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Despite the no nonsense reputation of Krav Maga, the system also has at its core basic tenets that help guide individuals throughout their daily living. The same way its country of origin has had to overcome severe limitations and weaknesses in order to survive, Krav Maga helps empower the individual with the requisite mental and emotional tools (in addition to the obvious technical and physical ones), that help one to properly navigate through life’s difficulties. As such, in Krav Maga students are taught to go beyond the physical and explore a side of their consciousness they are not used to confronting.
It is in this way that the system helps deal with the many challenges one can encounter in the day to day. Fundamental to this idea is the awareness of one’s limitations and strengths. It is the consciousness of those limitations that makes us humble as individuals, another major value inherent to the system, but it is the overcoming of those limitations that give confidence and an indomitable spirit when facing future obstacles. The constant emphasis on pushing forward no matter the odds reflects a can do attitude, and one of continuous improvement.
The training for Krav Maga places particular emphasis on a positive state of mind as an approach to everything. It is this philosophy that helps develop survivors on the battlefield, champions in the ring, and winners in life. In order to be a winner, you have to think like a winner.
You have to have a positive outlook, and never, ever give up. And, irrespective of the outcome of life’s challenges, it is from this constant struggle of facing obstacles that character and confidence is developed. Not a shell that exists to impress others, but true inner strength that comes from a well defined and well developed sense of self.
One way of exercising this inner strength is by participating in a daily workout (physical or mental) that challenges the individual psyche. One should strive to partake in as rigorous a mental or physical training regime that one can, and in so doing continually develop character at any age in life. As such, the abuse of any substances is to be avoided, and the enjoying of life’s pleasures done so in moderation.
This approach to life is very much a balanced path, one that is easy to veer from and one that takes time to completely internalize and master, but consistent and diligent training in facilitates the development of the required skills on this journey to self-mastery. The formalities of traditional defense systems were abandoned, in favor of methodologies that valued rapid and instinctive learning. These philosophies helped Israel and its citizens to survive in the face of constant aggression and to form one of the most respected armies in the world. The Philosophy of Krav Maga can be broken down into three main dimensions. Pragmatic: Dynamic: Combat in the streets is totally unpredictable. There are no rules. There is no referee who will stop the fight, or throw in the towel. There is no honor code. Treacherous behavior abounds. The attacker might pull a gun, or a knife, or have friends lurking not too far away (a gang), it may be two or more than two on one. Such people are capable of stooping to any sub-human extent. The Krav Maga Solution: Engage and rapidly disengage. Engage the enemy only if there is no other choice, but if you must then finish him off immediately. Then, rapidly disengage before his friends come to his rescue. The goal is simple. Survival. This is the reality of the street, not of the dojo.
HISTORY OF ISRAELI FIGHTING SYSTEMS:
The history of Israeli Fighting systems dates back to 1919, with the implementation of the British Mandate. In this same year the Jewish people formed an underground army known as the Haganah (the Hebrew word for defense) to deal with the ongoing conflict with various terrorist gangs, and in anticipation of the creation of a Jewish state promised to them by the British in the Balfour Declaration. Throughout its existence since that time, the little region in the Middle East now known as Israel has had to fight daily in order to survive.
Completely surrounded by its enemies at all times, it has always been totally outnumbered in its battles. In response to these overwhelming odds, the Israelis developed systems of combat that had at their core a particular emphasis on mental toughness, versatility, innovation and practicality.
1. Ethical
2. Pragmatic
3. Dynamic
Ethical:
In Krav Maga, the intention in any conflict situation is to find a honorable path towards a peaceful resolution. Krav Maga abhors fighting. Violence is the absolute last resort.
Krav Maga always gives the aggressor a chance to save face, an honorable solution as a way out without ever compromising its own sense of self esteem. The body says, “I don’t want to fight”. The eyes say, “watch out”.
Many times, a fight is all about somebody’s ego, either ours or theirs. Krav Maga knows that fighting is mostly avoidable and as such its practitioners do best to deescalate any situation that could turn violent. Every practitioner of Krav Maga seeks to dissolve his own individual ego through intense training and introspection.
Precisely because many Krav Maga technique are potentially lethal, Krav Maga insists that its practitioners respect every other human being, regardless of race, religion or gender.
Therefore, the fundamental Krav Maga principle is this: No first use of force.
The second principle of Krav Maga is this: While negotiating for peace, prepare for war.
Krav Maga evolved in the hostile environment of the Middle East. So, Krav Maga intrinsically is a mature and pragmatic body of knowledge. Though every Krav Maga practitioner does his best to deescalate the conflict, Krav Maga is not oblivious to the fact that there are many unintelligent people out there who might mistake a desire for peace as weakness.
So, even as Krav Maga tries to negotiate a honorable peace with the aggressor, the Krav Maga practitioner instantly begins to prepare for combat. The Krav Maga starting stance for instance conceals far more than it reveals. If there is going to be any kind of fighting, the opponent will know nothing about what the Krav Maga practitioner knows. This allows the student to launch the most devastating counter attacks from what looks like an innocuous position.
Practitioners are taught to loudly announcing their intentions of not wanting to fight. This further ensures that should the law enforcement authorities intervene, they will have witnesses to show that the practitioner did not want to fight and that whatever happened subsequently was the result of the aggression of the aggressor. Fighting in self defense is legally OK in most countries. Aggression and the use of excessive force is not.
Static systems that claim to know all the answers are obviously highly suspect. All bodies of knowledge must keep evolving to keep pace with new inputs or else they become outdated. Krav Maga is no different. Krav Maga knows that criminals and terrorists continuously keep changing their tactics. Therefore, Krav Maga keeps evolving to keep pace with the new tactics and weapons of the enemy. It is totally dynamic.
Because Krav Maga is actively taught to the military, Krav Maga keeps evolving spurred by the demands of one of the fiercest fighting environments in the world; the Middle East.
The third Krav Maga principle is this: In the street there are no rules. Train real.
