When
we train and study martial arts, we primarily make use of and train only with our
sense of sight. Yet, if we want a better
picture of what is around us and take advantage of our opponents or keep
ourselves safe, we ought to train and use other senses as well.
And
while it is natural for us to rely on sight for how we interact in the world,
there are times that we may not have the ability of sight. What happens if someone invades your home in
the dark or you are in a place at night and the lights are cut off? What happens if someone flashes a light in
your eyes or throws dirt towards your eyes to temporarily blind you? In these cases, you will not have your sight
to rely on. Therefore, it is good to
practice and train using your other senses: touch, sound, and smell.
Touch
is very useful when in close combat. By
using touch against your opponents, you can start to get a feel for their
movement even before you see it and then counter it. If you are in a situation where you cannot
see, then through your sense of touch you can feel where your opponent is. We have practiced this in the past by closing
our eyes and having our partner grab us and trying to determine where they are
and their movements. We have been able
to trace their arm to their head to strike or take them down easily, all
without any use of the sense of sight.
Using
your sense of sound is also very useful in self-defense. Through use of sound, you may be able to hear
where someone is coming from by listening for their footsteps, rustle of their
clothes or even their breathing. And
again, if you do not have use of sight, sound may be your only sense you have
to rely on to know where your opponent is or coming from.
Smell
can also be very useful. Currently there
is a PG&E commercial that says “if you smell gas, your first step is to get
out.” In self-defense, I’d say the same
thing. If you smell something that does
not seem right, you should leave the area or be very cautious. In addition, the sense of smell may tell you
something about your opponent or where they are at, especially if you do not
have the sense of sight to rely on.
The
other sense to practice and rely on in self-defense is your intuitive
sense. If you feel like you are in
danger, then you should not dismiss it, and react using your skills you have
developed in class. If you feel unsafe,
pay more attention to your surroundings, but do not dismiss that feeling. Gavin de Becker in his book, The Gift of
Fear, states it well, “You have the gift of a brilliant internal guardian
that stands ready to warn You of hazards and guide You through risky
situations. Listen to your intuition.”
So,
suggest adding to your martial training and studies the use of these other
senses. Practice with eyes closed or
with a blind fold on and focus on your other senses maybe one at a time. In your everyday activities, whether at work
or walking through the neighborhood use all your sense to see, hear, touch and
“feel” your environment. It may be a
sense other than sight that actually saves your life.
Regards,
Kelly
“Use only that which works, and take it from any place you
can find it.” ~ Bruce Lee, (1940 –1973) American-born Chinese Hong Kong martial
artist, actor, and founder of Jeet Kune Do
