By DubhGhaill – Page 5

Living Myth 2

December 7, 2009September 14, 2008 by DubhGhaill

Living Myth

November 25, 2009September 10, 2008 by DubhGhaill

“In order to live, man must act; in order to act, he must make choices; in order to make choices, he must define a code of values; in order to define a code of values, he must know what he is and where he is-i.e., he must know his own nature (including his means of knowledge) and the nature of the universe in which he acts-i.e., he needs metaphysics, epistemology, ethics, which means: philosophy.”

“When we come to normative abstractions-to the task of defining moral principals and projecting what man ought to be-the psycho-epistemological process required is still harder…An exhaustive moral treatise defining moral values, with a long list of virtues to be practiced, will not do it; it will not convey what the ideal man would be like and how he would act; no mind can deal with so immense a sum of abstractions…There is no way to integrate such a sum without projecting an actual human figure-an integrated concretization that illuminates the theory and makes it intelligible…

…Art is the indispensable medium for the communication of a moral ideal.”

Ayn Rand, The Romantic Manifesto

When I was first introduced to Heathenism, I read the Eddas and a few Sagas, some respectable, academic publications and the Edred Thorsson books, and that’s about it. It never occurred to me at the time that I might learn something about the religion by reading a modern novel or even a comic book.

Something I’ve come to realize only recently (and maybe I’m a little slow) is that if ours was originally an oral tradition, then the myths were never intended to be set in stone. They were meant to be told and re-told. The myths were meant to live and flow and grow with each retelling, to evolve with the culture and bring joy and meaning to peoples lives. Our myths were never meant to be cooped up in musty old books.

Since I began to loosen up on the historical accuracy of the books I choose, I feel as if I’ve rediscovered some of the most inspiring stories ever written. It is only now that I feel, for the first time, the actual presence of the Gods in my life. With each new version of the myths I read, I feel the Gods growing stronger within me. I see them take on shape and solidity and definition. I watch them come alive. I know I’ve found something truly special when I find the Gods reading over my shoulder.

These modern retellings often contradict the elder lore. So what? The older stories as often contradict each other. The lesson to learn here is that each version is, at best, only one vision of a myth. None is perfect, none is any more or less sacred than any other, except to the degree that the story rings true to you.

Clint.

Chaos Heathen?

November 25, 2009August 27, 2008 by DubhGhaill

As with questions relating to “black magic” I’m tempted to ask “Is there any other kind?”

But I’m teasing, of course. There are many legitimate varieties of Heathenism, just as there were many different cults in Ancient Greece and Rome just as there are many variations of Hinduism. (Four or six “orthodox” schools, depending on who you ask.)

Actually, this sense of intellectual freedom and openness is a big part of what drew me towards the greater Indo-European Tradition in the first place. It’s the exact opposite of the rigidity, dogmatism and anti-intellectual authoritarianism that characterizes the Abrahamic Traditions.

So I’m kind of baffled that it would be necessary for us to make a distinction between what we’re doing here and “plain vanilla” Heathenism. As if Heathen automatically means “strict historical reconstructionist”. Since when?

I certainly didn’t become Heathen out of some sense of racial obligation, or desire to turn back the clock. I consider myself a Heathen because the Norse Mythos appeals most closely to my sense of life. I never made a decision to convert to Heathenism. Rather, like Donovan, I have slowly come to realize that a Heathen is what I’ve always been. No reconstruction required.

But, what the Hell? Chaos Heathenism has a nice ring to it. It implies the right combination of sinister, primitive and reptilian. Nice call Henry, well spoken. I like it.

Clint.

Where I am Coming From

November 25, 2009August 17, 2008 by DubhGhaill

My surname, McDowall, is a Scottish variation of the Irish name Doyle. Originally Clann O’ DubhGhaill, the name means Dark Stranger or Evil Foreigner and refers specifically to the Danish Vikings who came down into Ireland raping, pillaging, plundering and eventually conquering and settling to found towns like Dubhlinn, Limerick and Cork.

The Scottish branch of the family were the Lairds of Argyll, for a time, and very briefly royalty on the Isle of Man. They fought alongside William Wallace against the English but then opposed Robert the Bruce for control of Scotland and lost. Exiled to Ireland, the clan became Galloglass, hereditary, professional mercenaries.

Now, my father was a soldier and his father was a soldier. I was an Army Reservist for a little while and later worked full time as a bouncer. But really, I’ve always been the black sheep of the family, the bookworm, the weird-o, the artist and philosopher. My grandfather once predicted that I’d “wear a collar one day”, meaning that he thought I’d become a priest. He may not have even been completely wrong, though I strongly doubt he would have guessed which denomination.

I spent the better part of my teens and twenties trying to force myself into the box of being a Warrior, and the worse part drowning the other voices in my head with liquor and beer. Now, at the age of thirty, I’ve come to realize finally that a Warrior can at best only ever be a small part of who I am.

I must become an Artist, a Philosopher, a Husband and Father and a Businessman. I must be true to myself and let the voices speak. But I can never forget where I came from. It’s where I come from that makes me who I am.

Clint.

Western Martial Arts Part Seven: Fencing

March 23, 2010June 14, 2008 by DubhGhaill

“I have formal training in Fencing and informal training in Broadsword and Kendo. I have fought Kali/Escrima and practiced against it as well. In practice only, I have gone up against Okinawan and Iaido. I have seen Hindu and Shaolin forms in action. But in my opinion, the best way to learn basic stick-fighting technique is through Western Fencing. It’s easy to learn and it’s a bitch to get around.”
Marc “Animal” MacYoung.

If there’s one thing all us Heathens have in common, it’s our love of history. A little while ago, I expressed my opinion that “Martial Arts training is the ideal form of Yoga for Heathenism.” Now let me take that thought one step further…

Historical Western Martial Arts are the most natural choice for a Heathen Combat Discipline.

The first thing anyone should do in the Martial Arts is go out and learn some basic, no-frills Self Defence. You should not even consider the “art” side until you’ve learned how to stay out of trouble…and what to do when trouble comes looking for you.

The second step anyone should take, in my opinion, is to go learn the basics of whatever full-contact combat sports are common in their geographical area. This sets the bar high. I look at the combat sports as a barrier test for the serious martial artist. This is not something you need to devote your entire life to, but if you want to become an “expert fighter” you’ll at some point need to step up and do some actual full-contact fighting.

But, strictly speaking, once you’ve gotten past the first step of learning basic self defence…after that your time is your own. There’s no reason why we can’t have a little fun in the gym. A little bit of wrasslin’ and some sword/cudgel/dagger play sounds like my idea of a good time. If it sounds like yours, you may just be a Heathen Martial Artist.

And who knows? Researching the ways of our ancestors…we may actually learn something.

Clint.

If you don’t understand the distinction between Martial Arts, Combat Sports and Self-Defence, you need to read this article: http://www.nononsenseselfdefense.com/four_focuses.html

Now for the fun stuff!!!

The Society for Creative Anachronism

The Association for Renaissance Martial Arts

Some great articles…

A Filipino knife instructor with some nice things to say about Western Fencing.
(I wouldn’t mind taking some lessons from him, either.)

Western Martial Arts Part Six: Close Quarters Combat

November 25, 2009June 11, 2008 by DubhGhaill

“The Ultimate Fighting Championship is the closest thing to real fighting I’ve seen the martial arts world involve itself in, but until they include guns, knives, beer bottles and do it on concrete, it’s still not there yet.”
Marc “Animal” MacYoung.

Geoff says the defence systems that work in war generally work in reality fighting: the pre-emptive and deceptive strike, and the killer blow. “Things that they used in the First and Second World Wars, such as the single and double foot stomps to the head: gratuitous, ugly and very workable. Punching people so hard that they go back in time, and when they wake up their clothes are out of fashion. Its all very basic, very ugly and very workable. Biting, butting, blinding and anything that will win the fight and save your life.”
Marc Wickert from an interview with Geoff Thompson.

As much as I’ve learned from the full-contact fight sports, my first choice for serious self defence is still old-school WWII Close Quarters Combat.

Originally developed by W.E. Fairbairn for use by the Shanghai Municipal Police, this system incorporates elements of Boxing, Wrestling, Fencing, Judo, Kung Fu and La Savate. With the outbreak of WWII, Fairbairn returned home to become chief Hand-to-Hand Combat instructor to the Commandoes, the SOE and evetually the OSS.

Despite it’s oriental origins, the method remained quintessetially western in character in every way but one, this is not a sport. Stripped down to the bare essentials, the “Shanghai Method” represents the simplest, most efficient means yet devised for turning average, untrained fighters into vicous, all-in brawlers.

If you want to learn the “inner secrets” of the Martial Arts, then this is the place to start. Deadly, dirty, devious…this is as brutal as it gets.

Clint.

“Get Tough” by W.E. Fairbairn

“Kill or Get Killed” by Rex Applegate.

“Shooting to Live” by W.E. Fairbairn and E.A. Sykes

Western Martial Arts Part Five: Pankration

November 25, 2009June 10, 2008 by DubhGhaill

“People often ask me what art I would select for a physical confrontation if I could only take up one discipline, and I tell them it would be Boxing. If I could choose two arts, then I would say Boxing and grappling, but I would never choose just one discipline.”
Geoff Thompson

648 BCE and more than two hundred years before the birth if Socrates, Greek Olympic athletes fought bare-knuckle and no-holds-barred in a contest they called Pankration.

Since the coming of Christianity, Pankration has been persecuted, banned and driven underground countless times, only to re-emerge each time as the ultimate test of one on one, hand-to-hand fighting ability.

Today Pankration, by a dozen other names, is again reclaiming legitimacy. Fighters require a minimum foundation in the basics of Boxing, Wrestling, Muay Thai and Jiu-Jitsu to have any hope of success in competition. Ironically, while western fighters have flocked to learn the Judo/Wrestling hybrid known as “Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu”, the Japanese have been quietly refining Catch-As-Catch-Can Wrestling into an extremely well rounded style they call Pancrase or Shootfighting.

Clint.

The Historical Pankration Project

Boxing, Wrestling and Shootfighting in the Sydney city CBD.

My “fifteen minutes of fame” as a cage fighter

Western Martial Arts Part Four: Wrestling

November 25, 2009June 2, 2008 by DubhGhaill

“If you don’t know how to Wrestle, you don’t know how to fight. Wrestling is the prerequisite to fighting”
David “Tank” Abbott

“Very often one looks at a technique in the course of a class and you think, would this do the job on a maniac in the street? With Wrestling you were thinking, how can I tone this stuff down so that I don’t kill the maniac on the street?”
Geoff Thomspon

Wrestling is the core, the foundation. Wrestling is the pre-requisite to fighting. All other combative skill grows out of this.

Wrestling is so vastly under-rated as a martial art. The first class I took in Wrestling, I got thrown around like a rag doll. That’s in spite of the fact that I’d already been through some serious Ju-Jutsu training and a few years working as a Bouncer. Oh…Did I mention that the guys throwing me around were half my size. Anyone who tries to tell you Wrestling is “just brute strength” has clearly never done any real Wrestling.

What amazed me most about western Wrestling was how simple and natural the techniques are compared to Japanese Judo and Ju-Jutsu. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t take Judo, however. Any form of grappling sport where you get to test yourself against a live, resisting opponent will do the trick. Even if you just wrestle “rough ‘n’ tumble” with your buddies you’ll still pick up a lot of useful skills.

The Berserker motto for Wrestling ought to be…
“Any where, any time, with rules or without.”

Clint

Western Martial Arts Part Three: Boxing Works!

November 25, 2009June 1, 2008 by DubhGhaill

“When I went on the door, I was highly graded after twenty years of studying martial arts, and I realized straight away that what I had was not working: it was not only not working, it was laughable. And I discovered that in the real world where violence is the norm, most martial artists were ridiculed, they were not thought of as being credible in a real fight.”

“People often ask me what art I would select for a physical confrontation if I could only take up one discipline, and I tell them it would be boxing…”
Geoff Thompson: 6th Dan Karate, 1st Dan Kung Fu, 1st Dan Judo.

Now we get down to brass tacks and bare knuckles. Boxing WORKS! In the ring and on the streets, Boxing sets the standard. You can break all the boards and bricks and river-stones you want, but it doesn’t mean squat if you can’t land those strikes on target, under pressure.

A lot of martial artists like to disparage Boxing. They say it’s ‘just a sport.’ While I happen to agree that the modern rules are too restrictive, I find these criticisms fairly childish. The average Boxer will knock-out the average Karate player despite the fact that he’s been trained within the rules. Besides, what makes these people think a Boxer doesn’t know how to bite, thumb, elbow, head-butt and stomp?

Clint.

The link below leads to a short article by Ned Beaumont, the author of my all-time favorite boxing manual Championship Streetfighting.
http://www.loompanics.com/Articles/SportingLife.html

This next link leads to a page that is more focused on the traditional French Kickboxing style La Savate, but it also has a few nice essays on bare-knuckle Boxing and self defence.
http://www.savateaustralia.com

Western Martial Arts Part Two

November 25, 2009June 1, 2008 by DubhGhaill

Western Martial Arts all tend to share certain fundamental traits that differentiate them from their eastern cousins. This is not so much a case of either/or but rather a matter of degrees and general tendencies. There are also certain characteristics that all effective arts will share, regardless of their cultural origin.

Simplicity
When your arse is on the line you need to K.I.S.S. Keep It Simple, Stupid.

Oriental martial arts instructors tend to make a lot of noise about skill and subtlety and ‘advanced’ techniques. Western style coaches talk a lot more about heart, spirit, conditioning and the importance of a focus on the basics.

To be fair, I don’t think this is really representative of true, classically trained oriental martial artists. Real warriors know the importance of simplicity, no matter where they come from. It is most definitely true of the average commercial instructor in business today. Commercially available eastern Martial Arts tend to be too much Art and not enough Martial.

Offensive Mindset
“The best defence is a good offence.” Western martial arts emphasize the advantage gained by seizing the initiative. Eastern martial arts tend to work on a two step defend-and-counter mentality. He does this, then you do that. “We wait for the attacker to attack and then we use his own energy against him.” That’s all crap.

“As far as physical self-defence is concerned, the only thing I found to be consistently effective in thousands of altercations, and watching thousands of altercations involving other people, was the pre-emptive attack… Most people are still teaching block-counter, or letting the opponent attack first, or trap-counter. And it’s all too late. If it’s going to be physical, it’s about learning to hit hard and learning to hit first. This is the only thing that works consistently.” Geoff Thompson

Competition
One of the most consistent, fundamental characteristics of western martial culture is our tendency to turn everything into a sport. In fact, I personally believe that we over-do the sports side to the point that we neglect good old-fashioned dirty fighting and basic self-defence.

Competition does serve its purpose though, it keeps us martial bastards honest. No more endless debates about which style is better or “If I was ever in a real fight, then I’d…” Get in the ring and try it out. Put up…or shut up.

Individualism
A tall man does not fight the same way a short man does. The student cannot be expected to fight the same way as the teacher.

In oriental martial culture, your fighting style is usually defined by the school you train at. The student is usually expected to mimic his “Master’s” movements exactly before he is allowed to begin developing his own methods. Western martial culture does not contain this same tendency towards dogmatism and guru-worship. Our Coaches understand that while there may be many ways to do something ‘wrong’, there are usually several ways to do it right.

Physical Conditioning
Fighting is a physical activity, so by definition you do actually have to be physically ‘fit’ to fight.

I really don’t even know why people bother to argue about this, you need to be in good shape anyway. It makes no sense to spend all your time worrying about muggers and rapists and Secret Chinese Death Matches and then drop dead of a heart-attack.

Clint.