Martial Artist: Movement As Art (Ninpo Taijutsu)

(Disclaimer: This excerpt was taken from the Stephen K. Hayes' book entitled "Lore of the Shinobi Warrior Vol. 5". All the ideas in here are not my own. They all belong to Mr. Hayes. I posted this excerpt and share the ideas written in here to anyone who are willing to listen. These are one of the martial arts literature that I have read, enjoyed and learned in my path in the martial arts. Enjoy reading!)

The term "martial artist" is an interesting example of a commonly accepted usage of words that somehow does not accurately live up to the truth of the concept that it attempts to express. Contrary to the common usage of the term "martial artist," as used to describe a person training in the Oriental combat disciplines, true martial artists do not become artists until they have perfected the usage of their tools and have gone on to the level of pure spontaneous creativity. Therefore, the use of the word "artist" is in the vast majority of cases applied far too prematurely.

People accumulate skills that lead to the ability to generate works of art; artistic abilities are not merely acquired as a product of taking a course of instruction. A musician first learns how to make sounds mechanically and how to read music so that he can explore all possibilities. Eventually, pure creativity in an improvisation session earns him the reputation of being a musical artist. A painter first learns to pencil in perspective and shade colors mechanically so that he can eventually create works of art. Once he has transcended the mechanics, he can then enter the realm of pure self-expression through the medium of the graphic image.

Martial arts are no different. We accumulate experiences in technique and split-second decision-making that eventually lead to a level of ability that can be described by others as artistic. We cannot simply acquire martial artistry by enrolling in a course of study at the local martial arts school.

In its ultimate form as a guide to a way of living, the warrior path to enlightenment is a process of cultivating capabilities based on personally experienced insights, while at the same time letting go of negative limiting factors that hinder the openness and freedom that are required for advancement. Our martial arts is our method of approaching this process of transformation. We work and study and progress in the direction of becoming artists; we do not presuppose ourselves to be already worthy of the title by the mere fact that we are in a martial training suit.