Firewalking

There are two popular scientific theories, known as the Leidenfrost Effect and the Low Conductivity Theory, used by skeptics in their attempts to force firewalking into the realm of their conventional world view and in effect, explain it away.

No firewalkers I know ever claimed that something "supernatural" was going on. I wonder how many of the skeptics have actually done a firewalk.

There are many brittle neurotics out there who live in their heads and love to explain away the experiences of the rest of the body (heart, guts, nerve, etc.) as merely disguised brainwork. These are the people who disdain all the emphasis I put in my dojo on actual experience with the emotional-physiological experience of the fight. They may actually believe that making the kihon kamae look like the crude drawing in Hatsumi Sensei's scroll in the Andy Adams book is the key to survival. From all the research and interview and experience I have conducted in 31 years of training, I know that they will not even remember Gyokko from Shinden Fudo when this wall of hatred and contempt comes punching at their head on two shuffling legs.

I have visited too many dojo where "politely spirited" training takes place with lots of hushed voice detailed technical adjusting of elbow angles, stance depth, and so forth. Excremento de toro! Where's all the noise and broken rhythm and body moving before the mind knows what's going on that shows up in any real beating or rape? I feel it is immoral to teach "self-protection" without addressing heavily what will be going on inside. So-called warrior training without some form of "kuji" is like believing that computer simulation is actually flying a plane.

A fire walk is a great way to get a sense of what hesitation or false bravado feel like in the face of what is perceived as a real threat. I've done 16 firewalks myself, and yes, I admit I was coached in the technique by "mystics" in Japanese mountains.

- Stephen K. Hayes