Kenpo Taiji Nerve Strikes
By Athos Antoniades
Nerve Strikes are a powerful technique for improving the effectiveness of Kenpo Taiji attacks
Disclaimer:
Strikes taught on this website are extremely dangerous and should not be experimented with as they could result in serious injury or death. These strikes should only be used if your life or the life of your loved ones is at risk. They should never be used to hurt or intimidate another person. All those involved in the production of this site assume no responsibility for any injury or damage resulting from the execution of the strikes taught. The techniques in the Kenpo Taiji syllabus should not be seen as an end in themselves which is how they are taught by most instructors, but as training methods.
Set-up points (refer to diagrams/pictures)
A strike to st.9 may be made even more potent and the results even more devastating by striking points on the inner wrist before the main strike. These are set-up points.
The acupuncture points of the wrist: knowledge of these points can be devastating, if struck in the correct way.
Energy (chi) flows in an upward direction on the inside of the arm and downwards on the outside of the arm. Hitting either lung 8 in conjunction with heart 5 or 6 or pericardium 6 (ref. Diagram/picture) in a downward direction inside the wrist, against the energy flow, makes a strike to stomach 9 far more devastating. Using these points causes chi(ki) drainage and are set up points for most neck and face strikes. H5 and lu.8 are almost across from each other on the wrist approximately one inch from the wrist line. Pc.6 is on the inside of the forearm, 2 inches above the middle of the wrist crease. (see diagram/picture). By simply striking in a downward direction, with either a palm heel or hand-sword strike, it would be difficult to miss at least one of these points.
Depending on the type of attack, set up points may be struck in a variety of ways. Hitting lu.8 in conjunction with h5 or pc.6 in a downward direction inside the wrist, against the energy flow causes energy drainage, making a strike to st.9 even more devastating.
Nerve strike on pericardium 6.
Nerve strike on heart 5.
Nerve strike on lung 8.
Lung 8 and heart 5 are situated approximately 1 inch from the wrist line. Striking these points in downward a direction or squeezing and pulling causes energy drainage.
Antidote: gently massage lu6 and h6 towards you.
Pericardium 6 is situated approximately 2 inches from the wrist line. Energy drainage when struck.
antidote: if struck straight in press in on point. If struck in a downward direction, knock the opposite side of arm in the same spot (tw5&6) in a downward direction.
This is an extremely easy way of causing a knockout by striking certain nerves. There are certain nerves in the body and face which when struck or pushed (even lightly) in a certain way, will affect the whole nervous system and not just the nerve which is attacked. This phenomenon is known as "neurological shutdown". Such a strike results in k.o.
Nerve strike 1
A slap along the jawbone will cause k.o.
A sharp whipping slap to the nerve known as the 'auricularis magnus' will cause the person to go into knockout.
This nerve can be easily accessed by placing the longest finger under the jaw, the tip of the finger just under the ear lobe. A slap with the whole hand across the whole jaw area will cause k.o. The direction of the strike is straight in toward the neck, slamming our palm into the side of his jaw.
The strike can be made more effective by first striking pc.6 with the outer wrist causing energy drainage
Just before the strike, the striking hand should be relaxed and cupped (said to be a yin shaped hand with potential yang energy). As it strikes into the jaw it releases this energy into the nerve point.
An ideal 'set-up' point making this strike even more effective is a strike to pericardium 6 (neiguan), which is situated about 2 inches from the wrist line.
Nerve strike 2
The nerve to be struck in this case in the 'accessory nerve' which is situated very close to the base of the skull, about 1 inch up from the big bone which protrudes at the top of the spine, as we bow our heads forward.
A kick to the groin will cause the attacker to fold/lean over, thus making the accessory nerve very easy to get to for the strike to be executed as prescribed in the text.
A whipping type palm strike to this point, even from a very short distance, can cause major confusion in the brain and the whole nervous system to shut down resulting from the uncertainty of what may happen!
The location of the accessory nerve causes it to be connected to the vagus nerve. Therefore, a strike to this point may also cause heart stoppage, thus making such a strike likely to be fatal.
Therefore a strike to this point should only be executed only if absolutely necessary, if your life or the life of your loved ones is at risk.
Nerve strike 3
Grabbing and jerking the wrist at h5 and lu8 before attacking the vagus nerve as prescribed in the text, would cause energy drainage making the strike and resultant k.o. More effective.
the effect would be the same if h5 and lu8 were struck in a downward direction against the natural energy flow-again causing energy drainage.
The nerve in question in this case is the vagus nerve. The vagus nerve runs between the dim-mak points triple warmer 17 (tw17), which is situated just below the little hollow behind the lower part of the ear and stomach 11 (st.11) located just above the notch at the end of the collarbone which is closest to the neck.
A light push or strike in towards the backbone would normally be sufficient to cause knockout, by causing the whole nervous system to shut down.
By first activating the set up points heart 5 (h5) and lung 8 (lu.8) on the inner wrist, approximately one inch from the wrist line, the strike will be made even more effective with an even lighter strike or push.
Nerve strike 4
As per the text, the finger knuckles strike point one in the picture and the palm knuckles point 2.
This strike is a combination of the 'extra' dim-mak' point called Yuyiao located at the centre of the eyebrow and a facial nerve which runs under the check bone just below the eye.
A slap with the back of our palm into the eye area will connect simultaneously with both these points causing a complete shutdown of the whole nervous system and thus, k.o.
The palm strike should be such that the palm knuckles strike the facial nerve and the finger knuckles strike the dim-mak point located at the centre of the eyebrow.
As with the other 3 strikes the knockout will occur, whether or not we use a set up strike, but the attack will be more effective if we intercept our attackers strike to pc.6 as shown above. This will weaken him by causing energy drainage.
Once again we can use the pc.6 point (neiguan) as a set-up point. As our attacker throws a haymaker (roundhouse) punch, we can intercept it by striking the inner wrist in a downward direction, thus causing energy drainage, and re-bound with a back of palm strike to the main point causing knockout.