Hard-to-Soft/Soft-to-Hard Maxim - Amended

In my postings I have made reference to the “soft-to-hard:hard-to-soft” maxim. Simply quoted, “Lastly, I also feel it signifies the maxim of soft-to-hard:hard-to-soft applications. I believe this is symbolized because it provides a maxim that applies to all technique applications depending on the targeting. A punch involves the closed fist and punching with the fore-knuckles, i.e. karate punch, and a strike involves the open hand such as a slap to the head, an open handed back hand to the face, or the use of the open hand, the elbow, the forearm or both elbow and forearm. The soft-to-hard:hard-to-soft maxim means use a hard, fist, against soft targets; a soft, strike/slap, against hard targets.”

Thanks to the article/post by Wim Demeere at his blog by the same title/name clears the air of any inferences that this maxim is all encompassing as it sounds. (http://www.wimsblog.com/2014/09/open-hand-closed-fist-striking-best/#comment-33245) It is kind of inferred in its presentation that this is the end all of striking with the hands against human targets, i.e. head vs. stomach, etc. It is not, there are many more aspects to this maxim that are not really apparent when reading such short/terse explanations of such things.

First, nothing in print is ever complete and comprehensive, there is always “more to the story.” What most postings are about is information you may not have that “requires” additional explanation. Postings do a good job but often for the sake of brevity and ease of reading (actually, to get most humans to read at all they need to perceive that it will be short and sweet and interesting before they will attempt to read it) tend to be short, terse and incomplete. 

Anyway, when I talk, speak or write about this maxim it must be understood, similar to the principles of martial systems, that there are more factors to this maxim than simply hit to hard with soft and hit to soft with hard. Like Yin-Yang, that concept and symbol are far more complex then simply stating they are opposites such as Hard is the opposite to Soft, it ain’t all that simple and neither is the hard-to-soft/soft-to-hard maxim.

Other factors are:

Your own body, i.e. your mass, your bone structure, the bone density, your ability to align and attain correct structure, the strength of the muscles-bones-tendons-cartilage, etc. along with body conditioning. 

Your mind, as in the extent and detail of your instruction, practice, and ability to apply said training into applications under the roof of things like level of force, violence and the conflict along with all the physical and chemical effects triggered by fear, anger and the level of danger, etc.  

There there are more minute details such as the bone structure of the tool that will apply the technique. Take the hand, since most will directly assume that this model applies to the hands for striking, etc., for instance. The hand bone structure and ability to make a fist, etc. also have an impact on whether you strike with the fist or open hand. As in boxing, the hands ability to clench and make a fist (there are several forms of the fists in martial arts alluded to in regards to how it is applied and to what target, etc.) determines whether it will either resist breaking or break when applied to targets that are hard such as the head or say the shin with a double fist block used as bunkai in karate (oh, by the way, my interpretation of that block is not to stop a kick and that bunkai changes the dynamics of this example). 

Then we can discuss those details that are explained in Wim Demeere’s article on this subject, i.e. “the types of impact; the target of the strike, punch, etc.; the angle of that attack along with the applied strike, etc.; the person or adversaries body type; and finally the type of martial art or self-defense system.

In addition I also attribute this maxim to the completeness and proper application of the fundamental principles of the martial arts, i.e., those major principles of “Theory, Physiokinetics, Technique and Philosophy.” Also as example, sub-principles of say physiokinetics such as “breathing, posture, centerline, alignment, structure, body-mind, centripetal/centrifugal forces, sequential locking/unlocking, etc.”

Martial Arts/Karate are not simple and easy disciplines to teach, learn or explain - especially in written forms. They are simply complex systems that take time, energy and dedication to learn, train and apply. Any maxim explained should be assumed to be simplistic for the nature of postings and articles so that the reader can explore, experiment and get further guidance from more experienced sources to “get the rest of the story.” 

Read Wim Demeere's post on this subject here. 

Fostering Mood in Training and Practice

You know, once a person stated that to learn you really had to have “fun.” When I questioned that lack of seriousness toward training and practice as it applied to a very serious subject, self-defense, I still thought that having fun would cause that person to lose or freeze when serious violence was encountered. 

Today, I realize I was talking about apples and oranges. To have fun is about creating a mood or mildly elated state called “bypomania” creates an optimal state for creativity and promote fluidity and imaginative diversity of thought. When you learn that agitation undermines our ability to think cohesively you start to understand just how important mood is to learning. 

When you learn that, “Laughing, like elation, seems to help people think for broadly and associate more freely,” you begin to see the benefit of having “fun” regardless of the seriousness of the discipline and/or topic. When you learn that the effects of the mood you are in effect how you think, you get the picture “having fun with it” becomes important. 

If you promote an atmosphere that results in higher states of anxiety you are fostering an environment and mood that will eventually cause that person to fail in training and in that discipline when applied in real life. 

EI states, “Being in a foul mood biases memory in a negative direction, making us more likely to contract into a fearful, overly cautions decision. Emotions out of control impede the intellect.” It says to me that to allow the monkey emotional train to run the tracks puts us into bad situations when we encounter cross traffic along the way. 

To foster a mood in people that best suits learning and to foster out of the box thinking should strive to put students into a mood-state that has balance. In other words taking the training seriously but with humor to achieve “bypomania.” :-)

In other words, “have fun, train hard and have fun.” There are times to take things serious but in learning and fostering the best learning environment possible make sure you and your students “have fun.”

Note: the flood training (stress and adrenal dumps, etc.) is another topic on training and practice but I suspect in between those sessions that trigger you monkey and adrenal stuff there is a healthy amount of “fun.” 

Hey, I finally get it!

SD and Impulse Control

Now, granted not many will actually connect impulse control with SD but just think about it a moment. I quote, “There is perhaps no psychological skill more fundamental than resisting impulse.” - Emotional Intelligence, “The Master Aptitude” chapter 6

Think about how most of us end up in violent situations? When it comes down to it often it is the inability to resist impulse, especially when it is driven by out monkey brains on drugs, i.e. the physical chemical flooding often called the adrenal stress dump. How we handle impulse in our lives does effect how we react to situations at all levels.

Think of it as “emotional self-control,” i.e. “all emotions, by their very nature, lead to one or another impulse to act.” - EI, “The Master Aptitude section of chapter 6.” 

What I propose is that SD training must also include how one practices to control those types of impulse where one might say or do something that will cause an escalation of conflict toward violence. It is said in the EI book, ‘The capacity to resist impulse to act, to squelch the incipient movement, most likely translates at the level of brain function into inhibition of limbic signals to the motor cortex, though such ain interpretation must remain speculative for now.” It is that ability developed or enhanced that fundamentally is “the ability to restrain the emotions and so delay impulse.” 

Lets see about how one who is more adept at controlling impulses can be “less apt to go to pieces, freeze, or regress under stress, or become rattled and disorganized when pressured.” Those folks tend to be more “self-reliant and confident, trustworthy, and dependable; they take initiative and plunge into projects; they are able to delay gratification in pursuit of their goals.” Lets see where this leads.

Controlling impulse in a conflict can be achieved not only through training and practice but also by developing those traits found to be that which controls or assists controlling impulses. When we succumb to self-gratifying impulses to feel good about what we are doing, most especially when the monkey is running the show where that monkeys gratification is often counter intuitive to safety, security and good health, let alone the best resolutions in any conflict, tend to hinder our ability to control our impulse to simply, “kick that assholes ass.” 

If your goal happens to be avoidance of conflict and especially violence then these traits trained and practiced under the appropriate environment, i.e. both the physical and emotional, etc. then we can achieve better impulse control. If we are able to control how we act and react to conflict, danger and violence along with the emotions triggered in such circumstances such as anger and fear then we can come closer to achieving more acceptable goals, tactics and strategies. 

Controlling impulses are synonymous with controlling the monkey. The monkey is driven by emotions and flooding when it comes to conflict and violence so it may be that focusing on the many factors driving our monkeys including a healthy look at our self-control or impulse control may assist in our SD goals and training/teaching strategies and so on. 

Think of it this way, delinquency is connected to emotional intelligence, i.e. “impulse to control in childhood is a powerful predictor of later delinquency.” EI also means a greater ability to accurately read social situations, that can still be learned. Isn’t one of the many abilities in SD geared on how one would actually read social situations, i.e. social violence usually comes from social situations gone astray, etc.?

Impulse control, that ability either innate or developed through training, practice and application in ever day life can be connected to learning how to apply such impulse control under the effects of flooding in a conflict with potential to escalate toward physical/psychological violence. Is this something to pursue in SD training and practice?

Questions, questions and more questions. Is “impulse control” just another way to look at the “monkey brain?” How does one train and practice an impulse control response, well the book suggests a possibility, i.e. “goal-directed (I assume setting certain goals to train your impulse to act) self-imposed delay of gratification is the essence of emotional self-regulation: the ability to deny impulse in the service of that goal, whether it be solving a mathematical problem or pursuing a self-defense ability. This is often referred to as an “emotional intelligence meta-ability.” 

In social situations where things can get out of hand it might be practicing recognition of when your actions or your mouth are about to spit out something cute or irritatingly offensive so you can soothe your monkey mind you simply tell your monkey to shut the f*(& up then restrain yourself from saying your mind. Whenever you get the urge to spit something out you count to ten or when you decide that you want that latest and greatest electronic device you hesitate, think then take time to reconsider whether you actually need it now or whether it can wait - then wait. 

I have a feeling we all can relate to impulses to do things quickly and for instant gratifications but how about every other time you resist that temptation as a means of building that impulse resistance muscle up. 

In the MA/Karate world, you might get the impulse to skip over some boring and tedious requirement thinking it is not worth the effort - stop, think and then resist that impulse. This could be a novice training and practice goal.  In other words, hit that impulse control red button to put a hold on your monkey when it wants to slap some silly asshole  up side their head. 

Be Polite

Well, once again the obvious is slapped up side my head and I gotta say, being polite is not what I would expect to be a tool in self-defense and yet thinking about it at this moment it does make perfect sense. I believe it is difficult, in most circumstances, to engage in a conflict and/or violence it you are “being a polite” person. 

You know that being polite is but I will provide my views here just the same. Knew I would, didn’t you? When a person shows another person respect and consideration they are being polite. When you relate to others civilly, courteously, respectfully, graciously and so on you are being polite. I also believe being polite is also about how you perceive others as well. Just acting out these traits is not enough.

When you live and breath good manners or proper etiquette you are being not only polite but respectful to that persons cultural beliefs. This is where polite gets a bit difficult because your perceptions of polite must be tempered with a knowledge and understanding of the other person who may not be of your tribe, your culture and your belief systems. 

When do you find yourself in conflict? Usually when you are inconsiderate, rude and/or negative in both language, tone and body language. So, if you want to convey through the mediums of body language, verbiage and tone-rhythm-cadence of the spoken language you have to believe in it, live it in all you say or do and then display it through example. It is also an awareness that comes along with social, environmental and personal awareness. It must be one of the self-conscious actions done instinctively.

Now, this does not mean that you won’t need SD but it goes a very long way toward “avoidance.” It is harder to be angry with someone who is wholeheartedly and truly a polite person. I am also not saying that one must be perceived as an easy target because of the politeness as I believe you can still convey a hard target while being polite. As a matter of fact I feel it is critical in being perceived as a capable person while showing politeness. It is like those displays that tell a predator that you are not a good target but to many you appear to be a capable, independent, confident and nice-polite king of person. I think that is possible and should also be an intricate part of any SD training and practices. 

It becomes a part of the EI (Emotional Intelligence) I have been studying of late. It is about identifying emotions, especially those that lead to conflict and violence, and providing a tempering of steel in directing those toward one’s more conducive of controlling our monkey brains. I also want to stress that there is this thing Marc MacYoung calls the “monkey slide” we, as humans, have to deal with and firmly believe this polite thing will go a long way toward not losing to the slide, at least not so much or if you do maybe it will be one of those non-physical violent slides. One of my goals, to recognize anger and dip it in the cool waters of tranquility. 

So, be polite. Train and practice being polite. Make politeness a part of avoidance SD training and practice. If you find yourself saying, “Hey, no way dude, that is for sissies,” then recognize that your monkey is driving you toward your doom, arghhhhh.

Hey, if it helps look at it as a similar method dramatized in the movie, “Road House,” with Patrick Swayze, “Dalton: I want you to be polite until it's time to not be polite.” (I changed the word “nice” to “polite.”) And just for the fun of it, “Dalton: All you have to do is follow three simple rules. One, never underestimate your opponent. Expect the unexpected. Two, take it outside. Never start anything inside the bar unless it's absolutely necessary. And three, be polite.” (nice to polite again my doing)

The Police, You and Self-Defense

This is going to be very short, it is a feeling I got reading a very big book on Self-defense. In one very small paragraph the author describes the obstacles, hurdles and restrictions the police have to deal with while keeping the public safe. It just occurred to me while reading this book that we, the private citizen, in any event or situation involving the legal system and the police, etc. we also have to deal with a huge amount of similar obstacles, hurdles and restrictions when we are in a Self-defense situation. 

Example, and I quote, “no way in hell would I (the author) want to  do their job (the police) under the restrictions and pressures place on them by modern society, the administration, the courts, social media, camera phones, and the ‘blogsphere.’”

While reading, for the second go around, this book it came to my mind that if I, or for anyone not police or even some other professional, were to be involved in some legal matter, lets use the SD model since that is the topic of the book, I too as a citizen would be under “the restrictions and pressures place on us by modern society, … , the courts, social media, camera phones, and the ‘blogsphere.’” (Note: I pulled out the reference to administration cause for us, as citizens, we are not directly affected by them other than how that makes the police, the first responders in an incident, procedures that may or may not affect my legal status, i.e. “being detained, questioned, taken into custody and so on.”

The SD world is a very large continent filled with land mines that can take you out if you step on the wrong piece of land. Every step along that road through the mine field makes for some very dangerous ground. Here is the real issue tho, we may face some similar obstacles, etc. but the one thing that is different from what I perceive is, “The police are professionals who work this stuff every single day and have seen and experienced things we, as regular citizens, have only encountered while sitting in a dark and quiet theater up on the screen - movies.” We are doubly handicapped because we are pretty darn ignorant about all this stuff and when the flood hits (adrenal stress chemical dumps) we will in all likelihood fall into what we know, i.e. fiction, television, movies and other such fictional and often incorrect or inaccurate depiction’s mostly set to goose your monkey’s emotional triggers in the name of DRAMA.

That is why knowledge is power and you want that type of power on your side if you have to face the police and possibly the legal system. Nothing is guaranteed and you have to have your shit in the bag to navigate the mind fields and this book is an awesome beginning. 

p.s. best advice I read and have been told about meeting the police, in my own words, is to be as polite as you can be much like meeting a date for the first time, i.e., be very, very polite, respectful and do what they tell you (within reason, etc.). Most of all, be polite, be polite and be polite. Did you miss that one, I said, “BE POLITE!”

Emotional Intelligence - Self-Awareness

I quote, “A belligerent samurai, an old Japanese tale goes, once challenged a Zen master to explain the concept of heaven and hell. But the monk replied with scorn, ‘You’re nothing but a lout - I can’t waste my time with the likes of you!’ His very honor attacked, the samurai flew into a rage and, pulling his sword from its scabbard, yelled, ‘I could kill you for your impertinence.’ ‘That,’ the monk calmly relied, ‘is Hell.’ Startled at seeing the truth in what the master pointed out about the fury that had him in its grip, the samurai calmed down, sheathed his sword, and bowed, thanking the monk for the insight. ‘And that,’ said the monk, ‘is Heaven.’ The sudden awakening of the samurai  to his own agitated state illustrated the crucial difference between being caught up in a feeling and becoming aware that you are being swept away by it. The keystone of emotional intelligence: awareness of one’s own feelings as they occur.” - Emotional Intelligence, Chapter 4, “Know Thyself,” page 46, first six paragraphs.

Speed

We often talk about using speed in self-defense yet there is one type of speed that is not discussed and in most martial arts is promoted as a means of “winning” when in reality “winning” is actually more about how fast things finish. Ops, heard that and saying, “What the ….!” 

What brought on this particular terse post is a quote, taken out of context, by Clint Overland at the beginning of Chapter 13 of the book by Marc MacYoung, “In the Name of Self-Defense.” The quote is, “ … Speed equals innocence. … “

This is not the speed your hand travels toward the target on an adversary. It is not moving fast on your feet either. It is how fast you finish removing the danger in self-defense. It is about stopping the attacker, "FAST." 

It is about a perception of others who may be witness to the incident and it may be how the authorities, if involved, perceive this same incident when perceived from witness accounts or that most damning and worst witness, phone video’s. 

Often, speed is taught, practiced and trained as to how fast you can move, apply techniques and do kata but in reality the true value of speed is, “speed equals innocence.” 

Stories become Truth to become Legends

I quote, “The myth of ryukyuan disarmament is no older than the early 19th century but is very persistent, and in particularly popular among the practitioners of karate.” - The Samurai Capture a King: Okinawa 1906 by Stephen Turnball. 

“It was the naive observations of foreign travelers, disguising reality, that sustained the myth of bare-fisted Okinawan warriors taking on armed Samurai of Satsuma.” - The Samurai Capture a King: Okinawa 1906 by Stephen Turnball. 

Isn’t it amazing that even today some still vehemently believe in the story about karate and the disarmament of Okinawans. It was not that long ago that I actually found out the truth of it. You would think that this type of myth would be disproved long before our modern times. It just goes to show how a good story can sometimes achieve historical significance and become legend. If this is true and I believe it to be so, then it is highly likely that many of the recent stories may also be false but carried forth because, “They are good stories.” 

Bibliography:

Turnbull, Stephen and Hook, Richard. “The Samurai Capture a King: Okinawa 1609 (Raid).” Osprey Publising. Westminster, MD. 2009.

Quast, Andreas. "Karate 1.0: Parameter of an Ancient Martial Art." Lulu Publishing (Self-published). December 2013. 

Rant, Rant, ladda da di da, Ranting

One of the special forces maxim refers to a soldier's greatest weapon, the mind. It would seem that in the MA world be it combatives for the military, police, etc. or as self-defense for the masses this mind thing would be critical. There is a phrase that describes this, i.e. Kokoro no Shugyo [心の修行] The characters/ideograms mean, “Training of the mind.”

What I perceive is one must train the mind to see those things and know those things that would provide the mind with the ability to choose the proper tools in getting the job done. I also believe that by fooling ourselves or being subjected to hero worship suggestibility and other such things clouds our minds toward the true goal we have told ourselves we sought when taking up such disciplines.

To train the mind is to train it to "see" and "hear" truth in all its reality. Hiding our heads in the sand in order to promote an easier and faster path toward self-gratification not only makes us miss our targets but subjects us to dangers beyond our minds imagination if we ever find ourselves facing a violent situation.

For instance, we are human and we apply violence every single day of our lives. Have you ever gotten into a heated discussion where voices got pretty loud, you know you trying to get your point across to someone who appears to be ignoring your viewpoint? If you said yes you were being violent.

Have you ever gotten into a shouting match with another person in a bar because they may have done or said something that jerked your chain? If you have, you were being violent.

Yea, I know, that doesn't seem violent but when you think about it it is violent because the only reason one shouts in anger is when they MUST have someone else agree with what it is that are arguing about, that is violence.

Another example, women commit violence all the time as well. It is often a psychological violence but it is still violence. Get this, as we become a more "equal rights" society women are resorting to the physical application of violence and the big issue here is societies view toward women and violence. They just don't see women in the same light as men in violence.

Consider this, more of our younger women are using the physical to get their gratifications, more and more than you might see, hear, etc. The greatest danger is that men tend to think that women don't have the capability but they are just as human as men and they also have to deal with those ancient survival instincts that all humans still have to deal with and if you doubt it read, Emotional Intelligence, it explains how the brain works in this instance, really, read it.

So, kokoro no shugyo, much like the military maxim, wars are won before the first shot is ever fired by how the military create the appropriate mind-set and mind-state. It is about their training, their understanding of the enemy, their history, the tactics and strategies and a whole bunch of other stuff that is critical before he very first move from said military. A general has to know, understand and create a mind-state that is a mirror of his enemy general much like Patton of WWII and MacArthur in the Pacific. Otherwise don't bother getting out of bed cause your gonna lose, big time.

If we don't open up our minds and know ourselves and our enemy or adversary, how they commit violence and the why of it then how can we possible defend against it and how can we possible prevent it and most of all how can we ever even think that we can stop it, it is in our nature and hiding from it will not get the job done.

Validating by Rory Miller

If you don’t know Rory Miller and you have not read his Chiron blog you might be missing out on some awesome stuff. Here is a sample that from where I sit speaks volumes to the martial arts community. 

Validating by Rory Miller

Giving Credit

A long time ago I began writing the blogs I have on Martial Arts, Self-Defense, and Philosophy of MA. In those humble beginnings I didn’t give credit where credit was due. I used direct quotes and even longer content exactly as the originating author provided. It was pointed out by another author of web sites and blogs. 

Blogs and web sites are personal venues that usually consist of personal perceptions, viewpoints and ideas, etc. Often they are simply presenting information gleamed from other more qualified and knowledgeable folks. I learned this as I went along. It began my providing names with quotes and bibliographies. I also, from time to time, posted that much of what I am writing about comes from the knowledge of others and is not my own but rather a view or perception of what I think of the material, a redaction if you will. 

Regardless, I began providing those posts of clarifications along with bibliographies not only to give credit where credit is due but to also provide my readers source materials for additional research. 

No one, I mean no one who is knowledgeable of any subject matter I present is thinking that all this comes from me, it does not. I was not born with this knowledge and experience. No one in the world comes into this world with life knowledge, etc. You learn from others and then you try your best to apply it and absorb it into your way. Normal human living, learning and experience. 

So, once again, everything you read here comes from others. As this quote states, "One thing has always been true: That book ... or ... that person who can give me an idea or a new slant on an old idea is my friend." - Louis L'Amour (see, I am giving credit to the quote :-)

As does everyone, I use knowledge of others to learn and part of that learning process is to redact into my own words, which I didn’t do so well when I stared, what I am learning in the hopes of getting feedback so that I can learn. I personally think this is how it is done.

Now, if I were getting money for what I do then I would be required to go the distance to provide all the sources to include those that are fist hand accounts and remembrances even if that is all I have. If I write a book for profit or just for free I have as many of the sources in the bibliography as possible or available. I understand that is the “right thing to do.” 

If anyone finds that I have used a quote of thiers or they feel they should be credited with teaching me as read in my postings please don’t hesitate to comment and let me know. Make sure you provide me validation so I can add that to my bibliography. 

I regret wholeheartedly that I missed providing credit in those earlier years. I have and am learning more each day and my postings are there to provide hints in others research for more information and that seems like a good thing. 

What I try hard NOT to do is provide a post with criticisms laced with disgust or contempt because I feel that would diminish the information and possibly lead to others discarding such good data over some emotionally driven monkey ego pride toward some group dogma that separates the MA world into a “them or others” type system. That does not promote growth, potential and learning. Ah, the fact is that I am human and because of this need to work on this aspect daily. 

For a bibliography of this site click the link above. I have links to bibliographines on my blog sites and on the FB wall for review. When I can I do add them to each particular posting as needed. 

Thanks for reading my stuff and thanks for your kind considerations all these years. Early today someone made a complaint about something I did about ten years ago and that made me think, “Wow, I have been doing this a while now and I hope I have gotten a bit better in how I do it.” 

Thanks All!

Rational/Logical Mind - Emotional/Monkey Mind

SD vs. MA (Your MA is NOT SD, maybe :)

Oh shit, a bell is going off and guess what, it is about my long practiced and personally important martial art that is being “dissed.” Yet, all that it is and all that I thought is was is false but true. There are some very important aspects to its practice, its training and most important of all, “its applications.”

My MA as previously practiced, trained and applied is not a SD system. It just isn’t because of a variety of reasons and those reasons are all provided, in a quick and terse manner so as to get the point across without writing a damn book on that subject, by a professional who has not only trained in MA but has lived a life where as a professional he has had to apply all aspects of the SD world while utilizing a more appropriate form of MA and other learned actions through experience to get the job done while maintaining the integrity of the social requirements and the legalities our society require and apply to everyone. 

In almost all martial arts SD instruction I was exposed to and to those who were exposed to it when I gave instructions is based on both “fighting and combatives.” We tended to take the opposite end of that spectrum to teach when in reality we needed to be at the other end. Our MA effectiveness is based on the sport aspect and also the fighting aspect that is promoted as the best and greatest means of SD. Bullsh$#.

Am I angry that what I practiced, taught and believed is wrong on several levels? Nope, just glad as hell that someone finally put out information that is valid yet does not pretend to validate SD except in a more reality form thus waking up the mind to the truth of things before I find I have to defend my SD. 

Example: many MA tend to “finish the guy off” type training when the true focus should be on, “Stopping the Threat.” This attitude is what gets folks who find themselves in a SD situation getting cuffed, hauled to jail and trying to dig up a good attorney and bond agent. Fist, none of these MA’s actually teach how to avoid in the first place. None even remotely approach the topic of emotional intelligence. They never discuss or cover such things as levels of force necessary to “stop the threat.” 

Perceptions are important but the correct perceptions are critical, i.e. how you perceive the situation, the perception of that antagonist, the perceptions of the legal representatives where the first line is that officer questioning you about what happened, the perceptions of the district attorney who is taking a lead from the officer and so many other perceptions who would include all those righteous folks sitting in that nice wood enclosure with just enough room for twelve chairs and a special room where they get to discuss what a bad, bad, bad boy you have been fighting and all that stuff. 

Knowing how one gets caught up in a conflict is important and that leads to avoidance. Lets not forget how one’s ego as in monkey brain can lead you by the nose right down the path toward a time in a small confined space with a lot of big, ugly and mean folks eyeing you like a piece of meat ready for consumption. Yikes!

What is this all about? Well, I just read a section in the book INoSD that speaks to MA and SD, i.e. the differences of what is most often taught as SD in MA vs. “stopping the threat.” Not just stopping the threat but doing so in a manner that directly conuters what is taught, getting the job done as soon as possible so perceptions are more in line with SD, not fighting (oh, yea, as previously stated time and again, fighting is illegal). Does your MA actually teach this and do your moves actually promote this and are they such that they keep you from applying things that are not adequate to stopping the threat vs. fighting? 

You are going to have to do the work to find out the answers because I am not qualified enough to do so here in this post. If what I write here rings a bell and if you truly and seriously want to learn SD along with your MA and if you want your MA to be what it is and what it could be then do the work.

Personally, this is one of many things over the last ten years that has opened my eyes to things I was taking for granted. I am not displeased with the value of my MA. It is still what I wanted it to be but now I can temper it in practice and training so that I will make it valuable toward the why to my efforts with it and “NOW” if I am ever required to defend myself I will do so with the knowledge gained and act accordingly. I mean from the very first level of self-awareness through self-reflection to avoidance to the physical as a last resort and to those needs and requirements should it get that far to remain truly and completely within the SD square. 

When you do the work you will soon recognize a lot of the words as the influence of the materials that will set the stage for “Reality-based Self-defense.” Oh, and that word reality has a lot more to it than what you may perceive from this simple yet incomplete posting. Yea!

Bibliography:

MacYoung, Marc. “In the Name of Self-Defense: What It Costs. When It’s Worth It.” Marc MacYoung. 2014.

The Benefit of Kata Training

The value or benefit of kata training in martial art has been bandied about for many, many years. I have posted many times on the value of kata training and that includes kata two person drills, etc. You can also add in the two person drills for kumite as well, with caveats. 

While reading the second go-round of the book by Marc MacYoung, “In the Name of Self-defense,” I came across his comments or questions regarding traditional martial arts kata training models. Remember, this is an excerpt and if nothing else should motivate all martial artists to read his book cause it holds “so much more” than this small quote.

“Is the repetitive motion of kata good for ingraining neural pathways and developing good mechanics? YES, IF done correctly (capital emphasis mine). Is that all you need? NO (capital emphasis mine). You need to have someone actually try to hit you in one-step drills so you learn the importance of moving off line and the need for correct structure against incoming force, among a variety of other things depending on the training and teacher. Then you can tweak your kata so you train yourself to perform it effectively against another person. … (ellipse, of course indicate missing words) Does someone who has had years of training in a traditional martial art school need to go through adrenal stress or scenario training? YES (capital emphasis mine). … (ellipse, of course indicate missing words) There is no such thing as one-stop shopping for all your self-defense needs.” - Marc MacYoung, In the Name of Self-Defense, Chapter 9, page 200 or print version (second and third paragraph).

Mr. MacYoung makes some general comments on things to do to enhance your MA experience if you desire it be effective in SD but I will personally assume there is more that must be taken into consideration and that is covered in other materials and training. My goal with this post is to provide those who traditionally train their kata model to consider that it will be of great value as long as you enhance that training with additional reality based adrenal influenced, etc. training. 

In my view from where I sit and that seat is not necessarily one that takes all considerations into light but I do believe wholeheartedly that most, not all, traditional/classical martial arts tend to gloss over this type of training and practice because it is not an easy path to follow and incurs some additional efforts and means leaving the more convenient ways one trains and practices. It is kind of out of the box type thing. 

Bibliography:

MacYoung, Marc. “In the Name of Self-Defense: What It Costs. When It’s Worth It.” Marc MacYoung. 2014.

Challenge the Monkey

To achieve some semblance of control over our emotions, as to the monkey brain, we have to achieve some understanding of how the emotional mind actually works. It all parcels into the traits and components that make for a good martial artists and is inter-connected in how we achieve a modicum of ability in the fuller spectrum of self-defense.

Emotions are described as, “Any agitation or disturbance of the mind, feeling, passion; any vehement or excited mental state. A feeling and its distinctive thoughts, psychological and biological states, and range of propensities to act. - Emotional Intelligence by Daniel Goleman

In martial arts we try to build character. We do this because good character leads to a greater psychological discipline required to have better moral conduct and that conduct is how we apply our martial prowess in daily life as in conflict. Character is built on self-discipline and that is the bedrock of character.

The keystone to character is the ability to motivate oneself and to guide oneself in all life’s disciplines and this is critical in the study, practice and application of martial arts be they for sport, self-defense or combatives and so on. 

Emotions by there very nature require we keep them under our control, or control of reason. It is also important to see how those emotions are affected by both past and present but also how they influence our present. As once stated in a movie quote, “when the past comes knocking we can never tell where that will lead.” 

We have inter-connectedness of emotions to our moods and to our temperaments. This interconnectedness also influences our present state of mind and that means our present actions accordingly.

As can be indicated by this terse commentary on emotions and character we can foresee the importance of our emotional intelligence for that quality, more than any other, will direct and lead us to the type of conflict resolutions that the mere physical will miss completely. It is that Yin that goes with the Yang that is conflict and violence. 

Personally, I believe more than anything that our emotional intelligence will gain us far more in self-defense than any other aspect of this large and complex subject. 

Remember, “Character is the psychological muscle that moral conduct requires. It is the bedrock of self-discipline. The keystone of character is being able to motivate and guide oneself. It takes will to keep emotion under the control of reason.” 

Oh, and remember that the monkey is driven by emotions and they are usually out of control. Challenge the monkey by taking back control thus allowing you to use the monkey along with the lizard to achieve something useful. 

Bibliography:

Goleman, Daniel. “Emotional Intelligence: 10th Anniversary Edition [Kindle Edition].” Bantam. January 11, 2012.

Emotional Reasoning

“It takes will to keep emotion under the control of reason.” - Emotional Intelligence, Daniel Goleman. 

More so in conflict than most other situations one’s emotions run rampant and the key to survival is learning to recognize when emotions are hijacking your human/rational mind and the emotional/monkey mind is controlling actions at the speed of light. This is probably the most complex aspect to acquiring character that comes from emotional intelligence. 

It has been and is currently being bandied about in the world of self-defense, martial arts and combatives that the monkey is the culprit to many of the conflicts we encounter. In a sense that is true but who controls the monkey. We tend to perceive our emotions as some uncontrollable thing that is part of our humanity that is uncontrollable, but it isn’t. 

As a SD person, a martial artist and once who had come to believe that all things are about us, as an individual person, are controlled by us, as an individual person. The moment we refute the idea that our actions are due to something outside of us we begin to control ourselves in a way that promote more control over our monkey brains. Our next step then seems to be learning about our emotional minds, the monkey mind, so that we may begin to understand just how much control we have over it and its affects on us in life and not just SD, etc. 

We have a rapid-fire emotional reaction to things that are of an urgency that is inter-connected with our primal survival instinct. That instinct is still with us regardless of things like the “Industrial Revolution” or the current revolution, i.e. the “Electronic/Technological Revolution.” Humans are still subject to evolution even when our influences cause change because natural evolution still takes millions of years provided we survive any cataclysmic change to our Universe. 

The slower emotional reaction is also there to plague us depending on such things as our culture, our beliefs and our knowledge. If you don’t know about something you cannot control that something when it hits you between the eyes, ergo why knowledge from academia, society, our perceptions in our environment, etc. along with the beliefs we build through daily life events. The slower emotional reactions are those that come from our attitudes, our beliefs, and our internal discussions. 

We can be either pessimistic in our thoughts and words and deeds or we can be optimistic. This slow thought process tends to be recurring in our active mind chatter of daily life so it can simmer and brew first in our minds as our thoughts and then as circumstances dictate they lead to feelings, feelings of joy or feelings of anger, etc. Get where I am going here, our thoughts lead to how our emotions work, dominate or balance out depending on various controlled factors that are ours to control and use while being independent to what others think, say or do. This will influence our more rapid-fire emotional actions and reactions. 

Our rapid-fire emotions are such that to gain control over them we have to develop a mind that is knowledgable of those instincts that cause such emotions to rise up and take control. It is about taking the monkey out of the equation and allowing the emotional mind to say what triggers and how. This cannot be done through ignorance so knowledge of this process is important and the only way to change that is through appropriate ongoing, continuous, diligent and “reality-based” methods so the lizard, the brain that is instinctive in nature, can use that training in lieu of other more naturally driven instinctual methods and models. 

So, how do we gain that kind of knowledge that will allow us to recognize what emotional reactions we are having and to apply the right kind of training to achieve a more emotional intelligent reaction and action based from those emotions? See the bibliography for that answer:

Bibliography:

Goleman, Daniel. “Emotional Intelligence: 10th Anniversary Edition [Kindle Edition].” Bantam. January 11, 2012.

Push Up Bars (Some refer to as Chinkuchi Bars)

Stopped in, finally, to a hardware store to see if this is doable and that they had the parts to put it together. Except for stock shortages all these parts are available. I also noted that for the handle you can go bigger to fit, then when you put in the corner pieces you can downsize the legs in circumference and make them shorter as the t-base fittings for the bottom add on a bit, about 3/4", etc. 

Now, as soon as I can get to Home Depot, bigger stock and should have the smaller pipe, I will get the materials and put them together for use. I then will play with them not only to gain some stability training for my muscles but to self-analyze how they contribute to fundamental principles application as it pertains to this concept of chinkuchi. 

Note: This concept of chinkuchi push up bars being indicative of having what some refer to as, “good chinkuchi,” is part of the reason why I am making these. The actual bars as created by a group of Isshinryu practitioners are not available to non-members and I suspect if they did make them available the costs would be out of my expense range for this type of thing. Regardless, I will make these, test them out, use them and then come back with my opinions as to whether these actually test a persons chinkuchi as defined by both the group and my standards. 

WARNING: This device is meant for use in a controlled and safe way and must be monitored by someone who has experience using this type of device that really appears to work the stabilizing trait of our muscles. Use them in a manner that ensures your health and safety.

Note: I made an adjustment to the parts used, I replaced a T-Base into the closed cap shown in this snapshot. It just seemed a better way to go and it still has a semi-rounded end to closely match the original bars by the original creators of the proverbial "chinkuchi bars."

Click for larger view.

Bujutsu [武術] to Budo [武道]

The combative form of martial arts are referred to as “bujutsu.” The more philosophical and spiritual (non-religious meaning) practices of martial arts are referred to as “budo.” There is a middle ground as well called, “Bonpu budo [凡夫武道].” This is addressed as the “three stages” of martial arts.

Martial arts disciplines began as combatives systems for armies and individuals. They were purely physical and practiced to overcome/defeat/kill the enemy in combat. They are/were designed as a practical approach to defeating an adversary by means of great bodily harm or death. This is why it is called bujutsu.

The middle ground of martial arts is about the creation and living of a more spiritual discipline to aid the warrior of bujutsu in their applications. It was a self-analysis type of model with the intent to self-cultivate ones mind through moving meditation, thus improving one’s physical performance. This is why it is called bonpu budo.

The upper stage is what some might refer to as, genuine budo or just Budo. This is where we reverse the concept that the Way is the means to improve one’s physical discipline but rather the physical discipline becomes the method or model to guide the practitioner on the path, or Way, toward a more spiritual path. Budo are no longer strictly disciplines meant for killing, or in modern times self-defense, but become models through which practitioners aspire to greater moral perfection. 

Bibliography:

Mann, Jeffrey K. “The Butjutsu - Budo Stereotype.” Classical Fighting Arts. Vol. 2 No. 27 (Issue #50):62 - 67

Self-Awareness

Becoming conscious of one’s own character, personality, feelings, motives, and desires. Creating a capacity for self-perception thus becoming self-conscious. It is becoming a person with the ability and capacity for introspection. To recognize oneself but most important to achieve a level of emotional intelligence so as to recognize one’s feelings and emotions with emphasis on emotions. 

The result is a knowledge and intelligence toward over very feelings. Feelings that govern our thoughts and reactions. To know if our thoughts and emotions are ruling a decision rather than the human mind, i.e. the monkey is driving the bus. It is about seeing deep within so that one can see the consequences of allowing the monkey to dance so that alternative human mind choices can be made and then apply them to create decisions about handling such things as conflict, anger and violence, etc. 

Self-awareness is about recognizing and acknowledging both strengths and weaknesses; seeing within yourself a self that is positive and realistic so as to avoid the more common pitfalls that come from the effects of allowing the monkey free reign in conflicts. 

Managing the monkey means managing your emotions and to do that you have to have that emotional intelligence so as to identify, name and address such emotional effects. You need to realize what is behind such emotions such as when some perceived hurt triggers anger when that hurt is more emotional than actual or real.

SA is about taking responsibility for the self, i.e. the human, the monkey and the lizard, so all your decisions and actions are right, correct and acceptable to society as a whole. 

It is about the ability to see reality so that you can distinguish between what someone says or does so that your own judgment and reaction is appropriate to the situation at any given moment. It is about being assertive over being angry or fearful. It is about creating the ability to provide conflict resolutions to yourself and thereby to others as conflicts arise. 

Look at it as Aristotle did so long ago, it is about developing a higher level of emotional intelligence or as he said, “Emotional Skillfulness.”

Bibliography:

Goleman, Daniel. “Emotional Intelligence: 10th Anniversary Edition [Kindle Edition].” Bantam. January 11, 2012.