Product Description

Fudebakudo, or The Way of the Exploding Pen, is the definitive martial arts cartoon. Already an underground phenomenon in the martial arts world, it first appeared in book form in April 2003. Including such classics as the Hokikoki Kata, the Floral Styles of Kung-fu, and the fabled Fudebakudo Stunt-Kick, the Fudebakudo book is an essential item in every serious martial artist's library.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #179062 in Books
• Published on: 2003-04-01
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 128 pages

Excerpted from Fudebakudo: The Way of the Exploding Pen by David Whiteland. Copyright © 2003. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
One of the most common prejudices facing students of modern Fudebakudo is the now infamous mantra "The pen is mightier than the sword." This saying is often wrongly attributed to Fudebakudo by teachers with little practical experience beyond their own martial arts who are not aware of the subtle understanding of ma-ai, or mutual distance, that Fudebakudo requires. Basically, Fudebakudo regards the sword to be considerably mightier than the pen at distances of less than six feet (approximately 1.7 meters). An anonymous yet celebrated Fudebakudo master of Japan’s Kamakura era (1185-1333 A.D.) wrote a short poem which is now held to be a seminal and profound expression of Fudebakudo philosophy on this matter:

The pen is mightier than the sword.
But a sword
Dipped in ink,
Now,
That's a good compromise.

Customer Reviews

The most lethal form of martial arts - laughing out loud
I haven't found much in the way of books or websites which look at the humorous aspects of martial arts - perhaps for those of us who practice - martial arts are too important to laugh at ... on the other hand we've all experienced surreal moments in our training and frankly if you can't laugh at yourself who can you laugh at!

So at long last a martial artist (an aikidoka I believe, but that doesn't save aikido from being 'persecuted') has taken a pen and drawn and written about martial arts, but from an 'odd' kind of perspective:- everything is familiar, but somehow made funny.

The cartoons are very amusing, and the written commentry excellent as well. It doesn't matter how practical/pragmatic or spiritual/philosophical your style is, you'll find plenty in this book that will make you laugh.

All my martial arts friends (from different styles) have really enjoyed this, and if you aren't a martial artist and would like to buy a 'different' sort of book for a martial artist friend, this would be a really good gift. One thing though, don't expect non-martial artists to find it funny (or even largely comprhensible) - they won't. You need to be an 'insider' to appreciate the humour.

I hope that they bring a second volume out soon, but given that it has taken them so long to produce this first volume (some of the cartoons have appeared over the years); I doubt if it will be any time soon.

Go on, buy a copy; you'll never look upon martial arts in quite the same way again.

useful and funny
As an aikidoka and lover of comics, i was happy to receive this book. It is well informed and lighthearted, informative and wry.