Spirituality in Martial Arts Question?

I actually wanted to grow spiritualy before I started martial arts. My martial arts journey began with high school wrestling. At the time I wanted something to call my own something that I can dedicate myself to. Wrestling was a tough journey that taught me perserverence. Unfortuanately I recieved an injury that ended my wrestling career. After that I was introduced to martial arts. It imediately opened my eyes spiritualy. My sensei told me if martial arts were a thousand mile journey only an inch of it is about fighting techniques. The rest is about how we live, and treat eachother. I was training my mind as well as my body. I learned that as a martial artist I have an obligation to keep my integrity, and to walk a righteous path. Even though I may mess up at times I learned to keep trying.

When I earned my black belt I was honord, and I relized that God gave me a gift. Ever scince then I have been trying to improve my relationship with Jesus.

To sum it up martial arts was about growing spiritually for me scince I started. I never thought of it as fighting. I have learned a great deal about self defense too. Martial arts is a part of my being now.

Before getting involved in martial arts I spent four years in a Zen school and an Eselen (mind-body healing) school. When I first saw Tai-chi-Chuan I knew this was what I needed but wasn't interested in the martial aspect. After studying with my first teacher I went on to Grandmaster William C. C. Chen and not doing the fighting was simply not an option in his school.

I loved the fighting as soon as I started it and realized that I needed the aggression in order to balance my passive nature. I then went on to study other forms of spiritual development and healing while continuing Tai-chi-Chuan, which is now one of the basic foundations of my life.

I realized that the fighting aspect of the martial arts is as much spiritual as meditiation and healing because it forces you to become aware of your own behavior and your relationships to other people and to situations. The same Tai-chi principles that are the foundation for the spiritual aspect and healing are, in fact, used for the fighting, so there is no contradiction.

Nothing nearly so esoteric. I stopped going to classes for financial reasons, but couldn't get the urge to train out of my system. So I practiced what I was taught, researched other methods from books, and enlisted the aid of other friends who trained. So it was part of my being because I had a psychological need to do is, as much as eating and sleeping are physical needs.

aint nothing spiritual about beating someones a.s.s