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Jujitsu: More Than Just Techniques
Invariably martial arts instructors are asked, “What is jujitsu?”, and our standard reply has been that it is a form of self-defense or it is a group of techniques to defend your self, family, and others. While these answers are correct, jujitsu is more than technique. As we go from class to class, we’re taught to be aware of not just the person attacking us but also those around us. Occasionally instructors will address the environment and discuss weapons of opportunity. However, jujitsu study involves much more than techniques and awareness. The samurai warrior studied more than the arts of war -- art, tea-making, calligraphy, and other arts -- “learning to appreciate the world around the samurai because death is so much a part of the samurai’s life” or to “bring peace of mind.” Educators today would describe such studies as liberal arts. However such studies were much more than liberal arts education. To fully comprehend jujitsu, we must understand that it is more than techniques, practice, and attitude. It encompasses the concepts of risk assessment and management. To understand these, we first must recognize what takes place when risks are presented and then what is needed to minimize or reduce them. As various scenarios present themselves in the dojo, we learn how to deal with them. For example, if a person approaches you with a raised baseball bat, what technique will you use? Generally this is about how far most instructors will take a lesson. But let’s analyze further: How is the person approaching? Is the attacker crouched or rushing; is the bat overhead or swinging around a shoulder; which end of the bat is held; is it held by one or two hands? Answers to these questions determine defensive responses. Your responding technique may also change based on the environment: Is the environment open or confined? If confined, is the ceiling a factor; is closeness of walls a factor; are you in a narrow or wide hallway? Resolving these questions is part of risk assessment. Your response to the assessment is called risk management. Michael Dorn, an internationally recognized school security consultant, recently provided an excellent example of risk assessment and management. It encompasses the tenants of jujitsu. Consider the drive-by shooting. Five elements must be present: To prevent the shooting, one or more elements must be removed. Now that we understand risks, we can manage them, right? Wrong! We need to understand the risks in more detail. We must understand gang psychology and other elements. The first four elements exist when the scenario begins. Typically a gang will drive through or park in a neighborhood where the intended target may live or work. Once they spot the target, they drive by and shoot. If law enforcement is present, the gang likely will postpone the drive-by until it is safer. Presence of police officers impedes access to the target. Furthermore, research shows that in the US, police recover most illegal firearms during traffic stops and that gang member vehicles often are impounded because they fail to meet safety requirements. Now that we are aware of risks, we can better understand how to minimize or reduce drive-by shooting. This is what jujitsu is about: learning to recognize risks, understanding their composition, and then minimizing or reducing them. It is more than simply techniques learned and practiced in the dojo. Jujitsu is risk assessment and management. We can apply what we learn in the dojo to daily life if we understand the elements of each attack and the techniques we practice in the dojo.
2007-05-02
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