Juijitsu

Juijitsu – Japanese jujutsu, or Nihon koryu jujutsu, dates back to the Muromachi period in Japan between 1333 and 1573. This old style of martial arts training was focused on teaching the unarmed or very lightly armed warrior to fight a heavily armed warrior. This eventually led to the teaching of a significant amount of grappling, throwing, restraining and weaponry skills to Samurai. JuiJitsu it describes all of the grappling-related disciplines in Japan that were used and taught by the Samurai. The name “jujutsu” means the “art of softness” or “way of yielding.” Jujutsu is characterized by using an attacker’s momentum against him by guiding it in a way that the applier would prefer (and not the attacker). Jujutsu methods include striking, throwing, restraining (pinning and strangling), joint locks, weaponry, and grappling. It is truly best known for its effectiveness against weapons, use of throws and its locks (armbars and wrist locks, for example).

Juijitsu is very effective for self-defense…the goal of jujutsu is simple. Practitioners hope to disable, disarm, opponents, depending on the situation.  Jujutsu is more about ending an attacker’s day in any way possible (which is why it is not a sport).  There are many schools of Juijitsu and several arts have come from traditional Juijitsu.  Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu: Helio Gracie of Brazil took the jujitsu/judo concepts he learned from Mitsuyo Maeda and founded an art with a heavy ground emphasis. The guard, or a way to fight off of one’s back, is a staple of the art. Also very well-known Judo: Jigoro Kano took jujutsu concepts and modified them to the extent that they could become a sport in Japan and worldwide. That sport was named judo.