Sept 2006 Humility

Submitted by Jim Patus

Jim Schoffstall: Martial Arts Professional

Jim Schoffstall has over twenty years experience in the fighting arts and is a Dragon Kenpo veteran of over ten years. He was recently awarded his fourth degree black belt thru World Dragon Kenpo. Correspondent Jim Patus had the opportunity to interview Coach Schoffstall via email.

Slayer News: Tell us a little bit about your life outside of Martial Arts, things like family life, education, occupation?

Jim Schoffstall: I currently reside in Lynchburg, VA, with my wife Heather and son, Toby. I am an assistant professor of Health Sciences and Kinesiology, and the Director of Exercise Science at Liberty University (www.liberty.edu). I have been teaching at LU since 2001. I have earned the B.S (1995) and M.S. (1998) degree in exercise science from Old Dominion University, and the Doctor of Education degree (2006) from Liberty University.

SN: How and when did you start in the martial arts?

JS: Prior to becoming formally involved in the martial arts I began wrestling in 1982, eventually earning a college wrestling scholarship from Old Dominion University. While wrestling at ODU I suffered a herniated disc in my neck which ended my wrestling career. While this injury ended my college wrestling it opened the door for me to start my formal martial arts training in 1994.

SN: Which martial arts have you studied? What are some of the highlights of your martial arts career?

JS: My early training was in Aikido. I went on to study and earn black belts in Taekwondo (3^rd Dan), DK Karate (4^th Dan), Combat Hapkido (3^rd Dan) and kickboxing (1^st Dan). I have recently completed certification training to be a Ground Survival Instructor. In June of 2006, I was inducted in the Budo International Hall of Fame for Achievement in the Martial Arts: Combat Hapkido.

SN: How did you discover Dragon Kenpo?

JS: I think I initially came across DK in an advertisement in a magazine in the spring of 1997 and began studying DK that summer.

SN: By the time you began studying Dragon Kenpo, you already had quite a bit of martial arts experience. What appeals to you about Dragon Kenpo?

JS: I enjoy the no non-sense style of DK. Up until the time that I started studying DK the martial arts I had been studying were good arts, but not as intense in the actual area of self-defense.

SN: In your long experience with DK, who have been some of the people you have trained with and who have influenced you?

JS: I have studied through Ed Hutchison and more recently through Ron Pfeiffer. I have correspondence with Doug Turner and Reggie Hoover. I have also had the opportunity to train with Kip Marsh on two occasions at the Karate College in Radford, VA.

SN: Which martial arts do you still study?

JS: Beside DK, I am also currently studying Combat Hapkido, Taekwondo and kickboxing.

SN: What are you currently teaching?

JS: I teach the following lecture courses at Libery University (adapted physical education, coaching strength and conditioning, applied exercise physiology and exercise leadership). In addition to the lecture courses that I teach, I also teach KINE 233 Karate (Dragon Kenpo) and KINE 234 Hapkido (Combat Hapkido) as one-credit activity courses at the university. The martial arts courses are well received by the university community and typically enroll 20-25 students per class each semester. In the evenings I teach at my private studio called Liberty Martial Arts where I teach DK as well as Combat Hapkido and Taekwondo.

Submitted by Jim Patus

Recently Rich Miller of New Jersey submitted his exam for 4^th Degree Black Belt to World Dragon Kenpo Schools of Self Defense. I’m sincerely pleased to announce Rich’s promotion and hope each of you will take a moment and send along your congratulations. Coach Pfeiffer

I began studying Martial Arts at the age of 10. For two years I studied Judo at our local YMCA in Atlantic City, NJ. At the age of 13 I stood outside an Okinawan Karate school in Atlantic City and watched the instructor teach almost every day that I could for 3 years. He never invited me in. I was intrigued by Bruce Lee's first appearance as Kato on the Green Hornet TV show and stated the some day I would like to do what he does. I studied Goju Ryu Karatedo at 20 years old, Tae Kwon Do and a little Aikido at 43 years old, Jeet Kune Do and Arnis at 45 years old and finally Dragon Kenpo. I have developed a good understanding of what REAL Martial Arts is and how to project it to my students. This reality I have found in Dragon Kenpo Karate. Preparing for my test for advancement to 4th Degree Black entailed the collection of all my thoughts in an understandable format to label as my philosophy without becoming the author of a book. The self defense techniques that I put together for my test were a demonstration of the common sense methodology that I have acquired studying Martial Arts, especially Kenpo and Jeet Kune Do, and that I employ in my instruction. When I was notified of my success in testing and promotion, I was just as elated as when I received my instructor certificate enabling me to express all I have learned and will continue to learn. Martial Arts to me is not a replacement for any way of life but an enhancement to life itself and for those who comprehend it as I do, it is a guide to inner peace! Once again, I want to thank all the members of World Dragon Kenpo Karate, especially Ron Pfeiffer and Rodney Lacey.

Rich Miller, Sr. 1rmiller@comcast.net

NEW 4th Degree Black Belt

World Dragon Kenpo Karate!!!!

Tilton Fitness Center

Tilton Rd. & Hingston Ave.

Egg Harbor Twp., NJ 08330

 

Chogyam Trunpa

Book Review: The Art of War by Sun Tzu, Part II, Chapters V to XIII

by Steve Amoia

Energy

The control of a large force is the same principle as the control of a few men. It is merely a question of dividing up their numbers. Fighting with a large army is no different than fighting with a small one. It is a question of instituting signs and signals…

The direct method may be used to join battle. But indirect methods will be needed to secure victory…

There are not more than five musical notes, but in combination, they give rise to more melodies than can ever be heard. There are not more than five primary colors, but in combination, they produce more hues than can ever be seen. There are not more than five cardinal tastes, yet combinations of them yield more flavors than can ever be tasted. In battle there are not more than two methods of attack: the direct and indirect. Yet these two in combination give rise to endless series of maneuvers… It’s like moving in a circle never coming to an end.

The good fighter will be terrible in his onset, and prompt in his decision. Energy will be likened to the bending of a crossbow. Decision likened to the releasing of a trigger... Simulated disorder postulates perfect discipline. Simulated fear postulates courage. Simulated weakness postulates strength… Masking strength with weakness is to be effected by tactical dispositions. One who is skillful at keeping the enemy on the move maintains deceitful appearances according to which the enemy may act… By holding out baits, he keeps him on the march. Then with a body of big men, he lies in wait for him. The clever combatant looks to the effect of combined energy, and does not require too much from individuals. Hence, the ability to pick out the right men, and utilizes combined energy… The energy developed by good fighting men is of the momentum of a round stone rolling down a mountain thousands of feet in height.

VI. Weak Points and Strong

The clever combatant imposes his will on his enemy, but doesn’t allow the enemy to impose his will on him… Appear at points which the enemy must hasten to defend. March swiftly to places where you are not expected. An army can march great distances without distress if marches through country where the enemy is not. Only attack places that are undefended. You can ensure the safety of your defense if you only hold positions that can’t be attached… Hence, a general is skillful in attack whose opponent does not know what to defend. And is skillful in defense whose opponent does not know what to attack…

Make for the enemy’s weak points. Attack some other place that he will not be obliged to relieve… By discovering the enemy’s dispositions and remaining invisible ourselves, we can keep our forces concentrated, while the enemy’s is divided… Hence, there will be a whole pitted against separate parts of a whole. We shall be many to the enemy’s few. If we can attack an inferior force with a superior one, our opponents will be in dire straits.

The spot where we intend to fight should not be known. Then the enemy will have to prepare for a possible attack at many different points... Should the enemy strengthen his front, he will weaken his rear. Should he strengthen his rear, he will weaken his front. Should he strengthen his left, he will weaken his right. Should he strengthen his right, he will weaken his left…

Numerical weakness comes from having to prepare against possible attacks. Numerical strength from compelling our adversary to make these preparations against us. Knowing the time and place of the battle, we may concentrate from the greatest distances in order to fight…

Though the enemy is stronger in numbers, we may prevent him from fighting. Scheming, so as to discover his plans and the likelihood of success. Rouse him and learn the principle of his activity or inactivity. Force him to reveal himself to see his vulnerable spots. Compare the opposing army with your own so you may know where strength is super abundant, and where it is deficient.

In making tactical dispositions, the highest pitch you can attain is to conceal them. Conceal them and you will be safe from the prying of the most subtle spies. From the machinations of the wisest brains. How victory may be produced from them out of the enemy’s own tactics is what the multitude can not comprehend. All men can see the tactics whereby I conquer, but what none can see is the strategy in which victory is evolved. Do not repeat the tactics which have gained you one victory, but let your methods be regulated by the infinite variety of circumstances. Military tactics are like unto water, because water in its natural course runs away from high places and hastens downwards. So in war, the way is to avoid what is strong and to strike what is weak. Water shapes its course according to the nature of the ground in which it flows. The soldier works out his victory in relation to the foe that he is facing. Therefore, since water retains no constant shape, in warfare there are no constant conditions.

VII. Maneuvering

Tactical maneuvering, of which there is nothing more difficult… Turn the devious into the direct. Misfortune into gain. This, to take a long and circuitous route after enticing the enemy out of the way, and though starting after him, to contrive to reach the goal before him.

Maneuvering with an army is advantageous, with an undisciplined multitude, dangerous… An army without its baggage train is lost. Without previsions it is lost. Without basis of supply, it is lost. We can not enter into alliances until we are acquainted with the designs of our neighbors. We are not fit to lead an army on the march unless we are familiar with the face of the country: its mountains and forests, its pitfalls and precipices, its marshes and swamps… In war, practice dissimulation, and you will succeed. Whether to concentrate or to divide your troops must be decided by circumstances. Let your rapidity be that of the wind, the compactness that of the forest. In raiding and plundering, be like fire, be immovable like a mountain. Let your plans be dark and impenetrable like night. When you move, fall like a thunderbolt. When you plunder countryside, let the spoil be divided among your men. When you capture new territory, cut it into allotments for the benefit of the soldiery. He will conquer who has learned the artifice of deviation. Such is the art of maneuvering.

In night fighting, make use of signal fires and drums. By day, use flags in banners as a means of influencing the ear and eyes of your army. A whole army may be robbed of its spirit… A soldier’s spirit is keenest in the morning, by noon, it has begun to flag. In the evening, his mind is bent on returning to camp. A clever general avoids an army when its spirit is keen, and attacks it when they are sluggish and inclined to return. This is the art of studying moves…

To be near the goal, while the enemy is far from it. To wait at ease, while he toils and struggles. To be well-fed while the enemy is famished… To refrain from attacking an army drawn up in a calm and confident array. It is a military axiom not to advance uphill against an enemy, or to oppose him when he comes downhill. Do not pursue an enemy who simulates flight. Don’t attack soldiers whose temper is keen. Don’t swallow bait given by the enemy. Don’t interfere with an army that is returning home. When you surround an army, leave an outlet free. Don’t press a desperate foe to hard. Such is the art of warfare.

VIII. Variation in Tactics

When in difficult country, do not encamp. Where high roads intersect, join hands with your allies. Do not linger in dangerously isolated positions. In hemmed in situations, you must resort to stratagems. In desperate positions, you must fight. There are roads that should not be followed, armies which should not be attacked, towns which should not be besieged, positions which must not be contested, commands of the sovereign which must not be obeyed…

In the wise leader’s plans, the advantages and disadvantages will be blended together. If our expectation of advantage is tempered in this way, we may succeed in accomplishing the essential part of our schemes. If one the other hand, in the midst of difficulties, we are always ready to seize an advantage, we may extricate ourselves from misfortune. Reduce the hostile chiefs be inflicting damage on them, make trouble for them, and keep them constantly engaged. Make them rush to any given point. The art of war teaches us to rely not on the likelihood of the enemy’s not coming, but on our readiness to receive him. Not on the chance of his not attacking, but rather on the fact that we have made our position unassailable.

Five Dangerous Faults of a General:

1. Recklessness which leads to destruction.
2. Cowardice which leads to capture.
3. Hasty Temper which can be provoked by insults.
4. A delicacy of honor which is sensitive to shame.
5. Oversensitivity to his men which exposes him to worry and trouble.

When an army is overthrown and its leader slain, the cause may surely be found among these five dangerous faults. Let them be a subject of meditation.

IX. The Army On The March

Pass quickly over mountains, and keep in the neighborhood of valleys. Camp in high places facing the sun. Don’t climb heights in order to fight. After crossing a river, you should get far away from it… If you are anxious to fight, you should not go to meet the invader near a river which he has to cross. Moor your craft higher up and facing the sun. Don’t move upstream to meet the enemy…

In dry level country, take up an easily accessible position with rising ground to your right and on your rear so that the danger may be in front, and safety lie behind. All armies prefer high ground to low, and sunny places to dark. If you camp on high ground, the army will be free from disease from any kind. This will spell victory…

When you come to a hill or a bank, occupy the sunny side with the slope at your right rear… While we keep away from such places, we need to get the enemy to approach them. While we face them, the enemy should face them on his rear…

When the enemy is close at hand, and is quiet, he is relying on the natural strength of his position. When he keeps aloof and tries to provoke a battle, he is anxious for the other side to advance. If his place of encampment is easy of access, he is tendering bait. Movement among the trees of a forest shows that the enemy is advancing. The appearance of a number of screens in the midst thick grass means that the enemy wants to make us suspicious. The rising of birds in their flight is the sign of an ambush, startled beasts indicated that a sudden attack is coming…

Humble words and increased preparations are signs that the enemy is about to advance. Violent words and driving forward as if to attack are signs that he will retreat…

Peace proposals unaccompanied by a sworn covenant indicate a plot… When some are seen advancing, and some retreating, it is a lure… If those who are sent to draw water drink themselves, the army is suffering from thirst… If the officers are angry, the men are weary. When the army feeds its horses with grain, and kills its cattle for food, and when the men don’t hang their cooking pots over the campfires, showing that they will not return to their tents, you may know that they are determined to fight to the death…

Too frequent rewards signify that the enemy is at the end of his resources. Too many punishments betray a condition of dire distress… He who exercises no forethought but makes light of his opponents, is sure to be captured by them. If soldiers are punished before they have grown attached to you, they will not prove submissive. If not submissive, they will be practically useless. If when they become attached to you, punishments are not enforced, they will still be useless. Therefore, soldiers must be treated in the first instance with humanity, but kept under control with iron discipline. This will lead to victory.

X. Terrain

Six kinds:

1. Accessible ground: Freely traversed by both sides.
2. Entangling ground: Can be abandoned but hard to reoccupy.
3. Temporizing ground: Neither side gains by making the first move.
4. Narrow passes.
5. Precipitous heights.
6. Positions at great distance.

Six Calamities From The Faults Of The General:

1. Flight: All conditions being equal, if one force is hurled against another ten times its size, the result will be the flight of the attacking force.

2. Insubordination: When the common soldiers are too strong, and their officers are too weak.
3. Collapse: When the common soldiers are too weak, and their officers are too strong.
4. Ruin: When the higher officers are angry and insubordinate, and feel resentment before the commander in chief can determine if he should fight.
5. Disorganization: When the general is weak, his orders not clear and distinct, no fixed duties assigned, the ranks are formed in a slovenly manner.
6. Rout: When a general allows an inferior force to engage a larger one.

The power of estimating the adversary, of controlling the forces of victory, and shrewdly calculating difficulties, dangers, and distances constitutes the test of a great general.

If fighting is sure to result in victory, you must fight, even if the ruler forbids it. If fighting will not result in victory, you must not fight, even at the ruler’s bidding. The general who advances who does not covet fame, and retreats without fear and disgrace, and whose only thought is to protect his country and do good service for his sovereign, is the jewel of the kingdom…

Regard your soldiers as your children, and they will follow you into the deepest valleys. Look at them as your own beloved sons, and they will stand by you even until death. If you are indulgent and can’t make your authority felt, your soldiers must be likened to spoiled children. They are useless for any practical purpose…

If you know the enemy and know yourself, your victory will not stand in doubt. If you know heaven and earth, you may make your victory complete.

XI. The Nine Situations (Types of Ground)

1. Dispersive ground: Fighting in your own territory.
2. Sealed: Hostile territory.
3. Contentious: Advantage to either side.
4. Open: Where each side has liberty of movement.
5. Ground of intersecting highways: Key to three contiguous states.
6. Serious: Penetrated into the heart of a hostile country leaving a number of fortified cities in the rear.
7. Difficult: Mountain forest, rugged steeps, marshes, and all country that is hard to traverse.
8. Hemmed: Narrow gorges and only retire by tortuous pass.
9. Desperate: Only be saved from destruction by fighting without delay.

Begin by seizing something that your opponent holds dear. Then he will be amenable to your will. Rapidity is the essence of war. Take advantage of the enemy’s unreadiness. Make your way by unexpected routes. Attack unguarded spots.

Principals of an Invading Force:

1. The further you penetrate into a country, the greater the solidarity of your troops. Defenders will not prevail
2. Make forays into furrow ground to supply your army with food.
3. Carefully study the well-being of your men, and don’t over tax them.
4. Concentrate your energy and horde your strength.
5. Keep your army continually on the move.
6. Devise unfathomable plans.
7. Throw your soldiers into positions where there is no escape. They will prefer death to flight. If they will face death, there is nothing they may not achieve. Officers and men alike will put forth the uttermost strength.

Set up one standard of courage that all must reach. How to make the best of strong and weak. The skillful general conducts his army as if he were leading his army by one man… He must mystify his men by false reports and appearance thus keeping them in total ignorance. By altering his plans, he keeps the enemy without definite knowledge… At the critical moment the leader of an army acts like one who has climbed up a hike and then kicks the ladder away behind him…

He drives his men this way and that. So that no one knows where he is going…

When invading hostile territory, penetrating deeply bring cohesion. Penetrating a short way means dispersion…

It is a soldier’s disposition to offer an obstinate resistance when surrounded. To fight hard when he can’t help himself. To obey promptly when he has fallen into danger…

Never let your soldiers know your designs. Success in warfare is gained by carefully accommodating ourselves to the enemy’s purpose… If the enemy leaves the door open, you must rush in. Seize what he holds dear.

XII. The Attack By Fire

Five ways:

1. Burn soldiers in their camps.
2. Burn stores.
3. Burn baggage trains.
4. Burn arsenals and magazines.
5. Hurl dropping fire among the enemy.

The material for raising fire should always be kept in readiness. There is a proper season for attack by fire. The proper season is when the weather is dry and windy. You need to meet five possible developments… When you start a fire, be to the windward side of it. Don’t attack from the leeward. A wind that rises in the daytime lasts long, but a night breeze is brief.

The enlightened ruler lays his plans well in ahead. The good general cultivates his resources. Move not unless you see an advantage. Use not your troops unless there is something to be gained. Fight not unless the position is critical. No ruler should put troops in the field to satisfy his own spleen.

XIII. The Use of Spies

Knowledge of the enemy’s disposition can only be obtained from other men. Hence, the use of spies.

Five classes:

1. Local: Using local inhabitants.
2. Inward: Making use of the officials of the enemy.
3. Converted: Getting hold of the enemy’s spies, and using them for our own purposes.
4. Doom: Doing things openly for purposes of deception, and allowing our spies to know of them and report them to the enemy.
5. Surviving: Those who bring back news from the enemy’s camp.

None in the whole army are more intimate relations to be maintained than with spies. None should be more liberally rewarded, and no other business should greater secrecy be employed. Spies can’t fully be employed without a certain intuitive sagacity. They can’t be properly managed without benevolence and straightforwardness. Without subtle ingenuity of mind, one can’t make certain of the truth of their reports. Be subtle and used your spies for every kind of business. If a secret piece of news is divulged by a spy before the time is right, he must be put to death, along with the man whom the secret was told…

The enemy spies must be sought out. Tempted with bribes, lead away, and comfortably housed. Then they will become converted spies available to our service. It is through the information brought by converted spies that we can acquire and employ local and inward spies. It is owing to his information again that we can cause the doom spy to carry false tidings to the enemy. His information that the surviving spy can be used on special occasions. The end and aim of spying is knowledge of the enemy. This can only be derived by the converted spy… Spies are the most important element in war because on them depends an army’s ability to move.

References

Audio files: http://thoughtaudio.com/titlelist/0003-artofwar/index.html

Wikipedia article: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Art_of_War

Steve Amoia for Slayer News

Exercises: Slow or Fast

In teaching Tai Chi, I occasionally come across people that think that slow exercises are worthless. "If you don’t get a good a sweat, you aren’t really exercising." Fitness gyms across the country are filled with people that live by this ideal. If slow exercises do not keep you fit, how is it that Asians have been using these slow exercises for centuries for good health and long life.

Fast or aerobic exercises work by raising the heart rate and burning calories. The goal is to bring your heart rate up into a target zone for optimum workout. Overall, this kind of exercise is good for raising the metabolism and losing weight. The danger with these aerobic exercises is that few people actually keep to their target zone. Many people will push themselves past the target heart rate simply because they do not know exactly what the target zone feels like. "More is better" often comes into play as well.

Another problem with aerobic exercises is the higher risk of injury. Moving faster leads to more potential accidents with greater injuries resulting in them. As people get older, they become less capable of doing these faster exercises, and the risk of injury goes up. Even the fittest person alive can not do the same thing at the age of 60 as at the age of 30.

Slow exercises like Tai Chi and some Yoga classes target a different type of health. They seek to restore the energy flowing through the body. These exercises cultivate the chi or prana in a person which leads to good health. Cultivating the chi in the body keeps the organs healthy and the body in balance. The slow, gentle movements are good for all ages, and very few people can not do them.

However, slow exercises do not show quick results, and they require proper nutrition to fully be appreciated. If you go to a gym four days a week for a 30-40 minute aerobic class; you will start losing weight, as long as your diet is reasonable. Four Tai Chi or slow moving Yoga classes will not show as great of a weight loss, even if you eat a "perfect" diet.

Slow moving exercises are designed for long term health and maintenance of the body. They are not for people looking for quick results. They are designed for people that want to improve the overall quality of their lives, not just their body.

Before beginning any exercise program, ever a slow one; you should consult your doctor. Your doctor can apprise you of exercises or movements that you should not perform because of various conditions. But whether you choose a fast aerobic class or a slow moving tai chi class, exercising regularly is critical to maintaining good health.

If you have an article that you would like to submit email any staff member. Comments and questions are welcome too.

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The articles within this newsletter are the views of the writer and not necessarily the views of World Dragon Kenpo Schools of Self Defense .