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A lottery is a popular form of gambling which involves the drawing of lots for a prize. There are some states where lottery is forbidden but others endorse it to the extend of organizing a national lottery. Lotteries date back to the period of...
No Time For Exercise? Try This!
"Fitness" is an elusive term covering a vast array of
attributes: flexibility, cardiovascular endurance, muscular
endurance, strength, power, balance, coordination, body-fat
percentage and more. While its generally accepted that multiple
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The Latest Filipino Genius?
A year ago many people in the industry would have asked who?, when faced with the name Marlon Manalo. The Filipino based former snooker player realised he couldn't earn a living in Asia from snooker so turned his hand to 9-ball. What a decision that...
Whey Protein - Nature's Amazing Muscle Builder
Are you concerned about taking care of your body before and after strenuous activities or workouts? Do you try to avoid supplements that contain additives and possible side effects?If you are interested in better health and improved physical...
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Martial Arts in Each Season: Nature in Training
We of the Upper Peninsula, Michigan, the people who inhabit the wild lands north of The Bridge, are at the crest of winter. Which isn't saying much, because no matter what time of year, up here, winter has a way of creeping gleefully nearby, like an antic, poised to drop in on even the most summery of days - like an August wedding (mine), and remind all who live here that we live, first and last, at nature's pleasure, and not she at ours.
I love nature and the outdoors. Here, you would be hard pressed not to, since nature is ever present and wild, and cannot be constrained. We live here among the big forests, the blue-black waters of Mother Superior.
At my Center, we are about to dive into our first kangeiko, which is intensive winter training. The windows will be open, and the cold will surely come. The indoor sanctity of the dojo will be broken by the outdoors, the rude ways of the howling, northern winds.
It occurs to me - we spend so much of our time trying to protect ourselves. When it is hot outside, we try to
cool down; when it is cold, we try to keep our warmth. In Japanese martial arts tradition, kangeiko and its summer counterpart, shochugeiko, are ways of marking one’s training, and giving over to nature. When the sun is raging, and summer's heat is on - train fully, sweat, give over to the experience and hold nothing back; in the depths of winter's cold, do not tighten and try to stave it off, but accept the cold, relax into it and break through to a new understanding.
But in this training, I believe, we find a mirror to life itself. Beautiful, chaotic, demanding - nature. Nature just is.
About The Author
Paul Smith is the Founder and Director of the Aikido Center of Marquette (www.aikido-marquette.com), located in the Upper Peninsula, Michigan. He is an avid outdoorsman, and is also the webmaster of www.a1-outdoors.com, a website serving as a resource for outdoor sports gear and information.
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