It’s all crap.

Well, almost all. The vast majority of this stuff comes from very vocal people with very large egos (large ego = low self esteem) who need to feel better about themselves by seeming important, tough, or smart. Instead of focusing on learning, they are shut down to learning anything new.

I was recently reading about the Piper knife system on their web site and have seen a couple of videos on Youtube. I do not claim familiarity with the system but, from what I’ve seen they hold their knife in an ice-pick grip. This is not something I normally recommend, but I am willing to accept that I do not know everything there is to know about knife combat.

My understanding is that the system evolved with the use of a specific weapon. A short, extremely-dull, folding knife common among South Africa’s criminal gangs. Since such a blade would be relatively useless as a slashing tool, a system incorporating stabbing and ripping movements makes perfect sense. An ice-pick or reverse-hammer grip is going to be the strongest grip for the stabbing-ripping type movements. In this context it makes perfect sense.

I am sure there is much more to it than I have read about, and I have never personally studied Piper, but I’m willing to accept that this system wouldn’t have evolved or survived the streets of South Africa if what they did didn’t make sense. I’m willing to loosen the shackles on my mind and accept the fact that I could learn something that was true, and was counter to what I already accepted as true. The difference is context.

On the martial arts linked-in group I moderate there have been a lot of questions about whether high kicks or ground-fighting were practical. Again, everything is useful in proper context. This also means that things become less useful out of context. The real key is trying to understand that context.

All martial arts systems evolved in an environment which included opponents, geography, purpose, clothing and weapons etc. Japanese jujutsu was developed to fight multiple armed opponents in armor. Filipino martial arts evolved to fight in close with long blades against relatively unarmored opponents. Brazilian Jui-Jitsu arguably evolved to win wrestling matches. Karate evolved amongst unarmed and unarmored people. Each of these arts, and all others like them, make perfect sense. Remove their context, and of course you can point out “flaws”.

As a practitioner of jujutsu (the way we happen to spell the same word), when people hear what I do, they frequently assume I do something else. “Oh, you do that rolling around on the ground stuff right?” I get that all the time. Recently a fellow student of my teacher who has just started teaching complained about the same thing.

With the popularity of the UFC, and the BJJ domination of that sport, it is easy to understand that most people’s exposure to jujutsu has been nearly 100%. Koryu and gendai styles (like Ketsugo Jujutsu) are not generally used for sport and you don’t see them on TV very much.

The basic historical background of BJJ si that it is derived from Kodokan Judo. However, at that time, Judo was sometimes still referred to as Kano Jiu-Jitsu after Jigoro Kano, the father of Judo. It was 1914 when Mitsuyo Maeda brought Judo to Brazil, and it wasn’t until 1925 when the Japanese government declared that the art be called Judo. The Gracie family studied under Maeda in Brazil, and continued to refine and spread their art up to today.

So, there is indeed a historic reason, not that they need one, to call their art Jiu-Jitsu.

For us, ground fighting is not something we choose to do. It usually means you are about to lose your life. So, to be confused with a system that has become synonymous with ground-fighting sometimes takes us back a bit. We practice ground-fighting, but not for sport, and we use tactics which would be illegal in any sport competition (unless you believe the movie Bloodsport was a true story).

So, my personal wish was that Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu was called Brazilian Judo, or something different. I’m lazy and I’d have less explaining to do. In the end, labels are just that. After all, the name “Ketsugo Jujutsu” (also spelled jujitsu) was created by an American in the 20th century, and it is an eclectic art.

I am sure that this person was not totally satisfied with the answer. What the person was looking for was akin to the age-old mental rat-hole that we see time and time again, “which martial art is the best.” Let me be up front, there is no such thing. If there was, everybody would learn that one, and it would cease to be effective. On to the question at hand:

There is nothing wrong with sport-oriented martial arts schools. I don’t denigrate other systems or teachers. Sport schools simply have a different focus. As a practitioner of combat-oriented jujutsu, I would undoubtedly get wasted stepping into a ring with a seasoned MMA competitor. I have no idea even what the rules our. My training, which involves killing and crippling techniques, would not carry over legally into the ring. I would be unprepared.

Does this mean that my art sucks? For MMA competition, yes. However, I personally have used my jujutsu to stave off a couple of assaults. My teacher, and fellow students have used this exact training to survive knife and gun assaults, muggings, attempted rapes, and other violent encounters. Our training works, and I have confidence in it.

Does this mean that an MMA competitor would do crappy in a self defense situation. Who knows? It really depends on the person, the situation, and the encounter. Surely MMA practitioners have combative skills and a high fitness level that may be helpful in a combat situation. Some tendencies of MMA fighters (such as the focus on a single adversary, going to the ground, and a lack of weapons training) might be shortcomings in certain situations unless there has been some cross training.

One thing I have learned over the years is that combat effectiveness is less about the art and more about the artist. I’d like to think that our training has been tweaked by real world survival situations enough that it provides a significant advantage in self-defense. I can tell you that there is no training like ours in Maine. But, if you come here expecting to learn how to grapple for points, you’ll be disappointed.

In Japanese, there are 3 almost interchangeable terms which are used to mean “martial arts” – Budo, Bugei, and Bujutsu. Understanding the subtle differences can lend insight into the arts themselves.

First, the character for Bu (武) means war, or military (martial), or having to do with warfare. Bujin, for example, combines the symbols for war and man to mean “warrior”.

Bugei – 武芸, is probably the best literal translation for the term “martial arts.” Budo – 武道 can be translated as the martial way, or path. Bujutsu – 武術 can’t be literally translated, but basically means, “martial science”.

The interesting distinction here is between the characters which are pronounced “do” and “jutsu”. “Do,” meaning path or way, holds the implication of a way of life or path for personal and spiritual perfection. “Jutsu,” in contrast, carries the connotation of a battlefield art.

In Japanese martial arts, there are “do” arts and “jutsu” arts. The do arts place less emphasis on battlefield preparation and more emphasis on personal development. From jujutsu, judo was developed as a way to train the mind and body of young men. From Aikijujutsu, Aikido was developed as a way of pursuing peace through martial arts. From Kenjutsu, Kendo was developed as a method of personal development. These are very simplified distinctions, but they hold truth.

I actually believe it is unfortunate that the Gracies call their art Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, it should probably be called Brazilian Judo. It’s origin is from Kodokan Judo. Nowadays, because of the UFC, every time I tell someone I practice jujutsu, they think I focus on mat wrestling. This is not to denigrate Brazilian Jui-jitsu, it’s  just not what I do.