What is Self Defense?

Many people tend to lump self defense and martial arts together, thinking they are one in the same. This however, is not true. There is a profound difference in philosophy and goal. Self defense is a subset of martial arts. The best way to show the difference is by going to the foundation of self defense. The model of self defense is divided into three parts: Heart, Mind and Body.

The heart is concerned with motive. Why do we do what we do? This is the core of self defense. The how and what of our actions flow from the why. In self defense our motive is survival. Our attitude in a confrontation is to avoid a fight.

This is done by having a proper heart attitude. We must remove ego from the equation. We don’t have to prove how tough we are. We don’t have to show off. The other motivating factor is emotions, because the heart is the seat of emotions. If you respond in fear, anger or hatred, you will be tense and ridged. You will not be able to flow. You may over react, over commit. You may over think a situation rather than let the technique “happen”. In self defense we don’t look to destroy an attacker we look to neutralize him. We look to do the least harm we need to to be safe.

Let’s look at an example. Most confrontations start with a verbal exchange. Let’s say you accidentally bump into someone. He confronts you. Apologize. Put your ego in your pocket. What if he’s a jerk and he doesn’t let it go? Think about when you’ve been a jerk. Give him some grace. Think,” there but by the grace of God go I ”. You’re not perfect, don’t expect others to be. Stay calm. Remember you are trained; you can defend yourself if you need to. Now let’s look at the second piece of the self defense foundation.

The mind is the connection between the heart and the body, the non-physical and the physical. As you are dealing with your heart you can also begin to employ your mind. As you assess the situation and how the person is responding to you, look around. Where is the nearest escape route? Is the area deserted or crowded with witnesses? Is he alone or does he have friends that might join in? Does he look to be much bigger or stronger than you? Is getting increasingly aggressive? Do you need to back away? How far? Can you just walk away? So let’s say you’ve done all that and he is getting more aggressive. This is where the third piece of the self defense model is applied.

The physical aspect is usually the first part of the martial arts equation people think of but as you can see with self defense it is the last. After you’ve done all you can do to avoid a physical altercation you can only control yourself. If he really wants to fight there’s not a lot you can do to avoid it. You can run, remember pocket your ego. If you can’t, what can you do? This depends on how he attacks you. As you blend your heart and mind, your attitudes and the information you have gleaned, solutions will begin to reveal themselves. As you relax your heart, mind and now your body begin to flow together. Without thinking your subconscious begins to put things together. The attack comes, you almost automatically respond, blending the heart, mind and body into the appropriate technique. You have kept yourself and possibly your loved ones safe.

This 3 piece approach to self defense is not natural. It actually goes against our nature. We want to attack. We want to prove we can win. We want to show off our martial arts skills. Only through realizing our tendencies and disciplining our heart, mind and body can we be an effective self defense practitioner and be safe in an unsafe world.

Published by: Dave Heuthe, American Kobe Jiu Jitsu Federation Black Belt & Certified Instructor. Dave provides group personal defense classes where lessons are taught in various locations, privately, at Bob Malvagno’s School of Self Defense, and through in-house work programs (e.g. -Fire Department, employer, churches & synagogues, community centers, etc.) in the Nassau County and Sufflok County, Long Island (LI), NY area. Dave’s business is to provide programs that help his students (adults, seniors, teens & children) master self defense. BECOME A CLASS MEMBER TODAY!