The Science Behind The Martial Arts

It has always been mans curiosity to explore the functions and structure of his own body. While the English words anatomy and physiology have their origin in the Greek language ,where the study of these sciences began in the 4th century BCE, work in both anatomy and physiology began in Egypt as long ago as 1600BCE. China and India have similiar traditions that date back to 2000BCE. Japan’s introduction into these sciences came from China in the 7th century. All of these countries have a long history of both armed and unarmed combat and their knowledge of both anatomy and physiology influenced they way they fought and the fighting techniques that they developed.

While every technique may have hundreds of variations, the laws of science and the human body limit the ways these techniques can be applied without injury. This knowledge of both anatomy and physiology, the understanding of how the body could and could not move, how joints function, the nature and placement of the major and minor organs and the strengths and weaknesses of the different muscle groups in the body all contributed to the development of more effective and lethal ways of both armed and unarmed combat.

In Japan, with the development of Sumo, this understanding of how the body works and moves, led to the creation of techniques that attacked specific parts of the body. Without an understanding of how joints function, both kansetsuwaza and Kote gaeshi become useless and ineffective. There would be no effective sword technique without an understanding of how the major muscles groups in the legs, hips and shoulders contribute to the coordinated movement of the body and without this understanding there is no understanding of balance and throwing technique.

Conversely, the greater your understanding of these sciences and their application to the martial arts, the easier it is to defend from any attack. Knowing the most effective way of applying a technique makes it more difficult to have that technique applied to you. The mechanics of the martial arts, what position to be in, where your body is in relation to that of your attacker, at what angle the technique should be applied and how to protect yourself from a second attack are all questions which relate back to an understanding of anatomy and physiology. Movement and the application or defense of a technique, are only effective when applied to a specific part of the body to elicit a specific result. The same is true for effective blocking techniques and the application of atemi. As the same technique or attack will vary depending on the height, weight, age, strength, sex and the experience of the attacker, so should the response. Subtle changes in movement and style of an attack, based on these variables, require subtle changes in the center of gravity,balance (kuzushi), position (tae sabaki), distance(maai), and angle of the response.

In truth, all martial arts systems are built around the strengths and weaknesses of the human anatomy and physiology. They are built around one individual’s ability to manipulate and capitalize on the weaknesses and errors of another individual. It is these sciences that form the basis for the study of human motion ,an understanding of which is essential for all students of the martial arts.

The Kuzushi of JuJutsu

Jigoro Kano, the founder of Judo, is generally credited with the first real technical understanding of the role of kuzushi, the use of balance and unbalance in the execution of throwing technique. However, this understanding and training in the ways of unbalancing an opponent in martial combat had existed in Japan for at least fifteen hundred years before the advent of judo.

The art of sumai, or sumo as it is called today, was Japan’s first system of empty hand combat. Employing striking techniques and the use of many forms of unbalancing techniques, most historians believe its origins date back to 23 BC. Often used in conjunction with religious or seasonal festivals, sumo’s originally objective was to ‘force an opponent to surrender unconditionally, or to kill him.” To this end sumo developed many techniques and principles which later found their way into numerous styles of jujutsu and more recently judo. Bare chested and wearing only a loincloth, these grappling techniques rely on a true understanding of balance as well as the strength and focus of the practitioner. Throughout the centuries training in sumo has been most martial artist’s introduction into the principles of kuzushi and their subsequent training in the martial arts.

The classical Japanese warrior, the samurai, was trained in multiple arts and weapons, the yumi,(bow) and later the naginata (pole weapon) and Katana (sword) as primary examples. The use of these weapons in combat, sometimes while seated on a horse, required years of training, coordination, an absolute control of the weapon and understanding of one’s center of gravity and balance.

With the advent and use of armor, the art of Yoroi Kumi-Uchi, grappling in armor, a system developed between the 9th and 15th century enhanced the samurai’s ability to fight in close proximity to one another. This system of grappling and locking to each other developed the samurai’s understanding and use of his balance, leverage and mobility to unbalance and ultimately kill or capture his opponent. While not designed as a strictly unarmed system of combat and as several versions of Kumi-Uchi developed as the armor of the samurai changed or was eliminated, the skills and techniques of this art formed the basis for many classical jujutsu styles. It is in these classical jujutsu styles, developed from the 15th century onward, which melded the skills and techniques of the bladed samurai arts with the lessons and understanding of anatomy, balance, motion and leverage learned through the many centuries of practice in Kumi-Uchi.

Without the benefit of a weapon, differences in size, weight, age and skill levels between opponents became more pronounced. These new challenges required a refinement of the fighting techniques and more thorough understanding of the variables which could affect the outcome of a conflict. The importance of natural posture (shizen hontai), mental alertness(zanshin) position (tai sabaki), and distance (ma-ai), skills which were always and integral part of the combat training of the samurai, were reevaluated and modified as classical styles of jujutsu were created.

Many of these classical styles fully embraced the flexibility and pliancy of the ‘ju” in jujutsu. This concept of both yielding and resisting an opponent’s attack, first by absorbing and thus negating its power and then taking advantage of the vacuum created by the attackers momentary weakness is the core of all martial arts. The ability to control, manipulate and ultimately negate an opponent’s attack is at the essence of all martial arts training. While it is this understanding of “ju” which enables a smaller man to defeat a much larger and stronger one and an unarmed man to defeat an attack by someone with a weapon, it is the accumulated wisdom and knowledge of over a thousand years of training and execution, much involving weapons and much by mortal combat, that allowed Master Kano to create judo, and gives the martial artists of today our understanding of kuzushi and all the other variables which form the essence of jujutsu.