Can Philosophy Help Me Train?

So recently I ran across a couple taekwondo instructors who, as part of their work, read philosophy textbooks. Even better, it was more than just The Art of War and The Five Rings. They were well versed in Plato, Aristotle, Hobbes, Marcus Aurelius, and many more classic philosophers. That got me wondering, can philosophy help with training?

The more I think about it, the more I think… yes! I think it really could be a helpful training tool and here’s why.

The Art of War by Sun Tzu is a classic text for many people. It’s read by generals and professors, yes. But it’s also read by teachers, lawyers, and entrepreneurs. I’ve even run across leaders of charities who have found it helpful in their work! Certainly a helpful text to any who are interested!

Even reading can be helpful to the martial artist!

For the martial artist, The Art of War is a great text for conflict resolution and leadership. If you’ve read some of my other work, you know that martial artists are known for taking (or in some cases being handed) leadership roles. Leadership can require conflict resolution. That’s where the Art of War comes in handy. It masterfully teaches students how to handle conflict through both analogy and examples. Even the more literal explanations of ancient battle strategy can be surprisingly helpful!

Conflict resolution, in my experience, is key to being a good black belt. Especially if one wants to be an instructor. Inevitably, taekwondo instruction will involve conflict. The same holds true for being a referee at a competition. People will sometimes get very passionate in their objectives, whether it is getting a gold medal or passing a test. It is a part of the instructor's job, in my experience, to stay calm and resolve the situation.

Another situation where The Art of War is helpful is sparring competitions. Sun Tzu isn't talking purely about battles and wars. He’s talking about strategy. Contrary to popular belief, sparring is not just hitting your opponent as much as possible. In fact doing so is a gamjeom in some competitions! No, instead it is a game of strategy. Using such a classic text may help a coach or athlete help make those snap decisions that can win or lose a match!

Some of the best black belts I know are avid readers!

Another surprisingly helpful book is Marcus Aurelius’ Meditations (though the copy I have is titled the Emperor's Handbook). Marcus Aurelius was a Roman emperor, so you know he knew what he was doing! All jokes aside, Marcus Aurelius was actually a relatively good leader and certainly not nearly as bad as some of his predecessors! Regardless, his meditations are a classic book for all philosophers to read, and a great one for anyone seeking leadership roles (yes, including black belts!)

For the martial artists, I find this book to be very illuminating because it can teach one how to be a thoughtful leader. The truth of the matter is that leadership is both a matter of logic and a matter of compassion. Those two things go hand in hand and, in my experience, the best leaders use both. The ramblings of an emperor can be surprisingly helpful in learning this.

There are many other philosophers than these two who can be helpful to the martial artist. The truth of the matter is that martial arts is more than just fighting. Martial arts is about leadership. As any well taught black belt will likely tell you, being a black belt comes with responsibility. The same holds true for leadership. Leadership is more than power, it’s responsibility as well.

Indeed martial arts is about scholarship as well. Taekwondo in particular always has books and talks and lectures from experts on all aspects of the martial art. Whether they are on competititon form, taekwondo theory, instruction, or philosophy, they can be surprisingly helpful!

Guess what? You can read a book anywhere! Yes. Anywhere!

Okay, so philosophy is important. “How can I apply this to my training?”, you ask. Well that depends on where you are and where you’re going. If you aspire to enter competitions (yes, even poomsae) then finding a good book on strategy might be wise to read. If you are looking at turning to teaching, then perhaps a book on leadership could be helpful. As a person who has done both jobs and read both books, I have found use for both.

Leadership is an inherent part of being a martial artist, particularly if you’re an instructor. I’ve found both of these philosophers to be helpful in figuring out how best to lead in any particular circumstance. In order to be a good leader, in my mind, one should learn from other leaders. When it comes to the Roman Empire, much of the curiosity around it surrounds the behavior of the emperors. After reading only a few books on the topic, it becomes clear that bad leaders are rather easy to create. One of the few exceptions, generally speaking, is Marcus Aurelius. His philosophical views and diligent thought made him a much better leader than some of his predecessors or heirs. So arguably, being a thoughtful leader, helps one be a good leader.

Of course, being a good leader vs. a bad leader is a whole other post (or posts) in and of themselves. But this blog post is mostly a book recommendation, so I think I’ll leave my ramblings of what (in my opinion) a good leader is for another post.

In summary, knowledge is power. But one should not forget, power also corrupts.

Good luck in your leadership aspirations and black belt journey!