What do you consider as the best martial art in the world?, page 6

Originally posted by intrepid
Have any of you been in a situation that you've had to fight multiple opponents? Rules go out the window, if you want to win. Ie: take less of a beating than losing.

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You're not going to learn any of that in ANY martial art. Experience will teach you that though. Eye gouge? Throat shot(careful, that one can be fatal)? Pulling the hair at the back of the neck will make a person move. Nothing taught there in any dojo.

Hey intrepid, you're right, rules do go out of the window and 'anything goes', most fighting techniques of a traditional nature do not stress this enough. But theres one shining exception, the internal chinese arts or forms of kung-fu, although i don't know if im comfortable with calling Tai Chi and Bagua Zhang "kung fu", as most moves end with the opponent disabled and controlled, on the ground whilst the internal practitioner is in an advantageous standing position, or many other moves end up with the same situation, except the opponent is standing and yet, controlled.

For example, if you throw a punch at someone out of anger, and that person somehow is quick enough to move to the side, particularly with their head, and seemingly throw a punch at you at the same exact time. But they are not throwing a punch, their hand is open, in a claw or palm position, and they are actually locking arms with you around the elbow / wrist areas, possibly even the shoulder. Leverage is instantly applied and you are screaming like a b*&^%# for the guy not to break your wrist, elbow, finger, or shoulder.

Well, I guess some such techniques are in Kung Fu too, its just that, like Karate and Tae Kwon Do, it is becoming increasingly hard to find "the real deal" instructors that teach the no-holds-barred, deadly versions of those arts. But so much is lost in translation of cultures and over the generations. Also, the fighting edge is lost and things become more competitive than real.

You must find a teacher that emphasizes on realistic self-defense applications against your average street fighter, and also against some semi-exotic maneuvers from other 'styles'. 9 out of 10 are going to teach soft crap.

Heck, most Tai Chi instructors in the west dont even teach the self-defense! They've watered it down to an aerobic exercise only.. ah man, Yang Liu-Chan and Sun Lu-Tang are rolling over in their graves right now.