185 definitions by Dancing with Fire
It means that the person you are is a direct result of how you grew up. The "environment" you were brought up in influenced the decisions you make now. Your environment makes you who you are.
So for example, product of the environment implies that if one grows up in a home full of domestic violence, one of the children in that home may become violent as well when they have a family of their own. If someone grows up in the hood, that person may become a gangster. If somebody grows up in a descent home that is filled with good resources (computer, good books, television, radio, etc.), then they are more likely to become successful. If somebody grows up in a Christian home, they will most likely become a Christian. If somebody grows up in the Middle East or in a home with Muslim parents, they are more likely to be Muslim.
by Dancing with Fire June 18, 2011
A caged animal becomes a product of his environment; mankind however builds his environments to suit his needs. If someone claims that you are a product of your environment, it means the environment you live in, has become your accepted norm, and now it influences you, rather than you influencing it.
Being a product of the environment is no different than saying you are the product of your own thinking.
by Dancing with Fire July 8, 2011
Gatka is the martial art of the Sikhs, and is tied in with the religion Sikhism. It's a weapons-based martial art, which was imparted to the Sikhs in the time of Guru Hargobind Ji (the sixth Guru of the Sikhs) by the Rajputs (Hindu warriors of northern India) in the 16th century, in gratitude for their release from imprisonment by the fledgling Sikh army of that time. The Sikhs at that time opposed the Mughal Empire, which violently oppressed both Sikhs and Hindus in the name of Islam. The Tenth Master of the Sikhs, Guru Gobind Singh Ji, was an extremely proficient martial artist.
He continued to encourage the Sikhs to train seriously in the martial arts, and in 1699 founded the Khalsa, a special Order, to which all Sikhs would thereafter aspire to joining. The Khalsa was subject to strict military and personal discipline, and were enjoined to, inter alia, always carry 5 items with them: the Kanga (a small wooden comb), Kachhehra (long drawers instead of a loincloth), Kara (a steel bracer worn on the right wrist), Kesh (uncut hair) and Kirpan (curved sword). The Khalsa was enjoined to train to fight, and to vigorously resist the oppression of any religious community, including Sikhs and Hindus. The wearing of the kirpan represented the martial character of the Khalsa, and all Sikhs, men, women and children, were encouraged to resist their Mughal oppressors, and to train diligently in gatka. Gatka was used succesfully by the Sikhs throughout the 16th and 17th centuries, in numerous battles against the Mughal forces. Eventually, the Sikhs succeeded in deposing the Mughal overlords, and in creating a new, tolerant rulership in the Punjab (the "Land of Five Rivers", a region in modern-day India and Pakistan). Gatka is, and has always been, taught as a spiritual exercise in Sikhism. Sikhism requires its followers to become absorbed in honouring the Name of God, and this is taught through the ecstatic exercise of gatka. Sikhism and gatka are inextricably intertwined, in many ways.
by Dancing with Fire May 14, 2011
Army of the Republic of Vietnam; they are sometimes reffered to as the Southern Vietnamese Army (SVA). They were fighting against the Northern Vietnamese.
Scorned by allies and enemies alike, the Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) was one of the most maligned fighting forces in modern history. Cobbled together by U.S. advisers from the remnants of the French-inspired Vietnamese National Army, it was effectively pushed aside by the Americans in 1965. When toward the end of the war the army was compelled to reassert itself, it was too little, too late for all concerned.
by Dancing with Fire June 23, 2011
Those funny times in middle school when you would say half of a curse word and then your friend would say the other half. This would usually occur during class while the teacher was trying to teach the class his or her lesson.
Halfway Cursing:
Student 1: Fu...
Student 2: ck!
Student 1: Shi...
Student 2: t!
Student 1: Cu..
Student 2: nt!!
Student 1: Fu...
Student 2: ck!
Student 1: Shi...
Student 2: t!
Student 1: Cu..
Student 2: nt!!
by Dancing with Fire December 6, 2010
Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia; Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, a Marxist revolutionary guerrilla force engaging in armed struggle against the government of Colombia.
by Dancing with Fire September 4, 2012
Capoeira is a combination of dance, ritual, and martial arts that developed out of the Portugese trade of African slaves to Brazil during the 16th century. Capoeira was illegal in Brazil until the 1930's. The ritual game begins with two players squatting in a circle, or roda, of spectators. The players rest at the feet of a single-stringed instrument, or berimbau, and one player sings a commencement song. The other player can sing in response or remain silent to allow the first player to sing the announcement that the game has started. The musician at the berimbau then picks up the song as the players move to the center of the circle. The lead berimbauist is the Mestre, or master of the capoeira game. The roda chants, sings, and drums under the direction of the Mestre. The players and the Mestre carry on a dialogue during the game; the music sets the tempo for the tricks that a player can use. A player may also improvise his movements according to the musical commentary the Mestre gives to his performance. The Mestre in turn may play music that reflects the players' attitudes, reactions and strategies.
The goal of the game, or jogo, is to catch the opponent off-guard using guile, technique and gymnastics. Players can fake each other out using rapid kicks, cartwheels, handstands, leg sweeps, flips, jabs, dodges, and turns. The base movement, and the one most often used by beginners, is a side-to-side motion in a semi-crouched stance called ginga. Unlike most martial arts, strikes are admired most when there is no physical contact. A player gains the most applause when the other player has been skillfully baited into a vulnerable, off-balance position, but has not actually fallen or been hit. Although there is no point system, and no official winners or losers, players can be disqualified for falling into a seated position or, in some forms of capoeira, using their hands to strike. Some speculate that the lack of hand use in capoeira harkens back to an ancient Kongo saying: "hands are to build, feet are to destroy." Modern martial artists have two main choices for capoeira techniques and philosophy. Angolan capoeira is the more traditional form, with slow, dance-like steps while Regional capoeira relies much more on high-energy acrobatics. Capoeira today is truly a global phenomenon with schools teaching Angolan, Regional and dozens of fusion styles in major cities all over the world.
by Dancing with Fire January 1, 2011