Raposa, Michael L.

Charlottesville, VA: University of Virginia Press, 174 pages (2003)
ISBN: 0-8139-2238-0

Highly Recommended

Beyond discussing the relationship between martial arts and meditation, this book provides a very well written and easy to read introduction to the spiritual aspect of martial systems. The first chapter tells the story of Morihei Ueshiba, the founder of aikido. The author takes many quotations from Ueshiba himself that highlight the pacifistic bent of aikido, and the idea that a martial art is a way of bringing together body, mind and spirit. Through examples such as this, the notion of harmony rather than that of combat becomes central to the discussion of martial systems offered in the book.

Additionally, the author is careful to point out the inherent meanings of terms like "jutsu" and "do," which is vital in order to truly appreciate the differences between martial philosophies. He also provides a discussion of Western ideas concerning the dual nature of the martial and the spiritual. Included in this, are passages from the New Testament, as well as commentary on the term "Jihad," which has been frequently misunderstood in recent times.

Without being so long as to become tedious, the book still provides a thorough and interesting array of insights into the purpose and practice of martial arts from a spiritual perspective.

Annotated by: Michael Brandes (March 2006)

Martial Arts: Aikido | Bagua | Iaido | Taekwondo | Taijiquan |

Topics: history | philosophy | psychology |