Is Karate For Defense Only?

"Karate for defense only" I can still hear Mr

"Karate for defense only" I can still hear Mr. Miyagi delivering that age old piece of advice to Daniel-san. Those meaningful words resonated in my head still to this day. This notion of "karate for defense" and then martial arts for defense only has transcended time. Even the term "self defense" conjures up this image of "never throwing the first punch."

And there it is, the almighty "NEVER THROW THE FIRST PUNCH". This is what fathers have been telling their kids for centuries. "Never throw the first punch, son." In the right context, this is good advice. When my son (or daughter) has a problem in school with one of their classmates and it gets physical, I tell them if they push you, push back. If they hit you, hit back until they stop. This works among friends and classmates. But it does not work in the real world against older people who aren't your friends or people that you have to deal with on a daily basis. It sure as hell doesn't work as an adult, especially when that adult is someone you don't know.

Given our mantra of "never throw the first punch" and karate's "for defense only" it is easy to see how the idea of waiting for the other person to throw the first punch in self defense situations has evolved and how it has continued to hang around in every dojo across the country.

So what's with the notion of "Karate for defense only"?

Karate or any form of self defense should be for defense only. The issue is where self defense starts. The general idea that self defense starts when it manifests itself in a physical act is wrong. Self defense begins in your mind. The moment you perceive a threat, that's when it starts. By the time the contact turns physical, it's tactically too late to launch a plan. If you do manage to counter attack an initial assault, consider yourself lucky because the the overwhelming people who win* a fight are the ones who escalates it the fastest.

Miyamoto Musashi is the sword saint of Japan. As a preteen he was already winning duals. Most people make the same assumption about sword fights that they did with showdowns at high noon. Two fighters meet at a predetermined time and place to face each other with honor. As we now know, this happened only a handful of times in the old west and the same is true for feudal Japan, it just didn't happen. Musashi was notorious for ambushing his opponents, or making them wait and completely pissing them off. His quote "It's most regrettable to die with your sword still in your sheath" tells a lot about his view of fighting for your life. As soon as the decision to attack is made you attack. The longer you wait, the less your chances of success. The longer you wait, the more you give the other guy a chance to attack.

A great quote from the Unforgiven (Paul credit)

Little Bill Daggett: You just shot an unarmed man.

Bill Munny: He should have armed himself if he's gonna decorate his saloon with my friend.

"Karate for self defense" is about a mind set, not a tactic. You should not actively seek to start fights or attack people who are innocent. It means you should live a good and moral life. Be the good guy. Be the guy (I can't include "girl every time I write "guy" so just go with it)who saves the day NOT the guy that causes trouble. Use your knowledge and skill to make the world a safer place, not a more dangerous one. That's what "Karate for self defense only" is all about.

**WIN I can hear you now "there are no winners in a street fight". While this may be true from a social perspective, to me there are CLEAR winners and LOSERS in a fight. The loser is the one one the ground. The winner is the one with the sore hand.

by: Matthew McKernan

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