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Title: Zen in the Martial Arts by Joe Hyams ISBN: 0-553-27559-3 Publisher: Bantam Books Pub. Date: 01 July, 1982 Format: Mass Market Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $6.99 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.4 (67 reviews)
Rating: 5
Summary: The Best Book Ever Written?
Comment: This book means more to me than probably any other book in my vast collection of books on Zen, Taoism, and martial arts. It is also probably the shortest. My instructor asked me to read it a few years ago when I started teaching Kung Fu, and it completely changed my views on life and the martial arts. Although it helps to be a martial artist, it is surely not needed in order to appreciate this wonderful book about the truths in life. Each little chapter has an outstanding moral that the author was taught eaither by a teacher or by experience. I try and read this at least twice a year. You learn something new every time. HIGHLY recommended. It will change your life for the better.
Rating: 5
Summary: Great intro to Zen--in real life as well as martial arts
Comment: First I'd like to address a couple of criticisms that I read here that this book is rather superficial and doesn't get into Zen concepts in depth. That's true, this book is really only an intro to Zen--if you're already knowledgeable then this book will probably be too basic. However, for the beginner there is no better place to start, and as someone else here observed, the quotes from Bruce Lee are almost worth the price of the book by themselves.
Joe Hyams started his karate training back in 1952 with Ed Parker--a full ten years or more before the craze got started in America. He had the opportunity to train with such greats as Bruce Lee, Bong Soo Han, Ed Parker, and Jim Lau from the very beginning. Joe encountered many trials and tribulations, frustrations, and disappointments during his training, but he never gave up. One reason is he often had the opportunity to discuss his problems with the many great teachers he trained under, and they often offered their wisdom and insights to help him through the difficult times. He took that wealth of personal experience and knowledge and put it all into this little book.
Hyams gives a very clear, concise, and easy to understand introduction to Zen in the martial arts. The discussions are often illustrated and liberally peppered with fun anecdotes from his personal experiences with different masters, making this almost a personal journey through the dojos and minds of some of the most famous martial artists of our time. Hyams writes very well (he was a famous Hollywood screenwriter) and so rather than another dry, obscure, Zen philosophy tome, the book sounds more like an intimate conversation with a friend over a glass of wine and dinner. It sounds like he's personally talking right to you.
Hyams touches on so many concepts that I won't try to discuss them much here. But I will mention probably the most important one--which is persistence. Hyams points out that it often isn't the most talented and gifted student that achieves the most in the martial arts--since they often quit the first time they encounter a serious difficulty--since they're so used to everything coming so easy. Rather, it's the person who often has very little going for him physically, and has the patience and perseverance to stick it through to the end.
I'll mention just one other important principle. This relates to the Zen idea of living in the moment, especially when training, but also in everything else one does in life. Don't allow other concerns, however pressing or important, to weigh on your mind and distract you when you're training. Concentrate on living in the present moment and you'll make the most of your training--and of all the other activities in your life. Someone who's always worried about their other concerns can't truly live in the present, and therefore will never truly enjoy or make the most of whatever activity they're engaged in. Part of their mind is always somewhere else. Strive to always live in the now, in the present moment.
Interestingly enough, this idea has been confirmed by modern psychological research. If you have concerns that worry you, don't allow them to bother you to the point where you're thinking about them all the time. The best way to deal with this, it's been found, is to set aside some time each day--they recommend 10, 15, or 20 minutes at most--where, if you need to--go ahead and worry yourself sick about it. Then put it out of your mind and enjoy the rest of your day. Another important thing you can do during this time is to not just worry about everything but to put some constructive thought into how to better deal with your problems. Sometimes you won't have a good idea about how to do that for a while, for days, maybe weeks, but don't let that get you down. Remember the other principle of persistence I mentioned earlier. Stick it through to the end.
Realistically, life is never as bad as it seems to us during our darkest and most depressed moments--nor as wonderful as it seems during our happiest, most ecstatic moments. It's somewhere in between. The point here is that one should also cultivate the proper attitude--since that's often the only thing one has total control over in one's life. If you're the sort of person for whom even little things get you down--which is more of us than we would like to admit--then strive to be more objective. The little things can't really hurt you. They're just annoying psychologically because they bruise our egos a little bit. Save your emotional energy for the really big problems in your life, instead--because there will be more than enough of those. Cultivate a positive, upbeat attitude so that the little things are practically beneath your notice. Let them slide off you like water off a duck's back. This is also another important Zen principle--that too much ego impedes our progress in the martial arts--and our path through life as well.
Well, I've gone on longer than I intended, but this book is so chock full of useful little tidbits of advice that I got a little carried away. So I'll just conclude by reiterating that Hyams has written a great little introduction to Zen concepts as applied to the martial arts. But perhaps even more important is that they can be applied beneficially to every other area of your life.
Rating: 5
Summary: Much to be learned from this little book.
Comment: This book is fantastic and adds great value to anyone's life. It doesn't have to be applicable to just those who study martial arts, but the way the book is written (and with the author's extensive martial arts background) you will feel a sense of spiritual calling and want to apply these elements to both your martial arts studies and your everyday life.
Simple yet 100% effective.
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Title: Living the Martial Way : A Manual for the Way of Modern Warrior Should Think by Forrest E. Morgan ISBN: 0942637763 Publisher: Barricade Books Pub. Date: 25 November, 1992 List Price(USD): $16.95 |
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Title: Karate-Do: My Way of Life by Gichin Funakoshi ISBN: 0870114638 Publisher: Kodansha America Pub. Date: 01 July, 1981 List Price(USD): $9.00 |
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Title: The Zen Way to the Martial Arts by Taisen Deshimaru ISBN: 0140193448 Publisher: Penguin Books Pub. Date: 01 December, 1982 List Price(USD): $13.00 |
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Title: Book of Five Rings : The Classic Guide to Strategy by MIYAMOTO MUSASHI ISBN: 0517415283 Publisher: Gramercy Pub. Date: 28 May, 1988 List Price(USD): $9.99 |
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Title: Tao of Jeet Kune Do by Bruce Lee ISBN: 0897500482 Publisher: Ohara Publications Pub. Date: 01 July, 1993 List Price(USD): $16.95 |
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