Baston Y Daga: True Nature and Ideal

The "baston y daga", like all martial arts, has its own true nature and ideal philosophy. "Baston y Daga's" true nature can be sum up by these words; it's true nature is to kill. It is nothing more than a tool of destruction. It is merciless as it is relentless. He who believes otherwise is fooling himself. That is what both of my masters would tell me sometimes. But it is also has its ideal side. In the ideal, "baston y daga" is a tool or a means to protect. It can be merciful to one's enemy since it prevents or discourages the opponent to attack. According to GM Ben Lema, if you ever go up against an "espada y daga" (baston y daga) practitioner you must run as fast as your legs can carry you, unless you are quite sure of your skill. When my student asked me which of the two, its true nature or the ideal, do I advocate? I would answer simply that I believed in both. Like Buddha, one must find a middle way in everything, even in the martial arts. There can be no other way. If one believes in the true nature of "baston y daga" you run the risk of losing your soul and may end up becoming a killer. But then, if you invest much of your time in the ideal, you end risking your life and the life of your students. In the streets, there are no rules that will protect you. It is unforgiving and one must conduct himself in the same manner when you are in the street. It demands your utmost respect. Find the middle way and everything that you do will be fine. GM Ben Lema once told me, when I was a novice in the martial art, "... everything that I have thought you (which is the basics) is enough, what you need is a strong mind (true nature) and a strong heart (the ideal), and everything that you do, no matter how many your enemies are, whether they are 5, 10 or 100, you will always win..."