No one is the owner of the absolute truth. Capoeira undergoes a constant process of creation and it fits us, as mestres, to extract the best out of the diverse forms of teaching. We should aim to keep enriching our art, adapting it to our objectives and having the discernment to separate well the "wheat from the chaff." We must eliminate all the movements that are foreign to our roots, which discharacterize the art, and add and conserve those movements that are in agreement with our traditions. It is no shame or sign of ignorance to copy that which has value; much to the contrary, it is a sign of wisdom.

From Capoeira Angola: Do Iniciante ao Mestre
Translation: Shayna McHugh

• Origin of capoeira angola: Afro-Brazilian.
• The roots of capoeira, yes, came from Africa, mainly from Angola, arising from ancient rituals. But it was here in Brazil, initially in Bahia, in the fertile soil from slavery, and in the name of freedom, that capoeira was cultivated and flourished, revealing all her beauty.
• Capoeira is not from Angola - Capoeira of Angola. Capoeira is angola - Capoeira angola. The style that we, angoleiros, practice. We are angoleiros and not Angolans. We play the traditional Bahian capoeira.
• Capoeira in its beginnings was not, as some researchers believe, a dance that later became transformed into a fight, but on the contrary an extremely violent fight that was disguised in dance to camouflage the danger it contained.
• Our philosophy is based in malícia (wisdom) and manha (craftiness) and is expressed through malandragem (jogo de cintura*), through the behavior of the capoeirista inside and outside the roda, allowing him to act confidently in the right moments.* Jogo de cintura means “game of the waist.” It refers to the ability to move well, to be flexible, to use the body to do feints and confuse/deceive.
  
• From the trainee to the contramestre, the capoeirista teaches what he learned with the mestre. The mestre teaches what he discovered by himself.
  
• The mestre must teach the student the first steps of capoeira angola with the same dedication of a father who holds his son’s hands and teaches him to walk for the first time: with the objective of preparing him, according to his experience, not just for games in the roda, but also for various circumstances in life.
  
• Not every mestre is a good capoeirista and not every good capoeirista is a mestre.
  
• Mestres can recognize the capoeirista who knows the fundamentals of capoeira angola, aiming above all to understand the spiritual and philosophical aspects of his art and to perfect himself… not just to have a good performance in the game and in the fight.
  
• The violence of capoeira must stay in the innermost part of the capoeirista, only showing itself in extreme situations, in defense of life.
  
• Capoeira must be disguised to be practiced in the presence of our opposition, just as the African slaves disguised it in the view of their masters.
  
• Execute the movements smoothly in the game, noting the distance necessary to apply them safely, without needing to hit your partner with deliberate violence.
  
• The true capoeiristas are avoiding the rodas where violence occurs, because the mestres who command them don't have even the minimal qualifications for the title of mestre. They lack education. They want to show a deceptive superiority, trying to win at any cost. Instead of playing capoeira in the roda, they fight like gladiators in the arena. The spectacular blows and the amazing flips also receive too much emphasis, to the detriment of the old capoeiristas’ creativity and malícia.
  
• As long as the berimbau remains associated with the game of capoeira and is respected as it should be, there will be no place for violence.
  
• In public performances, show the game of angola, utilizing all the available resources in the other types of games, depending on the circumstances of the moment.
  
• Avoid doing sudden movements in the beginning of the game; instead, try to warm up your body by playing the low game.
  
• In the ginga, stay in a guarded position as long as possible (as long as the situation allows) during games and training. The objective is strengthening the internal organs, as well as preventing knee injuries and giving better balance to the practitioner of capoeira angola.
  
• Anyone seeking the fundamentals of capoeira angola will not be content with only its material side. A large number of the Physical Education professors that teach capoeira, after a few months of learning in a university, emphasize a long session of preparative stretching and exercises in order to compensate for the little knowledge that they possess.
  
• As paradoxical as it may seem, certain people, while expanding their horizons of intellectual knowledge, diminish their awareness of the simpler things life offers and have greater difficulty accepting them. It’s like farsighted people, who can see things that are far away, but need corrective lenses to see things at a short distance. If these people would analyze the lessons they receive with a critical spirit, and not the spirit of criticism, they would certainly find many answers to their questions in these simple things of life.
  
• Less experienced capoeiristas must look for the oldest mestres, of confirmed knowledge, so that later they will become capable of exercising their profession with the knowledge that the responsibility requires.
  
• Mestre Pastinha spoke great truths in simple language. Thus, I try to simplify my teaching method as much as possible, transmitting my knowledge using clear and concrete words. I do this because I lived with the great capoeiristas of the past, and I’m trying to rescue old customs that I consider extremely important in preserving the behavior of the traditional capoeirista and the style of angola with its original characteristics.
  
• Our teaching is characterized by the simplicity of its movements, allowing any person, from seven to seventy years of age, to learn capoeira angola.
  
• Regardless of the type of game that is developing in the roda, play very carefully, avoiding injuries that could put the physical integrity of your partner at risk.
  
• Play the game, play instruments, sing, teach, form students, work in support of capoeira angola and preserve it in agreement with its fundamentals. These are the main requirements for the formation of a capoeirista.
  
• Do the game in the roda, and not the fight, reserved for defense against our enemies.
  
• The true capoeirista never takes the initiative of turning the game into a fight; instead, he always respects the rhythm of the berimbau-mestre and the rules of capoeira. Lack of knowledge of capoeira's rituals and disobedience to its rules and philosophies are the main factors that contribute to violence in capoeira rodas.
  
• Game, dance, and fight. The capoeirista must know exactly what he is doing and the right moment to change from one to another, depending on the need.
  
• The angoleiro must always keep himself on the defensive, especially in street fights. He must take care to put himself in the position of the victim in the eyes of those who witness the fight.
  
• In defense against enemies, we must threaten to attack them in a certain place, so that he worries too much about protecting it, thus allowing us to attack a different place.
  
• The game of capoeira angola is similar to the game of chess, in which the rasteira and/or the cabeçada are the check-mates of the angoleiro.
  
• The majority of the frontal blows, for example the chapa, are often used in street fights. The spinning hits, on the other hand, are more useful in counterattacks, mainly when executed to confuse or deceive the opponent.
  
• The hits of capoeira angola, almost always executed with moderation in the roda, are very dangerous when used in the street, against enemies, as long as the practitioner possesses the necessary experience to utilize them in this circumstance. If this is not the case, then the situation is inverted (the danger is to the practitioner).
  
• When all my students tell me that they always manage to get around a fight, when the easiest thing would be to start a fight, I will be sure that we are on the right path, the path to our greatest objective of self-realization.
  
• If you can’t avoid a fight, stay calm and concentrate on defense, determined and confident in what you have learned.
  
• The capoeirista who never faced a weapon cannot say that he doesn't know how to defend himself against it. And the fact of him knowing all the techniques of defense against armed adversaries also doesn't mean that he is prepared to face them.
• The most important thing is for the capoeirista to stay CALM in the hour of danger, to possess the self-control
  necessary to override fear.
  
• The angoleiro must not lose his identity. If he practices other forms of fighting, he should acquire only some basic notions, keeping capoeira angola as his point of reference, his base.
  
• Train a lot the movement of the ginga, which is very important in street fights and in the game of capoeira.
  
• Try not to turn your back to the adversary, except to deceive him, aiming to catch him unprepared.
  
• First I teach the blow in its full extension, in order to let the movement loose. Afterwards, with time, I teach the various ways to do the blow, with malícia, according to the moment and the circumstances.
  
• In the low game, always watch your partner’s head, obviously taking the necessary precautions not to hurt him.
  
• When the game becomes closed, try not to force an exit utilizing physical force, since in our style this type of action is considered superficial. Try to undo a tangle and give continuity to our "playfulness" of angola.
  
• The rasteira is a takedown movement that’s very simple to learn yet complex to execute. It must be applied subtly. Avoid kicking the shin of your partner, which shows lack of technique.
  
• Also, violent rasteiras must not be applied when your partner has only one foot on the ground while doing a kick, because the resulting fall from this type of takedown is one of the most dangerous. It can seriously hurt even an experienced capoeirista.
  
• The point of the rasteira and the many takedown movements in the game of capoeira angola is to take your partner to the ground, putting his body on the floor. If he falls into any type of negativa, it shows his defense.
  
• However, when your partner is developing the low game, there is no reason to try to "get" him at all costs and at every instant, even if he unleashes a blow, because he will support himself on the ground with his hands and feet. If you do this, you will only confuse the game.
  
• Train cabeçada in the mirror, to acquire control of the movement and keep your eyes open while doing it.
  
• When you are playing close to your partner, try to close your guard well and use the floreio with the aim of deceiving him and making him become vulnerable.
  
• To know the true potential of a capoeirista, it is necessary to see him acting in diverse situations: in academies, in street rodas, in less-well-known trainings, and in street fights, defending himself against his enemies, armed or unarmed.
  
• Before the beginning of the game, at the pé do berimbau, during the singing of the ladainha, the practitioner of Angola must concentrate and say his prayers. He should try to assimilate the positive vibrations in the environment and ask the protection of his spiritual guide, his protector saint, or his orixás.
  
• When you feel threatened in the roda, go to the pé do berimbau. Do the sign of the cross and ask its protection for you and your partner. Then, return to the inside game, regardless of the rhythm of the orchestra.
  
• When a student is in doubt about which defense to use to escape from his partner’s movement, go to the low game and immediately use a counterattack, according to the necessity of the moment.
  
• If I know how to apply a blow in various different ways, I must only apply one or two ways at a time. Use violent all-out hits only in times of extreme danger, as a last resort, always in defense of life.
  
• Some people among us like to criticize others’ playing styles, because they lift their legs very high or, by contrast, because they don’t usually lift them above the level of the waist, etc. If these people reflected on this type of attitude without vanity (which is unique to the human being of delayed evolution) they would certainly arrive at the obvious conclusion that capoeira would have very little creativity if all of us practiced the same style. This diversity of styles is what gives origin to the wealth of details present in capoeira rodas, where capoeiristas’ personalities manifest themselves through their bodies’ movements, showing that playing capoeira is a state of the spirit and that emotion is its essential component.
  
• The capoeira roda is a mirror of life that reflects the traps of everyday life, where we use deception in order to conquer our enemies.
  
• In our style, we try to develop the game with much balance in the ginga, using slow movements, alternated with some rapid and explosive shots, according to the situation, where malícia always predominates.
  
• The seqüências were never exclusive to capoeira regional, because it would be impossible to teach capoeira without using them. The difference is that Mestre Bimba, with some students’ assistance, was the first to put them down on paper.
  
• The teaching of the seven traditional collections of sequences and chamadas used in CCCTB aims to improve the physical condition, technique, and awaken the creativity of my students. It also trains them and integrates them even more into the group, developing companionship. Their commitment to learning the sequences will demonstrate their dedication to the Center and their trust for the mestre.
  
• I always try to pair up my students according to their level of experience, switching the pairs at times, always taking into consideration the existing affinity between them.
  
• Capoeira, until the end of the 70s, used to involve a series of rituals, which gave it a magical aspect in the mystical atmosphere of the city of Bahia. The capoeirista had a unique philosophy of life, based in malícia, in cleverness.
  
• The true angoleiro is known by his relaxed ginga with malícia, by his cleverness, and by his calmness, security, and balance in attack and defense, in addition to his knowledge of capoeira angola’s rituals and traditions.
  
• The student, starting in his first year of capoeira, should frequent and little by little begin to participate in the traditional capoeira rodas in Bahia, aiming to acquire the experience necessary for his training.
  
• The angoleiro should know mandinga, staying always with a closed body, through the balance of his energy fields. This is acquired mainly through emotional control of his thoughts and acts, strengthening his faith through amulets and prayers, and always seeking his spiritual development.
  
• In truth, what is important is the knowledge of the fundamentals of capoeira angola, with its rituals and philosophies, in addition to the mysticism that it involves. Without this, capoeira completely loses sense, technique comes to be more important than creativity, and capoeira ceases to be the capoeirista’s greatest form of expression.
  
• At the end of the 70s, capoeira regional exploded in popularity and capoeira angola found itself in danger of extinction. At this time, we angoleiros had to take quite a radical stance, even though we were very criticized for it. However, when the scale tilts too much to one side, we must place ourselves on the other extreme in order to achieve BALANCE.
  
• Today, we can find various trainees, professors, contramestres, and mestres in the same group of capoeira, which didn’t used to happen. Today, many people are confusing RESPONSIBILITIES with CLASSES. The title used to be given according to a capoeirista’s experience and technical ability, while the positions of responsibility (which could only be occupied by at most two capoeiristas), besides experience and technical capacity, depended on the trust that the mestre placed in the person – this was the principal requisite.
  
• Modern capoeira is similar to a young and beautiful woman that naturally rivets whoever sees her, although she is completely empty in her essence. Whereas the traditional capoeira of the past was more similar to a simple woman of the people, who does not stand out at first sight, but however possesses a truer beauty, interior, that only the people with a more acute sensitivity could immediately perceive.
  
• No one is the owner of the absolute truth. Capoeira undergoes a constant process of creation and it fits us, as mestres, to extract the best out of the diverse forms of teaching. We should aim to keep enriching our art, adapting it to our objectives and having the discernment to separate well the "wheat from the chaff." We must eliminate all the movements that are foreign to our roots, which discharacterize the art, and add and conserve those movements that are in agreement with our traditions. It is no shame or sign of ignorance to copy that which has value; much to the contrary, it is a sign of wisdom.
  
• The capoeirista must know how to adapt to the circumstances of the moment. Sometimes, an act that used to be considered clever (for example, hiding the fact that one was a capoeirista because of the police persecution) would be an error in certain moments, because opportunities will be given to those who show themselves.
  
• I consider it extremely important for a potential student to chat with various mestres before choosing the one who will be his mentor.
  
• Today, the student literally changes mestres as though he were changing clothes. He naïvely thinks that he will learn more with this behavior – which is not true, much to the contrary. As soon as the mestre discovers that the student has already passed through various academies without staying in any of them, he certainly will not share knowledge with this student until he is certain that the student has found his path.
  
• The capoeiristas of the past never had a standardized uniform, because in their conditions – first as slaves and later as outlaws – it would not be very clever on their part if they used an outfit that identified them. However, beginning in the early twentieth century, around 1920, the completely white suit came to be the preferred outfit of the capoeira mestres in Bahia. It became a tradition, while the yellow and black uniform was adopted by Mestre Pastinha in 1941 to be used by the students and capoeiristas of the CECA.
  
• In my point of view, these two periods of our history are what we must remember, maintaining the tradition, and not the time of oppression, when the capoeiristas were persecuted and suffered the worst humiliations, practicing capoeira in secret, with dirty and almost always torn clothing – not by choice, but because of the miserable conditions in which they lived. However, all of us who love capoeira and respect our fellow man must try to forget this sad epoch, except to serve as an example to our people, when capoeira had a relevant role in the fight against slavery.
  
• The completely white suit has a very special significance and only graduated capoeiristas, who have reached a superior level in their capoeira, achieving the position of MESTRE, must use it.
  
• I adopted the colors yellow and black for my students’ uniforms, symbolizing my status as a student and faithful follower of Mestre Pastinha. His teaching is a reference for my work.
  
• In the academy of Mestre Pastinha, the son of a Spaniard and a black Bahian, as he could not help being, there was never a problem of racism. Whites, mulattos, and blacks trained together in the greatest harmony in his academy. Although I believe that here in Bahia this division does not exist; rather, there is a mixture of races, with different skin colors. Unfortunately, I see some people segregating themselves in order to combat racism. In my opinion, the problem of racial prejudice should be battled by all people, independently of one’s race or skin color – as brothers fighting for the same ideal. Separating the races in order to resolve their problems against each other is committing a grave error, since we all know that there exist people who reject their own ancestry; thus, the problem is not in the color of one’s skin, but in the mind and spirit of each individual.
  
• Capoeira does not have only one owner, or only one color. It was born in Bahia, but it has all the colors of the world and it belongs to everyone who has it in their heart and soul.
  
• In the chamadas of capoeira angola, the capoeirista who answers must approach very carefully so that he is not taken by surprised. For example, when you’re walking down a dark street and someone asks you for a light, don’t go: say that you don’t smoke and keep walking. However, if you absolutely must approach, advance with all your caution, prepared for anything, in the same way that you would proceed while answering a CHAMADA OF ANGOLA.
  
• The factors that most contributed to the recent corruption of capoeira were, firstly, the formation of folkloric groups for performances in theaters and variety shows, with purely commercial objectives, in which they tried to impress the audience with acrobatics. Secondly, the infiltration of practitioners of other martial arts, when they began to compare them to capoeira, incorporating new blows under the pretext of modernizing capoeira, without possessing the least knowledge about capoeira’s real fundamentals. As a consequence of these facts, two types of behavior arose in capoeira rodas. The first is in disagreement with capoeira’s ancient philosophies and the second is completely empty, where victory by means of wild violence became the principle objective.
  
• Sometimes a ridiculous phrase, when said with conviction and apparent seriousness, sounds strong and is accepted by many people as a great truth. The capoeirista must know how to discern lies from truth so that he is not tricked.
  
• Mestres also make errors. People demand much of mestres, forgetting that they are also human, fallible, and, like everyone, live in the constant struggle for their personal evolution. Nevertheless, the important thing is having a peaceful consciousness, internally accepting our acts, in agreement with a superior (cosmic) ethic, always seeking the absolute truth that frees us, at the same time knowing our current insignificance in this evolutionary stage.
  
• The true angoleiro does not do capoeira, he lives capoeira. So don’t rush.
  
• It is not important how many times I fall, but instead having the certainty of getting up – always with the firm determination to continue fighting for my ideals and my complete realization. Of course the best help that I can receive comes from myself, from my effort to grow. Determination is fundamental to the capoeirista’s behavior both inside and outside the roda.
  
• False feelings die; the true ones survive, despite death, in another life. The capoeirista must know how to identify them, to act with wisdom in the right moment to assess these feelings.
  
• In punishing a homicide with a death sentence, we are committing the same error as the assassin. No one has the right to intentionally take the life of his fellow man, because this impedes the evolution of the individual. The capoeirista must avoid negative feelings – for example, hate and revenge – that are the most obvious signs of the ignorance of a human being.
  
• The best way that I found to understand my opponent, avoiding a rash and aggressive attitude, was putting myself in his place before critiquing him, which allows me to assume a clearer position. Could it be that I would act the same way if I was part of his generation? Or if I had passed through the same experiences? Could it be that a person today would make the same errors of years, months, weeks, days, hours, minutes and even seconds before, when we know that all living beings are in constant evolution?
  
• Instead of judging others, which can generate aversion or even hate – the worst feeling, particularly for students of capoeira angola – together with fear, it would be much better to meditate about the issue. This will make us aware of our own imperfection and allow us to perceive the quantity of errors that we make and remake during our whole lives. As much as we criticize others, we must understand that these same errors are the propelling motor of humanity and are of fundamental importance for our evolution. We must always remember that brotherhood was the main teaching that Jesus Christ preached here on earth.
  
• When we understand that our enemy, while trying to defeat us, is helping us, albeit unconsciously, in our evolutionary advancement, we will no longer feel hate.
  
• When questioned about the existence of God, something unimaginable that is found far beyond the reach of our limited human mind, and thus impossible to be proved scientifically, I respond that I believe in the INTERIOR FORCE that all of us possess, and that BROTHERLY LOVE, unconditional and extensive, for all living beings, should be the most important objective to be achieved in life.
  
• Therefore, if God indeed exists and is found in the INTERIOR of each one of us, and since He is LOVE in its whole and absolute form, I am sure that this is the best manner of believing in his existence and of truly loving him.
  
• Every evolutionary cycle corresponds to seven years of life. Each cycle in the past corresponds to another completed stage. The same thing happens with the teaching of capoeira angola in the CCCTB, in its different phases of learning, until the capoeirista reaches the position of mestre, when he assumes the leadership of his own group and, consequently, a great responsibility to his students as an educator.
  
• All the scientific, philosophical, and religious schools of thought preach many truths. But none of them know the absolute truth.
  
• The mestre must be an experienced capoeirista, fully conscious of his function, with deep knowledge of capoeira angola’s fundamentals. He must be someone who always worked in favor of his art, fighting for its preservation and aiming to emphasize the therapeutic benefits that its practice provides.
  
• It is often said that "happiness is found inside ourselves." I believe this to be true. But how is this search carried out? Actually, it is inaccessible to the majority of people on this planet. No one can ever be truly happy if they still have not acquired spiritual knowledge (even in unconscious form) and consequently brotherly love for all creatures in the universe.
  
• How can one find happiness within oneself if one’s interior is empty? It is necessary, before anything, to fill this gap by developing our consciousness. In this way, we will have access to paranormal faculties, inherent in all of us, which will certainly bring us to understand the whole evolutionary process of living beings. When the individual understands the true sense of life, brotherly love (the fruit of understanding and maturity) will spontaneously arise. From that point on, the person will be able to initiate his search, which is linked mainly with the people in his life, and later, in a wider form, with all beings in nature. Only in this way will we achieve the personal realization we all long for in a full and definitive manner.
  
• As a mestre, I aim to teach my students with much devotion and without any prejudices. I try to pass all my knowledge according to each student’s experience, desire, and capacity to learn, always remembering that the spiritual aspect is immensely important in the formation of the capoeirista. I believe that this is my main mission here on Earth, and I will aim to carry it out as well as I can until the end of my life.
  
• Mestre is he who has full consciousness of his path. Wise is he who has begun to travel this path. Illuminated is he who has arrived at the end of the path, reaching the stage of free consciousness.