How the body maintains balance is key to understand how to throw someone with maximum efficiency. The Judo masters developed the eight points of unbalance as a teaching tool so anyone could master this concept. Shinan Pereira, Miyama Ryu Founder, studied with the old masters and passed down this teaching.
I have added some details which I found to help students grasp the concepts better, but my explanations are similar. The Body is like a block of wood. It can be tipped in 8 different directions to achieve unbalance. To practice these positions picture a person standing with both feet forward and parallel and no wider than shoulder width apart.
The first unbalance is directly forward. Have the Student (Uke) lean forward towards his toes until he must stumble. The second is directly back. Now have the Uke lean backwards until he is on his heels. Third is directly to the right side. Now have the Uke lean until he is on the side of his right foot, eventually he will stumble. Fourth is to the left side and now the Uke leans on the side of his left foot until he eventually stumbles.
The fifth unbalance is to step forward with your right leg. Now have the Uke lean and bend his right knee. He will NOT fall or stumble. Now have him move his head toward his belt. When his head reaches the center of his body he will stumble as his weight comes forward on his toes. This is called the right front corner. Now have lean backwards on his right foot. Again he will not fall. But by moving his head to the center he will stumble. This sixth point is called the right rear corner.
The seventh unbalance point is a repeat of the fifth with the left leg forward and leaning forward to the left front corner and the eighth point is a repeat of the the sixth to the left rear corner. And now the fun begins.
Have the Uke (receiver) attack the Tori (doer) with his feet in all of the eight positions. It is here that the Tori must now discover exactly how to move. For a practical example, take a look at the video. Let me know of any comments you may have about this exercise, including any different ways you may know of how to tweak it or make unbalancing more understandable.
I find the art of Kuzushi to be very effective. When I was taught it by Professor D'Arcy Rahming, I could feel that the repercussions of being hit while off balance would not be enjoyable. Perfecting the art of Kuzushi could lead to a higher chance of throwing an adversary to the ground and gaining the upper hand in a fight. Actually, once a person’s center of gravity is broken, their defense is severely decreased within that moment, thus exposing their body to almost any kind of attack.
ReplyDeleteThe eight points of unbalance are easy to grasp once practiced and done efficiently. Professor D'Arcy Rahming demonstrated how to perform them effectively and it aided me in learning how important it is to grasp the concept, before attempting to throw an opponent. The practical examples shown in the video above gives great illustration as to what a person can do when taking advantage of a point of unbalance. There are number of throws that can be executed and it seems as if the thrower is exerting hardly any energy while throwing his opponent.
In reference to energy, an article I read called, “How the principle of Aiki relates to Kuzushi” by Sensei Martin Ramirez. He stated that, “Kuzushi is the art of unbalancing an opponent and needs the application of Aiki for maximum effectiveness.” Kuzushi and Aiki work hand in hand in an attempt to take advantage of your opponent’s balance and energy exertion, and use it against them. The art of Kuzushi is a force to be reckoned with, as anyone who perfects this art, no matter their size or stature… will have the knowledge that can prove to make the difference between victory and defeat.
For more details refer to http://miyamaryujujutsu.com
DeleteI first experienced unbalancing as a child walking by myself. As an infant, walking alone is very difficult because with the slightest push can cause the child to tumble over. Growing up, I gained more weight, making my body more difficult to be toppled over. Several years later, I am a student at the College of the Bahamas currently taking an introduction to Jujustu course. I am learning countless things, from blocking attacks to learning how to fall correctly if thrown. At the beginning of the course, we learnt who was the founder of the art Jujutsu, Sensei Kano, when it began and how did it began.
ReplyDeleteRecently, I have learned how to fall with little or no pain. If thrown onto your back, you must face your head towards your belt to prevent your head from touching the ground. If thrown on your side, have your arm closest to the ground stretched out with palms open as if you were slapping the ground with the other arm held towards your heart. Just recently, I have learned the art of unbalancing. One way to get your opponent off balance is to all him/her to attack you and either dodge the attack or block it, pushing your opponent body over his/her centre of gravity, making them off balance and vulnerable for an attack or grapple. My instructor, Sensei Rahming, taught us eight different ways to be unbalanced which can be seen on the video on the website http://miyamaryujujutsu.com.
Since my first semester at COB, I had a terrible experience on the road. How does it feel when you get robbed from someone who stole all of your money and have nothing to eat or get home in one day? My experience in Jujutsu so far for me is starting to become a fun enjoyable and learning experience for me. So far I am learning how to block, punch and will be able to defend myself soon in any given situation or disaster strikes.This is my first time in my life that I have enrolled in a martial arts class. As I begin to learn Kuzushi, I learn that it is the Japanese word for unbalancing an opponent. Also, I learned that it comes from the verb "Kuzusu" meaning "to pull down" or demolish. I found out that there are 3 levels of Kuzushi mental, physical and spiritual. The 8 points of unbalancing are very interesting and simple to do. When falling back, one must look at his or her belt at all times. One thing that I had noticed is the center of gravity. In each point, I observed the COG until the person is unbalanced. Sensei Rahming demonstrated to my class how each point is performed. I will remember the 8 points of unbalancing like this
ReplyDelete1. leaning forward
2. Leaning backward
3. Leaning to the left
4. Leaning to the right.
5. Left foot out and leaning to the centre.
6. Left foot out and leaning backward
7. Right foot out and leaning forward
8. Right foot out and leaning backward
My experience in Jujutsu so far has been very exciting,fun enjoyable and learning experience. Right now I am learning the basics such as how to block, different throwing techniques etc.This is my first time practicing ju jitsu and already I am starting fall in love with it. One of the things i have learned so far is Kuzushi, which in Japanese is the term for unbalancing an opponent.It comes from the verb "Kuzusu" meaning "to pull down" or demolish. In judo Kuzushi is considered and essential principle and the first of three stages to a successful throwing technique, it is also important to many Japanese martial arts especially those influenced by ju jitsu. The methods of effecting Kuzushi depend on maai(combative distance) and other circumstances. It can be achieved using tai sabaki (body positioning and weak lines) taking advantage advantage of the opponents actions, atemi (strikes)or a combination of all three. The 8 points of unbalancing are very interesting and simple to do. The 8 points of unbalancing are leaning forward, leaning backward, leaning to the left, leaning to the right. Left foot out and leaning to the centre, left foot out and leaning backward,right foot out and leaning forward,right foot out and leaning backward(as see in the video). I am really enjoying ju jistu and look forward to learning more and getting better at it.
ReplyDeleteWell i must say that i am intrigued by this information, its kind of scary to be sharing it with everybody o_O cause you dont want something like this to get in the wrong hands >;D. Anyway so far so good i have and am been enjoying my experience in Jujitsu. As a little boy i had a passion for fighting due to the fact that i used to watch toooooo much power rangers then test the moves on my sister. i seem to caught on very quickly when i was smaller. whats so interesting about this espically where D'arcy Jr. demonstrated the face palm and then he tripped his opponent with his right/left foot. Thats one of my favorite trips the only difference with mine is that i grab the person with both hands or i hug them, then swing them in the direction i want to throw them and finally using my left leg or right leg to sweep theirs up really quickly then a push and tumbling to the ground they go >;D!.. I didnt even know that it was an art of unbalancing or a move to unbalance one. I learnt it off playing true crime streets of LA for PS2 when i was 13 years of age. Whats even more exciting is that i finally learnt the proper way to punch, i now can break peoples jaws and noses for real this time :D if they fool with me. Special thanks and credit goes to my Sensei D'arcy Rahming and his son D'arcy Rahming jr. for teaching me such deadly and brutal moves and i pray that i too can learn the ways of jaw breaking. For more information please refer to this site. http://miyamaryujujutsu.com
ReplyDeleteyours truly, G.Rahming aka soon to be a proper jaw breaker
My journey in jujitsu so far has been a very interesting experience. I have learnt to understand the Martial arts better and find myself intrigued of ways that I can defend myself. I am enthusiastic about every class so that I can learn another life saving technique. The purpose of balance is essential in Martial arts fighting because without balance you can tumble over with the drop of a hat. There is a saying; "Head over floor, fall to the floor." This means one must keep the head directly over the centre of the body to avoid toppling in combative practise. Kuzushi is taking this balance away from an opponent and making the opponent's head go off his centre. Kuzushi is one of the hardest part of Martial arts to master because it requires constant awareness of how to throw your opponent off balance without wasting energy. If a person is evenly balanced it is hard to pick them up and throw them, but if they are off balance they would tumble with a little tap.The art of unbalance gives you the upper hand on your opponent because no matter how big a person is compared to your size you can have the upper hand by throwing that person off balance. As a female we are faced with many challenges in regards to our muscle composition compared to males but it we are able to be aware of opportunities to off balance the opponent, regardless of their size we can effectively control our opponent and take control of the situation. +www.stoplivinginfear.com
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ReplyDeleteKuzushi is a very interesting art that if followed correctly, can end in a positive result for the victim and a negative result for the attacker. The steps are very easy to imitate as seen in the video.( http://miyamaryujujutsu.com ) Unbalancing is the best technique to do when you want to confuse your opponent and D'arcy Rahming is a great sensei in teaching this art. My experience in jujistu has been very interesting, informative and enjoyable. This is probably the best class l've taken up because it is fun and you get to learn while having fun. Crime is increasing rapidly.Nowadays there are more women getting robbed than because because the attackers assume that women are defenseless. Every time you listen to the news you hear about someone getting stab or shoot etc, so this is a very practical class that teaches you about self defense. l've took other self defense classes and jujitsu contains the most realistic techniques that l could see using if l'm ever in any negative situations. All of the techniques that Sensei Rahming presents in class are very interesting and easy to do. Every time l come to class l'm eager to know what we're going to learn next and energetic when its time to practice the move. Jujistu taught me and is still teaching me that no matter what size or height you are, you could properly defend yourself; you just need the realistic techniques and the right Sensei. For more info, and videos go to http://miyamaryujujutsu.com
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ReplyDeleteSince my first semester at the College of The Bahamas, I had a terrible experience on the road. How does it feel when you get robbed from someone who stole all of your money and have nothing to eat or get home in one day? My experience in Jujutsu so far for me is starting to become a fun enjoyable and learning experience for me. So far I am learning how to block, punch and will be able to defend myself soon in any given situation or disaster strikes.This is my first time in my life that I have enrolled in a martial arts class. As I begin to learn Kuzushi, I learn that it is the Japanese word for unbalancing an opponent. Also, I learned that it comes from the verb "Kuzusu" meaning "to pull down" or demolish. I found out that there are 3 levels of Kuzushi mental, physical and spiritual. The 8 points of unbalancing are very interesting and simple to do. When falling back, one must look at his or her belt at all times. One thing that I had noticed is the center of gravity. In each point, I observed the COG until the person is unbalanced. Sensei Rahming demonstrated to my class how each point is performed. I will remember the 8 points of unbalancing like this
ReplyDelete1. leaning forward
2. Leaning backward
3. Leaning to the left
4. Leaning to the right.
5. Left foot out and leaning to the centre.
6. Left foot out and leaning backward
7. Right foot out and leaning forward
8. Right foot out and leaning backward
Also in Jujutsu, I am learning more new moves, but they are a little bit confusing for me. But I know that I will do my best. Learning how to flip my attacker from behind and learning also how to stab. I must also know the correct distance and my time of reaction. Sensei Rahming taught us how to defend ourselves if the attacker is stabbing us. Also, how to grab the attackers arm and taking the knife from behind by forming our hands in the form of a "butterfly. We also are learning how to kick our attackers if we are on the ground. Sensei Rahming also taught us how to hold the knife correctly, and avoiding from getting cut from it. He also taught us the proper way to give our partners the knife. We should not give our partners the sharp blade part of the knife, because you can get cut and will lose a lot of blood. Sensei taught us how to punch with our left and right arms and when punching with the left arm you must use the right arms as the "temple" and with the other arm and vice versa.
my link http://preacherboybyron.blogspot.com/
ReplyDelete