PRESSURE POINTS STRIKES

In Karate term, they are called kyusho points and kyusho jutsu is the art of striking or manipulating pressure points. Karate Shotokan kata contain many secret techniques that teach us pressure points strikes.

I'm not going to discuss human pressure points in general but I'll focus on how to knockout, control or restrain a person by striking his kyusho points, through proper Karate bunkai. There are 3 categories of effects that can be achieved by pressure points strikes:

1. To knockout a person - this is quite obvious although the results may vary from temporary unconsciousness, comatose to death.

2. To control a person - you may want to strike a person so that he release you, stop attacking you, lose his sights or balance or expose his more vulnerable point (a setup strike).

3. To restrain a person - sometimes you do not want to cause any permanent damage or serious injuries to a person. You may then use pressure points strikes to immobilize a person, cause him to temporarily lose control of his limbs or to pin him down.

KYUSHO JUTSU HAS ALWAYS BEEN A VITAL PART OF KARATE BUNKAI.

The art of Kyusho Jutsu has always been very effective for street fighting, and they level the odds when you are facing bigger, stronger, or faster opponents in a hostile situation. Here are some of the most common pressure points strikes for the purposes described above:

1. To knockout a person - strike with your punch, palm-heel, hammer-fist or forearm on his Stomach 5 point (lower jaw of the mouth), or if you are at his back, strike the Gall Bladder 20 point (behind the head on the bottom hollow part). Strike up and 45% inwards.

2. To control a person - attack with middle-knuckle fists or both thumbs on both his Triple Warmer 17 points (behind the ear on the bottom hollow part).

Strike horizontally inwards then 45% upwards. Slam your forearm 90% straight down his Lung 5 point (one inch below crease of elbow) on either one of his arm. This would weaken his legs and make him stick out his head, so that you may strike his Stomach 5 point if you want to knock him out.

3. To restrain a person - hold your opponent's arm and rub with your knuckles or forearm on his Triple Warmer 11 point (slightly above the elbow joint), the pain will keep him from moving or using his arm. Use your knife-hand, hammer-fist, or forearm to strike 45% downwards his Triple Warmer 12 point (middle of the arm on the hollow triceps muscle). This will bring him on his knees and immobilize his arm.

I find that pressure points strikes are very much an essential part of Karate bunkai as shown in many Karate Shotokan kata, provided you know how to interpret them accurately. Many Karate bunkai contain kyusho points striking techniques. But you should never rely on kyusho jutsu exclusively.

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