| "Old age? There is no such thing!" Mme. | | | | |
| Jeanne Lieberman replied in response to a | | | | Mme Lieberman's dedication paid off |
| query whether her age of 92 plus was weighing | | | | abundantly. She achieved such a level of |
| on her. She was martial arts Grand master who | | | | prowess that she was able to perform |
| lived in France. This was her response to a | | | | unbelievable feats. She has demonstrated her |
| question by Claude | | | | prowess in several ways: In one demonstration |
| | | | she pinned a trained (black belt), 1.8 m |
| Bobin. He was interviewing her. Check the | | | | tall, 200 kg athlete to the ground in less |
| 1978 September issue of the Indian Reader's | | | | than one second and then repeated the feat |
| digest and you can read the article. The | | | | nine times! |
| summary is given here. | | | | |
| | | | Pretty tempting skill to acquire isn't it? |
| Mme. Jeanne Lieberman started learning | | | | This should be inspiration for young and old |
| martial arts at the tender age of 63, when | | | | alike. |
| most of us would prefer retiring from the | | | | |
| armchair to the sofa- watching the antics of | | | | Mme Lieberman is not an aggressive person. |
| our grand children. But for her, it was the | | | | Her personal philosophy is rooted in silence, |
| beginning of a newlife- a life of conquering | | | | tolerance, understanding and love. |
| and self -discovery plus a whole new vista | | | | |
| ofopportunities and healing for a lot of | | | | She returned to Paris and started her own |
| people past 60. She had prepared herself | | | | martial arts class. She developed her own |
| though. She was a regular practitioner of | | | | synthesized style based on the three martial |
| Yoga. And she had-Inspiration-lots of it! | | | | arts and Yoga. Most of her disciples are in |
| | | | their sixties or seventies. Some of them have |
| She joined a Judo Dojo (martial arts school) | | | | had extraordinaryexperiences. One seventy |
| in Paris. When she went to enroll, the joke | | | | year old student was attacked by two young |
| goes that the instructor asked if it was for | | | | muggers in the dark side alleys of Paris . |
| her son or her grandson. | | | | She was able to ward off their attack easily |
| | | | and hold one of them in a paralysing arm |
| Imagine his surprise when she replied it was | | | | lock, with him begging for mercy. |
| for her!Her astounding progress soon put an | | | | |
| end to the apprehensions of her instructor | | | | At a time when we keep hearing stories of |
| and her younger classmates and she completed | | | | estranged and isolated old people, who have |
| her black belt in sharp five years! | | | | been abandoned by their children, Mme. |
| Inspiration to her classmates! | | | | Lieberman's story is heartening in that it |
| | | | gives inspiration to stand up for ourselves, |
| She didn't rest on her achievement, though. | | | | dig into the resources within ourselves and |
| She went to Japan and started polishing up | | | | prove to ourselves and the world that we can |
| her Aikido skills that she had started | | | | take care of ourselves, and much more! |
| learning in France. Aikido is a non-violent | | | | |
| form of self-defense. She practiced under | | | | Martial arts are a sure fire way to keep |
| Master Tadashi Abe for four years before she | | | | oneself fit and old age at bay. Martial Arts |
| secured her black belt in Aikido(!). | | | | also help to maintain peace of mind and to |
| | | | develop suppleness of the body. |
| No, that is not the end of the story. At the | | | | |
| age of 72, she started learning Kung fu (Wing | | | | Martial arts are one of the best ways to |
| Chun).She received her black belt in Kung fu | | | | spend ones excess time. Of course this |
| at the age of 80, from Master Hoangnam at the | | | | statement would not appeal to the |
| famed Shaolin temple, China! Astounding | | | | enthusiastic follower, who has dedicated his |
| Inspiration, isn't it? To think how much an | | | | life to perfection in martial arts. |
| old lady would exert, pushing herself to the | | | | |
| limits. | | | | The lives of people like Jeanne Liebermann |
| | | | convey Inspiration in us to achieve all that |
| Her diet is very simple: a carrot for | | | | we are capable of. They give inspiration to |
| breakfast, an egg for lunch and a potato and | | | | transcend our limits . |
| a spoonful of honey for supper. | | | | |