COMBAT APPLICATIONS
There are many martial applications hidden in the routines of tai chi (taijiquan), baguazhang, xingyiquan, and all martial arts. But it is extremely important that we not treat these techniques like magical patterns that will save us in times of conflict. We must do that ourselves.
The purpose of martial arts?
It can be argued quite effectively that the purpose of martial arts is to beat other people. And the routines that we practice have a great many martial applications, including techniques of "shuaijiao" (throwing), "qinna" (joint control and pressure point manipulation), punching, kicking, and striking with all parts of the body.But our perspective on martial arts changes when we ask ourselves two questions:
Why would we need to beat other people?
How do we make martial techniques work?
It then becomes clear that the ultimate purpose of martial arts, and the secret to being an effective fighter, is the search for balance and tranquility.
The training that refines our body and mind for combat, and the method of applying martial techniques, are means of seeking peace and harmony.
Advanced martial artists learn that using force against force is an unreliable way of winning a fight. Instead, they learn to blend with the opponent's force, intent, and motivation to find the part of the opponent's mind that wants to be defeated. At the highest level, the defender defeats the opponent before the attacker knows it has begun.
Practical or impractical martial arts?
There are so many benefits to traditional martial arts training that most schools do not actually teach for the purpose of self defence. And it is true that there are many very experienced martial arts experts out there who would probably lose a typical street fight. Sometimes martial arts training is even detrimental to a person's natural fighting ability, especially if one confuses the practical wushu with the Huatao Wuyi 花套武藝(s艺) or sport / performance wushu.Martial arts have many training methods to cultivate mind, body, and spirit. These include qigong, basic conditioning, forms, martial applications, sanshou, tuishou, and specialised training drills.
If a student merely wants to come to class to fight, there are easier and less expensive ways to do it than by joining a martial arts class. But if learning practical self defence is your goal, then fighting is the last thing you want to do.
If a martial arts school were simply to spend a part of each class doing some traditional looking exercises and forms, and then spend most of the class sparring with students of all levels, then there is a risk that the student will get an impractical view of self defence, and also miss the opportunity to learn higher level skills.
By jumping into sparring practice too soon, the student, instead of refining awareness and skill, will merely re-enforce existing habits and tendencies. In other words, they will simply become more like the way they already are.
Think of traditional training like building a car in your garage. You can spend a long time building a Ferrari, or spend a short time building a pair of roller skates. The roller skates will get on the road sooner. But the Ferrari will take you farther and faster. Of course, continuing the same analogy, you might argue that the roller skates are more practical for people who don't have a lot of time.
Traditional schools sometimes fall into traps of thinking that their training is complete when it isn't. if you build a Ferrari but haven't learned how to drive or even how to open the garage door, you still aren't going to get very far and the roller skater will beat you in a race. To learn to fight, you should eventually do some kind of sparring.
There is also case of the fancy looking Ferrari that gets onto the road, only to find out that there is no engine, like the modern wushu player, the boxer, or the point fighter who mixes up the sport with real combat.
Most styles of wushu teach sets of movements called taolu, forms, or routines ("kata" in Japanese). These routines are designed to "build the vehicle" and include movements for developing flexibility, agility, speed, power, and co-ordination. They also contain movements which serve as type of solo practice of martial applications.
These applications include Shuaijiao (throws and takedowns), qinna (joint control and pressure point manipulation), and tida (striking with all parts of the body.)
Some styles emphasise one type of application over another, but almost all will teach some of each. Ground fighting methods are also taught in most schools, although traditionally, these were seen as a technique of last resort. A fight usually ends before it hits the ground, and since most traditional schools trained to fight multiple attackers, the ground was usually seen as something to avoid.
There are many martial applications hidden in the routines of tai chi (taijiquan), baguazhang, xingyiquan, and all martial arts. But it is extremely important that we not treat these techniques like magical patterns that will save us in times of conflict. We must do that ourselves. - Ian Sinclair
Technique vs Method
After receiving several requests for demonstrations of martial applications of different taiji movements, my shirfu said, "You show me any movement, even if I don't know that style, I will show you application."So, being a bit of a smarty, a student who will not be named, showed the Vienna waltz. Shirfu, without any hesitation, demonstrated application after application of the waltz, both "literal" applications, and those with slight modifications and follow ups. There were counter strikes, throw, qinna, dian xue, kicks, and sweeps. All effortless and natural. After 15 minutes of non-stop applications, we were all thinking that the Vienna Waltz must be a secret European style of Kung Fu.
Every movement in a form can have martial applications. Every part of every movement has applications. A good fighter will be able to find applications in the smallest movement. But this is not because of the choreography so much as it is because of the way the choreography is performed. Many martial artists will tell you that basic conditioning is more important than learning technique.
"Conditioning is your best hold" -Karl Gotch1
- Root
- The word "root" is used here not in the Australian sense, but in reference to the relaxed vertical alignment of mind, body and spirit. This is developed through diligent practice so that there is no inappropriate internal stress. This also enables a person to defend against an incoming force by redirecting it through the body into the ground or by allowing the force to roll off to the side.
To some, conditioning means developing strength and power. To others it means developing natural instinct, awareness, softness and especially "root."
Internal martial artist are among the strongest advocates of developing root over technique. Some styles, like Yiquan, train root almost to the exclusion of all else. This is why there is such a strong emphasis, especially with internal styles, on the practice of Zhan Zhuang (standing meditation) and slow movement.
It is possible to learn a great many techniques, and to be able to perform them quickly and effortlessly with a compliant partner and still be unable to execute any technique in a real fight. For a technique to be effective, it must be applied adaptively with unending instantaneous adjustments.
With the infinite variables in real combat comes a need for something beyond technique. This is where softness, strategy, awareness, power, flexibility, speed, timing, and the ability to stick and follow in a circle become the real art. Developing these qualities is so important that many martial arts pay very little attention to the actual practice of technique, allow the principles of movement and engagement to guide one until the technique manifests itself.
It is not what we do. It is about how we are.
Seek emptiness. Cut the line between before and after.
Become one with the Universe. There is no enemy.
How does one develop root and the internal qualities that refine the method of making techniques work?
Practising technique against a non-compliant opponent is one way in which some technique-based schools train the evolution of a method. They keep practising the technique until they find a way to make it work fairly often against one particular training partner. Then they try to do the same thing with partners of different sizes, strengths and skill sets. J. Kano (the founder of Judo) was famous for being able to make any technique work against almost anyone. The fact that most people can't get a technique to work in a realistic situation seems to prove that there is more than technique at play here.
Reliance on mere technique is limiting, especially when they are only practised against a compliant opponent. That said, there are many schools that insist on practising techniques only with a compliant opponent because if the the opponent is resisting the technique, it is the wrong technique. When the opponent resists your technique, then power may overcome the resistance. But the use of brute force makes little sense if the opponent is bigger and stronger than you. It might work in a competition that has competitors grouped according to weight class. But traditional martial arts assume that the opponent may be much stronger. In this case, it is not strength that will win the fight, but the ability to change direction and find the easiest path to victory.
The method of application includes understanding when the technique is inappropriate, and should be replaced with another. Whether practising close, long or mid range techniques, the person who wins is usually the last person to make an appropriate change.
A method based approach is one which does not rely primarily on specific techniques but on the universal principles that make all techniques work. This is the taiji strategy. It breaks it all down to an understanding of yin and yang. When one understands the method, the techniques are incidental. That is why, when practising combat applications, we don't attach ourselves to a particular technique literal interpretations of the forms. The application results not from a predetermined technique that will perfectly mimic the form. Instead, the application evolves from the conditions that exist between the posture the person in the posture, and the way in which the "attacker" interprets his or her relationship with my posture.
The method then is to simply "stick and follow in a circle," neither resisting nor giving way.
Tuishou (and tai chi strategy in general) are about not resisting and not being resisted. It is about following, joining, sticking and adhering in a way which complies with the part of the opponent's mind that wants to get knocked over.
Tuishou practise gives a full range of options, from a totally compliant partner who agrees to be followed to a totally non-compliant partner who breaks contact or wrestles and tries to strike, kick, sweep, and throw. Tai Chi theory is built for that. It does not go out the window in the face of real combat.
' It is not about what we do. It is about how we are. "Seek emptiness." "Cut the line between before and after." "Become one with the Universe." "There is no enemy." Technique is incidental. The form is not the martial art. The form is the context within which we practice being a martial artist.' - Ian Sinclair
This is not some airy philosophical concept. It is a practical and proven approach to martial combat. It was the most concise way I could think of to express principles that we work with in training every day. For those who have not had a tangible experience of these principles, it is difficult to explain. But many schools teach them well.
When Ueshiba Morihei said "the true spirit of Budo is Love," he was not mere stating an axiom of an idealistic religion. He was expressing a spiritual and psychological principle which, when understood and practised, would make one a better fighter by helping lead one to the ultimate purpose of martial arts, which is peace.
It is unfortunate that many of us find it difficult to see the practical applications of philosophy. We either try to live the philosophy only in our heads, or we eschew philosophy as if it were just a pile of dead leaves with no value to the trees.
1. http://www.scientificwrestling.com
Shuaijiao (摔跤)(s摔交)or (摔角)
Shuaijiao techniques and methods are referred to by many different names. It is also known as jiaodi (角抵), juedi(角抵), Jiaoli (角力賽)(s角力赛), xiangpu(相撲)(s相扑), etc. It has been a popular sport since ancient times with its objective to skilfully use leverage to throw or unbalance the opponent.Shuaijiao (take down) techniques are used during close range combat situations where kicking and punching are difficult or ineffective. In combat situations, a specific type of shuaijiao, called kuaijiao 快跤, is used. Kuaijiao means “fast grappling” and refers to techniques that avoid any prolonged struggling with the opponent. Kuaijiao techniques are usually done as a follow up to another type of technique such as qinna, a kick, or a punch. After the throw, the fight continues until the opponent is subdued. This is very different from sport suaijiao, where the contest stops when one person is downed, and continues again with both competitors on their feet.
Grandmaster Liang demonstrates shuaijiao (throws) from the wuji xiaoyaoshuai with Ian Sinclair
Grandmaster Liang talks about shuaijiao with Sam Masich
Taiji Sanshou 散手 or Sanda 散打
Sanshou 散手 (free hands) or Sanda 散打 (free fighting) is a modern Chinese hand to hand combat / self-defence training system, and sport. It is not a style as such. It is rather considered one of the components of Chinese martial arts and is normally taught alongside other styles of wushu. The term Sanda has a longer history and is more commonly used. Sanshou was the official name given to the martial art when it was formalized and standardized by the Chinese government. Later the official name reverted back to Sanda.Every martial arts has some method for bringing all the martial skills together in a way that more realistically reflects the conditions of actual combat. However, it would be impossible and very foolish to train by actually fighting. Such a practice would be disastrous for both participants, especially if one or both had real skill. There are tournaments for sanshou. But these have rules established to minimise the risk of serious injury. There are always risks in such training however, which is why it is reserved for only certain advanced students who have reached a high level of skill and self control. Not everyone will be permitted to practice sanshou.
Taijiquan Sanshou is typically trained in a more gentle manner than sparring sessions in other styles. In taijiquan, the emphasis is on relaxation, emptiness, alignment and the focus of clear intent and internal power. There is usually less emphasis on speed. It is believed that with proper training, speed should come naturally when all else is in place.
In practising taiji sanshou, it is generally considered better to loose and gain understanding than to win and not know how you did it.
Also, by training slowly, students are conditioned to relax in combat instead of becoming tense. Tension, whether physical, mental, or emotional, is the enemy of the taijiquan student and should be avoided like the plague.
Martial Applications Duan shou (斷手)
Within the solo routines of taijiquan, are hidden a plethora of martial techniques. The knowledge and understanding of these techniques is something that has normally only been taught to advanced students who have proven their moral character and trustworthiness to the teacher. But the less dangerous of these techniques are often taught to novices as a means of improving the quality of their movements.As with most martial arts include techniques for all ranges of combat:
- Ti Da (踢打) - punching, kicking and striking with all parts of the body.
- Qinna (擒拿) - joint locks and pressure point manipulation, (including ground techniques).
- Shuai (摔) - throws, takedowns, etc.
- Partner practice can also include choreographed routines, free sparring and competitive sanshou.
Sport Sanshou (Free Hands) competitions
Sport Sanshou employs many techniques of traditional wushu including most aspects of combat including striking and grappling, but is focused mainly on one-on-one combat efficiency as is considered safe for sport. Sanda tournaments are one of the two sport wushu disciplines recognized by the International Wushu Federation.Sanshou's history involved barehanded or "lei tai" fights in which no rules existed. However, as a competitive event sanshou developed in the military as these bouts were commonly held between the soldiers to test and practise barehanded martial skills, ability and techniques. Rules were developed and the use of protective gloves etc. was adopted. It was originally used by the Kuomintang (KMT) at the first modern military academy in Whampoa in the 1920s. Later it was also adopted as a method by the People's Liberation Army of China.
As a sport, Sanda is practiced in tournaments and is normally held alongside taolu events in wushu competition. For safety reasons, some techniques, such as elbow strikes, chokes, and joint locks, are not allowed during Sanda tournaments. Furthermore, it is possible to defeat the opponent by moving (whether by throwing, striking, or otherwise pushing) him outside the ring. Fighters are only allowed to clinch for a few seconds. If the clinch is not broken by the fighters, and if neither succeeds in throwing his opponent within the time limit, the referee will break the clinch.
Most Sanshou competitions held in the US are on raised Leitai platforms with the fighters wearing protective gear, where punches, kicks and throws are allowed. This can sometimes be called "Amateur Sanshou". A competition held in China, called the "King of Sanda", is held in a ring similar to a boxing ring in design but larger in dimension. They wear no protective gear except for gloves and are allowed to use knee strikes as well as kicking, punching and throwing. Some Sanshou fighters have participated in fighting tournaments such as K-1 and Shoot boxing. They usually have not participated in the "King of Sanda" tournaments but have had some degree of success, especially in Shoot boxing competitions, which is more similar to Sanshou. Due to the rules of kickboxing competition, Sanshou fighters are subjected to more limitations than usual.
Sanshou has been featured in many mixed martial arts competitions.
Here is a clip from a
sanshou demo by Cung Lee and Rudy Ott.
Qinna 擒拿
Qinna includes:
- Fen jin 分筋 - Dividing the muscles and tendons
- Cuo gu 錯骨(s错骨)Displacing bones
- Dian xue 點穴(s点穴)- Cavity Press
- Na mai 拿眽 - Grabbing arteries & qi channels
- Zhua jin (抓筋) - Grabbing tendons
- Bi qi 閉氣(s闭气) - Sealing the breath
The goal of qinna is to use relative positions and angles to immobilise the opponent by controlling joints and vital points. This requires complete understanding of correct weight shifting, footwork, and body alignment. In combat conditions, the possible variations on the techniques are many. You must have techniques covering a wide range of situations and understand the principles of their application including the correct angles, power, and timing. Only then will you be able to use them effectively.
GROUND FIGHTING TECHNIQUES
Some styles emphasise one type of application over another, but almost all styles will teach some of each. Ground fighting methods are taught in most schools, although traditionally these were seen as a technique of last resort. A fight usually ends before it hits the ground, and since most traditional schools trained to fight multiple attackers, the ground was usually seen as something to avoid.The ground techniques include all the categories of application that were listed previously, so good stand-up fighters should have most of the tools necessary for fighting on the ground, especially if they have mastered tuishou and are well conditioned by rigourous basic training and forms.
When it comes to ground fighting, the best technique is often to have superior conditioning.
▾
▾