One of the most fundamental aspects of Shorinji Kempo – or any self defence martial art – concerns keeping yourself safe and out of danger.
This means many things – it means being aware of your surroundings so you don’t end up in danger in the first place, it means keeping yourself fit so you can run away fast, and it means practicing your skills regularly so that you can pull them out and do them well even under stress.
If you’re in a fight and can’t leave it, it means protecting your vulnerable bits.
We have a lot of defensive techniques, and people often mistakenly call them “blocks”. Yes, we are waving our arms around and “blocking” the attack, but a defensive technique is much more than that.
Fundamentally we can boil it down to this:
Move the thing they’re aiming at.
If someone is punching you in the head, move your head. If they’re aiming for your stomach, move your stomach.
How to do this without breaking your own balance, remaining aware of what is going on, and being ready to counter attack is the tricky part – and that of course is why we practice.
So what are some of your options?
Sorimi 反り身
Sorimi literally means “curving” or “arching” body. Personally I like to think that you’re terribly “sorry” and are therefore retreating.
Your head is going backwards, but so are your hips – make sure you keep your weight over your back leg. If you lean with just the top half of your body, you’ll fall over backwards.
This defensive movement is great if you want a little distance, for example to counter attack with a kick.
Furimi 振り身
Literally “swinging” or “shaking” body, in furimi you swing around to the side of the attack. It’s a bit scarier than sorimi, because it often feels like you’re going forwards into their attack. But you’re actually going around the side, not straight forward.
Just like for sorimi, though, take your hips with you so you remain balanced.
This one is great for if you want to get closer to your opponent, to counter attack with a punch or grab hold of them somehow.
Hikimi 引き身
Hikimi is the “pulling” body – specifically, pulling your hips out of the way of an attack to your solar plexus or side floating ribs. Try not to over compensate by pushing your head forwards – that’s a good way to get a punch in the face!
If you can, keep your front hip forward when you do this. It’ll make counter attacking with a kick much easier if your hip is already in the right place.
Conclusion
This is by no means an exhaustive list. Clearly there are many other ways you could move your body to get out of danger. If you want to know them all – and practice to make them instinctive – why not sign up for a class?