Master Hopkick
There is a legendary character named Master Hopkick. He is one of the greatest martial artists ever to throw a kick. Long ago, Master Hopkick was a young boy, living on the island of Tulagi, in the Solomon Islands. There, he met a man named Mr. Tung, who gave him his very first lessons, and his love and passion for learning everything related to martial arts. That young boy grew up to have many adventures, and teach students of his own. His name was John Ramo, and this is one of his stories.
The Lesson of Why We Fight
The ultimate aim of martial arts is not having to use them – Miyamoto Musashi
John Ramo sat on his martial arts instructor’s front porch, his arms wrapped tightly around his legs. He rested his chin on his knees and watched the steady downpour of rain as it turned the hard-packed dirt to mud, and created small rivers in the courtyard where he usually trained. It had been a bad day.
He heard the door open, and his teacher step outside. Squatting down next to John, Mr. Tung looked at the young boy and frowned.
“John, why you not knock?”
“I…I don’t feel like training today, Mr. Tung.” John spoke quietly, and Mr. Tung leaned closer to him.
“Why not? What happen?” Mr. Tung had never heard his student say he didn’t want to train before – John had been frustrated and even discouraged by difficult challenges, but he always worked hard to overcome them. It was one of the qualities which made him such a good student.
“I am a coward.” John mumbled the words.
“What you are? I do not know this word.” Mr. Tung knew several languages, but there were still certain words he had not yet learned in English.
“I’m not brave, Mr. Tung. I train and I spar and I learn so many things with you, but then I got pushed to fight, and…” John’s voice trailed off, and he continued to stare at the rain pouring down around them.
“And what? You fight?” Mr. Tung’s concern could be heard in his voice.
“No. That’s the whole point. I didn’t fight. I didn’t even try. I walked away. They all called me a coward and said my training is useless.”
“And what do you think?” Mr. Tung asked quietly.
“I think…I was scared. I just kept thinking that what they were saying wasn’t worth fighting for.” John had been surprised at how calm he had felt in the moment. But then, as he walked away, and heard the taunting words the boys called to him, he began to feel confused. And discouraged.
“What they say to you?” Mr. Tung motioned for John to follow him inside.
John stood, slipped his sandals off, and followed his teacher into the small house. Mr. Tung began to prepare a pot of tea, and John sat down on the woven rug that covered most of the floor.
“They always say mean things to the kids who go to school. Usually I can avoid them, but today, it was harder. They know I train with you – they see me practicing. They want me to fight.”
“And you did not fight. You are wise student, John. You have learned lessons well.”
John looked at his teacher in surprise. “What do you mean, Mr. Tung? We train to fight all the time!”
Mr. Tung shook his head slightly. “No, my boy. We train not to fight.”
John was used to his instructor giving him unusual lessons to consider and think about, and it seemed this was yet another one.
Mr. Tung poured two cups of tea, walked slowly over to his student, handed him one of the cups, then lowered himself to sit nearby.
“When boys say mean things to you, and push you to fight, what you feel inside?”
John thought as he sipped the tea.
“I felt upset, but also sort of calm. I…wanted to escape. It was confusing. I mostly just wanted them to stop so I could get away. When one of them stepped to one side, I…I ran.”
Mr. Tung sipped his tea and looked at his student, noticing his slumped shoulders and head hanging.
“And you feel you are not brave because you not fight?” he asked.
John nodded. “Brave men fight. In wars, in all kinds of battles. Only cowards won’t fight.”
“Ah, yes.” Mr. Tung’s response caused John to look up at him.
“Battles. Wars. Men fight because they must fight. Because if they do not, something terrible will happen. Men fight to protect others.”
John pondered this.
“What terrible thing happen because you did not fight today?” Mr. Tung asked.
“Well, nothing happened. Not terrible things, anyways. They said some words that hurt.” John answered honestly, and Mr. Tung nodded.
“Yes. Words can hurt us. But fighting because of those words, not make them hurt less.”
John thought for a moment.
“Mr. Tung, are you saying I didn’t fight today because I didn’t need to fight, and not because I’m a coward?”
“Yes. You see now? We train not to fight. You train mind, not body only.”
John nodded, quietly thinking.
“But if we train not to fight, why do we practice so much? All of the training we do is about how to win a fight, isn’t it?”
Mr. Tung sipped his tea and nodded.
“Yes.”
The single-word answer was not what John had hoped for.
“Then why? Why do you train me in speed, and accuracy, and balance? And why do we spar, if we are not preparing to fight?”
Mr. Tung smiled.
“We train hard, yes. Train to win fight. Train to be ready for anything. Practice, always practice, so body is ready when need to be. Sometimes, wars and battles must be. Sometimes, we must fight. Hope to never need, but better to have, and not need, than to need, and not have.”
John sat silently thinking about this, and Mr. Tung continued.
“Today, walk away from boys. Problem solved. What if boys were hurting small child? Or bothering old woman? Or mother?”
“Well, then, I would have had to stop them.” John was beginning to understand what Mr. Tung wanted him to learn. He nodded, then repeated his teacher’s words.
“Better to have, and not need, than to need, and not have. I think I understand, now, Mr. Tung.”
Mr. Tung’s eyes twinkled with a smile. “You begin to understand, my son. You begin to learn reason for training. Today, you learn first step.”
John smiled and realized he felt much better about everything that had happened.
“Mr. Tung, the rain has stopped. Can we spar? I do feel like training, after all.”
The old man smiled and took the empty teacups to the washbasin.
“We go down to beach to spar. You need work on balance. Sand is best teacher.”
Master Hopkick Discussion Questions:
- Why do you think John felt like he was a coward?
- What do you think would have happened if John had fought the other boys?
- Can you think of a situation when you would need to protect someone?
- Can you think of some bad reasons to fight?
If you enjoyed this story, please share it with others! Consider reading the Master Hopkick series and discussing the lessons – using the questions – as a part of your classes with younger students, or even over Zoom! Let us know in the comments below if your students enjoyed it!
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