Today, there’s a variety of martial arts one can choose from to begin learning. As a result, one may get confused deciding which one to start practicing. This article will discuss the differences between two specific ones: Karate and Karate-do.
While Karate refers to the martial art itself, Karate-do is a way of living that goes beyond self-defense and learning to fight. For instance, one who practices Karate-do will religiously follow its rules both in training and outside.
Personally, Karate is one of my favorites. Although I haven’t come close to mastering it, I believe that it holds an incredible value that everyone can utilize to benefit. However, the terms may be confusing so this article will explain the differences in the terminology.
Before continuing, I wrote a post about whether Karate is suitable for self-defense. Follow the link to find out.
What is Karate-do?
If you’re not a part of the martial arts community, you may find it challenging to understand the terminology. For instance, when adding a do to the term “Karate,” the meaning changes. So let’s examine what it means.
Karate-do is a lifestyle that involves the practice of the martial art- Karate. As a result, Karate-do practitioners go well beyond Karate’s self-defense and fighting system. Instead, they live religiously, following the rules and guidelines.
As you can see, it’s different. Although it includes the training in the martial art, it’s not that. If you were to be a Karate-do practitioner, you would spend most of your time self-reflecting and some precious minutes on meditation.
Although I have never practiced it, I have some experience with Karate. I don’t doubt the benefits of this fighting style for a mere second. Instead, I’ll encourage everyone to begin training in Karate if they haven’t begun already.
To summarize, Karate-do isn’t a fighting system. Instead, it’s a lifestyle its trainees religiously follow. Although it won’t resemble a monastic lifestyle and mindset, it’s similar to the modern self-improvement system. Consequently, studying Karate-do will highly benefit one’s mental and physical health.
What’s the difference between Karate and Karate-do?
Understanding the difference between the two- is critical for your success in the realm. If you’re an individual that desires to learn to fight, and that’s it, it’ll be best if you understand the differences. Consequently, you can make a wiser choice on which one you want to learn.
While Karate is a martial art, Karate-do is a lifestyle its trainees follow religiously. Some activites such trainees participate in are; self-reflection, meditation, and remaining stress-free. It’s important to note that Karate-do isn’t a monastic lifestyle like the Shaolin monks.
I won’t elaborate too much on these sections since it’s the primary difference. However, I can see why people may get confused when noticing these two terms. When a beginner wants to choose a fighting style, it’s easy to get confused with the wide variety of these martial arts.
Eventually, beginners shouldn’t begin practicing Karate-do without knowing the details. So I want to offer to start with regular Karate and then move on to the do version.
Is Karate-do a martial art?
Now that we understand why Karate-do is a lifestyle let’s examine whether it’s a martial art. Again, I want to note the importance of knowing this detail prior to beginning the training, as it’ll be best if you know what you’re doing.
Karate-do is a martial art since it involves studying Karate movements and techniques as part of training. As a result, its trainees will learn to fight using Karate as their primary fighting style.
Is Karate-do an Olympic sport?
Although Karate is a martial art, some of its versions aren’t. In this section, we’ll examine whether the Olympic sport that is Karate can also be referred to as Karate-do.
Karate-do isn’t an Olympic sport since it’s not exclusively a martial art. Instead, it’s the lifestyle. As such, referring to Karate-do as an Olympic sport- is wrong at its core.
Final words
I have never practiced Karate-do. Yet, researching this topic has been rather interesting since it’s an entire world of novices. If you’re interested in studying this fighting style and lifestyle, there isn’t a single part of my body that’ll not encourage you to begin.
Karate-do is a lifestyle that involves practicing many fighting techniques from the martial art “Karate.” Learning it- will require some of your time outside training for various exercises and activites. For instance, self-reflection is a common activity Karate-do practitioners do.