Takayuki Kubota

Kyusho Jitsu - Pressure Point Martial Arts

This is not a new style of martial art, it was part of karate before the second world war. After
the war a lot of soldiers stayed in Japan to learn the martial art namely Karate. The Japanese
having just lost the war did not want to teach these westerners thier precious arts and felt
disgruntled at thier presence, but due to economics they came up with a way of teaching them
but not giving away all the good stuff, so they taught then the childrens art which was the
basic karate that was introduced into the Japanes school curriculum by Gichin Funakoshi from
the 1920's

A lot of the movements were interpreted as blocks by westerners due to the langauge barrier
and the way it was taught, the monkey see the monkey do way.

The word block does not exist in Japanese, it was interpreted as that by the westerners. All the
techniques were strikes to pressure points and vital points. These were hidden in the kata's of
karate and only taught to close family members or trusted Japanese students who would
continue to safe guard this knowledge.

Kyusho-Jitsu (Ryukyu Kempo) is the art of striking pressure points/Nerves.

They need to be activated by striking, pressing, rubbing or vibrating. Some nerves can
respond in a few ways, others will only respond to pressing or just rubbing.

Pressure points for self defence is using the nerves to our advantage, in simple terms it's the
body'e way of monitoring the body's condition, Pain, hot, cold or if an organ is in good
condition. With the use of pressure points we can stimulate the nerves to utilize these
messages sent to the brain to get the desired response i,e - a lowering of the blood pressure,
pain, dizziness and/or a knock out.

We must not forget that we can use these same nerves or pressure points for healing. It is
responsible for an instructor to teach the healing methods as there must always be Yin and
Yang, the body must always be in total balance.

Why the martial art forms or kata's are so important to study is they contain all the nerve
strikes and pressure points, a little like a map giving the correct angle and direction. All arts
that practice forms or kata have this information and its just a question of looking at them in a
different way and not think of them as just blocking techniques.

 Nerve/pressure points are not magic, they require time to study and practice just like
anything in life. If it was that easy then everyone could do them with no effort.

They are now gaining popularity and being taught by many groups in a realistic manner. The
benefits in helping police, prison officers or stopping that school bully are endless, but please
don't just learn a few nerve points and think you will be protected. You still need to learn your
art, keep in shape and practice them on a moving target.
Kyusho Jitsu (or Pressure Point Fighting) is a martial arts focused on targeting pressure
points. Pressure points are areas of the body where people can apply pressure or strike in
order to cause pain. According to Kyusho-Jitsu UK, Kyusho-Jitsu is "a way of attacking the
nervous-system to control an attacker or subdue an attacker to maintain your advantage and
stay in control".

Kyusho Jitsu teaches a variety of self-defense techniques such as using a pressure point in
order force an attacker to release their grip on your arm. According to Kyusho, students of
Kyusho Jitsu learn many of the following techniques:

 Healing techniques
 Mobile arm point manipulation
 Striking and grabbing motions that use pressure point targets
 Take-downs utilizing pressure point targets
 Grappling and escapes using pressure point targets
 Pressure point defenses against weapon assaults
 Pressure point KOs

 In the martial arts community, those who practice kyusho-jitsu (pressure-point

fighting) are often subjected to criticism. It all started when their self-defense moves
were first brought into the limelight and onlookers didn’t even want to believe the
techniques were real. Those days are long past, however, and the reality of knockouts
resulting from usage of human pressure points has been convincingly demonstrated
time and time again — most notably by Black Belt Hall of Fame member (and kyusho-
jitsu expert) George Dillman and his students.

 Nowadays, two main criticisms of kyusho-jitsu persist. The first consists of dire
warnings that self-defense moves using pressure-point techniques are dangerous and
that those who practice them by actually knocking each other out are reckless and
foolhardy. This accusation was later found to be groundless.
 Are the Self-Defense Moves of Kyusho-Jitsu Dangerous?

 For decades now, the once-secret art of kyusho-jitsu has been publicly taught and
demonstrated. Thousands of students now practice the methods of kyusho-jitsu, and an
untold number of people have been knocked out practicing its self-defense moves,
some on numerous occasions.

 In 1997, at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, a team of

scientists sought to examine the mechanism behind human-pressure-point knockouts.
In their findings — which were reported in Black Belt’s September 1998 issue and
subsequently published in the Journal of Sports Medicine and Physical Fitness (1999;
39:328-335) — they stated that “… no hazardous complications were demonstrated
and no immediately dangerous phenomena … were noted.”


 Delve deeper into techniques using human pressure points with our new FREE Guide
— Human Pressure Points: 3 Jujitsu Techniques by Small-Circle Jujitsu Founder
Wally Jay — available now for FREE download!


 Nonetheless, claims regarding arts like kyusho-jitsu and the dangers of human-pressure-
point techniques persist like urban legends. Yet no one seems to ask the most natural
questions in the world about these self-defense moves: “Where are the bodies? Where are
the legions of martial artists whose health has been ruined by these strikes?”

 This response to the claims of associated dangers eliminates the need to address the
issue by comparing pressure-point strikes to free sparring, yet it still should be done.

 In free sparring, martial artists regularly suffer damaged joints, concussions, broken
bones and even occasional death — all while participating in “no-contact” sparring.
When the action is intensified to the level of full-contact fighting or boxing, the
potential for injury is even greater, yet few ever accuse practitioners of those sports of
reckless disregard for others.

 Let’s be honest: Despite the cautionary advice of those who don’t practice arts such as
kyusho-jitsu and really don’t know anything about it, there’s no evidence to support
the persistent cry that the practice of self-defense moves utilizing human pressure
points is “reckless and dangerous.”
 Other Criticisms Regarding Kyusho-Jitsu’s Use of Human Pressure
Points

 The second criticism of kyusho-jitsu is that the human pressure points that must be
activated are too discreet to be used in actual fighting. Those who make this claim
always preface it by admitting that the points are for real and that they actually work
in demonstrations. But in real combat, they insist, it simply isn’t possible to hit such
tiny human pressure points.

 Setting aside the fact that the whole point of training is to learn how to perform high-
level tasks under stress, it must be acknowledged that it is difficult to accurately hit a
small moving target. This point has been articulated in many ways, but one of the best
versions is this: A brain surgeon can perform a delicate operation, but can he perform
it while the patient is running around the room?

 Such a pithy summation of the problem seems to end the discussion among those who
have no knowledge base from which to respond. However, the educated response of a
person who practices self-defense moves involving human pressure points is simply:
“You’re right. If you want to perform brain surgery, you first have to strap down the
patient.”

 That statement leads to what might be called the thesis of kyusho-jitsu: If the opponent
is unable to move, it’s a whole lot easier to hit a point on his body. So the first rule of
the art is to aim for the points that aren’t moving because they’re the easiest to hit.

 The second rule follows logically: Do something to make sure what you want to hit
isn’t moving.
  Using Human Pressure Points In Real-Life Self-Defense Moves

 Consider the following self-defense scenario: An irate assailant reaches out with his
left hand, grabbing you by the right shoulder to stabilize his intended target. (This is
how the engagement portion of many bar fights begins.)

Hand-to-hand combat (sometimes abbreviated as HTH or H2H) is a lethal or non-lethal

physical confrontation between two or more persons at very short range (grappling distance,
or within the physical reach of a handheld weapon) that does not involve the use of ranged
weapons.[1] While the phrase "hand-to-hand" appears to refer to unarmed combat, the term is
generic and may include use of melee weapons such as knives, sticks, batons, spears, or
improvised weapons such as entrenching tools.[1] While the term hand-to-hand combat
originally referred principally to engagements by combatants on the battlefield, it can also
refer to any personal physical engagement by two or more people, including law enforcement
officers, civilians, and criminals.[1]

Combat within close quarters (to a range just beyond grappling distance) is commonly termed
close combat or close-quarters combat. It may include lethal and non-lethal weapons and
methods depending upon the restrictions imposed by civilian law, military rules of
engagement, or ethical codes. Close combat using firearms or other distance weapons by
military combatants at the tactical level is modernly referred to as close quarter battle. The
United States Army uses the term combatives to describe various military fighting systems
used in hand-to-hand combat training, systems which may incorporate eclectic techniques
from several different martial arts and combat sports.

For the legal theory of self-defense, see Right of self-defense. For other uses, see Self Defense
(disambiguation).

self-defense (self-defence in many varieties of English) is a countermeasure that involves

defending the health and well-being of oneself from harm.[1] The use of the right of self-
defense as a legal justification for the use of force in times of danger is available in many
jurisdictions, but the interpretation varies widely.[2]

close combat means a violent physical confrontation between two or more opponents at short
range.[1][2]

Among many types of fighting encompassed by the general term close combat are the modern
terms hand-to-hand combat and close quarters combat (CQC). Close combat occurs when
opposing military forces engage in restricted areas, an environment frequently encountered in
urban warfare. Military small unit tactics traditionally regarded as forms of close combat
include fighting with hand-held or hand-thrown weapons such as swords, knives, axes, or
tools.
In modern times, (since World War II), the term "close combat" has also come to describe
unarmed hand-to-hand combat, as well as combat involving firearms and other distance
weapons when used at short range. William E. Fairbairn, who organized and led the famous
Shanghai Riot Squad of the Shanghai Municipal Police, devised a system of close-combat
fighting for both soldiers and civilians which bears his name, "the Fairbairn System",
incorporating use of the handgun, knife, and the Defendu martial art fighting technique. Since
that time, the term "close combat" has also been used to describe a short-range physical
confrontation between antagonists not involved in a military conflict, for example in riots and
other violent conflicts between law enforcement personnel and civilians.