By: Jeremy R. Rutherford
One would hope that one never gets into a situation where someone else is trying to harm them, but it happens more often than we care to admit. Kids get bullied but don't know how to fight back. Women get raped, people get robbed, seniors get taken advantage of, children get abused.
The individuals doing this prey on the fear and probable inaction of the target or victim, most of them do not expect a retort of any kind, only complacency. It is a strange and f*cked up path of psychological ideal.
This alone gives the victim an upper hand even though they don't realize it most of the time.
Martial Arts is equal parts logic, tactics, psychology, physiology, philosophy, anatomy, wisdom, technique, intelligence, distraction and deception, it isn't just the acts of punching, kicking and grappling.
Every one of these disciplines needs to be integrated, executed and used on an individual level. It isn't just practice and do. It is analyze, respond, react, defend and most importantly - think.
Everything you do has a counter-action and every counter-action has a counter as well. You have to know when to strike, how to strike and where to strike in appropriate response to an action of your target. Remember, if someone is attacking you, that is what they are first and foremost, a target.
Some things to remember:
Stay calm, do not get angry, anger causes mistakes.
Breathe evenly, deeply, oxygen is needed for energy, movement, focus and action.
Do not allow fear to take control, it also causes mistakes and will only get you hurt.
Make no unneccessary actions, you are defending yourself, not putting on a show.
Do not fight blindly, use all of your senses and pay attention to what the other person is doing, the body language, movement, speed, height, weight, pace of breath, state of mind.
Pay attention to your surroundings, you can use them to your advantage, a wall, bar, table, fence, etc. can be an excellent fight ender and you want it to end as quickly as possible.
Do not underestimate the other person under any circumstance, do not get overzealous or cocky, things can change in an instant.
Mysticism does play its part in doing this, as far as attaining a state of mind appropriate to situations. But it isn't neccessary, it just helps. People view it in different ways, this is just the way I see the concepts.
Every technique, regardless of it's style can be linked to an element of nature, most are a combination of the four in some way. Fire, Earth, Wind and Water. Fire and Earth techniques fall mostly into Focus, Water and Wind techniques fall mostly into Flow.
Focus: Stregth, Strike, Stance, Power, Force.
Earth: Solid, Silent, Unmoving, Concentrated, Hard, Coarse, Steady, Dense, Restrictive, Crude, Rough, Jagged.
Standing still, all is stopped against the wall of stone.
Fire: Quick, Fast, Painful, Consuming, Withering, Weakening, Speed, Engulfing, Destructive, Obliterating, Decimation.
Within the flame, nothing will last, all will be laid to waste.
Flow: Speed, Movement, Locks, Manipulation, Deception, Technique
Water: Above, Below, Front, Side, Behind, Freedom, Restriction, Release, Surrounding, Crushing, Spread, Uncontained, Everywhere.
As the water rolls and the torrent pours, all will be pulled under and away.
Wind: Rolled, Carried, Caressed, Buffeted, Dragged, Torn, Pushed, Pulled, Imperceptible, Invisible, Wrapped, Lost, Confused, Dazed, Cast Aside.
As the wind wanders and the storms blow, the lost will not be found.
Circular movements, in close and outward. Also, variance in angles and triangulation for muscle memory. Seek travel paths for your hands and feet and don't be afraid to be unorthodox. If it works, it works and it's always better if they don't see it. Also practice stop to stop. Think of it as graphing a line with many points and each point as a reference to any direction. Think about the human body as a multi-directional damage potential target. Look into and consider what the body will naturally react to in terms of crumple zones and mechanics. Use all of that to "flow".
For example, the neck is a pivot. The spine is a one way "bend". If you strike into the gut, (flow) a general reaction is the person bending over. Where the head goes, the body follows. After the gut, use the opposing arm to strike the head, jaw preferably. (flow) That will turn the head, and leave the opponent off balance, roll the other hand and hit the other side, (flow) thereby completeing the off balance potential. If the head goes both ways, it scrambles the circuits, use the momentum to push/ throw to the opposite side of your last strike (flow). Then, triangulate and catch, (flow) suppress, strike again (flow) and ground. Use everything (not just technique) you have to be in motion and use their own movement and weight against them. If you can use the environmental structure(s) for damage/ tool potential, even better.
