It has been said many times that a strong house requires a strong foundation. This was illustrated quite nicely in my neighborhood recently.
There is a duplex right across the street from my home. It is on a hill and has floor to ceiling windows. Many times, as I was leaving for work, I would look up there and think how nice it would be to live there. I could imagine myself doing kata in front of those big windows while keeping an eye on my little corner of the city. I love being up high, having an unrestricted view of things. That was a problem for some of my scuba partners. I wanted to cover ground and see as much as I could during a dive. It burned up a lot of energy and dive partners. But that’s another story.
So, here is this place I dreamed of living, and weird stuff started happening. One day I see that the whole lower west corner is covered with a tarp. Hmmmm…? Termites?
Now, no one lives there. My neighbor told me the whole place is vacant. The tarp has been ripped aside revealing that the whole northwest quadrant of the structure is being held up by a stack of pallets. Not a strong foundation.
The foundation in karate might be the stance. If your stance is weak, your punch will be weak. What constitutes a strong stance? That definition will change with the system of martial art you look at. Some styles emphasize long, wide, low stances. Others go with higher shorter stances. Both are obviously effective when properly executed. When poorly executed, they are weak. We should never be too quick to judge a style we have not studied.
Foundation might also refer to the deep understanding of the techniques, kata, bunkai and philosophy that make up a system of karate. Without a strong foundation, you are just going through the motions. You are just pretending.
A house is only as strong as its foundation. The same is true of your art. Study hard. Practice regularly. Be patient. Let the foundation form. Be real.
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