The Eye Must See All Sides. The Ear Must Listen In All Directions

 

 

When we get around to consider how to respond to an actual attack, there are many things we have to consider.

 

You instantly have to determine your response, it doesn’t have to be the perfect response but you have to sell it regardless of your choice.

 

Your hearing can alert you to someone moving in your direction or the breathing behind their attack.

 

When you are aware of their existence (where your eyes register their motion) you can:

 

1. Decide to move into them with your response. Responding before they can defend against your response,

2. Decide to move away from them to gain more time. There can be problems because they can advance faster than you can retreat, but possibly opeining the distance between both of you can work to your advantage.

3. Decide to cross their attack at an angle. Knowing every attack creates an opening to exploit and you could decide to use that opening they are presenting.

 

Each decision can have strategic advantages and disadvantages. You have to make what you pick work.

 

Instantly size their skill right up. If they are showing power but are less trained and have unaligned their powerful attack, you might decide to attack that misalignment to your advantage.

 

If they are skilled and keeping their attack aligned you might choose to destroy their alignment with your response.

 

In no case do you want your response to become a fight where the two of you exchange techniques back and forth. Your response must be geared to destroy their attack.  One and done.

 

Always remember Murphy’s Law, “if something can go wrong, it will go wrong.”

And consider Fineagle’s Law too, “Murphy is an optimist.” Or stated differently "Anything that can go wrong, will—at the worst possible moment."

 

An attack can come from any direction, that is where hearing might come into play.  For one thing I have not suggested possibilities to deal with multiple attackers.  Obviously such a brief summary does not cover everything.

 

Then again a few classical suggestions:

 

From the unknown author(s) of the Bubishi,

 

“If an adversary bites you, attack his throat right away”.

 

 

Chotoku Kyan’s advice:  

 

“When facing an opponent, take care not to play into his strategy.

Some use their feet while punching, or pretend to grab a hand.

Others use fists while pretending to throw a foot attack.

React according to voice and noise.

Never relax”,

 

Back to the Bubishi  

 

“The ears listen well in all directions” and “The eye must see all sides.”

 

Choiki Motobu,

 

“One must develop the ability to read, ‘at a single glance’ how much striking power any one person has.”

 

 

 "Karatedo Nyumon" by Kenwa Mabuni

 

"The meaning of the directions in kata is not well understood, and frequently mistakes are made in the interpretation of kata movements. In extreme cases, it is sometimes heard that "this kata moves in 8 directions so it is designed for fighting 8 opponents" or some such nonsense. I would like to specifically address this issue now.

Looking at the embusen for Pinan Nidan, one can see that karate kata move in all directions, forward and back, left and right. When interpreting kata, one must not get too caught up in these directions. For example, do not fall into the trap of thinking that just because a kata begins to the left that the opponent is always attacking from the left. There are two ways of looking at this:

 

1 - The kata is defending against an attack from the left.
2 - Angle to the left against a frontal attack.

 

At first glance, both of these look alright. However, looking at only number (1), the meaning of the kata becomes narrow, and the kata, which in reality must be applied freely in any situation, becomes awfully meager in its application.

 

Looking at an actual example, the 5 Pinan kata all start to the left, and then repeat the same series of techniques to the right. Looking at interpretation (1), the opponent must always attack from the left, and while fighting that opponent, another opponent comes from behind so the defender turns to fight that opponent. This type of interpretation is highly unreasonable.

Looking at interpretation number (2) however, the 5 Pinan kata show us that against an attack from the front we can evade either left or right to put ourselves in the most advantageous position to defend ourselves.”

To an instructor who was and always will be a Marine,

 

“When you’re knocked down by surprise when you get up, take them apart and then run before the Shore Patrol arrives.”

 

This is but a short summary of things you might consider in your training to become more aware and consider the response you might make.

 

Your life may well depend 

on how you are prepared.