(Photo: Urvashi Verma/Times of Israel)
By Urvashi Verma - March 4, 2018
Originally appeared here in the Times of Israel
What do an instructor from Iran who chose the path of peace, a Jordanian who trained in martial arts with the royal family in Dubai, an Egyptian who serves in the karate federation in Iraq, and a Turkish man who promoted karate for women in his country have in common?
They were all participants in the Budo for Peace International Martial Arts Seminar that took place in Raanana last month, marking the fourth anniversary of a gathering of leading athletes who are using the martial arts to promote coexistence, respect, and peace. They hailed from the Middle East, Japan, Australia, and Greece.
The visiting sensei, or masters, conveyed a strong and united message that the trek was not politically motivated in any way but instead a call to promote values of peace among the youth.
“Our purpose is to teach younger generations to know peace better, not by violent means but by doing martial arts and showing the values of respect to one another — most importantly not to hurt one another,” said Mikdat Kahraman, a master martial arts teacher from Ankara, Turkey. Read More