My memories of Richmond are of evenings spent at the Richmond Ice Rink along the Thames and cycling through Richmond Park with my friends. Plus the villains never assaulted elderly people. Today there is no policeman on the beat, plus they also abolished the National Service which, for the youth of yesteryear, created some order and taught them a degree of social discipline and respect.
All the best self-defence gadgets, techniques or training are of little use to you if you are rooted to the spot by fear. To create a habit you must first visualize how you wish to react to a situation, focus on that objective and repeatedly go through the same self-defense actions you would take during those violent scenarios which you wish to prepare yourself against. In my next article I will speak of how we can create this self-defence mind-set, this habit.
A self-defence mind-set is a mental trigger that instinctively responds to a physical threat or a surprise attack. It will respond to a situation without thought or hesitation, and to see a demonstration of an instantaneous response to a physical demonstration in action, enter into a Google search "Aikido Demonstration" and see some of the techniques demonstrated in these YouTube clips. My name is Maurice Lorenz-Andree, Author of "The Family Manual on Self-Defense", plus a Student of 40 years of research into Self-Defense under a few key Self-Defense Masters in various parts of the world.
A few months ago I began taking a Shaolin Kung Fu San Soo martial arts class that is being taught at my local gym. "As martial artists we must strive to uphold the ideals of humanity: justice, courtesy, wisdom, trust, goodness, virtue, loyalty, and courage, as well as, endeavor to incorporate these ideals into our daily lives in order to attain perfection of character. The Nine Codes of a True Warrior are:
Courtesy - A true warrior always attempts to practice the following elements of proper etiquette:
He or she promotes the spirit of mutual concessions;
Honesty - A true martial artist will be honest. Robert the Bruce learned his lesson of perseverance from the persistent efforts of a lowly spider. Self-Control - This moral is extremely important - whether conducting oneself in free-sparring or in one's personal affairs. A loss of [self-control] in free-sparring can prove disastrous to both student and opponent. An inability to live and work within one's capability or sphere is also a lack of [self-control].
Although facing the vastly superior forces of Xerxes, Leonidas and his 300 Spartans at Thermopylae showed the world the meaning of indomitable spirit. A serious martial artist will at all times be modest and honest. Humility - Do not allow yourself to be over-confident in your skill. Practice makes perfect, so never become discouraged. Also, you must never declare yourself a champion. Remember, people spend their entire lives devoted to the martial arts and even they - Grandmasters - admit that they have far to go in skill. Remember that a person is not morally required to help anybody or to be anybody's friend. Have respect for those with skill that you fight in a tournament. Be a honorable winner and a honorable loser.
