Self defence is only oriented towards one thing: ending an immediate
physical threat. How you go about it is a multi-layered strategy that far
supersedes simple physical application.
Self defence is never oriented towards ending a perceived emotional threat,
such as hurt pride, wounded feelings or to prove yourself right. It is not a
form of punishment or to prove your superiority over another human being.
(Marc MacYoung)
Fighting?
Fighting is illegal in the UK unless it takes place at a martial
arts club or a sporting event.
The word 'fighting' has the connotation of reciprocity: two
people trading blows. Taking turns.
It is legally perceived as being mutually agreed upon combat.
Both parties are involved in the
conflict.
Fighting usually involves emotion, stubbornness, pride and the desire to get
your point across/have your way.
This is not what self defence is about. This is not what tai chi is about.
Avoid conflict
Avoid any form of physical or verbal conflict if you can.
If you want to fight somebody, then look to your insecurities.
Tai chi is concerned with
self defence, not fighting.
Winning is not important.
If you can simply walk away, you should.
Self
defence
If you are forced to defend yourself, then you only do what is
necessary.
We accomplish this by being soft and
yielding, and avoiding
force.
Self defence is not the same as fighting.
You have only one aim in
self defence: escape without injury.
It is not about winning awards and trophies or gaining a belt.
It is not about looking cool or impressing anyone.
In self defence you do only what you have to do and you leave immediately.
The rabbit and the fox
This excellent story comes from Zen in the Martial Arts:
A zen master
out for a walk with one of his students pointed out a fox chasing a rabbit.
"According to an ancient fable, the rabbit will get away from the fox," the
master said.
"Not so," replied the student. "The fox is faster."
"But the rabbit will elude him," insisted the master.
"Why are you so certain?" asked the student.
"Because the fox is running for his dinner and the rabbit is running for his
life," answered the master.
(Joe Hyams)
The same lesson can be applied to fighting and self defence.
A fight is a mutual conflict - about something.
Self defence is when somebody assaults you - and you must protect yourself.
When you are defending your wellbeing (and possibly your life) the stakes
are high.
You have everything to lose.
Drills
Drills are choreographed sets designed to train
positioning, movement, sensitivity, spatial awareness, timing, distance and
smoothness.
Nobody should be hurt during a drill.
More serious
Self
defence is somewhat more serious than fighting.
This is not a macho statement - it is an important point. When your concern
is escape, you cannot be half-hearted.
Making a mistake in real life may cost you badly.
Consequently, self defence training must be very thorough. Any gaps and
deficiencies in your self defence must be highlighted and addressed in class.
Every aspect of the tai chi syllabus must exist to train and reinforce the
skills necessary for the
effective application of tai chi in self defence.
More playful
Self defence students do not need to beat one another senseless in the pursuit of self
defence skills.
This seems somewhat counter-productive.
We adopt a
playful attitude - like children who exuberantly throw one
another around, without aggression, without malice and without harm.
Make contact
All strikes are required to make contact and have body weight behind them.
Otherwise, bad habits develop.
Touch contact is not permitted. Every strike must land and have
substance.
Students learn to control the degree of
power exerted.
Restraint is vital.
Not full contact
Full contact is a very dangerous enterprise in which a strike or a break
could easily cripple the attacker.
We make contact in our class, but we do not deliver with full power.
Power is reserved for training mitts and punching bags.
Page created 17 September 2004