Different fighting principles exist in different regions of the world. Examination of fighting manuals from the Eastern and Western world have revealed what can be considered “universal” fighting principles, which are consistent between two very distinct cultures. The fighting manuals are The Book of Five rings by Miyamoto Mushashi (representing the Eastern culture) and Great Representation of the Art and Practice of Fencing by Ridolfo Capoferro (representing the Western culture). Four fighting principles which are being defined as “universal” will be presented. The four “Universal” Strategies/Principles are Direct Attack, Indirect Attack, Broken Rhythm Attack and Counterattack/Counter timing. The paper will not discuss specific techniques such as sword position or how to strike, but rather strategies and principles that can be applied to any system or style of fighting to gain an advantage. Explanations of each strategy will be presented along with excerpts from both manuals discussing each principle.
Full paper available here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1wc_BCpioGZJ96SFnR-IfTPOmafmhCyMp/view?usp=sharing
This was such an interesting concept, thank you for sharing!
Interesting. It’s nice to see actual analysis around what many of us have just learned via experience and have completely internalized. This format creates the ability to teach it. I also enjoyed the references to the same concept from disparate schools of fighting.
This is a great paper. Did I miss where the video clips are linked? Thank you.
I like what you did, it’s well-known that cross-training helps strengthen, and martial artists who know several different fighting styles are often more skilled. Breaking down the movements into “families” is very helpful all around. Thank you for sharing!
One of our Society’s greatest gifts is the ability to hear someone comparing disparate cultures and periods. Thank you for this work!
This is a fascinating use of the primary sources, and opens up enormous areas for further study. Very thoughtfully conceived.
This was very interesting and got me thinking about fighting (something I don’t usually do). Thank you for sparking curiosity and your analysis.
This is a really cool analysis of fighting strategies and very interesting to read.
I love the idea of comparing Eastern and Western methodologies on similar topics – well done!
Thanks for sharing, Deth! Would love the links to the videos cited if you have them handy. 🙂
I love seeing martial A&S research, and the research on these two differing masters/styles is really intriguing. Very cool project and well-organized documentation…thank you for sharing!