The act of interacting physically with another human can come in many shapes and forms both combatively, compassionately, or anywhere in between; this is where the philosophy of grappling comes into play. The act of grappling with another sportingly, with the goal of attaining a respected and mutual conclusion, a victor, may be the most true mid-line between those extents that brings with it a completely unique form of understanding between participants.
Our base physiological attributes as humans will vary, our senses too are honed and tempered by diverse stimuli. Our capacity to learn, retain, and identify patterns is vastly different from one to the next and in turn may be the reason why grappling with another human being brings about a true shared exploration of each others ability, character, and (I believe) humanity.
The more we engage in this act and the more we learn the goals or limitations attached to the attributes of leverage and pain; Heightened emotional and physical responses can be brought to the forefront for better or for worse, forcing us to confront them and learn from them. The more we can identify the interplay of factors both internal and external that make the philosophy and actual act of grappling so fascinating, the more we can understand why for many, it also becomes the greatest opportunity for self-betterment that they can experience in their daily life.
At times when we identify that we are in danger of injury or in the midst of losing consciousness at the hands of our opponent, we are in control of the choice to submit graciously or to deny the reality of our situation regardless of it’s obviousness and the consequences for doing so. This dynamic, without even entering in to the realm of strategy and techniques that arise; brings about such a challenge to our own ego that we are forced in to upgrading our concept of humility and respect on a daily basis.
Grappling can also be viewed as an artistic study of elemental interactions within human physiology. Without oxygen we can not exist, without caloric fuel we do not have the energy to partake. With this understanding we can uniquely employ agents of leverage that aids us to efficiently control and render the human body void of any capacity at all. The pathways of logical deconstruction of limbs and restriction of blood vessels becomes visually pleasing over time. Intricate yet aesthetic.
This line of thinking alone becomes mesmerizing and can be the sole source of why one would gravitate to any form of grappling art. Most Importantly; grappling is a form of communication. Greater than that, a form of unquestionably truthful communication that can not be doctored, altered, misrepresented or misinterpreted, such as the spoken word can.
For that, a level of respect and admiration is shown between practitioners as an unspoken yet resounding understanding takes place within seconds of engagement. In order to understand the philosophy of grappling, you must understand that it is a game of combat, of strategy, of ability, of humility, of determination, of wisdom, of honesty, of sharing, and of respect. These ideals could either be considered conflicting, or, simply necessary components for our own internal and collective evolution as human beings.
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