Up until modern times, embu (public presentations of a martial art) were either honno embu (offerings to the deities of a shrine) or presentations to a figure of authority. The techniques of a martial ryu (tradition) were considered so essential to survival that one avoided showing one’s techniques to outsiders much as one hides nuclear technology today. For this reason, in the Edo period, warriors would flock to any duel or street confrontation – not only for the entertainment value, but to pick up some of the essentials of combat possessed by the combatants, just in case one had to fight someone from that martial tradition at a later time.
Author: Ellis Amdur
Natural Born Killers
There is an island where chimpanzees are resettled after a lab closes, or because of aggressiveness, or psychological and physical damage. The chimpanzees are no longer useful to humans, and so they are placed on this island to live out the rest of their lives. There is not enough forage, so estimable humans bring in food by boat. I saw a video some years back of a rather serious error of judgment by one of these well-meaning individuals.