COMBAT EFFECTIVE?

 By Phillip Starr

We hear it all the time; “That traditional martial arts guy would be easily beaten in an MMA match!”, and other more colorful variations. It's an old argument that has no basis in reality. MMA, per se, is a sport. The object of an MMA match is NOT to render the other fellow unconscious...it's to WIN THE MATCH! And that doesn't require a knockout. Moreover, participants must adhere to certain rules, they must wear the proper protective gear, they fight in timed rounds with brief breaks in between, and they've never been tested (at least on a large scale) in battle.

Traditional martial forms were designed for life-and-death scuffles where there's no second place winner. The object is to survive. Period. There are no rules whatsoever, no protective gear, no timed rounds...you fought until one of you was incapable of continuing. And a number of these arts have been put to use in actual combat. They're still with us...because the survivors valued them, kept them, and passed them on to the future generation.

Back in medieval times, the game of chess (which is thought to have originated in India) was used to teach principles of battlefield tactics to the aristocracy. After all, in the event of a military conflict, they were the ones who would fill positions of command. This kind of tactical thinking (chess) was used clear into the 20^th Century with considerable success. By and large, both sides were using the mindset of chess, which was created as a game. Until Vietnam.

The NVA command (which was in close contact with communist China) used the tactics learned in weiqi (more commonly known as the game of go), which had been considered one of the “four essential arts” of the cultured scholars in ancient China going back to the 4^th Century. And the Chinese book, “The Art of War” (written by Sun-Tzu more than 2,500 years ago), was their playbook, which had been created for combat and used innumerable times. They weren't playing by our Western rules. The end result has been that at military academies in the U.S., all students are now required to study Sun's book.

In short, assessing genuine combat effectiveness between something that is a recently created sport and things that have proved their mettle on the battlefield is silly. And inaccurate.

BUT CAN YOU REALLY USE IT?

 By Yang Xuangxing

Okay, so now you've learned a staff, sword, or whatever form...and you're comfortable with it. Your teacher says that you perform it rather well and you feel pretty good about it. But...can you actually use it against another weapon? In days long past, that was a given. Not so nowadays. Many people there are whose skill at performing weapons sets is really extraordinary...but they wouldn't stand a chance against a determined girl scout armed with a particular weapon.

My teacher was very old school (the “new, improved, street-oriented forms didn't exist back then) and he insisted that his students not only learn how to perform their weapons sets skillfully, but that they also learned how to use them. We never suffered a serious injury, either. He was smart enough not to allow us to practice with live swords and although we wielded only wooden blades, we were very careful about making solid contact. And we started off slowly and gradually learned. I now do the same thing with my own students.

When I was much, much younger I was often very foolish and not without a good dose of pride. At least that's my excuse for having accepted numerous challenge matches, which were more than a little common in those days. And a few such engagements involved the use of swords and even staffs a couple of times. And the weapons were live. Like I said...I was very foolish. But I learned quickly how the weapons really worked and even created a handful of my own peculiar techniques, which will never be seen in traditional forms, But they work very well...for instance, one technique I developed is intended to elicit a particular defensive response (and it happens every time, whether performed with a sword or broadsword)....which will cause the defending party to slice his own throat with my sword! Of course, I never carried that technique to its conclusion...

Yes, it was foolish. Beyond foolish. But God was with me and I learned. And I appreciated what I had been taught and why.

BUILDING REAL STRENGTH

 by Yang Xuangxing

Many poems have been written about how much we learn through the experience of pain and how little we actually learn from joy or happiness. And I believe that, for the most part, they're true. This is especially true of martial arts and the development of real “strength.”

What I refer to as “real” strength (and so do many other martial arts teachers) is not the kind of strength that may be acquired by lifting weights and engaging in similar exercise routines. Rather, it is “spiritual strength”; the strength that enables us to push forward even in the face of great adversity, to keep moving forward even while enduring terrific physical, mental, or emotional pain, the willingness to come face to face with any and all obstacles (most of which we've made ourselves) and fearlessly engage and overcome them.

Strength – of any kind – is built through discipline, struggle, and discomfort (including pain). Without these things, progress and the development of strength simply isn't possible. If we only experience happiness, we learn and develop nothing. If we're always satisfied, we become complacent and get nowhere. In martial arts, real skill is achieved through constant struggle, which requires great discipline. And your instructor knows it.

BOWING TO THE FLOOR/MAT

 by Yang Xuangxing

I was at a large, national seminar/conference a while back and just as one of the classes was about to begin, one of the instructors turned to me and remarked, “We need to have a class to teach people how to bow properly...” I had to agree.

Over the years, I have visited many martial arts schools and in most of them, I have seen the majority of students (and often, instructors) bow to the floor or mat with little more than a quick nod of the head. I spent many years training in both Kyokushin and Shito-ryu karate and my instructors insisted on a proper bow when stepping onto or stepping off of, the training area. When I first undertook the study of gong-fu, I saw that students didn't bow to the training floor; they just walked in and started warming up. But I was in the habit of bowing and so I always did it.

My teacher, Master W.C. Chen, thought it was appropriate and a good idea (although he never required anyone else to do it). I recall one day when I made a small, quick bow before hurrying onto the floor. I hadn't made it ten feet before sifu stopped me and said gruffly, “You didn't bow.” Huh...I could've sworn that I did, so I walked back to the entrance to his basement and did it again.

He stopped me again. “No!”, he said. “That is not a bow.” I looked at him quizzically and he explained, “This place is special. It is where you will learn and grow. You should take time to pay proper respect to it.” I realized that what he said was spot-on. I took my time and bowed properly, which satisfied him. Although he was Chinese (and China is not “the land of bowing”) he understood its significance perfectly.

The proper bow, especially in so far as the martial arts are concerned, requires more than just learning how to incline the body. The mind and heart must also be correct.

APPLICATIONS? COULD BE...

 by Yang Xuangxing

In working to break down the applications of the movements/techniques in your form, it's well to bear in mind that each one has a PRIMARY application; it's the main (and usually the most fundamental, although not necessarily the most obvious) application. However, there are often other less obvious applications that may be gleaned.

Additionally, it isn't unusual for only the “entry” of a given technique/application to be shown. The rest of it is implied (but not shown outwardly). This is often true of hidden joint-twisting techniques and throws. The problem is that unless you're very familiar with a variety of such techniques, you'll probably never see them; you won't know what you're looking for.

For instance, the popular basic Shotokan kata, heian yondan, features what appears to be a knife-hand block and a high block executed simultaneously to the left. Then, without delivering an obvious counter blow, the practitioner turns and executes the same movement in the opposite direction! Then he apparently completely disregards that opponent and turns 90 degrees to engage an enemy standing in front of him. This is what I call a “red flag”; a clear indication that something has been concealed.

Master Seiyu Oyata (10^th dan, dec.) showed me that it's actually a takedown. Only the basic entry is shown in the form. Another example is the so-called “reinforced block.” It never made sense to me; and I smelled a red flag. Again, I was shown that this is actually the entry to a joint twisting technique...

Even the footwork matters. Sometimes, the final stance, per se, of one particular sequence (a “sequence may consist of only one technique, by the way...) may be the first “entering” step of the next sequence. Note: A “sequence” is a movement or series of movements that deal with a single foe.

Some martial disciplines, such as baguazhang, are built largely upon different ways of “entering” - entries – that are linked together. The “finishing” technique(s) are implied. Another note: an “entry” is a means by which you penetrate the enemy's defense perimeter.

Sometimes the “final” technique in one sequence is the entering technique of the next. The position(s) of the hips and shoulders may provide an important clue. This is why breaking down a given form is very time-consuming and it's also why the forms should never be changed. Volumes could be written about just one basic form. Think about that...

A LOW BLOW

 by Phillip Starr

Thanks to Hollywood, many martial arts devotees have been led to believe the kicks to he head are genuinely effective in real combat. And I agree that a head kick is truly effective. But it's a far, far cry from being practical and it's a great way to put your dentist's kids through college and grad school. You may think your high kicks are very fast and maybe they are...but rest assured that they're very likely not fast enough. At all.

They LOOK nice and may score points in tournaments but in combat, trying to kick someone in the head makes about as much sense as trying to punch them in the foot...unless the opponent has been struck powerfully in the body (like the groin) and he's doubled over in pain or laying on the ground. Then kicking him in the head is possible. Otherwise, I can't recommend it. Why use the bodily weapon that is furthest from the head to try to strike it?

Practicing high kicks is a good way to strengthen the legs and hips and they promote good flexibility but that's about it. Traditional Okinawan karate forms, as well as those of traditional Chinese sets (even those from the north) don't much feature head-high kicks. Most kicks are directed to targets at waist height or lower and the southern Chinese forms, such as White Crane, Dragon Fist, Southern Mantis, and others, rarely kick higher than the groin.

But. Even arts such as xingyiquan an baguazhang, which don't appear to feature kicking techniques...do. They're generally hidden within the footwork of the forms (this is also found in old Okinawan karate forms); what appears to be a simple step camoflouges a kick to the ankle...

The ankles, and points above them a bit, if struck properly, will not support the opponent's weight and he'll collapse in considerable pain. If he can't stand up, he can't fight... such “small” kicks are very quick and hard to see, but very effective!

A LIVING WEAPON

 by Phillip Starr

My teacher once admonished my classmates and me, telling us that we must become “weapons.” I was a little confused at first and then he went on to explain himself. Picking up a sword, he said, “Sword by itself is just a piece of steel. A gun on the table is harmless and cannot hurt you.”

Okay...so where are we going with this?, I thought.

Sifu Chen continued. “IF you practice hard, your body can become a weapon. But it is different and more dangerous than a sword or a gun.”

I wondered, “Just how is that?” But I knew better than to open my big mouth and ask.

“It is more dangerous”, he continued. “because it is a thinking, feeling weapon!”

I'd never looked at it that way...If a sword could think and feel (and move around), it would be a terribly dangerous weapon! How much moreso for a human who can strike in any number of ways (many more than those to which a sword is limited)! By developing real “weapon nature”, we do, in fact, beome very, very dangerous weapons.

Of course, developing genuine “weapon nature” requires considerable training but when that has been achieved, we have acquired a great treasure. But we must train regularly to keep our weapon (our bodies) sharp and maintain the ability to wield this multi-faceted weapon effectively. Not only must we keep our bodies “sharp”, but our minds as well....especially the mind, because it controls the weapon. In fact, it can be argued that it IS the weapon!

Just something more to ponder...