I've begun to take notice of all of the "which style should I study", "which style could kick style X's ass" and "what is the best martial art" postings, and I had to comment.

You want to know the best martial art, in my opinion? The one I study. The best one for you is the one you study. It doesn't matter what art you study: what you study will always be the best art, bar none.

Here's my advice for the beginner, looking for the best martial art. Shop around. Treat martial art schools as though they were purchases that you wanted to make: the best one for you is the one you invest in. When I go buy a car, I don't want to know what the best car is for my best friend, or if it's good for John Doe: I want to know if it fulfills my needs. I don't buy the first car I see, just because someone said it was the best because they drive the same model etc.; fine and dandy, but is it what I need? The same applies to the martial arts. Look into as many styles, schools and teachers that you can. Find one that you personally like, and can do. By 'do' I mean is within your physical scope: not everyone can do TKD well, so some people would be advised not to study TKD. But if it interests you, and you know you want to study this particular art, go for it.

To the martial artist who wants to know which style could kick another style's ass: forget it. I've never heard of any one art being designed specifically to defeat another. It's not the art which is the deciding factor: it's the person using it. All of this bullbleep about the UFC being the deciding factor of which art is superior is just that... bullbleep. Royce Gracie won so many times because he was a superior fighter and experienced. He is not invincible, nor is any artist or any style. Competitions like the UFC should be regarded as a tournament designed to showcase the skills of the martial artists, not showing which style is superior to another: it's the skill and experience of the fighter which is the deciding experience. Here's a common misperception: any martial art can defeat a mugger in the street. So, place a karateka with five years of experience up against a street fighter with a lifetime of experience, and the outcome is obvious, right? Wrong! The skills that are employed in the fight will be the deciding factor: karate is not necessarily the deciding factor, it's the fighter who has the most skills that will win. In any tournament, the deciding factor is always the fighter who is the most skilled. The Superbowl is a prime example: both teams were excellent, but the Cowboys just had that extra edge to win it. Both teams were schooled in the same tactics, trained long and hard... you could equate it to studying the same art. It was just a matter of who was more skilled.

The best martial art? Whatever you study. It could be Wing Chun Kung Fu, Gracie Jujitsu, Shorinjiryu karate, Tomiki Aikido... whatever. What style works for you is the best one. How you use the techniques you are taught will be the deciding factor. No one style is better than another: it's totally how you use it. Look, back when the martial arts were just beginning, the founders of the style developed a series of techniques that worked well for them. Each was employed for different reasons, be it to fight armoured opponents, to defend oneself against attackers, to be sport or just a form of physical fitness. People saw the founders' arts, and studied under them. They had no delusions about which style was the best; what worked for them was the best: if they were alive at the end of a life-or-death confrontation, that was enough. I think too many people are concerned with being able to beat any opponent of any style of martial arts. Face facts, folks: it won't happen. You may be skilled, but there may be someone out there who's better than you: in fact, the chances are high. There's an appropriate idiom that runs along the lines: "No matter how hard you try, there's always someone better than you." Consider this: if you are confronted in the street, you have to be able to defeat them. No matter what the art is, you should have enough knowledge to defeat them. Don't be concerned with beating anyone of any style of martial arts: chances are the person on the street won't be a martial artist, and will have no rules to fight by except "kill or be killed".

I know a lot of people respect Bruce Lee as a leading, modern figure of the martial arts, so I'll refer to a few things he said. First, if you've ever seen "Return of the Dragon" there's a great line he uses when one of the characters criticizes some other Chinese men of studying karate: they should study a Chinese art, like Chinese Boxing. Lee's response is eternal:

"Foreign or not, if it helps you when you're in a fight, then you should learn to use it."

Another famous quote is one I think more people should adhere to. It basically says that people should get a balance of martial training, and not to ignore any aspects. What it boils down to is this: if your art is lacking something, then you should add to it. Don't be so caught up in your style that you can't see the advantages another system has.

"I hope martial artists are more interested in the root of martial arts and not the different decorative branches, flowers or leaves. It is futile to argue as to which leaf, which design of branches, or which attractive flower you like; when you understand the root, you understand all its blossoming."

Bruce Lee, The Tao of Jeet Kune Do (1975, pg. 23)

Another relevant, rather lengthy quote is found in Living the Martial Way, by Forrest E. Morgan, 1992. It sums up quite well all I have said:

"Warriors don't quibble over which system of fighting is the best. For them, the relative strenghts and weaknesses of specific methods are of less concern than the overall objective of survival and victory. I'm not saying the quality of a given system isn't important, I'm saying any real warrior knows that no one system fits everyone's needs in all situations. "All systems are artificial. The are codified methods of teaching and practicing given sets of skills. A typical martial art was born when a skilled warrior discovered a set of moves that worked particularly well for him in a crisis. Wanting topreserve that experience, he then refined those moves and developed a system to practice them. If his system had merit, it drew the interest of other warriors and the founder soon had a following. "In each instance of an established style of fighting, what went into the system at inception was based on what worked for the founder and what he believed would work for others in similar circumstanes. The founder and his warrior followers practised the system for what it was, a specific method of combat they believed work work in circumstances similar to those that spawned it. "Though some warriors specialized, they all practised more than one art. They had no illusions that there was any single best style of fighting that worked in situations other than those for which it was designed. Given a choice, they never used an unarmed method method against as swordsman or a pole fighting style against an archer. When your ultimate goal is survival, there's no room for foolish notions of one superior weapon or one unbeatable style of fighting. "As time passed, many martial disciplines eventually fell into the hands of non-warriors who practised them for sport, fitness, or personal self-defense. Unlike their warrior forebears, these individuals usually studied only one art. Unfortunately, that led to confusion in times past, and it's even worse today. "People who study a single martial art tend to focus exclusively on the beliefs or "doctrines" of that art. They often don't understand that those doctrines, valid though they may be, were developed in response to specific threats and for fighting in specific situations. These disciples of a single doctrine tend to shut out ideas from other sources and convince themselves that their's is the one true way of fighting, the ultimate in armed or unarmed combat. As a result, they become slaves to the very doctrines they profess. "This is quite unlike the warriors who founded the arts these individuals practice, for warriors never tolerate enslavements to anyone or anything. They are masters of their own destinies."

Morgan, Forrest E. Living the Martial Way. Barricade Books. Fort Lee, NJ. 1992. pp.34-36

So, no matter what else, the art you study is great for you, if you have chosen it. If it works well for you, be happy with it. If there are some things you feel you need to survive a street fight, go out and find a school that teaches you what you need. Don't get caught up in the belief that one system is the ultimate; it can be deadly.

I'm no master, certainly not a sensei and definately not an expert. But I think my opinions are relevant.

Geoff B. Kerman

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