Totally Tae Kwon Do Magazine - Issue 17 - Usadojo

Free sparring, if approached with Ki
training in mind, is also applicable for
developing sensitivity to Ki. When the
sparring session is focussed not on
kickboxing-like brawling, not on
overwhelming the opponent with a barrage
of attacks, but rather on fewer focussed
techniques, then we move to sparring more
geared to Ki sensitivity development. Of
course, this type of free sparring is actually
what we see with advanced level ITF
Taekwon-Do competitors—techniques are
focussed and deliberate; the game is as
much psychological as it is physical; the
competitors react to attacks in an intuitive
way, as if they anticipated the intend of
their opponents. One way to encourage
this type of sparring is to practise with light
contact, or alternatively to don protective
armour. This may help practitioners to be
more relaxed. Point sparring, instead of
continuous sparring, can also instil in
practitioners a sense of more reflexive
sparring, rather than brawling. A possible
argument against such training for Ki
sensitivity is that it does not reflect real life;
that fighting in real life is closer to the
kickboxing brawl than the nervous waiting
one sees in WTF sparring. That is probably
true. However, real life combat often
happens unexpectedly or many times
opponents in street fights would square off,
do some posturing and partake in mutual
name calling before one suddenly swings
the first punch. A person practised in
sensing the intentions of other people may
actually have an advantage in these
situations. Furthermore, someone adept at
projecting his or her own Ki can send a
clear message to any would be opponents
that you will not be an easy pushover,
showing them an inexplicable and
intimidating calm strength. Keep in mind
that for the ITF practitioner these varied
sparring exercises functions merely as a
training tool with a specific purpose in mind,
and should not replace conventional
sparring.
Developing sensitivity to Ki is certainly
useful; however, it is not the be all and end
44 - Totally Tae Kwon Do
all of a martial arts training regime. I once
had a discussion with an MMA instructor
who criticised traditional martial arts’ use of
training methods such as patterns and
prearranged sparring. His argument was
that training in these is useless because
they contribute little to real fighting. What
he failed to realise was that training in
patterns and prearranged sparring is not
intended to precisely mimic “real fights.”
Instead these exercises are abstractions of
the combative encounter, zoomed in on
very specific points and practising those
alone in order to hone specific skills. The
purpose of prearranged sparring is to
acquaint the practitioner with angles and
distances specifically, not to teach fighting
in general. This MMA instructor was blind
to see that in his own system he does
similar things, like jumping rope and
shadowboxing. Apart from the fitness, one
of the functions of jumping rope is that it
teaches footwork; it is not intended to
teach fighting, although it may improve
one’s fighting ability. Shadow boxing is
similar to pattern training. My encounter
with this MMA instructor did make one
point clear, that we should not confuse
these exercises with real fighting. The
same goes for Ki sensitivity training.
Training focussed on developing sensitivity
to Ki is useful, but ought not to be the only
focus in martial art training. On the other
hand, neglecting it may leave your martial
art experience less than it could be as it
may enhance both your defensive and
offensive capabilities.
Richard Strozzi Heckler is a doctor in
psychology and also an Aikido practitioner.
In his book The Anatomy of Change: East/
West Approaches to Body/Mind Therapy,
Heckler talks about, what he calls,
“contact”—what I have revered to as
“sensitivity to Ki.” Heckler affirms that by
“training the perceptive and intuitive
aspects of the body, we can ‘read’ or
sense [Ki]. This type of perception is like
that of the experienced sailor who can
‘read’ the conditions of the sea. There is
nothing particularly mystical or magical