Over a period of 2 years, I dedicated almost every weekend to the exercise of free sparring with a multiple degree Karate black belt. During these sessions, blows were full contact, but not full force. Punches, palm strikes, elbows, throws, and kicks were delivered and sustained by both parties with inevitable injuries ranging from bruises to minor bone fractures. The following were epiphanies I gratefully paid for in blood over those 2 years.
* A man who no longer fears physical destruction at the hands of an opponent is free in a way that a fearful pacifist never will be. Fear of personal destruction paralyzes justice, honesty, and honor. Fearlessness allows virtue to fully bloom in one's personality.
* Training style is less important for fight resolution than martial intent, concentration, and skill. Awareness, will, and skill culminate in artful self defense.
* Keep your hands up at all times and you will very often defend yourself from strikes by accident.
* While aggressing, crouch down low and face your center line toward your opponent. When defending, lean back and face your side toward your opponent.
* Defang your opponent by striking their arms. Strike their arms so hard that they become unwilling to defend or attack. You can often force an opponent's surrender by removing the use of even one of their limbs.
* Defense is always easier and less taxing than offense. When you do not wish to fight, merely avoid damage and escape. When you wish to destroy an opponent, wait for a moment of exposure and strike when they are least prepared.
* Knee on belly is a fine control position for mounting a downed opponent. Knee on arm over belly is even better.
* Attacks should proceed from high to low. Always strive to beat an opponent into the ground and they will be less able to mount an effective counter offense.
* Never reach toward an attack when blocking. Let the attack come to you. Blocks should be strikes, not pushes.
* Multiple strikes on the same part of an opponent's body multiply pain.
*Battle fatigue is very different than physical fatigue. It requires a mixture of physical preparation and bravery.
* Throats are unbelievably delicate. When attacking with intent to kill, do not hesitate to grab and rip the throat. When defending, never underestimate a throat grab.
* Every untrained person has the capacity for harm. The purpose of the martial arts is to control violence in one's life rather than being controlled by that violence.
* Weapons do not make you invincible. Never reach your weapon toward your opponent until the moment of attack or defense. This is especially important for blunt objects. It is the damage your weapon inflicts that keeps opponents at bay, not menacing displays of pointing, shaking, or test firing.
* The martial arts are a means of restoring one's equality. Those who would seek to make you their inferior cannot succeed against a person of great martial skill.
* One will never learn to fight without fighting.
* When overwhelmed by an attack, sidestep and counter, or step in. Do not continue to back up in hopes of escape.
* One of the single most effective training drills and tests is to set a 3 minute timer and spar with a goal. For example, you have 3 minutes to hit me in the face; or you must survive for the whole 3 minutes against a knife attack.
* Contingency shaped responses will always save your life better than rule governed responses. Therefore, sparring must always be a part of effective training.
* If you do not dread and fear training day, then it is not sufficiently realistic. Training should be just short of psychologically traumatic to ingrain long term self defense skills.
* Physical strength means very little in actual combat compared to durability, bravery, endurance, and agility.
* Be present. True victory only occurs in the present battle, not in the past, nor in the future.
* The back fist is one of the single most devastating strikes you can deliver to an opponent. Elbows are a close second. Palm strikes are a third. Punches, the most typical strike, are a distant fourth.
* Your opponent will never go easier on you for becoming tired, fearful, injured, or discouraged. Neither should your sparring partners.
* Unorthodox weaponry can be the most effective. Shower rods, chairs, and belts can cause equal or greater damage than knives and clubs.
* There is no shame in facing certain defeat against unfair odds. There is shame in fearing certain defeat, futile escape attempts, and begging for mercy. Therefore, humbly accept your defeats just as you humbly accept your victories.
* The average person in martial arts will only ever need to be good enough to survive a group attack and escape. Therefore, it helps to be capable of a great deal more.
* The lion roars to show their dominance to the entire savannah, but shies away from conflict. The tiger silently stalks, kills, and devours prey, regardless of who knows.
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