How Martial Arts Can Teach Nonviolence

It is a story I told before, but I had not fully considered the implications of the moment I
learned about Bruce Lee. I was 9 years old when my dad brought home spanking
new technology. A VHS machine and tape deck. The first two movies he had were
Alien and an unknown film called Return of the Dragon. After watching the alien break out of a
guys stomach I was happily avoiding watching that film in its entirety. My 9 year old mind just
wanted to know “Who was this dragon?Where did he go? What is he returning to do?”
Boy were all my questions answered. 

After finishing the film and making some nunchucks out of sawed off  yellow
broomsticks and some chains my older cousin Steve let me borrow (he went
onto become a karate master himself). I bonked myself on the head and hands
over and over until I had some half decent skill. I also went
crazy buying any magazines that were connected to martial arts of any kind.
I also took up Judo and, while not being very good at it, I did love it. 

Being a natural born reader, the magazines helped me understand so much of
the mystery behind the men and the motives of their movements. One of the first
magazines I ever bought burned an image in my head possibly forever. The story
was about a Buddhist Monk in Thailand. The monk is in his robes, head shaven
and eyes gently closed in meditation. To his left as a young aspiring Thai
boxing champion cut deep into the heavy bag with his shin bone. The young
students lean cut body was dripping sweat in his display of full force and focused
on the heavy bag before him. The story went onto note that the Monk had created
a space for young poor kids to train and learn about
Buddhism in hope of them valuing peace.

It may appear hard to conceive, but people who train in martial arts are some of
the most peace loving people I have ever met. I think this is because most people
think they want to hurt someone. But people who really know how to harm someone
don't take pleasure in it. This is part of what keeps them calm when things get socially
tense. The truth is that knowing how to choke someone out almost demands that the
person with that skill understand the value of life.

That is how I always understood the picture in the old magazine. Even that that age, I got it,
but I could not have said it out loud. But I understood it. I saw Bruce always try to figure a way
to think things through and help solve problems. He never wanted to fight. I loved his family and his
Because of that unique entry into martial arts, I always had an understanding that the way of the
warrior and the pursuit of nonviolence were eternally connected. I consider these kinds of events
the some of the seeds of what became the
HHCF philosophy on nonviolence. 

I recommend anyone trying to take their wisdom about inner peace and greater global
peace train in jiu-jitsu, judo, kung-fu, boxing, thai boxing- whatever. Read books like
The Art of Peace, The Art of War, The Prince, anything by Marcus Aurelius Clausewitz and others. Play chess casually to add to your understanding of the art of war. If you train and you do that, you will see things others cannot see socially
and do things other cannot do personally. 

For more on Thailand and Thai Boxing catch Fightworld on Netflix.

Learn more about the connections between Hip-Hop, chess and nonviolence by subscribing to the Bishop Chronicles Podcast on Spotify, iTunes, Mixcloud or Libsyn. You can also buy the book  Bobby Bruce & the Bronx: The Secrets of Hip-Hop Chess by Adisa the Bishop on Amazon. 

Broken Rhythm: Bruce Lee, Musashi & Music

Broken Rhythm: Bruce Lee, Musashi & Music

By: Adisa the Bishop

                       Legendary scene in Return of the Dragon starring Bruce Lee and Chuck Norris

No one debates the cultural impact of Bruce Lee. This is especially real inside the Hip-Hop subculture. His roles as a martial artist and philosopher ensures  his status as possibly the most legendary martial artist ever. However, one of the most fascinating things about Bruce Lee is really not his fighting. It is his dancing. More than that though, it is valuable to look at how his dancing impacted his approach to fighting. Futhermore, it is powerful to study how this fusion of dancing, fighting and music seem to be eternally connected.

Bruce Lee was a champion Cha Cha dancer. In fact, his first job in America was as a dance teacher. This may appear boring on the surface to some people. However, for those who are authentic lovers of music (especially Hip-Hop) it makes the man even more fascinating. The first movie I saw that had Bruce Lee in it was Return of the Dragon. Even then, it showed  a glimpse of his love of shrouding devastating attacks hidden in rhythm. In the final fight scene, Lee fights Chuck Norris at the Coliseum in Rome. Chuck remains formidable as an opponent as long as Bruce stays within the traditional scope of kung fu and karate. However, once he starts hiding his attacks in a boxers rhythm (a la Muhammad Ali) Chuck cannot follow Bruce’s form and soon loses the battle. Few knew his ability to find and break rhythm was rooted in his Cha Cha background. But this connection goes much deeper than one film or one man.

Fast forward to the 2004 martial arts thriller, Hero. Jet Li plays a character called Nameless. In one scene Nameless has a powerful sword fight at an outdoor chess house in the middle of a rain storm. It is a soul stirring exchange of movement, music and strategy. As they unsheath their weapons an elderly blind man plays a sad but beautiful song. The old man plays in the rain slightly exposed to the elements of nature . Before he dives into battle, Nameless reflects on the idea that “Martial arts and music share the same principles. Both wrestle with complex chords and rare melodies.”

Nameless and Sky clash physically and mentally at  the outdoor chess house in 2004 classic Hero.

A few years ago I was given a book called The Straight Lead, by Teri Tom. The Straight Lead was Bruce Lee’s favorite and arguably his most powerful punch. In the book, Tom makes a compelling case for the connection between music and martial arts. “The way fighters play with time is very similar to the way musicians interpret time. You can play behind the beat, on the beat, or syncopate. Staccato or Legato. You can chose to play or let the rhythm section pass you by. The tempo may vary from adagio (slow) to allegro (quick). To the time, you can then add dynamic variations- pianissimo (soft), mezzo forte (moderately loud) or fortissimo (very loud). Fighting has analogous variables. “ The connections between music and martial arts is hard to see in today’s times. This is mainly because in the modern technology wave of mind numbing Worldstar and Instagram knockout clips, the art in “martial arts” has largely evaporated. Nevertheless, it is not gone altogether.

I cannot say for sure that Mayweather studies dance. But when I look at his footwork against McGregor’s mummy-like movements in the first round (although McGregor does appear to use the straight lead with some effectiveness in the first few rounds), Mayweather does move like a seasoned dancer. Not just that, the patterns with which Mayweather strikes his opponents have rhythmic patterns. This was something on my mind as I watched the flight. The more I watched, I saw how the flow of his footwork was levels above McGregor. They say Mayweather pulled McGregor into “deep water”. Water, like dancers and fighters, has to flow. McGregor was drowned in the flow.  

Legendary undefeated self-taught swordsman Miyamoto Musashi is celebrated by martial artists and entrepreneurs the world over for his book The Book of 5 Rings. He killed his first opponent at the tender age of 13. In The Book of 5 Rings he talks about the importance of understanding the rhythm of battle when dueling with swords. It is broken down into several sections: the Earth Scroll, Water Scroll, Fire Scroll, Wind Scroll and the Void Scroll (also known as the scroll of emptiness). Each is admired for having its own sense of rhythm. But more than rhythm, like Teri Tom, he focuses on timing:

Timing is important in dancing and pipe or string music, for they are in rhythm only if timing is good. Timing and rhythm are also involved in the military arts, shooting bows and guns, and riding horses. In all skills and abilities there is timing.... There is timing in the whole life of the warrior, in his thriving and declining, in his harmony and discord. Similarly, there is timing in the Way of the merchant, in the rise and fall of capital. All things entail rising and falling timing. You must be able to discern this. In strategy there are various timing considerations. From the outset you must know the applicable timing and the inapplicable timing, and from among the large and small things and the fast and slow timings find the relevant timing, first seeing the distance timing and the background timing. This is the main thing in strategy. It is especially important to know the background timing, otherwise your strategy will become uncertain.

While it is simple to just passively look at that idea as just an odd relatable tidbit of information, it is not something easily done. While doing some research on his life, you can find an old scroll about his life called Busho Denraiki. Muashi did not write about himself much. He wrote about swordsmanship. But in the Busho Denraiki you learn that Musashi was not just a swordsman, he was an accomplished painter as well. Further, Musashi was also accomplished in the highly regarded Japanese tradition of Noh dancing. William De Lange’s Origins of a Legend: The Real Musashi notes that Musashi adopted a son named Iori. He notes that, “Irori was taught the Noh dance in plain clothes, it seems Musashi was a keen practitioner of the art.”

Nowhere in De Lange’s work does it attempt to explain how this unequalled swordsman found the time to learn let alone teach Noh dancing. However, the fact that he did know the art of Noh well enough to teach speaks volumes about how the role of rhythm in battle came so natural to him as a fighter.

Currently African American MMA fighter D’Juan Owens spends time in Kampala, Uganda and Dakar, Senegal teaching both b-boying and martial arts to kids. He teaches them the connectivity in both. RZA of Wu Tang Clan teaches a lot about these elements not only in his books, but the entire discography of the Wu Tang Clan is an embodiment of that concept.

Khnum Muata Ibomu aka stic.man of Dead Prez is a respected rapper, archer, vegan health advocate, activist and dedicated martial artist. Songs like Way of Life and Back on my Regimen are excellent examples of how music and martial arts connect in contemporary Hip-Hop. His knowledge of martial arts, music and strategy are so deep I had to ask him his thoughts.

“Practice is the way we get better in the application of rhythm” he told me. Stic said he feels that there is “Some science but it is also art. Self expression is required. My studio is a sacred space just like a dojo for experimentation and practice. Lyrics are precisely chosen and placed just like strikes and footwork.” Finally he notes that both music and martial arts are used “to serve a greater good.”

Jeet kune do, bboy/bgirl dancing, boxing, ballet, brazilian jiu-jitsu, capoeira, noh dancing, swordsmanship - all styles, all contain rhythms. Outside of the practicality of each art, each style speaks to us on an artistic and internal levels. Does every martial artist need to study dance in order to be a better practitioner? Maybe not. However, to totally ignore the importance of dance within the fighting arts is to cut oneself off from new insights and opportunities for victory.

LISTEN to this this episode of Bishop Chronicles Podcast on Bruce Lee and his love for dance and how it informed his fighting. 

Adisa, The Bishop is the Founder of the Hip-Hop Chess Federation and host of Bishop Chronicles Podcast. He is a brown belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu at Heroes Martial Arts and author of The Iron Hook Scroll and Bobby, Bruce & the Bronx: The Secrets of Hip-Hop Chess available on Amazon.

EXCLUSIVE The Rhythm of War: MMA Fight Lab Champion D'Juan Owens

          MMA Champion (and HHCF Representative) D'Juan "Dirty South" Owens defends his title in March!! 

By: Adisa, The Bishop
Photos: Gene Kim

In MMA a lot of people come and go. A lot of people get into MMA for all the wrong reasons. Some do it for money and others for a quick flash of glory. D'Juan "Dirty South" Owens is none of the above. Mr. Owens is fighter with proven resilience. He is a fighter with a purpose greater than himself. Before doing MMA he was a competitive chess player in the military. Mr. Owens is also an avid kickboxing practitioner and a Hip-Hop dancer.

He recently won the Fight Lab Title between multiple visits to Uganda and Senegal teaching women and children dance and self defense. There is truly no one like him in MMA today. His passion for the rhythm between martial arts, chess and music truly makes him stand out inside and outside the cage.

                                           D'Juan finds many correlations between dance and martial arts. 

HHCF: You visited both Senegal and Uganda this year. Tell us what you were doing out there? 

DO: My latest visit to Uganda was on behalf of a non-profit we started in 2016 called "Fighting for Uganda". We teach free community self-defense seminars throughout Uganda. The focal point of our self-defense seminars is gender-based violence prevention(not limited to). During our lecture portion, we discuss situational awareness, domestic violence, and common misconceptions about consent. This is followed by out technique portion.

I traveled Senegal to work with an organization that I'm now a member of called the "Lionheart Initiative". LHI focuses on spreading and developing the sport of MMA in Africa. I came in contact with LHI founder AK Rupert late last year, and we hit it off instantly. We realized that we shared similar values and priorities, and almost immediately we started planning a project where I would teach MMA and self-defense seminars there.

HHCF: I have been consumed by the relationship between dance and martial arts. Bruce Lee was an accomplished Cha Cha dancer. Doing research on Miyamoto Musashi I learned he was a Japanese Noh dancer. Plus his book, The Book of 5 Rings is often about rhythms. Where do you find connections between dance and martial arts?

DO: There's so many man. Movement, rhythm, creativity, timing, and execution come to mind first. It's all art to me. Depending on the artist or practitioner, they can also be seen as systems.

            

HHCF: Do you see rhythm in both striking and grappling?

DO: I see rhythm in striking much more so than in grappling. Due to the space or lack of constant contact in striking, movement really can't be stopped. An avenue can be blocked, but not all avenues at once. Grappling provides so much more control for the dominant grappler. At this point in my development, I don't see grappling as rhythmic. All art isn't rhythm based though. It's definitely art.

HHCF: What are some of today's rap artists that you like?

DO: I'm really impressed by Quadir Lateef, Blitz the Ambassador, and Jay Electronica. I've got a lot of respect and appreciation for many more; but these are artist who I believe are extremely talented that Hip-Hop fans should get familiar with.

HHCF: Congratulations on winning your Title Fight last weekend! Tell us about the fight, and what this win means to you.

DO: Thank you brother! After a hard-fought battle we won "Fight Lab Promotions' " inaugural lightweight Title! The fight went on all five rounds, and we won by Unanimous decision. We had a tough opponent, who definitely came to win. 

This win was the exclamation point on a perfect year of competition success. We went 2-0 in MMA, 2-0 in pro kickboxing, and went 2-0 in grappling superfights.

HHCF: What are your plans for 2018 in terms of MMA?

DO: In 2018 I'll continue to improve as a martial artist, and as a MMA fighter. I'll also continue to compete and win. I'll defend my Title every time I fight for "Fight Lab", and I'll pursue and win a Title in any other organization that I fight for. I'm operating at the highest level of proficiency and efficiency in every aspect of my life. I'm actualizing potential.

HHCF: Any last words?

DO: Much love and respect to everyone out there striving and grinding toward their goals! 

Adisa, The Bishop is author of the book Bobby Bruce and the Bronx: The Secrets of Hip-Hop Chess and Guest Curator of the upcoming exhibit Respect: Hip-Hop Style and Wisdom opening March 24th 2018 at Oakland Museum of California.

Martial Arts and the Meaning of the Blind Master

Martial Arts and the Meaning of the Blind Master

One morning when I was about 4, I went to my parent's room to play with my father. I teased him about something to make him chase me and I bolted down the hallway. As soon as I cut right to hit the living room- BANG! I ran into the wall. I did not see the wall. My parents took me to the Dr. I needed glasses.

To say that I needed glasses was an understatement. I could barely see. Keep in mind this was in the 70’s when glasses were designed to be utilitarian, big clunky, hard, heavy plastic. I felt horrible inside. I was already super skinny. Twenty-pound glasses did not help. And I needed them, so, there was no faking it. To this day, I can only see about 7 inches past my nose.

Then I turned into the TV show called Kung Fu. I watched the main character be repeatedly bested and taught by an older, wiser man. The man was soft spoken, his name was  Po. Po changed my life forever.

When I first saw Gracie Jiu-Jitsu, I was moved by how small Helio, Carlos and his brother were. At the time, I was doing eskrima, a stick fighting art from the Philippines. I was horrible at it. But I loved it. My friend Jaime showed me some basics he learned from a videotape of jiu-jitsu and I was hooked. A few months later I signed up at Ralph Gracie’s in Mountain View. The thing that really drew me though was that I could grapple without wearing my glasses. Jiu-jitsu is super up close. I can see fine while ground fighting. It was one of the biggest things that drew me to the art. The idea that I could be like Po, truly dangerous, but kind.

Later, while training under Charles Gracie (Raph's brother) as a blue belt Charles would sometimes have us spar, blindfolded. We would start in the closed guard, but on our blindfolds and begin guard pass drills. As we would spar Charles would repeat to all of us "You must believe in your technique. You must believe in your jiu-jitsu." Every person felt like Charles was talking directly to them. It was a huge confidence builder. It was also the time I realized on a personal level that I did not need my eyes to defend myself.

I finally understood the work of the self-taught swordmaster and scholar, Miyamoto Musashi, when he wrote that one must be able to "perceive that which cannot be seen with the eye."

As I got into jiu-jitsu, Po’s image flickered in my brain. Over the years, I noticed that the idea of a blind fighter has a long history in film.

Then one day I went to Judo legend Willy Cahill’s in San Bruno, CA. He had an entire team that was blind. They were all devastating fighters. One of the main things I noticed, was that you could never rattle them with appearances or feints because they could feel the truth of your balance. His team is amazing. Many years ago I saw the dominate at the Titan Games in San Jose.

Today women like Jordan Mouton (a blind woman who has immaculate judo) inspire the blind and the sighted alike. Grandson of Helio Gracie,. Ralek Gracie, did an amazing short film on a blind man named Nathan Russell who trains jiu-jitsu at the Gracie Academy HQ in California

One day after teaching chess to a bunch of students at Cherryland Elementary in Hayward,  Dr. Itoco Garcia and I were talking casually. He mentioned his love for a show on Netflix called One Hundred Eyes. One Hundred Eyes is a character in the Marco Polo series. He too is blind. Until just this weekend I had forgotten about it and then I stumbled into it and I am late, super late, but loving it.

Over the years, movies like Zatoichi and the Chess Expert, or watching RZA as Snake Eyes in GI Joe Retaliation , always made me smile a little bit more. It was after seeing Donnie Yen play the character Chirrut Imwe that I got the deep childhood Po flashback. Be accident, or by design, this came off like an obvious homage to Po.

At least I thought it was. Talking to the LA Times Yen told the story:

“How Chirrut ended up being blind was a collaboration of me and Gareth. During the process, we were talking about different possibilities and he was asking my opinions. I said, “I want this character not to be so clichéd. I’ve played this character thousands of times — this type of bad-ass, skillful warrior hero. I want him to be grounded. I want him to be human, even vulnerable. Wouldn’t it be interesting to have him blind?” He liked the idea, Disney loved it — and Chirrut ended up being blind.”

I wish it was a little deeper than this. I wish I could interview him one day about that character. But if that is the story. In any case, I got the Po flashbacks from Rogue One. Beyond the story there is a bigger question.

Why are this blind characters a recurring thing in martial arts films? I don’t know. For me, I think the blind fighter is a symbol of an individual who is unmoved (like the judoka) by appearances. They are not lost in the height, weight, skin tone, flamboyant outfits, or religious symbols etc., worn by their opponent. The blind master can accept the true you and helps you to be better. The blind master is kind to all who approach.

May we all aspire to be like them in body, mind, and spirit.

HHCF Chess and Jiu-Jitsu Team Get Gold and Silver at American Cup!!

Just wanted to congratulate Young Skywalker (in the black on the photo to the left) for getting the GOLD  and Megatron ( in white gi on the right) for getting his SILVER medal at the American Cup in San Francisco.

I want to make sure to thank our wrestling coach Andrew and our other BJJ coach Sammy for all of their help in the preparation for the tournament. We must also acknowledge our head coach Alan "Gumby" Marques, Trevor and Chuck of Heroes Martial Arts. They are our brothers in arms. We appreciate all the insight they gave us in preparation for the event. The HHCF Chess and Jiu-Jitsu Team is proud to be under the banner of Heroes Martial Arts.

As a coach, you get a lot of anxiety in your head about how your students perform. They were both amazing. Not only in action, but in action.

Our team has gotten  a few more students on deck and you will see more of them in the coming the neat future. Lastly, I want to thank all the amazing parents who entrust their kids with the HHCF Chess and Jiu-Jitsu curriculum. They showed immense clarity of mind before, during and after the match. We are actively enrolling kids, teens and adults right now. So far every student who has competed has won a medal. It is not about medals for us. At HHCF in fact, it is the LAST thing we compete for. We compete to represent the art of jiu-jitsu. We compete to share the strategic clarity of mind we get from chess. We play to finish. We never lose. We only win or learn. To join us call  888-588-4418.

HHCF Chess and Jiu-Jitsu Student Neutralizes Bully

Many people often get confused about what we do. At the end of the day, we teach non violence through the fusion of art and logic. We pull wisdom from wherever we find it. But we mostly find it from blending concepts from Hip-Hop, chess and martial arts.  It takes a lot more to explain how we do what we do and why it works. At the end of the day however, we teach peace. That is what HHCF does. The good grades, the scholarships, the trophies are just things some of the kids get on the way to a fruitful life.

The creation of our org, the lectures across the country, our exhibit at the World Chess Hall of Fame in 2014, our championship dance teams, the book Bobby, Bruce & the Bronx: The Secrets of Hip-Hop Chess are all tied to that endgame- nonviolence.

We recently announced our Chess and Jiu-Jitsu classes and I am happy to say it is growing. Each class is a fusion of chess instruction and gaming and jiu-jitsu or wrestling positions. Assistant jiu-jitsu instructor Sammy Teame and wrestling coach Andrew Swank ensure each class is technically on point and physically demanding. In every class we always return to the importance of emotional mastery, kindness and mercy. You always hope these things reach our students, but you are never sure.

The other day one of my students told me had gotten into a physical altercation. He is 14 and while off campus a bully (who was acting very immature) and hit my student in the face with leaves on the branch of a tree branch. My student told him to not do it again in a respectful, but firm way. The bully took it as a challenge and did it again and ran off.

He said to me “I chased him, and then as I got close to him he threw a fist full of acorns at me as he turned to face me.”  From his repetition in training, after being approached he was quickly able to get to the bullies back and begin applying a choke hold. He said he felt the bully tense up  from not being able to escape the hold. The bully could feel the dominance of the position as my student got ready to squeeze. Then my student remembered the talks on nonviolence I gave in class. Released the choke put one hand and put the bully's arm behind his back and pushed him away. He again told the bully to stop being childish and leave him alone. When I asked him specifically HOW he got to the kids back, he replied “I don’t know how. I just got there.” This impressed me.

After being pushed away, the bully got enraged and charged him. Again my student got to his back, and reset the choke. He was angry he said at this point. He let go of the choke again, and bear hugged the bully to prepare to suplex him. Then he said he thought about how dangerous it would be to slam him on cement. He also thought about how mad I’d be at him for seriously hurting a kid he did not have to hurt.

My student let him go. The bully, realizing the level of mercy being given him stopped harassing my student.

I was happy to hear a few things:

1. That he did not recall how he got to the choke. I was happy to see he was not bogged down in mechanical thinking.
2. That he did not fully apply the choke or slam the bully on the concrete. In a world where young men love to express rage and power as others film it I was proud of him for being his own man.
3. That the work I do to teach nonviolence had a tangible outcome that made this kid, his school and the world a little more safe. If only in a super small way, in a small city, with ONE kid- it happened.

His father took me outside and thanked me for teaching his son. I was thankful to him, for trusting me with his son and joining our chess and jiu-jitsu program. I feel good. This is not a scientific study. But it is real. A new student starts tonight. I look forward to helping this youngster grow on the chessboards, on the mats and in life in a similar way. I hope in the future, all of our children can learn how to return injury with kindness through the fusion of chess and jiu-jitsu.

Join today at www.hiphopchess.com

Listen to Adisa Banjoko on The Dope Science Show!! #Chess #Steam #Stem + more!!

If you have never heard The Dope Science Show, you are missing something extremely cool. A week or so back they were kind enough to interview HHCF's own Adisa Banjoko about all things related to Hip-Hop, chess, science, steam, stem and all things in between. We encourage you to check it out, follow them and enjoy a fun conversation. Shout out to Science Stuff with Steph for being a great host. Be sure to follow @thedopescience show on Twitter. Here is the link to THE DOPE SCIENCE SHOW!

HHCF Teams w/ Deus Fight Gi's for The Oakland (Silver and Black) Gi.....

HHCF Teamed up with philanthropic jiu-jitsu brand Deus Fight for a new line of gi's. The Oakland gi, is made in the warrior tradition of the Raiders as well as a reminder that Public Enemy's It Takes A Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back had a Silver and Black side to the Album....Proceeds from the sales of the gi will benefit the HHCF Chess and Jiu-Jitsu Initiative. Get one today at www.deusfight.com  Special thanks to BJJ Legends Magazine for connecting our orgs for the greater good of our children. When we say our children, we mean all children. PEACE!