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Is Jiu Jitsu Only a Fighting Art?

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iStock_000000450441_ExtraSmallThroughout history the majority of martial arts have operated within a culture of honor. Warrior classes from Vikings to Medieval knights to modern military personnel have shared this tendency as well.  The ideal has always been to combine martial skills with ethical codes of behavior.

In Japan this ethical code of conduct was called Bushido (“Way of the Warrior) or Budo (Way of the Spirit.)  Bushido was intended to permeate the life of the samurai.  Specifically, it developed these seven character traits: right action, courage, benevolence, respect, truthfulness, honor, and loyalty.  Many modern day Jiu Jitsu practitioners still find the concept of “Bushido” to be an important component of their practice.

Why have codes of moral virtue been combined with martial skill?

Charles Darwin suggested an answer – he was puzzled by a phenomenon that seemed to contradict the most basic premise of his Theory of Evolution, that natural selection should favor the ruthless.

People who are kind and generous should therefore die before passing on their genes to the next generation.  Yet this is clearly not true, and all societies value kindness and generosity among their members.

Evolutionary biologists say that this seeming contradiction arises from the fact that we pass on our genes as individuals, but we survive as members of groups – and groups can exist only when individuals act not solely for their own advantage but for the sake of the group as a whole.

Neuroscientists say this dynamic has resulted in two patterns of reaction in our brains, a “Fast Track” and a “Slow Track.”

The Fast Track focuses on the individual.

  • The Fast Track focuses on potential danger to us as individuals.
  • It is characterized by the immediate, instinctive and emotional.

The Slow Track focuses on the group.

  • The Slow Track enables us to take a more considered view of the consequences of our actions for us and others.
  • It is characterized by the reflective, rational and altruistic.

The fast track helps us survive, but it can also lead us to acts that are impulsive and destructive.  The slow track leads us to more considered behavior – it brings moments of moral beauty into what might otherwise be harsh and lonely lives.  The Fast Track helps us survive, but it is the Slow Track that enables us to thrive.

The Importance of Bushido.

This puts us in a position to understand why bushido was an important component of martial arts in the past — and why we still need it in the future. By encouraging ethical behavior, Bushido strengthens and speeds up the Slow Track.  It reconfigures our neural pathways, turning moral behavior into instinct.

Bushido is the antidote to reckless behavior.  It replaces emotional outbursts with moral choices.  By metaphorically carving bushido into their hearts, the ideal samurai aimed to make “right action” automatic.  This guided them towards the appropriate use of violence.  Those who fell short of the ideal were more inclined to misuse their power and compromise their honor.

A strengthening of the slow track will highlight the honor in restraint.  Unmitigated violence without the balance of a moral code is self destructive to the individual and the community they reside in.

The idea that Jiu Jitsu can now do without some form of ethical code of behavior, or Bushido, not only flies in the face of history, it contradicts evolutionary biology.

Conclusion. 

The emotional strength and psychological fitness that is associated with the Slow Track will likely have a greater impact on our life than martial arts skill or physical strength.  This makes strengthening the Slow Track of our brains a supremely practical endeavor.

Philosophies such as Bushido are not a useless thing from the past.  In fact, when combined with martial skill, they provide a more well rounded knowledge that is the way of the future.

What do you think?  Do these moral codes still have a place in modern day Jiu Jitsu?  Can they still be effective in helping us balance physical capabilities with a strong moral character?

5 Reasons Why Jiu Jitsu is The Gentle Art.

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Nothing is so strong as gentleness. Nothing is so gentle as real strength. – St. Francis de Sales

Jiu Jitsu is a Japanese phrase that is commonly translated as “the gentle art.”

At first glance this might seem misleading.  After all, the goal of Jiu Jitsu is to control and submit a resisting person. Limb attacks are designed to damage soft tissue and dislocate or break bones.  Chokes can render an opponent unconscious, and have the potential to kill.

It can seem there is nothing “gentle” about Jiu Jitsu.

At the same time, the Japanese were known for coming up with very descriptive names.  So lets take a look at 5 reasons why Jiu Jitsu is the Gentle Art.

Jiu Jitsu is based on using skill over strength.  Jiu Jitsu is the gentle art because it does not meet force with force.  When engaged in a close struggle, Jiu Jitsu maximizes the role of skill and science over strength and aggression.  The best practitioners operate with a relaxed ease, and are adept at using their opponents force against them.

“Jiu means gentle or to give way, Jitsu, an art or practice, and Do, way or principle, so that Jiu-jitsu means an art or practice of gentleness or of giving way in order to ultimately gain the victory; while Judo means the way or principle of the same.” – Jigoro Kano

Jiu Jitsu is less violent than the striking arts.  Another reason why Jiu Jitsu is the gentle art is because it is substantially less violent and injurious than other forms of combat or martial arts. 

Effective martial arts for real world self-defense require a component of “live” sparring.  Sparring in Jiu Jitsu requires less violence and results in less serious injury than sparring with strikes.  With Jiu Jitsu there is an agreement to stop a technique short of permanent injury – which cannot be done with a punch or a kick.  This “gentler” approach to live training means sparring can be done on a daily basis – with much less risk of permanently damaging yourself or your training partner.

Jiu Jitsu promotes longevity.  The third reason why Jiu Jitsu is the “gentle art” is because it is more forgiving than many other athletic activities.  When done intelligently and at an appropriate intensity, it builds the body up without breaking it down.  So despite its capacity to inflict harm, Jiu Jitsu does not chew up the body like many western sports or other martial arts. Grandmasters Helio and Carlos Gracie embodied this principle, continuing their training into their 90’s.

Gentleman rules.  The fourth reason why Jiu Jitsu is the gentle art is because it abides by “gentleman rules.”  These rules are universally adopted in other forms of grappling as well.  They include no punching, slapping, kicking, biting, eye gouging, fishhooking, pinching, hair grabbing or individual finger locks.

Jiu Jitsu decreases stress and anger.  The fifth reason is that Jiu Jitsu generally promotes an easy-going, laidback attitude.  That is because Jiu Jitsu is known to reduce stress, anger and insecurities.

“A coward is much more exposed to quarrels than a man of spirit.” -Thomas Jefferson

Conclusion.  

Brazilian Jiu Jitsu emphasizes the use of science over strength and aggression.  This results in greater control, and allows the intensity to be varied to a level appropriate to the situation.  But this is not the only reason why Jiu Jitsu is the “gentle art.”

Although reality-based martial arts that include sparring will never be completely “gentle,” much of the appeal of Jiu Jitsu is centered around it being substantially less violent and injurious than other forms of combat or martial arts.

The techniques of Jiu Jitsu are geared towards incapacitating another person in the most effective and efficient way possible, yet Jiu Jitsu can still be a very pleasurable activity, and “gentle” enough to train on a regular basis for the rest of one’s life.

The softest things in the world overcome the hardest things in the world. - Lao Tzu