Understanding the Historic Art of Judo
Understanding the Historic Art of Judo
Judo is different things to different people. Simply translated, Judo means “the gentle way”. To most people, that’s all it means. To some, they know it simply as an Austin Powers’ lethal maneuver, but to many others around the world, it means so much more. It is a fun sport, an art, a discipline, a recreational or social activity, a fitness program, a means of self-defense or combat, and a way of life. There’s an ancient history behind Judo and many misunderstood beliefs about the art, some of which will be addressed.
Jujitsu is the source of modern Judo. Medieval Japanese Warriors practiced many forms of unarmed combat, some of which were grouped under the general name "Jujitsu " for "the gentle practice." The object of all these martial arts forms was to avoid an enemy's superior strength and to use that strength to his disadvantage. Since Jujitsu was strictly a combat technique, contests were rare and were decided only by the death or crippling of one of the contestants. When Japanese society began to change structurally in the 1860's, feudal lords no longer had their private armies; the martial arts, including Jujitsu, began to die out. In the early 1880's, Professor Jigoro Kano, a teacher from Tokyo and an expert in many types of Jujitsu, decided to save some of this ancient knowledge. He modified or eliminated the most dangerous of the Jujitsu techniques and created a new discipline, which he called "Judo" or "the gentle way."
Judo is "the gentle way" because the end result is the accomplishment of a goal with maximum efficiency and minimum effort. As an art, Judo enables its practitioners to gain self-respect, self-confidence, and self-expression; as a science, it involves a mastery of such basic natural laws as gravity, friction, momentum, weight transmission, and unity of forces. As a sport, rather than simply a combat form, Judo includes a code of sportsmanship, a sense of mutual respect, and a system of ethical and moral development. Judo is both an art and a science. From its simple beginnings in nineteenth-century Japan, Judo has spread in popularity throughout the world. Its rich, medieval heritage combined with Professor Kano's modern, scientific approach has made Judo into the exciting sport it is today. One of the more interesting things about...