As a Thai-Boxing teacher my primary concern is the student's ability to achieve his/her potential. Whether that student is a beginner, advanced, a slow learner or an elite performer, I want to help them to achieve the highest standard of which they are able.
In order to do this I have to develop a very close relationship with my students. Knowing them personally is a vital key to understanding how an individual learns. Good teaching ability requires sensitivity and communication. These skills require as much cultivation and development as any technical skill.
We must approach our students as the diverse individuals they are, people just like us who have been shaped in a million unpredictable ways by lifetimes of experiences we can never fully grasp. They have their own reasons for wanting to learn MuayThai and have their own ideas as to what they will get from it. Because of this they also bring well developed beliefs and values; they bring an ability to analyse and question us and ( very often ) a whole set of opinions about what they can and can't do, what they will and won't do.
My experience has taught me that these attitudes and beliefs are perfectly natural and should be expected. We must learn to tolerate behaviour we might, at first, interpret as disrespectful.
Let us not forget that students may come from different cultural beliefs and not want to experience all aspects of MuayThai - especially its deep rooted Buddhist traditions. For example, many Muslim students feel uncomfortable using the traditional "Wai" in class and will never reciprocate this as a gesture of respect to their Kru. This is because the religion of Islam does not allow a Muslim to bow the head for any reason except to worship and honour God.
As experienced teachers we should not be offended by this cultural protocol, rather we must respect our student's cultural differences and embrace them to our Martial Art. Of course I appreciate that teachers of Thai-Boxing want to keep Thailand's cultural traditions alive ( as I do ...) by bowing in the traditional Thai way, performing the Wai Kru and Wai Mongkon etc. It shows the depth of a teacher's knowledge that he/she can impart these cultural customs to non-Thai students of MuayThai.
I have been to Thailand many times over the past 30 years AND trained at numerous Camps and never once ( in 30 years ) have I been forced to Wai to any Arjarn, Kru, Monk or Buddha image !! When I was at Pinsinchai camp in Bangkok (many years ago) the head trainer Patnoy, had Muslim Thai Boxers. These fighters never performed Wai Kru or Wai Mongkon but would always do the Ram Muay before the fight. Indeed there are many Muslims in Thailand,(predominantly in the south) an estimated 4% of the population ! My old friend Samit Murnramon, a great fighter and teacher, is a Thai Muslim in the UK. He is a very humble, private man who explained to me that Thai cultural traditions are more complex for a Muslim Thai. He will Wai sometimes ( like when he met King Bomipol ) but never in ordinary life or whilst teaching.
No doubt Thai teachers would be offended if their non- Muslim Thai students didn't Wai when expected, but most Thai's are aware of our cultural and religious differences and do not generally expect "Farang" to Wai.
The World MuayThai Council has adopted the slogan - "One World, one MuayThai" in recognition that Thailand's national sport and cultural heritage, is Thailand's most unique gift to the Martial Arts world. It is now a multicultural art that belongs to everyone. It will never lose its original flavour, its fighting spirit will never change, but it has been re-interpreted, in some small way, to be accessible to all.
A real challenge to teaching Thai-Boxing is to develop a deep self-awareness in the student, a spiritual understanding which not all students are ready for, but we have to try and cultivate this consciousness just as we would the physical body. If our student is already on this journey of spiritual understanding, it is our duty to assist them and not try to hinder them in any way.
Mick.
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3 comments:
Dear Riaz,
I must say Mick is a real gem and that his approach as a Senior Instructor is amongst the best I have ever come across. In reality other than Noel Gayle my instructor I rarely came across people with the right approach.
I will say that the spirit of WIcker Camp is second to no camp in the country, but that may be due to my lack of travelling around as loyalty is very important also. I disaprove of travelling just out of habit from one camp to another. A committed student who is respectful and mindful of this and should always seek permission from his instructor.
Please pass on my kind regards to Mick and also please inform him I am getting in shape and tuning up my basics before jumping into the deep end. My problem is getting regular access to a good gym.
It was a good read!
Yaseen
What a greatly enlightened post Mick, all too often in Martial Art circles there is attitude problems and ‘chips’ on shoulders. Some instructor’s bad or negative attitudes can pass on to their students and an atmosphere of arrogance and unfriendliness can arise in the gym/club or dojo. Training at the wicker camp is both refreshing and motivating, and is a prime example of how the chief instructors open-mindedness, friendliness and great attitude towards training can run down and be past on to students/fighters and instructors alike.
Fantastic blog! Keep the posts coming!
Dom
Indeed this is a great article written by Arjarn Mick Mullaney, and reminded me of something I read many years ago in a book called 'Way to the Martial Arts' by Peter Lewis: 'Combat is identified with fighting and killing and yet, through the practice of martial disciplines, exponents have found increased spiritual awareness. Thus a strange paradox began to emerge with a concept of inner peace beyond fighting. Ultimately, through continued studies, a search for a higher understanding of one's self could be fostered. No one can train in a martial discipline without at some stage becoming aware of this fundamental theme. To realise this, is to be halfway towards grasping what martial arts really are.'
Unfortunately, this outlook and philosophy of gaining more than fitness and strength from martial arts training is missing from some 'Muay Thai' clubs I've come across - the great art has been reduced to simply 'keep fit' classes or a sport with the essence missing. On the other hand, sometimes when Muay Thai is taught by an instructor capable of inculcating 'the increased spiritual awareness', the art will not be taught to those that are not willing to accept/perform certain rituals. As Arjarn Mick states th student may be from a different culture or religion and not feel comfortable with Buddhist practices. Such refusals should not be treated as bigotry or a lack of respect - it will always be evident from a good student that he/she is respectful of the teacher and holds the teacher in high esteem despite their apparent rejection of the Wai of Wai Kru, for example. It is refreshing that a Master of Muay Thai appreciates this and therefore helps to inculcate in the student something deeper than 'just a sport' despite the student's religious persuation. The words that stuck with me are 'If our student is already on this journey of spiritual understanding, it is our duty to assist them and not try to hinder them in any way'.
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