Translated by Robert Leifels

Let's try to consider fighting arts from the point of view of the typical person. He/she receives information on fighting arts basically from two sources: cinema and sports. First off I will say that the overall objective of cinema is to be showy and entertaining. Consequently what we see on the screen, is far from real life. Self defense in reality is not so beautiful or entertaining.

Combative sports are closer to actual life. There everything is genuine and not staged. Nevertheless, the rules and restrictions preclude fighting tactics that can cause traumatic injuries or that are hazardous to life. Even in so-called "fights without rules" there are in actuality many rules. Application of real "terrible" systems intended for the swiftest disabling or killing of a person are seen by few. Here all is shrouded in secrecy which gives rise to a set of rumors and legends frequently far from reality. Even greater "secrets" arise supposing knowledge allowing a person to go beyond the limits of the physical realm.

This implies that the typical individual's knowledge of martial arts is far from complete and not always accurate.

For those whose goal is achievement in sports everything is straightforward Any sports minded school of martial arts will suffice. The task is more difficult for the self-defense minded person. Many people think learning self-defense is a simple matter. Just join a school of martial arts and attend for a few months. But is it?

From the very beginning it is necessary to choose one of the two directions-sports or real-life application.

SPORTS APPLICATION– Earlier the shortcoming of this path was mentioned. That being the lack during training of the usage of dangerous techniques. Nobody yearns to be seriously injured! Hence, the sportsman will not be prepared for "unscrupulous" acts of violence and in turn will not be prepared to apply them himself. Indeed, there are no judges, rules, protective equipment or medical facilities in "the street." Those who have martial and sports experience know, the good sportsman enters the ring fearless. At worse if a serious injury occurs the fight will be stopped. But if you face someone with a knife or firearm all will end in quite another manner. But! Everything that a sportsman uses is applied with peak efficiency and he works at his full strength. And he will do in a fight that which he does during training. His training gives him confidence in his abilities. Frequently the actions of a sports trained martial artist is enough to prevail in the street.! That is if the street encounter is similar to ones in the gymnasium.

REAL-LIFE APPLICATION-If a person attends this type of school he/she will be told that for the street the training will suffice. Indeed, the techniques learned have no restrictions and anything that could influence those methods have been considered already. Again "no rules." But! Nobody wants to experience trauma/serious injury. So in reality it is impossible to train as if in a real fight- to break bones, and to gouge out eyeballs. It is necessary to work slowly while simulating street encounters. Hence, many acquired skills cannot be checked prior to a real life martial situation and the student gains no confidence in his fighting ability.

As it turns out all is not so simple and there are real objective problems. Furthermore, many fighting arts originated in the remote past or are descendants of ancient fighting systems. Then, as they say, it was a different time as was the mentality, values, and problems. It was a great honor to die " for a just cause " long ago. Now such a prospect for most is not so pleasing. In the frequent wars of days gone by it was considered heroic to kill great numbers of the enemy while defying all dangers using any means available. Self-protection in battle was considered cowardly.

Is this justified today? Nowadays it is "unprofitable" to kill. Justice will not understand that you were only protecting yourself and that it was necessary to pattern yourself in the code of yesteryears. Was it necessary to kill one's friend or neighbor who was inebriated and somewhat violent?

The value of life has increased and priorities have changed, and martial arts should correspond to contemporary requirements.

Let us consider practical conditions and problems for modern martial arts which is survival and for solving problems in light of everyday conditions.

Firstly- this is not sport. There are no weight categories. There is no limit to the amount or ability of opponents. A combat situation may arise at any moment. Having the skills necessary to be able to correctly assess the situation is vital. Most importantly our task is not to determine who is stronger or who will lose but to maintain clarity of thought in order to stay alive and safe.

Secondly-Power, speed, and endurance, so esteemed and of crucial importance in sports are concepts of relative importance "in the street." Illness, fatigue, inclement weather conditions, clothing, etc. can influence these factors substantially. However, the techniques have to work under any conditions. So then what does that leave?

• Body weight
• Laws of physics and mechanics: The human body is of mechanical design and also is subject to the same laws. (gravity, inertia, etc.)

There is more– Limitations on an individual include danger present, protection, strength, and balance. This goes for anybody, irrespective of strength and weight. It is possible to prove it easily by means of the same laws of physics and mechanics: A hand strike to the head is dangerous only at the point of impact. If your head is not there then it means you are beyond the danger. To accomplish aggression, the aggressor must make some sacrifice of self-protection, evasive action, and force of the strike or grab.. At the moment of impact the actual blow is influenced by inertia and gravity. A person can " work forcefully " only with support, and the design of a human body has different power opportunities in different directions and points of application. The design of a body has limited area of support, two steady and two unstable directions. All this needs to be used. in a timely fashion , by exploiting both strengths and weaknesses.!

One more law. To avoid power opposition, it is necessary to know, that it is only possible to take action (impact, a throw…) when the other person is not in control of the situation. In sports this is decided by superior force, speed, endurance and tactics (unpredictability). If our power opposition is unfavorable from the standpoint of force, speed, etc. then tactics will come into play.

When there are no interdictions or restrictions it is possible to calculate such additional conditions of loss of control:

a. loss of visual perception
b. pain and fear
c. psychological instability
d. physical instability
e. the moment of attack

The design of a human body has many weak spots and it is not necessary to use much force to defeat it(eyes, throat, groin…).So what , in a fighting system, is the need for very strong and very fast strikes? To break bricks and boards? All right – legs, and a head?

It is simple. No one will allow injury to themselves with impunity. It happens that my actions resist the actions of the opponent and on the contrary. And if opposition is not present?

Taking into account all aforementioned, we shall make a list of requirements for a fighting art and a method of preparation:

• Readiness for a fighting situation at any moment.
  Psychological readiness.
• Universality of techniques, simplicity. Development of complex system will take up too much time, and a fighting situation may arise tomorrow.
• Efficiency in any situation, in all conditions.
• Actions during training should correspond as much as possible to real fighting situations, but without harm to health (it is possible, certainly, to conduct real fights in full contact, but thus to lose health before learning to protect it.

Features of techniques and a methods of preparation of Russian Martial Art

Readiness– It is necessary to get rid of rigidity from the very beginning of training. All techniques and methodology are built on this as the same physical laws apply. The techniques are viable not only when dealing with an aggressive opponent but in a controlled (training) situation. And in a broader sense during real everyday existence.

Psychological preparedness for fighting is no less important than physical. A lot of attention is given to this.

First. The opponent is perceived not as a person, but as a mechanical design (in this case his threat will not affect the defender's state of mind).

Impact is an influence of a certain force on a certain vector with a certain speed. A fighting situation is only a mechanism of a complex design.

Second. A basis of techniques – non-resistance. Resistance is futile against a stronger enemy. I am not concerned whether I can withstand a blow. I don't resist. A sane person cannot be concerned with that. A real fight is very dangerous and any blow can be the last. Therefore the primary goal: It is much more important to survive, than to win.

Any pressure is not taken in directly but allowed to pass through, becoming smooth, and absorbed.

Third. Anxiety before a real fighting situation arises due to uncertainty of its outcome. And people are afraid of what they do not know. So it is necessary to practice simulated real fighting on a regular basis in order to be prepared if the worst happens. With one opponent or several, with weapons or without. What is the worst that can happen? You will be outdone. If you do this habitually you will learn to survive in such situations and lose your fear…

And still let us not forget that hand-to-hand combat is a last resort.

Universality of techniques greatly simplifies training and is liberating in combat. For example, methods of clearing captures and defending against strikes are based on the same principles. The same movement can be used for defense as well as for counterattack. All elements have a general foundation, therefore, we include special acrobatics that improve defense and counter techniques. The techniques do not depend on whether or not the opponent is armed. They should not depend on how an opponent stands or moves because there are a great many variables. In sports you more or less know what to expect from an adversary and can anticipate his actions and determine his strengths and weaknesses. "In the street" there is no time or opportunity for this.

In addition all movements learned in preparation/training are natural and as simple as possible so little time is needed in their development.

As already mentioned earlier: Since the techniques are adaptive to any situation you should not end up in a hopeless situation. The basis of these techniques is that they are done with or without stationary support. This allows you to feel confident even on a slippery surface, and in difficult conditions involving limited space. Methods of "a sticky body" are effective in limited visibility, close quarters, etc.

And yet. How long is necessary to train a fragile girl to prevail against a man with the constitution and training of a Mike Tyson?!

What chance does the average person taking care of and supporting a family have in standing up to a professional sportsman who trains everyday and fights in the ring regularly? What's the sense of competing with the professional in strength, speed and endurance? You don't have a chance operating under his rules. The purpose of sports is built on the stronger beating the weaker. In "the street" the stronger usually attacks the weaker so staying alive in such an encounter is essential. The problem is not who wins but for you to survive by any means necessary.

At the moment of the attack it is impossible to consider and analyze each move. It is impossible to think about what must be done, (grab, strike, etc) in order to prevail. It is spontaneous and you should be unpredictable even for yourself.

Training should be done in slow motion considering all variants to have the greatest value. Quick modifications can be made in practiced situations in order to carry through movements to their logical conclusion with this method.

Every real martial art should enable the fighter to constantly verify his knowledge. For the boxer there are matches. The sportsman trains, participates in competitions, draws conclusions and trains further in view of his mistakes. For soldiers, in days of old, wars served as verification. Having survived, the soldier drew conclusions too

It is possible to be confident in actions learned only when practiced regularly. So in this case fighting is the phenomenon that must be done as a Habitual business. The best way is for the individual to train every day consistently. And then he will be free from anxiety..

It is impossible to arrive at a calm Ueshiba state of mind by avoiding fighting experiences like those offered to us at Aikido schools. Ueshiba himself fought and trained all his life, mastered many other styles and came to "a peaceful state." Your basic skills must be ones that are possible to be checked repeatedly. Lethal skills should be employed based on the gravity of the situation.

In conditions of peacetime, when life and health matter, "lethal" skills cannot be tested In special divisions it was done on "dolls," on corpses… We have no such opportunity, and it's not appropriate. The fighter whose acquired skills are built on unrealistic factors will not be 100 percent confident in himself and this is dangerous. So the pupil accepts active creative participation in his/her own training.

Martial ART, first of all, is creative rather than someone else's thought up routines. The photocopy cannot be called art. As a result anyone who has attained martial skills creates his own style.

I will repeat myself. Hand-to-hand combat is very dangerous. The process of learning cannot be harmless as its basic purpose is to physically harm, injure, cripple, or kill. Nevertheless, you want to protect yourself and your family. Martial skill can be useful for everyone. Life is beautiful but sometimes presents us with unpleasant surprises. And during such moments (there are many examples) people ask themselves "why haven't I managed to learn anything?" There is wisdom in the East that says, "if the sword can be useful once in a life, then it is necessary to carry it always."

This means that martial art takes place in our daily lives. Taking into account all of the above what should we do?

We believe it is very important that one should study Martial Arts in a safe and healthy manner- this should not influence the quality of the achieved knowledge. The main task is to gain real fighting experience. And this is possible…