Customer Reviews

Karate of Okinawa Building Warrior Spirit With Gan Soku Tanden Riki

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
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1 star:		(1)

 

 

I am currently a student of Hanshi Scaglione's, who oversees the system of Karate that I practice. This book has been invaluable to me as a student of karate. The contents of this book can be applied to any martial art. Going well beyond the physical aspects of karate that are typically covered in many western dojos, Hanshi Scaglione discusses the mental and spiritual aspects of karate and self defense. Drawing on his years of experience as a New York City police officer, and as Hanshi of 18 dojos in the United States and elsewhere in the world, Hanshi Scaglione details the spiritual aspects of karate as an artform and a way of life. This book moves beyond Karate, and explores the concepts of karate-do. Any student of martial arts will find something to gather from this book. Every time I read it, I find something new to apply to my claases, and to my everyday life.

This book by Robert Scalione (author) and William Cummins (artist) was a pleasent surprise. My wife received this book from her Sensei Matt Kaplan (When we lived in Hawaii), who was a student of Sensei Scaglione. She brought it home, and myself being a Karate instructor, immeadiately read the text with interest and a critical eye.

This book is not a primer on technique, but instead, a primer on the mental aspects of the martial arts. Often, comercial books are flooded with "action" photos, yet, neglecting the most important weapon and training tool - the mind.

This book is also very easy to read, yet, refreshing enough for more mature martial readers to enjoy. The art work is simple and standard, but adequate enough for this excellent text. A great book.

I am a blackbelt student and instructor of Okinawan Shorin-ryu karata located in New York City; I started my training in 1997. This book focuses on the philosophies of Okinawan Karate and was introduced to me by many of my Senseis upon receiving my Green belt, a number of years ago.

As a perquisite reading, I would recommend Shorin-Ryu Okinawan Karate Question and Answer Book by William Cummins and Robert Scaglione. The "red" book focuses more on facts and history of Okinawan Karate. Just as in my review for the "red" book, I have owned this "green" book for over 12 years now and still reference it often and seem to learn something new every time I pick up the book.

The recommended exercise in the book is useless because it is incomprehensible unless you are already traning under the author. Very few to learn from this book.