techniques and basics

[marlon]

I was searching for some information on BAM's and PAM's and hopefully video examples of these things specifically, and i began reading an old thread on some flank attack defense in american kenpo. As i read the discussion of ambidexterity of practice and horse stancea and head turning before striking and forms being for practice of basics and techniques for self defense... I began to formualte some thoughts so whithout taking the time to really flesh out the question, here it is: In a fight for your safety and / or life are you really going to think "now combination 42" " oh, here i need to do thundering maces" , "ah, now a crane technique" ; or, are you going to respond with your basics of stance, timing, positioning and allow the flow to come from muscle memory of practicing your techniques? Or, will you ingore blocking and responding to individual attacks, regard the situation (that you did everything you could to avoid) as the attack and commit to the utter destruction of the threat using kempo/ kenpo as a weapon and not a shield. Then, will your blocks remain blocks, will your positioning be defensive, will your flow stop and start? What will be more important positional alignment or a fully intact technique...
some of my thoughts that i may answer myself soon but you thoughts on these things are very welcome

Respecfully,
Marlon

 

[MJS]

I was searching for some information on BAM's and PAM's and hopefully video examples of these things specifically, and i began reading an old thread on some flank attack defense in american kenpo. As i read the discussion of ambidexterity of practice and horse stancea and head turning before striking and forms being for practice of basics and techniques for self defense... I began to formualte some thoughts so whithout taking the time to really flesh out the question, here it is: In a fight for your safety and / or life are you really going to think "now combination 42" " oh, here i need to do thundering maces" , "ah, now a crane technique" ; or, are you going to respond with your basics of stance, timing, positioning and allow the flow to come from muscle memory of practicing your techniques? Or, will you ingore blocking and responding to individual attacks, regard the situation (that you did everything you could to avoid) as the attack and commit to the utter destruction of the threat using kempo/ kenpo as a weapon and not a shield. Then, will your blocks remain blocks, will your positioning be defensive, will your flow stop and start? What will be more important positional alignment or a fully intact technique...
some of my thoughts that i may answer myself soon but you thoughts on these things are very welcome

Respecfully,
Marlon

Well, as some Kenpoists like to say...environment and target availability dictate what technqiue you do. Of course, I don't like to necessarily be bound be certain techniques, so I like to react to whats being presented to me at the time. Building a spontaneous reaction is ultimately the goal that we want to reach. Of course, this is also where things like grafting will come into play as well.

Mike

 

[MattJ]

http://www.ohanakenpo.com/Techniques.htm

Ed Parker on Techniques:

"I teach Kenpo, not for the sake of teaching the techniques, but for the principles involved in them. And even then, these principles must be altered to fit the individual.

The reason I give my techniques names is because there are certain sequences associated with these terms. If I told a student tomorrow that I was going to teach him a counter version to a double hand grab, it's not as meaningful as when I say I'm going to teach him ‘Parting Wings.’

You’ve got to know how to vary things. A lot of the techniques I’ve worked with, they’re ideas, they’re not rules. At any given time, any of my moves can change from defense to offense, offense to defense.

Martial artists, and Kenpo people especially, become so involved in doing the techniques exactly right in such and such amount of time, that they get caught in a pattern that they can’t break. That’s not what they’re for. Specific moves, specific techniques are based, like the ABC’s in the English language or standard football plays.

You have to have a point of reference and from there the combinations are endless and limited only by universal laws, laws that you can’t change."

 

[Doc]

http://www.ohanakenpo.com/Techniques.htm

Ed Parker on Techniques:

"I teach Kenpo, not for the sake of teaching the techniques, but for the principles involved in them. And even then, these principles must be altered to fit the individual.

The reason I give my techniques names is because there are certain sequences associated with these terms. If I told a student tomorrow that I was going to teach him a counter version to a double hand grab, it's not as meaningful as when I say I'm going to teach him ‘Parting Wings.’

You’ve got to know how to vary things. A lot of the techniques I’ve worked with, they’re ideas, they’re not rules. At any given time, any of my moves can change from defense to offense, offense to defense.

Martial artists, and Kenpo people especially, become so involved in doing the techniques exactly right in such and such amount of time, that they get caught in a pattern that they can’t break. That’s not what they’re for. Specific moves, specific techniques are based, like the ABC’s in the English language or standard football plays.

You have to have a point of reference and from there the combinations are endless and limited only by universal laws, laws that you can’t change."

I would agree wholeheartedly with a proviso (and I had this discussion with Mr. Parker), principles are not altered, but may be substituted for other principles. All true principles are written in stone, but are not always universally applicable to a specific situation. The principle properties of water is a given, and is used to form the basis for the celsius scale. However raising or lowering the temperature to an extreme, can change the principle properties to either a solid or a gaseous state. The word Parker left out was, ..."individual circumstance." and not just the individual.

The language analogy is important as well. Although we as adults "freeform" our language; that is responding to each other in conversation without knowing what the other is going to say, and picking and choosing our verbal responses as we interact. But that is not how we began learning our language skills. We began with strict unalterable basics of written and verbal communications. Verbally, beginning with phonics, and in writing learning how to form the printed letters correctly, both with no flair or personal preferences. Only after many years of this process, moving from step to step, do we find ourselves now able to freeform communicate, but still limited by the level of our foundation and vocabulary continually learned and refined over time. To skip the strict basics and move to "doing your own thing" too soon, has many kenpoists performing the linguistic equivalent of ebonics. knowhadimsayin?

 

[MattJ]

Agreed, Doc. And not just kenpoists, either. :duh:

 

[Doc]

http://www.ohanakenpo.com/Techniques.htm

Ed Parker on Techniques:

"I teach Kenpo, not for the sake of teaching the techniques, but for the principles involved in them. And even then, these principles must be altered to fit the individual.

The reason I give my techniques names is because there are certain sequences associated with these terms. If I told a student tomorrow that I was going to teach him a counter version to a double hand grab, it's not as meaningful as when I say I'm going to teach him ‘Parting Wings.’

You’ve got to know how to vary things. A lot of the techniques I’ve worked with, they’re ideas, they’re not rules. At any given time, any of my moves can change from defense to offense, offense to defense.

Martial artists, and Kenpo people especially, become so involved in doing the techniques exactly right in such and such amount of time, that they get caught in a pattern that they can’t break. That’s not what they’re for. Specific moves, specific techniques are based, like the ABC’s in the English language or standard football plays.

You have to have a point of reference and from there the combinations are endless and limited only by universal laws, laws that you can’t change."

Forgot the other highlight.