Sunday, August 27, 2006

Breathing into your stomach must become a habit and then your 'kiai' will be spontaneous and effective even when not necessarily loud. To begin with, however, you must simply remember to shout loudly from the bottom of your belly when you perform a technique. In due course, you will perhaps master 'kiai' in its real sense, and will then often be able to overcome an opponent without fighting at all! To be able to convey so much confidence and will-power as to do this - simply by breathing! - is to exercise the advanced martial art of 'kiai-jutsu'. This might be said to be the perfect finished form to which all the martial arts aspire.