The Ancient And Deadly Art Of Jujitsu
Jujitsu practitioners have been schooled in a particular form of self-defense that is known as the “science of softness”. The term “ju” is literally translated to mean either ‘soft’ or ‘gentle’, while “jitsu” is Japanese for ‘art’. Despite this unlikely moniker, attacks based on this fighting style’s principles are neither soft nor gentle in any way.
Said to have began early in the 8th century, more evidence suggests that it goes back even before Christ’s time. Dating back to A.D. 712, ancient Japanese chronicles describe how one warrior threw another down, as if throwing down a leaf, and there are records in 23 B.C. of the Emperor Shuinjin hosting fight tournaments where one warrior, Nomino Sukume, caused the death of a Sumo wrestler by throwing him to the ground and kicking him.
Evidence of this “empty hand” fighting style point towards Japan being the birthplace of Jujitsu, and not China, as some historians earlier believed. There is also some evidence pointing towards this form of martial arts stemming from the work of a 13th century Buddhist monk. The early techniques of these ancient times were called either kumitachi or yawara, and it is clearly outlined in the antique Buddhist text of the Konjaku-monogatari.
The main philosophy of this fighting art is for a combatant to be able to vanquish an opponent using all and any means, as long as the force exerted to do so is minimal. To achieve this end, the fighting style requires stringent conformity to harsh physical and mental disciplines, which include maintaining peak physical fitness, strict diets, and adherence to a rigid code of morals. It is only through these practices that a fighter is able to achieve the utmost levels of perfection required in this form of martial arts. This is the most likely reason the reason why most practitioners confine themselves to religious foundations such as Buddhist or Shinto monasteries.
While it is generally believed that fighters who are stronger have the higher advantage, this is certainly not the case in Jujitsu. Even if a fighter is smaller compared to an opponent, if he is well versed in utilizing fulcrum leverage to be able to lift someone much heavier, then he can use this advantage over a larger person who is ignorant of such fact.
A practitioner of this form of martial arts understands that there is a system that will enable them to best a larger opponent, such as attacking an adversary at a vulnerable point, thus ending the fight instantly. One of Jujitsu’s principles states that strength and brute force will gain no ground over skill and intelligence. Jujitsu is one of the ultimate weapons for punishment, and it will be very simple to defeat and even seriously an opponent when one is skilled in this form of martial arts.
Because it is focused on self-defense to render powerless and overcome an enemy using very minimal force, Jujitsu is composed of a host of dangerous and even fatal techniques. This was particularly true in the past, when, as an older art, it was used to deal fatal death blows to annihilate an enemy.
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