In the Land of Blind Men, the One Eyed Man is King

You have eyes but can not see.

You have ears but can not hear.

 

I have never studied Hakkoryu Jujutsu.

But several decades ago I did read a book.

It was Dennis G. Palumbo’s

‘Secret Nidan Techniques of Hakkoryu Jujutsu’

He began explaining his own training for the NiDan level of Hakkoryu, describing the very painful lock being used.

Now you can view a YouTube of some of those practices, here.

 

Hakko denshin ryu Nidan kihon Tachi waza

 

During Palumbo Sensei’s own training in Japan you were often the attacker, receiving those techniques. Very rigorous training. And after a while he started experiencing Geri, Which was extremely disquieting to him. Eventually he mentioned it to the other students he was training with. They started laughing as that was a byproduct of the training at that stage.

 

The manner in which the lock was formed worked it against a point on the wrist, and that point when stimulated repeatedly caused the Geri condition.

 

Of course I have not studied it intensely and cannot vouch that is the result.

 

The first sequence shows the manner in which the lock is formed.

What is unique is the manner which the index finger is standing

straight out.     What is happening is the pad at the base of that finger is pressing into that point on the forearm just behind the wrist, generating pain making the lock more effective.

 

Then the finger can continue to point toward the ground creating an option where the movement of the lock can go, toward the ground.

 

Of course I found this interesting and I spent some time trying to work it on my own. But I did not have the training to get it done, I also did not experience the Geri.

 

One of my friends studied Faan Tzi Ying Jow Pai, which is also known for their painful locks. The system was named for them Eagle Claw. But they are formed with a different principle, and many facets of training develop those locks over the decades making them extremely painful. Although I only studied one facet of that system, I did not gain that level of execution. But I have had what is involved explained to me, and of course felt my friends decades of his own development.

 

It turned out he was quite interested in this. We worked on it a while. Understanding a bit of what was involved. Different from the Eagle Claw.

 

But knowledge of what others know and do is useful in its own right.

 

What happens is this begins at Ni Dan training. But I am sure it does not stop there, Just developing a tool that will be continued to use.

 

 

You can watch the tape and see what is happening yourself,

Following I have selected the clearer examples of that lock being used.

 

 

And More

 

Anything you do not understand is a secret after all.

But I read and learned a bit.

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I have chosen to use the Japanese term Geri to describe a very personal medical condition described in this article.

 

When I first met Joe Swift, as we were chatting, he in Kanazawa and I in Derry, NH, I happened to use the term Geri to mean kick, I had read that in many books, as well as known front kick was Mae-Geri.

 

Joe started having a laughing fit. Working then as a translator, he explained when it was used as a compound word like Mae Geri it did mean front kick.

 

But standing alone it represented a very personal medical condition. And then explained the stand alone term for kick was Keri.

 

I immediately started going through book, and did find both terms being used for kick.

 

What my problem is I didn’t study Japanese. Had never heard the term for kick being used by any of my instructors, Though they did refer to front kick as Mae Geri, or roundhouse kick as Mawashi Geri, or side kick as Yoko Geri.

 

So I assumed, and you know what happens when you assume.

 

 

What is most likely someone writing an earlier book or magazine article used Geri, and they did not really know Japanese, Then many others used that printed word as truth, and kept copying the term as meaning kick,

Lesson, just because something is in print does not make it right.

 

Or it begins smelling like Geri.

 

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This was the book referenced in this article.