Analogies

[Rob_Broad]

There are nine analogies in the Encyclopedia of Kenpo. They are: Analogy of Appendix/Dictionary/Encyclopedia, Analogy of Bumper/Truck, Analogy of Fast Lunch/ Week-end Dinner, Analogy of Jet aircraft/Aircraft Carrier., Analogy of Notes in Music, Analogy of Print/Script/Shorthand, Analogy of Solid/Liquid/Gas, Analogy of Squeegee, and the Analogy of Tea Kettle.

I am wondering how many people are familiar with them and if you are familiar with them do you use them when trying to convey your point to others.

 

[Kirk]

Dang, I gotta get that book!

 

[John_Boy]

Give us a brief overview of each analogy? I have not heard of all of them, but I would like to be able to use them all in teaching...

Thanks in advance!

John

 

[arnisador]

Originally posted by Rob_Broad
Analogy of Squeegee

I know that Mr. Parker really wanted to make an American art but I have to say that some things sound better when they're said in Japanese. I would have hated to have had to explain to my parents what they were paying for in my martial arts classes if it involved the technical use of the term "squeegee".

But I too would be curious to hear what these analogies are and how they are used.

 

[Rob_Broad]

This analogy teaches you to parallel your moveswith that of a squeegee. This principle allows you to simultaneously use upper and lower case movements, while retracing a path of motion. Retracing a path of motion affords you greater margin for error; therefore, itis much more logical to employ in terms of safety.

Sqeegee Principle
Principle that stresses using the PATH of your action to cover a wider area when blocking or striking. Such action allows you greater margin for error.

 

[D.Cobb]

Funny you should ask that, but as amatter of fact I have used both the squeegee and the tea kettle analogies, and in fact I have used the squeegee analogy at my Ryukyu Kempo school, as well as when I was at American Kenpo.

 

[Rob_Broad]

This analogy asks you to parallel your breathing with the process in a tea kettle, where heated water is converted to steam, and then forced to travel through a small opening or spout. The result is a more intense and better focused release of energy. This principle teaches that when steam or air is condensed, the force is greater. In a similar manner, condensed breathing, like condensed steam under pressure, proportionately increases the force rendered.

TEA KETTLE PRINCIPLE
This teaches that the expulsion of air when striking should be controlled so that it is condensed or shortened. If we compare our bodies and normal breathing with a tea kettle and the steam that is released through its spout, we will see that greater condensation yields greater energy. With the teas kettle, the condensation is produced by the fixed chamber of the kettle(only so much air can escape through the spout) and the amount of heat beneath it. If the variable of heat is increased enough, eventually the lid would be propelled from the kettle by the steam's expansion. In the case of our bodies the condensation is produced through the contraction of our abdominal and throat muscles( we change the size of the kettle and its spout instead of its contents.) as a result of the increased energy in our bodies (like the steam in the kettle), we propel our strikes with a greater force. In short, condensed breathing, like condensed steam under pressure, proportionately increases the force rendered.

from the Enclylodia of Kenpo by Ed Parker

 

[GouRonin]

I prefer to take the concept and apply it using something that is in the student's life they can relate to.

I still use the idea, just not the vehicle.

 

[Rob_Broad]

I have been putting the technical breakdown of the analogies in hope that we can discuss them and possibly come up with creative ways to get the same point across.

 

[Kenpobuff]

I think this will be the next book to add to the library.