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Everybody buys into the concept of Deadly Martial Arts Techniques, but most schools don't deliver. Teaching Little Johnny, training for tournaments, these concepts take from the fighting arts. Interestingly, one need only understand the three stages of technique, or bunkai, and it doesn't matter whether you do karate or kenpo or taekwondo or whatever, and your art is going to become deadly.

The basic idea and principle of what you are doing must be understood. Often there are a bunch of little things that need to be understood, but they come together in a single idea. This idea is presented in the form, and it is why things like Karate kata or taekwondo poomse are actually vital training tools.

The form, you see, is a concept that is perfect. You practice it without distractions and you attempt to make each move as perfect as you can. You try to lose such things as reaction times, and you train your body to move more and more efficiently.

The second thing you need to do is apply the pieces of the forms in bunkai, or techniques. You need a touch of controlled distraction, you need to experience resistance. Most important, you need to experience the reality of bodies colliding with bodies.

The idea here is that you need to have somebody try to stop you from doing your tricks. This enables you to deal with real live opposition, and go through the doors that will enable you to make a trick work, and to find all the 'what ifs' that will get in the way of that workability. This is perfection pushed new levels of difficulty; this is learning how to make the art work in spite of anything that might get in the way.

The third thing is to take your skills and make them work in freestyle, or sparring. Here your kenpo techniques may not be so smooth and liquid, in spite of anything Mr. Parker might say, and you are going to have to push through all resistance and make them functional. Ultimately, as you test these applications and find the working parts, you are going to find the perfection of art that can be found in such forms as wankin and seisan and even lowly sanchin.

The thing you have to watch out for, in this process of smoothing out distractions, is getting sold on violence as a solution. You must not come to love the Joy of Combat that is so alluring. You must, in spite of the chaotic nature of the subject, hold to cold, calm logic; you must control yourself until you find yourself.

The martial arts are a project of finding yourself through intense workouts, and through the seeking and isolating of perfection in every movement you do. Perfection is there, you know, but you have to pay a price. Deadly Martial Arts Techniques, you see, can only be bought by inner peace.

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You are walking down the street when a dozen Arabs on Choppers begin to ride around you. They were trained in special Spetznatz ninja techniques by the CIA, what you gonna do? Fortunately, you are prepared, you are wearing pants, and they are held up by that most deadly of all martial arts dreaded belt!

Now, you think I am kidding, but I am not. You are about to get a lesson in, uh, belt fu. Or Belt-kido, or whatever.

First, always make sure the belt you are wearing is medium thickness and smooth. You need to be able to jerk it out of the loops in one easy motion. Then grasp rip that belt firmly, and get ready to kick a king size serving of ass!

The buckle portion is excellent for use as a brass knuckles. Grip it firmly, make sure you don't hit in such a fashion that your own knuckles will break. Then, belt held tight, smack away with impudence.

If you have sharp edges on the buckle it can be used to slice and dice. Heck, swinging the belt as a flail or a whip, you can make mincemeat out of a home intruder. Just make sure it doesn't bounce back and shave your own pretty face!

Now, here's something for those of you with a bit of discipline and rocks, the kind of rocks you pick up off the ground. You can use the belt as a sling! Can anybody spell Goliath out there?

Now, believe it or not, there are actually six techniques covered in the last paragraphs, though you might have to sort them out. So what is the seventh technique? Use your belt to tie, wrap or choke somebody.

Okey dokey and ain't this more fun than a barrel of Tai Chi Masters, that's a lot of stuff you can do with a simple piece of don't get me started on using some dirty, old socks. One thing to be careful of, however, please make sure your pants won't fall fall when you pull the belt out...pulling your pants off in the middle of an alley brawl isn't good strategy, unless your attacker is going to die of laughter. And, all points being made, That is how you make Seven Deadly Martial Arts Weapons out of a strap of leather with a chunk of iron on the tip.