

Answer 3

A guy from our club died lots of us turned up at his funeral - yes that was a pretty good feeling, would like that for myself just like you many, many years off please.

Answer 4

My ultimate goal would be to keep on training for as long as I could.  If my body can still take it I will keep on doing it!

Answer 5

I hate how short I am so I wanna smack the c**p out of people and insult them!

Alright though but seriously;

Believe it or not a meditative aid.  I try meditation without doing Kata (forms), and its impossible.  I do it after doing martial arts stuff, and its actually easier.  Must be because Kata stimulate both hemispheres of the brain or something I don't know.

Answer 6

My goal is to use it to help me get into shape since it is something that I like a lot, I don't mind getting up and going in to do it. I don't think about being a Blackbelt much because I'm getting older, but not too old to accomplish it. I guess it depends on how I hold up in the long run.

Answer 7

To be honest, I haven't really thought about it.  My focus at the moment is to centre on improving my karate and iai skills and on improving myself as a person.

- To search for deeper motives and rewards in my martial arts training.

- To train hard, be humble, don't show off or complain, and do my best in everything in life.

- To strive to retain a sense of humility, and refrain from thinking "I am better than so-and-so".

"Kenjo No Bitoku - with true strength comes humility…strive to make body, spirit and character strong. This, combined with the virtue of humility, leads to the bushido spirit."

(Tadashi Nakamura).

You can tell when someone has devoted his life to the ethical pursuit of martial arts. It shows in his every action, and not because he looks like someone who can kick butt. Rather, he looks like someone who doesn't need to kick butt at all.

Answer 8

Good question...

My ultimate goal for me its of know the truth history about GM Angel Blancia.

Answer 9

I just enjoy the journey up the mountain to see what's on the other side.  Since I haven't been there yet, I cannot tell you what might be waiting there.

How about to perfect my first kata I learned when I was a white belt?

Answer 10

respect

Answer 11

Great question. Obviously there are relatively short term goals like advancing in rank and getting into shape. But to be honest, as ironic as it may sound, my biggest goals for my training are all mental and emotional for me.

I've been working to get to the point where I have the confidence to know that I will be able to apply my training in a given situation without hesitation. To be able to get hit in the face and still have the conviction to not back down and have faith in my training. (of course a fight would always be my last resort, which would be another thing I've learned from my martial arts training).

Basically, I hope that the discipline, self-control and respect I've learned from martial arts will keep me from ever having to use my training and that, God forbid, the time should ever come where I have no choice but to fight someone, whether its to defend myself or someone that I love, that I will fight for a just reason and act without hesitation.

Answer 12

Firstly, I'd like to say that is a fantastic question!

I don't have one singular goal when it comes to martial arts but if I had to choose one, it would be having the ability to confidently and effectively handle any situation preferably without using violence but using it if becomes necessary.

Answer 13

My goal at this point is to enjoy every aspect of the journey to the best of my ability, whether it is going out to dinner with my instructor, or just hanging out with him and the other old timers, and the newer people, telling stories and just having fun. It might be seeing a student finally get something you have been trying to get through to them. Part of that goal is to leave behind far more then what I took, and have the sense that I helped people, and made a difference, and I have already had a couple of students that were going to a local college come back after they graduated and moved away to thank me.

Once the destination is reached(death) the journey is over, so I want to laugh, love, sweat, cry, bleed, gain, lose, teach, and learn on this journey for as long as god gives me. I figure anything else will fall into place where it is supposed to.