9781422286678

W H A T I S K A R A T E ?

0.5 in (1.25 cm) thick, and small terra-cotta roof tiles. The wood is broken across the grain. Provided it is held securely and hit reasonably hard, several pieces can easily be broken at once. The requirements for smashing an impressive stack of roofing tiles are patience, the knowledge of how to stack them with proper gaps in between, and the confidence to strike them cleanly. In fact, even people with little or no karate training could break these materials using karate techniques if they were shown how to do so. Wood and tiles are not the only materials used in breaking demonstrations; the types of materials used are limited only by the imaginations of those concerned. Some karate demonstrators have broken stones, chopped the tops off standing beer bottles (not recommended), and dramatically smashed huge blocks of ice. There are even contests in which people compete to see who can break the most items in a given time. As exciting as it may sound, the ability to break an object using karate techniques contributes nothing to being able to hit a moving target, a much more useful benefit of karate. For the purposes of this book, it is suggested that you do not attempt these techniques, as the only thing you may end up breaking is your arm, hand, or fist. A BIT OF HISTORY Most martial arts trace their history to Daruma, a fifth-century BC Buddhist monk, who espoused a series of exercise to strengthen body and mind. Different styles of exercise were developed, and karate itself appears to have originated in China. Self-defense methods were popular there, particularly during the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644). Gradually, the

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