The balding man on the left in this picture may be the most controversial man in martial arts right now. His name is Dave Lowry, and he is the author of several books on traditional Japanese martial arts, Black Belt Magazine's The Karate Way column, and his hometown's food critic. This is a good, brief biography of the man.So what makes him so controversial? Well, he still believes that traditional martial arts, with their funny uniforms, their dated rituals and etiquette, and reliance on using kata to transmit knowledge actually matter. Pick up a copy of Black Belt any month these days, and you will find at least a couple of letter writers ready to tell the world that this man is an idiot who obviously knows nothing about "real fighting." What drove me to write this posting was a recent letter in which the writer misunderstood a statement about the historical existence of ninja in Japan. I'm guessing that the writer probably studies some branch of the Takamatsuden martial arts, and has fully and completely bought the store-front version of ninja history that we frequently recount to the newbies, and use to confuse the masses of lookie-loos...
Here's the deal, at least as I see it: Mr. Lowry began his martial arts career in the 1960's in Judo. He had the extreme good fortune to meet a visiting professor from Japan who agreed to teach him Yagyu Shinkage Ryu, one of the most prestigious martial arts systems (focusing on sword) in all of Japan. Mr. Lowry, over the years, has practiced a good many of the traditional Japanes martial arts, both ancient koryu bujutsu systems and modern Budo forms, including karate, aikido, and jodo. He has witnessed all the major martial arts trend come and go: the kung fu craze, prizefight kickboxing, the ninja boom, ultimate fighting, tournament stars becoming movie heroes, and "reality-based fighting"... He's been there and done that.
And over the years, he has stayed true to his teachers, who gave him much more valuable lessons than how to disable an Islamic Fascist Terrorist in a phone booth with a good leg choke and a dull toothbrush handle... One lesson was that truth endures: things may change, but a throw is a throw, a punch is a punch, a kick is a kick, a cut is a cut. If you learn the principles and understand why they work, you will be able to apply them in any situation.
The other lesson was that martial arts aren't just about kicking butt, but enduring even though a blade may be held over your heart. That's more about character than being the deadliest man on your block. That's about being the best person you can be, because you only ever have control over your own destiny. I know those are statements that a lot of young studs just entering on their martial arts journey may have a hard time understanding, but if they endure, they will come to appreciate the full gifts of the martial arts.
In the meantime, Mr. Lowry will have a new book published very soon. Is it 100 different ways to apply an armlock, or 30 best ways to choke somebody who isn't wearing a gi? No. It called In the Dojo and it will explain the hows and whys of etiquette in a traditional school. I can't wait for it. My order is already in at my local bookstore.
Maybe I'll explain Mr. Lowry's views on ninja history in another post.
13 comments:
I am the most controversial man in martial arts. I will be waiting by the mailbox daily for my $10,000.00 check + airfare to accept the challenge from Mr. Lowry.
How do you research these MAs? Do you backtrack the bibliographies?
Anonymous,
I think you may have a good question, but I'm a little confused. Could you provide a little more context?
Where did you first learn about Mr. Lowry? I imagine you are a voracious reader. Do you use the bibliographies references to further delve into the info that interests you?
1.) Mr. Lowry has been writing his Black Belt column for many years now. I first learned of him there. Then I heard he wrote a book: Autumn Lightning. I've followed his books and appearances in other magazines since then.
2.) Sometimes I use bibliographies. But mostly I just follow my nose on the info that interests me. The old fashioned method is still best: go to bookstores. Not just those cookie-cutter big box bookstores, sometimes called the 3 B's (Borders, Barnes & Noble, and Books-a-Million), but the small independents, the second-hand bookstores.
You have to develop an eye for the unusual books. For example, there is a very well-regarded Martial Arts supply business near where I went to school. I use to stop in from time-to-time and browse their shelves for books. They had some very unusual titles, and once they had a book on hand, they had it until they sold it. Regular bookstores have ways of getting rid of stock that doesn't move. When they had a title that interested me, but that I didn't see elsewhere, I knew I needed to get it.
The ability to "browse" Amazon.com is getting better. It's still not the same. I've gotten a few old, out-of-print books on-line.
If someone I respect in a field mentions a book, I usually go looking for it. Recommendations are a good source for info. Titles come up in magazine articles. And don't neglect magazines. There are some unusual journals out there that cover specific niches.
Thanks, jrf.
Did anyone catch "Fight Science" on NGC?
If you mention the "ninja" on that show (Levy, was it?) I will smack you like a naughty schoolgirl.
Actually, I have a recording of it coming my way. I'll probably devote a posting to it after I've seen it. It sounds pretty good, except for the "ninja."
Ain't physics fun?
I've never seen that "Fight Science" show because I don't have cable/dish/whatever, but I'm starting to get really curious. Everyone at my dojo talks about it. Great post jrf.
"If you mention the "ninja" on that show (Levy, was it?) I will smack you like a naughty schoolgirl."
Promise????
Do you mean,,,ninjitsu expert Glen Levy? Like that ninja guy
"Hyoujutsu"
Which one of the nine schools does that fall under?
Oh... all this smacking schoolgirl stuff from you two is more than kind of creepy.
Hyoujutsu..that newly created martial art that can not be found on the web except where Mr. Levy is mentioned. The folks at kutaki.org are equally baffled. Mr. Levy may have been the perfect choice. Being unknown, and doing a good job the only question was his identity and his skill.
And let's not forget that Glenn Morris, founder of Hoshinjutsu, was unfortunately too dead to be the representative of ninjutsu on the program.
I still haven't seen the show, so I don't have an opinion of how "good" he was. Or how "ninja" That Ninja Guy really was.
I find it hard to believe they couldn't find at least a Genbukan guy willing to be on the show. If Dan Inosanto and a Gracie were willing to be on, the show must have had a decent pitch to the artists who were approached.
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