Black Medicine Anthology

by N. Mashiro

  5-2: This technique sounds preposterous but it really works well. The attacker is holding your right wrist in his left hand as before. Turn and take a short half-step to your left with your left foot, followed by a deeper step through to the left with your right foot. As you make the second step, point at an imaginary object in the distance with your captured hand. Be sure to push your right elbow into contact with his left elbow as you turn and point. When the elbows touch your hand will come free from his grip. As you feel your hand slipping out of his grip squat down slightly and deliver a back elbow strike to his abdomen (breaking ribs or knocking the wind out of him).

  Figure 10: This wrist release isn't really a release at all, but an unexpected counteroffensive. The victim uses her hands to grab and lock down the attacker's left hand, then twists it violently to her right. Performed with sufficient conviction, this move will force the attacker to spin around on his heel into a very uncomfortable position.

  Figure 11: Another classic wrist release consists of grasping your captured hand with your free one and using the strength of both arms to tear your wrist free. The standard retaliation is a hammer-fist strike to the head.

  5-3: For that special surprise, don't try to get loose at all! Step in toward him and drive the captured hand up in a palm heel strike to the chin. Or jab at his eye. Your hand will come loose from his grip as you strike. This attack usually succeeds quite well because the opponent suffers from the assumption that your hand is under his control. He can't believe the captured hand is coming up to hit him until too late.

  ATTACK #6

  Your right wrist is grasped by both of the opponent's hands. Usually this means that his thumbs are across the top of your wrist and his fingers are firmly clenched around the lower side of your arm. This is a more difficult situation to deal with than the previous one.

  BASIC DEFENSE #6

  Reach down between his arms with your left hand and grasp your own right fist. Use both arms to pull the tangle of hands up and back toward your left shoulder, using your right forearm as a pry bar against the opponent's thumbs. In most cases you will be able to pry your arm free immediately.

  COUNTERATTACKS FOR SITUATION #6

  6-1: Perform the basic defense as described above. As your wrist comes free, retaliate with a right hammer blow to the face. Be sure to note the coil-recoil nature of the motion. You coil to the left as you pry your arm free, and then recoil to the right to put added force behind the hammer-fist blow to the face. (See Figure 11.)

  6-2: If you can't seem to pry your arm loose, don't lose hope. If the attacker is so foolish as to immobilize both of his hands while holding only one of yours, go ahead and hit him with your free hand. A hammer blow to the nose might be a very effective distraction. I guarantee that he'll let go of your wrist with at least one hand as soon as you start raining blows on his face, jabbing at his eyes, or kicking his knees. The instant he does, move! That's your golden chance to free your hand and get out of there.

  ATTACK #7

  Your right wrist is grasped by the opponent's right hand. This looks like a perverted handshake where the opponent deliberately bypassed your open hand and grabbed your wrist instead. It's a common trick.

  BASIC DEFENSE #7

  As always, use your forearm as a pry bar to put pressure against his thumb. In this case push your arm down slightly and then snap it up in a tight counterclockwise circle around his hand. After your wrist passes over the top of his hand you will see that he is losing his grasp on you. You can make the movement more forceful by completing the circle with a little body weight added to the strength of your arm on the downstroke.

  COUNTERATTACKS FOR SITUATION #7

  Here are two methods of doing more than simply getting free.

  7-1: Perform the basic defense as described above. Then, as your right arm comes free give him a short, sharp punch to the testicles. Don't bother with hitting him in the stomach; put your fist where it counts. For those of you who are using palm-heel strikes instead of punches, turn your hand palm up and rake the heel right down his zipper and through to the back. He'll get the message. You didn't like having your arm held! (See Figure 12.)

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  Figure 13: When your fistfighting opponent uses his leading hand to grab yours, you can pin his hand and twist him around into a hammer lock. Be careful, though, since he may know how to escape from a hammer lock (see Figure 38 for the end of this sequence).

  7-2: This technique is similar to 5-1. Twist your hand counterclockwise in his grip until your fingers can reach up around the outside of his wrist to grasp it. Your hand must pass under his wrist so that the fingers can curl up the far side with the little finger leading. Clamp his fingers against your forearm with your left palm (so he cannot escape) and twist his arm violently clockwise. This will spin him around into a hammer lock. Finish with a knee kick to the coccyx or a shovel kick up into the groin from the rear. He'll never see it coming. (See Figure 13.)

  ATTACK #8

  The opponent grasps both of your wrists from the front. This means that he is holding your right wrist in his left hand and vice versa. Notice that this is really a neutral stance, since as long as he holds on to your wrists neither one of you can do anything with your hands.

  BASIC DEFENSE #8

  First try a simple one-hand release such as basic defense #5. Just because he elected to grab both of your hands doesn't mean that you have to free them both at once. Free one, then the other.

  If you find that you don't have much success getting one hand free, try bringing your hands together to the point where your left hand can grasp his left wrist. Hold his wrist firmly while you twist your right hand free. Immobilizing his hand makes the escape much easier to work. (See Figure 14.)

  COUNTERATTACKS FOR SITUATION #8

  8-1: The next three counterattacks form a natural group, each beginning with a sudden motion which spins the opponent around on his heels. Although this technique is a little difficult to coordinate at first, and although an alerted practice partner can frustrate it easily, you will find that it works very effectively against a surprised opponent. Believe me, he'll be surprised.

  Free your right wrist by twisting out against his thumb (using basic defense #5 or #8). Now cup your right hand as if to drink water from it. Notice that the hand forms a natural hook when held in this position. Swing your left arm slightly out to your left to pull his right arm a few inches away from his body. Then swiftly hook him under the right armpit with your right hand. Your wrist will hit him in the armpit and the hook of your fingers will catch around the back of his shoulder or upper arm. Don't grab him, just hook his arm. Grasping takes too long, but hooking his arm with your cupped hand can be accomplished with blinding speed.

  Figure 14: At times when someone has grabbed both of your wrists the easiest way out is to use one of your hands to help free the other.

  The next step is to give his shoulder a short, sharp, and very powerful yank to your right. Use your torso to provide the strength for this pull, not your arm alone. The idea is to suddenly spin him around at least a quarter turn. It sounds difficult but if the pull is extremely sudden it really works well. In one self-defense class demonstration I used this spin on an unsuspecting assistant and actually spun him completely around like a top, which surprised us both and ruined the point I was trying to make to the class.

  As your opponent is spinning on his heel with that welcome look of shock on his ugly face, you will find that it is very easy to twist your left hand out of his grip using basic defense #5. While he is turning just swing your left hand across in front of your body and up in an arc to your left shoulder. You will be amazed at how naturally your wrist glides out of his hand while his brain is preoccupied with catching his balance.

  If all has gone well, your opponent should now be standing with his right shoulder toward you. Grab the hair at the back of his head with
your left hand and yank it straight down (not backwards) to drop him on his back. If the hair is too short to grab, reach over the top of his head and get a hold by digging your fingers into his eye sockets. Yank his head straight back so his face points toward the ceiling. To make the fall more violent throw your feet out from under you and drop on your chest, letting your weight drive his head down. He will fall violently straight down on the back of his head, with feet and arms flying in all directions. (See Figure 15.)

  8-2: A variation of technique 8-1 is to spin the opponent all the way around with his back toward you and catch his neck in a strangle hold. Jerk him violently into the spin and then just let your right arm encircle his neck as he turns. Rest your left elbow on top of his left shoulder, and grasp your left bicep with your right hand. (Your little finger fits into the fold of the elbow.) Place your left hand on the back of his head and grasp the hair there if you wish. To apply the choke hold, force his head forward with your left hand while you pry the bony edge of your right wrist back into the center of his throat just under the jaw.

  This choke is an attack on the windpipe and is extremely dangerous and painful. A violent application of this hold can sprain or even break the opponent's neck. An inexpert application of the strangle hold is worse than no hold at all. While using such a hold you may be very vulnerable to a variety of throws and counterblows. The victim will become extremely agitated as soon as he feels the pain, and will attempt the most desperate countermeasures. If you are not willing to take the soldier's way out (snapping the neck) it may take from five seconds to two minutes to subdue the opponent. It could be a lengthy struggle.

  8-3: A variation of the strangle hold described above is the carotid artery hold (called "the sleeper"). I find it more useful and less dangerous (to everyone) than the strangle hold.

  Encircle his neck as before, pinching his throat in the bend of your arm. Hook your hands together on top of his left shoulder, and anchor them in place by pressing your left forearm tightly down his back. Squeeze the neck (just beneath the jaw) between your bicep and forearm to close the carotid arteries. Be sure to tuck your head down so he can't make a sudden stab back over his shoulder with his finger tips and put out your eyes!

  This cuts off the supply of blood to the brain and produces unconsciousness in seconds. Holding this position for several minutes will produce severe brain damage or death. There is relatively little danger of damage to the spine or the trachea from this hold, and it is not especially painful.

  Figure 15: One of my favorite maneuvers is the wrist release which suddenly becomes a spinning takedown. The motions required are complex, but with a little practice this technique is fast as lightning.

  This hold is the magical attack which TV scriptwriters have sought for years, in which the victim passes out immediately and awakens as good as new a few minutes later. Unfortunately, the TV heroes usually pistolwhip the victim over the head or chop him on the back of the neck to produce this "anaesthetic" effect. Do not be deceived. Such attacks are frequently lethal, and carry with them the possibility of crippling brain injury if the victim is not fortunate enough to die immediately. People do not wake up smiling ruefully after being brained with a heavy pistol. Even this relatively safe judo hold can be dangerous if something goes wrong.

  8-4: This technique is for those of you who cannot master the shoulder-spin described in the preceding paragraphs. Twist your hands in his grip and grab his wrists (similar to techniques 5-1 and 7-2). Pull his hands out to the sides and alternately butt him in the face with the top of your head and kick him in the groin until he submits. The beauty of this combination is that the blow to the face makes him throw his head back and his hips come forward. The kick makes him jerk his hips away which brings his face back into range again. With good timing you can get him rocking like a seesaw! Note that it is not really necessary to grasp his wrists since you can use his grip on you to control his arms.

  8-5: Use the basic defense to get one hand free, then immediately deliver a palm-heel strike to his nose or chin. That will get his attention! Or use your free hand to stab your finger tips at his eyes. He'll forget all about holding you the instant your dirty fingernails get near his baby blues. Of the five counterattacks in this group, this is the one I favor for actual use. Do not underestimate the life-saving value of simplicity.

  ATTACK #9

  The opponent grasps both of your wrists from behind.

  BASIC DEFENSE #9

  Unfortunately there is no simple wrist release to employ against an attacker who is holding your wrists from behind. You cannot simply twist against his thumbs because from behind your arms just don't twist in the right directions. This does not mean that you are helpless, however. It does mean that you will probably have to "resort to violence" to get free. If you are being assaulted this is not a problem, but against friends ...

  The two following counterattacks both begin with the same motion which you would do well to study.

  Rotate your body a half-turn to your left, so that your left shoulder is toward the enemy. This motion wraps your right arm around behind your back as you turn. You will find in practice that you can easily grab his wrists during the turn.

  Through this simple motion you have turned the tables on the opponent. Suddenly he realizes that the situation is no longer under his control. At this point you must be ready to break away if he releases you, or to counterattack if that is your decision. Personally, I recommend a sudden and violent counterattack in all situations where the opponent's intentions are evil rather than playful.

  9-1: Perform the basic defense as described above, then lean to your right and use left side-thrust kicks to stomp on the opponent's shins, knees, thighs and groin. The knee is the best target if the situation is really serious. Note that your pulling hold on his arms will magnify the impact of your kick by denying him the ability to give way before the blow. Also, your hold on the opponent will help stabilize your balance, making it easier to kick repetitively without getting your foot back down on the ground. (See Figure 16.)

  9-2: This one is a little harder but it works well once you get the knack. Start turning to the left as you twist your hands in his grip and tightly grasp his wrists. Continue to turn to your left, using your right hand to pull him forward behind your turning back. Plant your left leg outside of the opponent's right foot to trip him. Your continuing turn will pull him across your outstretched leg. He will fall heavily on his right shoulder, possibly breaking his collarbone.

  Figure 16: When an attacker grabs your wrists from behind it's hard to be clever about escaping. Usually a simple brute-force technique is the best bet here. Notice in these photos how the victim has turned the tables on the attacker by grasping the attacker's wrists before kicking.

  This technique is best performed as a sudden spinning throw and requires either perfect timing or relatively great strength. Use it for demonstrations, but think twice about trying it in earnest unless it feels very natural to you.

  9-3: Here's one for the more advanced students. This technique must begin with a stomp to the attacker's instep, to keep him from kicking too fast later on. Just glance down to find his right foot, lift your right knee to waist level, and then stamp down on the top of his foot about an inch in front of the shin. Think of it as if you were trying to stamp on a quart jar and break it. Now that you have his attention you can go on to the real counterattack.

  Step slightly backward so your back brushes the attacker's chest. Then drop down on your knees (or into a crouch), bending your elbows and bringing your fists up in front of your shoulders. This motion will tear your wrists out of his grip. Twist immediately to the left and put your left forearm against his left knee, just below the kneecap. If you did any damage with your instep attack his weight will be on this leg and there will be no danger of getting kicked in the teeth; but keep your arm against his knee anyway. Then jerk his left heel out from under him with your right hand. As he falls, keep your left arm ready to d
eflect a possible kick from his right foot. Retreat and rise. (See Figure 17.)

  Buried within the above technique is an extremely effective throw, the violence of which you will appreciate as soon as you try it in practice. The key is to hold his knee stationary while you jerk his heel forward. Most students mistakenly try to hold the foot in place while pushing on the knee, which doesn't work. I'll return to this throw in another technique where its utility will be even greater.

  9-4: Turn to your left, swinging your right arm high up over your head as you turn. The attacker's forearm will pass above your head at the midpoint of the turn and he'll lose his grip on your right wrist at almost the same moment. As you are turning, twist your left hand in his grip to grasp his wrist, and then pull his left arm out straight. Your twisting motion will naturally rotate his arm to put the back of his elbow on top. Strike downward with your right fist to dislocate his elbow, or you can just apply a straight arm bar as in technique 4-1.

  Figure 17: When someone you don't want to hospitalize grasps your wrists from behind, you can free yourself by stepping straight back and raising your hands to shoulder level. Then, if you wish, you can drop on one knee and yank the jerk's leg out from under him. Notice in the third photo that the defender is on guard against a possible kick as he drops into position for the throw.

  The neck and throat form a conduit which connects your brain to the rest of your body. Through this conduit pass the oxygen you must have to stay alive, the blood without which your brain will die within brief minutes, and the many incoming and outgoing nerve impulses which govern your entire existence. When someone grabs your throat he literally takes your life in his hands, and even if he is joking you may be only a fraction of a second from permanent-lethalinjury. There is no time to hesitate, no excuse for equivocation or delay. You must act decisively to free yourself and, if necessary, to render the attacker incapable of further violence.