Explore the world, explore the self

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Martial art shouldn't be just about being fit and kicking ass. As I learned it from my first Karate dojo, it should also be about tolerance, endurance and self discipline, which can be combine into one Chinese character, 忍. Physical training is hard. It requires endurance and self discipline of both the body and mind. And those can be learned during the pursue of physical fitness and practice for self defense. But there should be more to it. There's a saying in Karate, 空手無先手 which means Karate artist do not make the first move. But it doesn't mean that we have to get hit first before fighting back. That might be too late. It means we do not start the flight, but if we sense we are in a fight, we should move as fast as possible. Preferably before the other person start the move. We want to have the element of surprise on our side. To do that, we need tolerance and self discipline. Tolerate the mental attach and maintain the cool in the heart. Control the emotion and don...