Martial Arts Lessons Taught in Public Parks

The study of an ancient sword-fighting form or the mapping of all the vital nerves on the humane body are all lessons one would expect to learn in a martial arts class in a commercial dojo, not a public park.

“At the park, it’s always good to be able to look around and see farther than just constricting walls. It’s very relaxing, and it gets students to relax,” said Harry Hsu, founder of Harry Hsu’s Martial Arts Academy in La Crescenta.

Hsu has had class every Saturday from 1 to 4 p.m. at Crescenta Valley Park for the past five years.

“It’s the difference between running a business and doing what you’re doing. When you’re outdoors, it’s going to be more private,” said Master Zhen Shen-Lang, who conducts his Tai Chi seminars every Saturday from 10 a.m. to noon and also teaches martial arts at the Verdugo Hills YMCA, the Crescenta-Cañada YMCA and his house. Shen-Lang has been teaching for 21 years and has been studying for the past 24 years.

“You are outdoors, which means you are not going to be enclosed. You’re putting yourself beyond the safety of the box,” said Nehemiah Lewrel, who teaches Saturday classes for Hsu’s academy.

Students learning martial arts outdoors go through the same drills as a student learning from inside a dojo. Class starts off with simple stretches and warm-ups then moves on to forms and application.

According to some martial artists, the only difference from learning the martial arts outdoors would be location and some unique advantages.

“A dojo is more traditional, but a park is definitely more of an upbeat, happy environment and more open to the public. That’s what we are about, teaching the public,” said Hsu, who has been studying martial arts for 15 years and has been teaching for the past 12 years.

Those learning outdoors feel that it enhances one’s performance in combat. “The way I look at it is if you really want to get down to real battle, it doesn’t always happen in the dojo. It [the park] is just generally a better environment to practice in,” said Ben Gropp, who has been attending outdoor classes for the past four years.

Some martial artists feel that the modern day dojo even hinders a student’s understanding of the fighting art the student is studying.

“The martial arts were not traditionally taught in a dojo. That’s a commercialized thing just so they [instructors] can charge more money. It was usually taught in a courtyard or field,” said Lewrel. “You really have to be willing to confront the art you have to confront the punch, the impact, and often times you won’t see that happening inside a studio.”