“Mission Statement”

Modern Studio vs. Traditional Dojo

    The Tao-Shiu-Kuan, School of the Martial Arts is not a store or studio, open to the public, for the selling of combat skills or techniques where the common street fighter can simply walk in, shop around, and pick-up a few “new moves”.  We are not a hobby center for the casual enthusiast; and we’re not a “magic store”, where you can pick-up a few tricks to impress your friends at parties, or take those three easy lessons to ward-off muggers; nor are we a baby-sitting service, like many modern Martial Arts Studios, where parents drop-off their kids, and escape for a while.

What we are, is completely explained in our name, a “School of the Martial Arts”.

    First and foremost, we are a “school”; not a gym, studio, recreation center, store or any other kind of business.  Most modern Martial Arts Studios are businesses…  businesses that have become quite adept at placating, or bowing to the wishes of the public.  They have watered-down their curriculum and softened their teaching style; and because they expect less from their clients, that is exactly what they get.

    A traditional Martial Arts Dojo is a very private school…  You cannot “join” a Dojo; you must apply for membership and pass several tests before you are accepted.  Even after you have been accepted, there are still more tests which earn you the right to stay.

    Next let us examine the term “martial”, as in “military”.  A traditional Martial Arts Dojo, such as the Tao-Shiu-Kuan, is very much a paramilitary organization (or institution). We like to consider ourselves as a step up from such organizations as the Boy Scouts, but just a step down from a private military academy, such as West Point or VMI.

    Therefore, the term “martial” is applicable, not only in the use of a military hierarchy or the administrative positions, but also in the warrior ethic that develops within the students.  In other words, each student/member is required to become a “soldier” and develop such characteristics as honor, respect, and a sense of responsibility in order to learn a traditional Martial Arts form.

    Lastly, let us examine the term “art”:  Most modern studios teach the Martial Arts as a game or some form of sport; whereas others may teach the combat aspects, without any concern for our traditional disciplines…  We believe that this would be like teaching someone to shoot a handgun, without also teaching them firearm safety.  You see, it is often said that:

“Martial” means violence, and “Art” means the control of that violence.
A true “Martial Artist” seeks not to add to the violence of the world,
but to control it, through a better understanding of the “true nature” of violence.

“Statement of Purpose”

Self-Control & Self-Discipline:

    One can not learn even the physical skills of the Martial Arts until they have developed a certain level of self-control.  When the proponent commands their body to, “do this”…  the hand (or foot) must obey; and by the same token, when they tell themselves not to do something…  the response should be the same.  The body must obey the mind that commands it.  This is the essence of control.

    In our society, the terms “Self-Control” and “Self-Discipline” are often used inter-changeably, as if they were the same thing…  They are not.

Self-Control is a “skill”.  It is not a gift or a talent;
it does not develop naturally, like leaves on a tree…
It is a learned skill, which is developed through practice.

Self-Discipline is a “tool” for developing Self-Control.
In the absence of control (self or otherwise),
one should be immediately disciplined (self or otherwise).

    Please understand that, if you cannot control yourself, eventually someone will take control from you, in a way that you probably will not like (imposed control); and if you can not discipline yourself, then you will never gain self-control, and eventually, someone will impose discipline upon you, also in a way that you probably will not like.

    Those who are training to become “more dangerous” (i.e. soldiers, martial artists, etc.) must exercise the greatest levels of self-control and self-discipline…  In the same way that one needs to be more careful with a steak knife than with a butter knife.  But don’t make the mistake of believing that you need to have a strong command of these qualities before you begin your training.  That would be like, believing that you have to loose a few pounds, before you can even start on a diet.

    The whole point of going to school is to “learn new things”; and because a traditional Martial Arts Dojo is a school, and specializes in the teaching of self-control and self-discipline, you do not need to have these qualities to begin your Martial Arts education.  Additionally, a Dojo is the perfect environment in which to practice and develop these skills and characteristics.

    A traditional Martial Arts Dojo is often described as a “place where living is practiced”.  It is a place where people practice the arts of “civility”, and “respect for one another”…  and these are the “true arts” that we seek to cultivate and preserve.  Typically, in a modern “karate studio”, they teach you how to kill, but in a traditional Martial Arts Dojo, we will teach you how to live.

Punching and kicking are simply the tools that we use
to teach the lessons that are really important.