LMA Motto

From All, Learn One; From One, Master All.

The motto is intended to emphasise some of the the core ideas of the LMA Way:

• Each martial artist can learn from every other martial artist.
• Learning comes before mastering.
• By training in principles and fundamentals a martial artist can master any technique and application.
• Each martial artist will ultimately develop their own unique art (the collection of all the skills they need).

The motto is a play on Virgil’s Ab uno disce omnes (Latin: From one, learn all) from The Aeneid.  This maxim applies to situations in which a single observation can be taken as universally applicable.  This would often be an over-generalisation in martial arts.  Though one person may be able to use a given technique in a given situation, not all individuals can or should use the same technique.  Nor can one technique work in all situations.

I am a big proponent of the universal principles that exist in all martial arts. I also believe that effective techniques will embody these principles.  How an individual decides to apply techniques will be unique to them.  These applications should be developed drawing upon the collective experience of all artists they train with and learn from.

A guide to conduct