Ideological conditioning of martial arts training

Background and Study Aim: The impact of ideas on teaching and training in martial arts has not been widely studied yet. Novum here is specially designed methodology - by expert's judgements, not directly. On the ground of General Theory of Fighting Arts, the question is: How do ideological (philosophical, religious) conditions affect the process of training in different martial arts? The scope of research was limited to contemporary Europe and selected martial arts organizations (1980-2015). Method: The first method used here is based on analysis of the content of the literature of the subject, or rather qualitative analysis of the discourse. Then the opinions and teaching of 5 highest rank masters of martial arts from France, Germany and Poland were taken into account (expert court method). It comes to this own, long-standing participant observation of the author. Results: There are 5 issues taken from the literature of the subject and 5 of their western applications, according to master-teachers' teaching. They represent the classic canon of martial arts. The attitude to martial arts traditions varies from preference towards faithfulness to innovation. Disciples of Asian masters are more often in favour of the original version of the curriculum. Conclusions: Most of the ideological content of today's Asian martial arts comes from the philosophy of Taoism. In many cases the symbols and rules derive rather from the cultural traditions of the country of origin of the martial arts, rather than directly from certain religious or philosophical systems. The attitude of widely perceived perfectionism is one of these universal values of martial arts, which is worth promoting regardless of world-view.