Introduction to Jiu Jitsu

When people hear the words Jiu Jitsu they automatically think of Bruce Lee. But in actually the art of Jiu Jitsu is a Japanese form of martial arts that is made up of grappling along with striking moves. The art of Jiu Jitsu dates back to before 750 AD and reached its peak in the early 1600’s when Japan was united.

Many people may wonder as to why Jiu Jitsu became so popular, well the reason for this was because in those days people were no longer allowed to carry weapons. With this ban on carrying a weapon this meant that the only method of defense was to use hand to hand combat. In the years that followed the police and even the army was taught this method of defense.

Jiu Jitsu is sometimes spelled jujitsu; however no matter how it is spelled in the English language it means the art of gentleness. This is only achieved by executing the proper timing and leverage, in doing so you are able to grab a hold of your opponent and execute a few blows that will render the opponent a non threat to you.

In addition to learning self defense you will also learn other values such as patience, surrender along with yielding. All of this training will change you as a person allowing you to become more calm and focused.

Some schools that offer Jiu Jitsu will teach you fighting techniques using a variety of weapons while others will teach you techniques for healing such as giving another person a massage. Others tend to put a heavy emphasis on the study of philosophical or spiritual concepts.
With the birth of Jiu Jitsu came the advent of other martial arts, the first of these was judo, which many people have compared to freestyle wrestling. Judo tends to focus more on the self defense techniques which will enable a person to throw his opponent off balance allowing them to strike their opponent.

Another form is Aikido which focuses on hand techniques to redirect the opponents force. Once this has been accomplished you will be able to apply various painful hold techniques until they surrender. If your opponent refuses to submit then their elbow joint will be dislocated or they will be rendered unconscious.

Unlike Karate or tae kwon do Jiu Jitsu is not a sport, therefore there are no competitions. However the Brazilian form which was formed using a form of judo does have competitions. The IBJJF or International Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Federation is the major governing body for Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. They host some of the biggest tournaments in the world including the Pan American along with the European Championships.

Although the art of Jiu Jitsu is old itself the techniques are visible in other forms of martial arts. One of the best examples of this is the Ultimate Fighting Championship which has seen a rise in its popularity since the early 1990’s Royce Gracie used Brazilian Jiu Jitsu to win the first four championships of this tournament.

Jiu Jitsu is an art that anybody can learn, for this reason it is taught in so many self defense classes, so that anyone who is under threat can defend themselves.