The Dao of Dragonball Blog

Dragon Ball Z.  How is it pronounced?  Perhaps you never asked yourself the question, but it turns out there are a few different ways to say it.  All because of the Z.

For example, is it pronounced Dragon Ball Zee, Dragon Ball Zed or something else entirely?  The title of the show represents a linguistic problem with various answers that depend on where you live and what language you speak.

Why does it matter?  Because the show is an international phenomenon with no agreed upon standard for how to pronounce its name.  And the differences stand as another example of diversity seen within the localized versions of the Dragon Ball series.

To really understand why this is the case we have to learn a little about languages and world history from within the Dragon Ball perspective.

Read more…

Goku Wins!

Our contest for the Nintendo Wii game, Dragon Ball: Revenge of King Piccolo has just concluded.  Thank you to all the contestants that added a comment to the blog before the end of December 15th.

I chose to let the hand of fate pick the winner.  So I wrote down all of your names on slips of paper, placed them inside a tupperware dish and had one of my friends pick a slip of paper at random.  Yes, it was a very scientific method.

So, without further ado…

The winner IS…

Read more…

Son Goku as a Child (Courtesty of NAMCO BANDAI Games America, Inc.)

A Dragon Ball Museum currently seeks funding for a tour around North America, and eventually the world.

I discovered the Dragon Ball museum while doing research for The Dao of Dragon Ball book and asked the owner if I could interview him for my Dragon Ball blog.

Luckily I also work part time for the Epoch Times Newspaper and decided it would make a great article.

I recently finished the article about a man named Mike Nilsen who holds the Guinness World Record for the “largest collection of Dragonball memorabilia” in the world.  He plans to tour it around the globe in the form of a Dragon Ball Museum.  You can read the full article here:

• The complete Dragon Ball Museum article.

The printed article was published in the New York edition of the Epoch Times newspaper on October 15th.  A scan of the publication is available here:

• Publication of Epoch Times Newspaper Dragon Ball Museum (PDF)

I asked a lot of questions during the interview and received some great answers.  Unfortunately I could not include all of them in the article because of length requirements, so with Mike’s permission I have posted the full interview here on my blog:

• Full Dragon Ball Museum Interview (PDF)

More information about Mike and his museum can be found at the Dragon Ball Museum website.

Welcome to the "Bloody Pond" from DBZ's Hell

Have you been to the Bloody Pond of Hell?  It’s a great place to visit… They have row boats.

Many fans of Dragon Ball may be aware of the Bloody Pond in Dragon Ball’s Hell, but how many of them know that you can actually visit it?

It turns out that there is a real Bloody Pond in a city of Japan, and that it was the most likely source for Dragon Ball’s version.

This Bloody Pond also has an interesting part to play in traditional Japanese culture and society.

What is the Bloody Pond and why does this matter in Dragon Ball?  And where exactly did Toriyama receive the inspiration for his Bloody Pond?

Read more…

SSJ4 Goku Leads the Animals to the Space Ship

Here’s another quick progress update on some interesting dbz blog articles I’m working on.

At my current rate of development and writing it appears I finish one article a month.  Keep in mind that each of these posts is an original creation and not a rehash of already known facts or information that can be found on the internet.  They take a long time and a lot of late nights to research and complete.

Nevertheless, I’d certainly like to do more posts as I love writing about Dragon Ball!

It’s just a matter of balancing all of the other responsibilities in my life.

I’ll be making dbz blog article posts while I make progress on the book, and now I want to reveal some of the articles I’m writing so you have something to look forward to as the book nears its release date.

Here are a few in progress…

Read more…

Goku Waits Patiently

Hi Everyone,

Thank you for your support on the site and to those who have pre-ordered the book.  All of you are being very patient and I want to give you a progress update.

Right now I have two chapters left to finish before the rough draft of the book will be complete.

The first chapter is Immortal and Invincible.  It will discuss the history of eastern martial arts and the mind body cultivation practices of Daoism, along with a practitioner’s quest for physical and spiritual immortality.  It will also unveil how a body can, from an eastern paradigm, attain invincibility.

Both immortality and invincibility are themes in Dragon Ball, and I think this will be a very interesting chapter for fans of the series.

The second chapter is Divine Combat.  This chapter will reveal the history of combat and hand to hand battles in the myths and legends of various cultures around the world, and how martial arts has always played a role in our culture, including our modern society, right on up to DBZ, martial arts flicks, anime, the Matrix and beyond.  The connection between legendary battles in heaven, the deliverance of martial arts from gods to man, and the progress of martial arts in our civilization will be made very clear.

I’m sincerely trying to complete these chapters before the end of October, with an e-book release in November or December.

There are so many steps needed to complete a goal like this, and I’m becoming a better writer and person in the process, and I’m grateful for the opportunity to improve.

Of course I want this book out more than anyone and I would like to once again thank all of you for your patience and support.

Hitler Heil's Hello in DBZ Movie 12

There are many unique aspects to the Dragon Ball series and several may contain socialist and communist elements.  In this article I will introduce 5 of them.

They are the following:

1. Red Army
2. Stars
3. Hitler
4. Hooked Cross Z
5. One World Government

The elements on this list are the results of watching the Dragon Ball series and seeing what is already there.  I am not making any of these up.

This article is not only here to reveal what was in front of us all along, but to also help explain how and why.

Red Star Hammer and Sickle

Please keep in mind that Dragon Ball is above all else a fun and lighthearted show with a heavy dose of silliness and martial arts antics.  These socialist and communist elements do not detract from the Dragon Ball experience in any way.

It’s possible you may disagree with some of the inherent meaning behind these elements within the series, and a lot has been said about one of them in particular, but that does not take away from the fact that they are there to begin with and left for us to explore and understand.

If you have any thoughts on their meaning and why the creator’s put them in, then please state your thoughts in the comments below.

Now let’s begin our adventure. Read more…

Vegetto Smashes Majin Buu with a Double Axe Handle

In this Dragon Ball explorative essay we’re going to focus on the martial arts technique known as the double axe handle. This iconic technique is found throughout the Dragon Ball series and has both a rich history and symbolism.

Dragon Ball is a comic book and anime filled with fighting and all kinds of different martial arts styles.  Yet many of them share similar techniques, and the double axe handle is one of the most identifiable.

These are the questions we will answer in this article:

• What is the double axe handle?
• What are its origins and history, and how does it relate to Dragon Ball?
• What are the histories of East Asian martial arts, Buddhism, and the Lightning Bolt Clasped Hands style of combat?
• How do eastern philosophies and this technique fit into the fights of DBZ?
• Why is the double axe handle used so often in Dragon Ball?
• Outside of Dragon Ball, where else can the double axe handle be seen?

Read on to find out! Read more…

Nope. It really is Over 8,000 in the original comic. Read the report to find out more.

I’ve put together a brand new special report that will help you learn all the details on the Dragon Ball internet phenomenon “Over 9,000!” that is found all over the web, and I’m giving it away for free with The Dao of Dragon Ball book.

Included in this over 9 page bonus item is an in-depth analysis of the pop cultural history of “Over 9,000!” and it’s connection to the Japanese DBZ source material as well as its connection to ancient Chinese, Indian, and Japanese cultures.

The report cannot be found elsewhere and is yours free just by giving The Dao of Dragon Ball a shot. If you decide the book isn’t for you, then you still get to keep your bonus item.

You can pick up a copy of the report at the main DBZ Book website.

Goku Stands in the Shadows

A visitor to the site wrote to me recently asking, “By charging people money for this information aren’t you undermining everything it stands for?”

That’s a forthright and important question.  It’s also one I’ve struggled with for years.

Truth be told, he meant no disrespect by the question, as he was coming at it from a Buddhist perspective of compassion which I completely agree with.

I’ve practiced Shaolin Gong Fu for 10 years, and have taught it for free ever since I was capable enough to do so. My family and friends have sometimes said I’m a fool to give it away for free, but for me, Shaolin Gong Fu is sacred.

Shaolin Gong Fu originates in Buddhism and is (or at least used to be) a martial art that can enable someone to attain the level of Arhat, as taught by Bhodidharma. To charge for that just seems disrespectful. Of course I can understand if it’s your business and livelihood. That’s a different situation.

It’s my understanding that the lower the level, the more complicated and expensive. A great way is simple and free. The only thing you lose is karma, and what you gain is priceless… how could someone put a price on eternal enlightenment? Read more…