Gary Lescak

    In serrada eskrima (Fillipino stick and blade fighting) they teach "3 hits to a kill" meaning ideally your hits and the opponent’s hits total 3 or less before the fight is finished; some Chinese martial artists say the fight is decided in the first second. Both of these approaches illustrate aggressive philosophies after the action begins; but, more importantly, they imply that the victorious outcome is substantially influenced by advance preparation. A step ahead is determining, or at least influencing the outcome in your favor, before the action begins. This can be accomplished by body language, verbally, or by energy transmission; in most cases it is a combination of these factors that establishes psychological dominance: one component of a superior mental attitude.

Body language appears in many different forms; the fake bravado of the blustering "tough guy" is not one of them. More sophisticated approaches are more subtle; some examples.

One approach is to appear completely relaxed and open (Musashi calls this happo biriki —open on all 8 sides); another approach is to offer an obvious target (i.e. standing with your blade at waist height or offering your back to your opponent). In either case he is intimidated if he is smart enough to know something is wrong with this picture. In other words, these are not the expected reactions to a potentially violent physical threat, so he becomes hesitant and disconcerted over what he doesn’t know or see (i.e. fear of the unknown). If, on the other hand, he is what is sometimes referred to as a chump or sucker, he is surprised when he takes the bait and is easily defeated; the element of surprise, when realized, giving you the superior psychological position.

Another example of body language can be found in the concept of personal space. This can be defined as the "reach" (the distance just past the fingertips of the outstretched arm) of the person with the longest arms; meaning if your opponent’s reach is longer than yours, your personal space is defined by his arms’ length. Some people attempt to intimidate by entering the personal space of another; not a good idea unless you follow through with the attack.

This means you never let your opponent enter your personal space, because he is going to "sucker punch" you if he does; ergo, if he enters your personal space you should "stop" him.

Finally, body language is what differentiates the victim from the rest of the herd. Why can some people walk down a street and remain unaccosted while others are attacked? Obviously, confidence and a superior mental attitude are easily distinguished from hesitancy and fear by bullies and street thugs. Quite simply, these people are cowards and are looking for the easiest target; your body language either tells them to stay away or invites them to feed.

Although body language says a great deal and may be the only form of communication before the physical action begins, in the vast majority of situations some verbal exchange will happen. The first point to note is how to defend; that means to not allow yourself to be frightened, distracted, upset, or lose emotional control over verbiage. That’s what you will be doing to your opponent. The best way to build your defense is to desensitize yourself to this type of tactic during practice; insert variations of what follows into your study. Practice remaining calm and detached.

Most people think of the words exchanged before a fight as having to be heated and confrontational (i.e. of a "chest beating" nature). You can, however, obtain the desired effect calmly and in a non-threatening manner. For example, at one point a martial artist I know was approached by 3 strapping young lads (who knew he was a martial arts instructor) who closed to the limit of his personal space when one said, "Our friend said you were really good, but if we got real close and all rushed you at once, maybe we would have a chance." Standing tall, not moving, and pausing only long enough to look him squarely in the eye, my friend calmly and without hesitation replied, "Let your conscience be your guide." This was in no way threatening or confrontational, but clearly gave the message that he wasn’t afraid of the three of them. That did not bolster their confidence.

Most of the time, however, the situations are more heated and move rapidly into the physical realm. The best way to play this scene to your advantage is to exploit a psychological weakness and make your opponent lose emotional control, frighten, distract, or upset him; usually a combination of all of the above. Two examples follow; develop your wits, develop your repertoire, and be quick on your (mental) feet.

One of my martial art acquaintances was walking down the street in a large city when he happened upon an interracial couple being accosted by skinheads. Assessing the situation, he stepped between the couple and their antagonists while telling the couple to walk away. This immediately incensed the skinheads who unleashed a barrage of expletives at the martial arts instructor with the main one being "mother fucker." After allowing them to rant for a few moments, he calmly replied, "I wouldn’t be fucking your mother if you’d keep her off the streets." The reaction, as you might expect and as he did expect, was an immediate punch at his head. The skinheads were unconscious a few moments later.

          When a fighter loses emotional control, he becomes less effective. When a fighter remains calm, relaxed, and unattached, he will be faster, more spontaneous, and more powerful. Causing someone to lose control gives you the edge.

Sometimes you can take advantage of readily apparent psychological weaknesses or simply create them to disrupt your opponents. Let’s use homophobia.

You have an opponent who is a blustering macho dude in a rant to impress you and everyone else that he’s a real tough guy. Calmly look at him and in a matter-of- fact, yet determined voice say, "I used to fuck guys like you when I was in prison." What happened to his focus? Who’s in control now?

We are energy. We all transmit energy; some of us are stronger ( i.e. more focused/concentrated with greater energy) than others. We all receive energy; some of us are more sensitive (i.e. discerning in a more intuitive/ feeling manner) than others. These facts are a cornerstone of life. For our purpose here, we are talking about energy transmission without physical contact.

One example we have already discussed is the question of why some people are immediately identified as victims while others are not. Body language is merely the physical cue; the source is a person’s energy. Although the average thug on the street (and most other people) is not going to describe the basis for his actions in energy terms, we are all familiar with that feeling running up your spine of someone staring at you from behind. This feeling takes us to more advanced martial applications.

In terms of specific martial skills, this takes the form of techniques like kiai (literally, spirit uniting shout) and tora nirami (tiger stare) in Japanese martial arts. These techniques are about energy projection and disrupting an opponent’s energy without touching him. These techniques teach you to focus and transmit that energy you feel running up your spine so your opponent gets that feeling and more; in their most developed form it is said that a master practitioner can make an opponent flee in fear. Even before that level of skill is achieved, discernible results can be felt.

Establishing psychological dominance is something that can, and should, be done before the action begins. This is accomplished by long-term practice, which inculcates and internalizes the skills and energy we have discussed to the point they pervade everything you do. These are skills that can be taught and nurtured by a true martial arts teacher; they are not merely a compilation of tricks. Although superior mental attitude is not the answer to all problems, it is a good starting point. This is one aspect of martial application of the mind-body-spirit connection; crush his spirit, dominate his mind, control his body.