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JudoJudo is a modern Japanese martial art and combat sport, that means the gentle way in Japanese. It was founded in the nineteenth century by Dr. Jigoro Khano. He was a pacifist and tried to find a way of living his life in balance and in peace with other human beings, through studying other martial arts. He was very short and believed in channeling energy and using it against other opponents, even if they are bigger than you. According to his biography he wishes he didn't yield under stronger or bigger opponents. He then discovered Ju Jitsu, where a smaller opponent could defeat a bigger one. He wanted to study it, but there was a decline of martial arts and he couldn't find any teachers. He then gave it a new twist, which was breaking the opponents stance, before bringing them down. With his new martial arts, he beat his old masters and it became known as Kudokan Judo. In 1882 he then opened his first academy. "Judo teaches us to look for the best possible course of action, whatever the individual circumstances, and helps us to understand that worry is a waste of energy. Paradoxically, the man who has failed and one who is at the peak of success are in exactly the same position. Each must decide what he will do next, choose the course that will lead him to the future. The teachings of judo give each the same potential for success, in the former instance guiding a man out of lethargy and disappointment to a state of vigorous activity." Jigoro Khano used these words to describe what Judo was all about. It is seen by some people as a sport, others see it as a martial art. Some see it as a way to achieve balance and others see it as a way to learn and enhance self discipline. For me it s a bit of every thing. I have been doing Judo for three years and I learnt a lot more than I thought I would. I learnt to control my energy and let it out in a positive way. For Dr. Jigoro Khano, the founder of Judo it was a way of achieving maximum efficiency with minimum effort. It is a very competitive sport, where the goal is, to throw the opponent of balance , or to make him submit, by using joint locks and chokes. Strikes and thrusts. as well as weapon defenses are a part of judo, but only in the pre-arranged form (kata) and are forbidden in judo competition or free practice (randori). |
