A Quick Look at WikiMartialArts

This time around I wanted to take some time to look at a particular wiki. Wikis are remarkable for quite a few reasons, and are particularly great at bringing together a wealth of information on what would have been an obscure topic. This makes active wikis ideal for tracking and discussing the varying martial arts around the world. The wiki I want to talk about is simply called WikiMartialArts, and may be found here. The wiki itself seems relatively active, and has had over 700 articles contributed to it since 2006, no small feat.

This particular wiki is extremely flush with information. I spent a fair amount of time searching for a decent martial arts wiki besides Wikipedia, and this is definitely the most robust I've come across. Not only does the wiki attempt to cover martial arts styles themselves, but it attempts to encompass everything martial arts. It goes over movies, big personalities, literature, even pop culture. It has a huge list of martial arts broken down primarily by country as well with some basic (and sometimes lacking) information on most all of them. It contains widgets on the front page that show interesting facts and recent news. And of course it is packed with information in each of the pages. Navigation is made pretty smooth by a navbar on the left, though it could suffer some restructuring of its own. There is also a decent amount of pictures on the site, and the media works to bring it a splash of color that sparks more interest than the blank sterility of text. Add to this the fact that the overall layout is very similar to Wikipedia (similar enough to make me double check the url) and you have a wiki that is chock full of information, fairly well organized, and instantly familiar to those that have ever dealt with the wiki scene.

So, with all this good here, does this wiki exemplify exactly how an ideal wiki works?

Not exactly. Unfortunately there are glaring sections that are missing and/or have been vandalized and left in their decrepit state. For instance, at the time of this writing the entire list of Chinese martial arts is completely vacant, overwritten with an Ambien ad. That said, I don't find this an irredeemable flaw. The wiki has a code of conduct to help guide those generous souls willing to help, and no source of open ended collaborative work on the internet is safe from trolls and bots. If anything, this actually endears me to the site. It makes me want to spend a few moments of time to try and correct these flaws. The intention behind the wiki is powerful, but there are certainly some other issues as well. The flow of the front page is obstructed, while it is informative its almost claustrophobic with the amount of widgets and content packed onto it and it could benefit greatly from a more fluid approach. Even so, with is familiar Wikipedia structure its not at all impossible to navigate and, being a wiki, is certainly not immutable.

All in all, despite some general flaws - many of which are common to somewhat secluded wikis - the WikiMartialArts is a great site for all information martial arts. Not only that, but there is plenty of room to expand and there will always be a wealth of information to share.

Personal Experiences and Thoughts on the Path

A quick note:  I want to apologize for not having updated more recently. No excuses, real life - particularly work - reared its ugly head and took huge bites out of my time. I'll do my best to pay less attention to work, I promise :) Now onward!


My father practiced traditional Wing Chun for several years until a nasty knee injury made it impossible to do so much as even hold the proper stance for prolonged periods. The effects it had on him over that time were astounding. He got fit for the first time in my memory and felt better able to protect himself and his family, both of which led to a greater self confidence, which in turn led to a sunnier disposition, which in turn caused him to leave others around him happy. The cycle continues. The changes between my worked down father and this man were staggering. It took me a while to grasp how working a 12 hour day in the sun, and then coming home and spending another 3 or so hours doing different exercises to train techniques could possibly be relaxing. My father never really had an answer for me, he didn't ever try to catch that tiny feeling and articulate it. Later, I would try myself.

There is a sense of peace in practicing these movements that is both subtle and profound. There is something exhilarating about the power behind the strikes, and something graceful about the shifting footwork. There are moments where you are fully and completely aligned with yourself, your complete and utter concentration held entirely in that one moment of time between one step and another, between the flow of force that precedes from within you, travels down your arm, and through your fist. Strangely, there is no aggression in these movements, but peace. As my father's Sifu (instructor) used to say, "Love everyone, even if you must love them with your fists." 

The martial path, to me, represents a realization that love binds and composes all things. That people are not as separate as they sometimes feel, but are rather drawn together through threads so infinitesimal that they are nigh imperceptible, much like spider's silk. That these threads weave tapestries of our lives and intertwine us all together. It is the realization that to do to another is to truly do to oneself. This is the golden rule, and many people understand it and grasp its tenants. However people who dedicate themselves to it live it experientially, whose every action is testament to their living the truth. This, I believe, is what enlightenment must be. The martial path is one path that leads up that hill, so long as people are willing to spend the time to climb inside themselves and find the way.

So, what do you think?

Martial Arts - What does that stand for?

Many aspects of our modern world are infused with differing applications of martial arts, sometimes without any conscious acknowledgement. Ask the everyday person walking down the street an example of a martial art and they'll likely reply with something along the lines of "Chinese Kung Fu" or "Karate". It doesn't occur to most people that as the very core of any martial arts is universal, the methodical and logical application of a series of planned movements to protect oneself or visit violence upon another. It sometimes isn't apparent to people that things like boxing, your neighborhood self defense class, or your fencing practice can be characterized as martial arts.

 Interestingly enough the term "martial arts" was coined in the 1500's when applied to European combat systems (the aforementioned fencing, for example), though the term itself is Latin at its root, meaning the "Art of Mars" in reference to Mars, the Roman god of war. Of course most people associate the term martial art with kung fu, wushu, or budo. Wushu is probably the most descriptive, since it roughly translates to martial skill or art, where as kung fu merely refers to a skill or trade that is developed over time and through hard work. Budo is a Japanese word that is rarely associated with anything but various martial aspects, and is more in line with the philosophy behind martial arts that resonates with the cultivation of spirit. The glamor of Hollywood and various famous martial artists like Bruce Lee and Jackie Chan have distinctly tinted the phrase with a more eastern feel.

But people practicing Eastern martial arts aren't the only ones. Police learn it when they go through their various self defense classes. Soldiers learn it when they go through basic training, from hand to hand combat to the various technical aspects of handling and shooting a firearm. More and more the term is becoming universally defined with sports venues like the UFC and MMA making these arts more popular and much more widespread. Perhaps it won't be long before the people of the world don't picture Bruce Lee when they hear martial arts, but instead your average soldier, or a famous boxer, or your neighborhood watch.