AMERICAN KENPO - INTERNALISED (Part 2) by Athos Antoniades
(Irish Fighter 2000)

A Book written by Ed Parker in the early 1960s briefly touched on the subject of 'Dim Mak', or pressure point striking. However, in the early days Dim Mak, sometimes referred to as 'Death Point' striking was frowned upon, and, in my opinion, Mr Parker was not encouraged to incorporate this aspect of the martial arts into his system to the degree to which he would have wanted to.

However, articles written by his peers and instructors and students in recent years often refer to the secrets of American Kenpo - which, to me, is basically Dim Mak. In my efforts to internalise American Kenpo, I have, not only incorporated Dim Mak into the way I teach the art, but have made it sigificant part of American Kenpo. In studying the internal arts I have studied Dim Mak in some depth.

Dim Mak is based on the disruption of the energy - 'chi' or 'ki' - which constantly flows through the body's meridians. The energy is our life force; the electricity within us which gives us life. We each have 12 meridians, which are related to our main organs, and eight extra meridians branching off the main 12. By striking certain points situated along these meridians, and in a certain direction, the chi or energy will be disrupted causing serious injury or death. Striking a point on a meridian, which a directly related to one of the organs, will als have an adverse effect on that organ. A strike to any of these points will, at the every least, cause a knockout. The direction in which these points are struck will also determine how the victim is affected.

Apart from the points along the meridians, there are also other extra points not situated along any of the meridians. An example of this is the 'mind' point situated on the far part of the cheek. Struck in a certain direction this wil cause knockout or death.

Obviously, such knowledge is very dangerous in the wrong hands and although I will hint at teh various strikes to my students, I will not reach the technique in detail to any of them, until they have reached at leat the rank of 1st kyu brown belt. I feel by this stage students will be aware of their character. I also teach antidotes to the various Dim Mak strikes. However, some of the strikes have no antidote and the only chance of revival may be to CPR.

A subconscious reaction
Something which I stress in my Kenpo classes, is the fact that fightig is a subconscious reaction. You cannot rely on the conscious thinking part of the brain to see you through a fight as it is too logical and fighting is not a logical process. We therefore train in methods to occupy our conscious mind so that the subconscious can take over.

This is known as the 'no mind' state of mind, or the state of 'doing without doing'. The years of training in our basics teach us mind and body co-ordination. We instinctively become spontaneous masters of adaptability with all our action being both defensive and offensive. The years of solo and two-person training in our techniques, forms, sets and sparring give us the ability to act calmly and spontaneously in a flash when the situation warants it. We will instinctively strike vital targets and Dim Mak points without thinking about it.

At a more advanced level, and certainly not before students have reached brown belt level, I will acquaint them with the 'reptilian brain' which can be thought of as the ultimate 'no mind' state. I have taught about the reptilian brain in the Chinese internal art of Tai Chi Chuan training and have incorporated it into my Kenpo with great success. Kenpo's rapid succession of strikes makes it very adaptable to the reptilian brain.

Humans have three brains inside their heads. The reptilian brain was the first that anything ever had. Reptiles, such as snakes and crocodiles, still only have this brain. Then there is the mammalian brain, which all animals have, and then we, as humans, also have the neo-mammalian or human brain. Humans have all three brains.

The reptilian brain is the survival brain. However, the modern way of life has really made this part of our brain - which modern science has identified as the brain stem - virtually redundant. In order to attain the highest level of martial arts, we must make use of this brain, as it is by nature our survival brain.

By training in both the external and internal arts, we will quite naturally go into this brain in an altercation. By internalising American Kenpo, students will learn to take advantage of this part of their brain. There are certain ways in which we can bring the reptilian brain into action, but this will only be taught to senior students, as it may cause problems if the student has not had an adequate training. Once the reptile brain has come into play, you are in a different world; everything around you seems to move in slow motion.

'No Mind'
When in the 'no mind' state of mind, we use peripheral as opposed to focus vision. Instead of focusing on our attacker's individual weapon - which wll make us oblivious to what the other part of his body are doing - we look at the attacker as a complete unit, making us aware of what every part of his body is doing. However, when in the reptilian state of mind, we take peripheral vision a stage further. When in the reptilian brain mode, we use 'eagle vision' whereby our mind and vision are literally 'locked' on the space which is occupied by our opponent, as if the energies are linked - as he moves, his space moves, causing us to move accordingly. An eagle can zoom down from a great height and grap a small mouse, which is constantly moving. This is a perfect example of 'eagle vision'.

In my efforts to internalise American Kenpo I have introduced the old Yang style Tai Chi form as part of the curriculum for 1st dan black belt. The old Yang style form, as taught by Master Erle Montaigue, is the original stye which included all the fa-jing (explosive energy) and Dim Mak strikes, and not the watered down versions which are more widely taught today.

The original form is more of a martial form that the later versions. I teach level three of the form at 1st dan; fourth level at 2nd dan, and fifth level at 3rd dan. I stressthat this is taught in addition to the existing curriculum and nothing is taken from the American Kenpy system, The Tai Chi Chuan form, and related exercises, such as pushing hands, will also be taught.