Martial arts history - understanding origins

One thing I think people should understand about their art is its history.

Martial arts are all unique in their origins. Not all martial arts came from the same place. Some are old, some are new. The history of an art tells why it is the way it is.

Some examples of martial arts origins

I link mostly to lists of videos in this section so you can see what I'm talking about.

• Some arts like Japanese Karate became popular and developed more as a result of law. Policies on banning weapons led to arts developed around empty-hand technique and weapons that are still trained with today that resemble farm equipment of the period. You can see this not only in Karate, but reflected worldwide in many empty-hand martial arts systems.
• Krav Maga, an Israeli martial art, is one of the most recent arts formed almost completely from scratch. Arts formed in this way are usually designed more to our use cases today. A close second example is Systema. While it is an old system, Systema continues to evolve today and because of its continuous evolution you can find elements of many modern techniques including those with firearms.
• Aikido, in my interpretation, was not designed to be martial. My belief is that Ueshiba, the founder of the art, used it as a mechanism for spreading his philosophy on peace and harmony. But that's for another post. Regardless of whether or not you believe that, one can easily see how toned down Aikido is from its parent art, Aiki Jiujitsu. Less striking, very circular, soft movement and of course the very prominent philosophical element.
• Kali, a Filipino art, is a war-based art developed around somewhat primitive weapons. One element of Kali that makes it stand out from other arts and shows its ancient war focus is that training in Kali begins with weapons, not empty-hand. Because of its war origins, Kali, even today, is often taught with the focus of killing your opponent - not as 'self defense' which many people synonymize with 'martial arts' today.
  Like many other arts, it relies on some core principles that keep it effective even today. One example is transferable technique.
• Capoeira was developed by African slaves in Brazil. The way this art is trained, even today, is in a ritualistic dance fashion. This dance masked what was really being practiced.

Like many things in the world, martial arts are often children of earlier creations. Aikido is a child of Aikijiujitsu, Karate is said to be a partial child of Chinese martial arts, Hapkido and Aikijiujitsu are close cousins, the base of Jeet Kune Do (as a style) comes mostly from Wing Chun, Western fencing and Western boxing. Within each you can see elements of their relative arts.

With all of these arts you can very clearly see how much their origins have affected the style and techniques of the art and even the way it is taught. Understanding where they come from will help you understand so much about the art as a whole. It will also create a deeper meaning for you in training and help you in choosing an art that fits you best.

Martial arts pressure point chart

I often get the question "where can I find a pressure point map that shows what martial artists use?"

Some pressure point charts

Pressure points in martial arts largely correspond with points used in acupuncture. You don't manipulate them the same way and they don't have the same effect. You don't use all of them either.. some are much more effective than others. Here are some good charts that I like to use:

• Yin Yang House pressure point chart
• Acuxo pressure point chart
• Google image search for acupnucture point chart

Learn from a qualified instructor

Find someone to teach you. There are lots of qualified instructors out there. There are several arts to choose from if you want to learn. Please don't try to learn from a book or video and certainly not a chart. I post these links as a resource for those learning pressure point martial arts and so people can explore and get an overview of what it's all about. Don't just start hitting people.

Can you learn martial arts from a video or book?

I get this question a lot. I believe there are very few exceptions to my answer:

Short answer

Have you had any training in the art before?

If your answer is...
Yes: Yeah you can probably learn quite a bit.
No: No, you probably won't gain much at all from watching a video and can never use it as your sole source of training.

Long answer

If you're asking the question, then the answer is probably no. Those who usually ask this question are usually untrained in any art or have only done one art before.

As far as martial arts and ANY type of remote learning - video, books, articles - goes, I believe the following: once you have a solid foundation of what is being discussed, you can learn remotely. If you do not have a solid foundation in the topic, you can't learn anything effectively.

Simple example:
A. You don't know Brazilian jiujitsu or any basic ground fighting concepts. You try to learn from a video. I promise you, you just won't get it. You can 'learn' all you want from it, but the first time you set foot on a mat you will probably be less far along than a guy who has only been to one or two classes.

B. You know BJJ pretty well. You've been to maybe only a few classes, but you have a good grasp of what is going on. You go look at some videos for new techniques on the internet. You go back to the mat and try to pull them off - you probably won't do well the first few times, but you can work on it with someone and learn it quickly.


Replace "BJJ" with any art - Karate, Aikido, Krav Maga, Tae Kwon Do, whatever - in that example and you'll find the same result. This isn't just what I believe, but it's also what I've observed for many years.

If you've had training in a similar art as the one you're trying to study remotely, then yes I think it's still possible to learn something.

Regardless of your experience level, if you never test out your training with a partner then you're almost sure to fail.

How to hide in plain sight

This is somewhat of a crossover topic between my interests in survivalism as well as martial arts.

As far as martial arts goes, the topic directly relates to avoiding conflict. There is no better defense than not having to fight at all. And more, it is best to never even become a target to begin with.

I found this post that mainly demonstrates blending with nature, although it applies even in urban settings. Key points:

• Avoid displaying your silhouette
• Use background and shadows
• Display a less-human shape
• Alter the human form

Definitely read the post. It's what inspired me to write about this.

Urban blending

As far as urban blending goes it may not be so much about hiding as part of what we traditionally think of as 'nature' as it will be with whatever your surroundings are. Certainly if you are in an urban setting the scenario could be the same - no people around, but you need to hide. Follow the steps above.

The main idea here is to fit in with your surroundings.

Things change somewhat when your urban setting has more people. One main advantage is that the 'landscape' now moves. If you're trying to reach a destination, a moving landscape now allows you to do that.

Remember: fit in. Blend. Move with the landscape. Do what they do. If you're in a tourist setting, look up, look around. If you're surrounded by business folks in a downtown area, look ahead, look down. Don't move faster than anyone else, don't move slower. If you're looking for something - the person looking for you, perhaps - try not to look around. Do other activities that the others do and use your eyes to look, not your head. If you can, use reflective surfaces to look around you; be careful this does not expose you more though.

If you can plan ahead, wear what they wear. You can't usually change much on the go, but you can change some things. Tucking a shirt in vs out can make a big difference in how you look. How many buttons are buttoned up on your shirt can too.

Learn the customs and act as they do. Don't know the language of where you are? Learn a few key phrases like "Hello" or how to answer to "how are you?". Maybe you don't say hello to others, but you should be able to respond if someone says something to you.

It applies even if you're not hiding from someone

Remember, all of this applies even if you're not trying to hide from a specific person or group of people. You may just be trying to avoid seeming out of place and thus becoming a target. Think of it as prevention. Make it your goal to look like everybody else.

When in Rome, do as the Romans do.