Martial Arts and Magic

[Tgace]

No offense please...but that seems to be the excuse for belief in all kinds of whacky things. There seems to be an odd split in beliefs. When peole have severe trauma or a serious illness, they go to a doctor and through modern medical science have a better chance of survival than at any prior point in human history. On the other hand when it comes to defending their beliefs in Chi, meridians, accupuncture, reflexology etc. suddenly science doesnt know everything and there are these mysterous unexplainable methods that nobody can figure out.

 

[The Kai]

Oddly enough when people had to rely on folkloric medicine as thier only means of curing diseases or injuries the life span was what 40 years-50 tops?


Now with the advent of modern medicine the life span has been tripled

 

[hardheadjarhead]

Just because we don't understand how meridians , vessels and pressure points work doesn't mean they don't. I believe it's just science we haven't gotten to yet. We don't understand how aspirin works, yet it does.

We know quite a bit about how aspirin works:

health.howstuffworks.com/aspirin.htm

www.bayeraspirin.com/what/how_aspirin_works.htm

www.uchospitals.edu/news/ 1995/19950801-how-aspirin-works.php

www.justmove.org/fitnessnews/


That's just a bit of what I found.

As for meridians, they follow (as do muscles) the general pathways of the nerves and vessels. How some of the pressure point shots work is quite evident.

For example, take the (ever-so-much-whacked-upon) carotid artery shot to the side of the neck. Barorecptors in the artery register a blood pressure spike, initiating a feedback loop that lowers blood pressure and causes fainting. The same thing occurs with a hadaka jime or cross lapel choke.

With the "no touch knockout" the person executing the technique propels his "ki" ten or more feet across the room, entering into the body of the credulous victim (or willing accomplice) causing them to fall to the ground.

One must be careful with this. I know a man who knows a man who has a sister that studied with a guy whose neighbor did it and used too much "ki," causing his partner to explode.



Regards,


Steve

 

[Makalakumu]

As for meridians, they follow (as do muscles) the general pathways of the nerves and vessels. How some of the pressure point shots work is quite evident.

For example, take the (ever-so-much-whacked-upon) carotid artery shot to the side of the neck. Barorecptors in the artery register a blood pressure spike, initiating a feedback loop that lowers blood pressure and causes fainting. The same thing occurs with a hadaka jime or cross lapel choke.

Thanks, Steve. This is all I'm really trying to say. Meridian points are a good way to reference the body and when one is studying an eastern martial art, many times the body is referenced in this way. Thus, the knowledge is usefull.

BTW - I have yet to come across a real effect from my training that cannot be explained by modern science.

 

[Tgace]

http://www.healthphone.com/consump_english/a_understanding_chineseourself/about_acupressure/about_acupressure.htm

According to the tenets of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), chi is carried through our bodies along 14 channels, called meridians. The 14 meridians do not correspond to any visible anatomical structures in the body, such as nerves or blood vessels. But in Chinese medicine they are thought to embody a physical reality -- that of chi flowing through our bodies, providing nourishment and strength.

http://biochemistry.louisville.edu/education/eastern05.pdf

Meridians do not correspond to any anatomical or physiological entities

http://www.liversociety.org/html/acupuncture_.html

Western scientists have found meridians hard to identify because meridians do not directly correspond to nerve or blood circulation pathways. Some researchers believe that meridians are located throughout the body's connective tissue; others do not believe that qi exists at all. Such differences of opinion have made acupuncture an area of scientific controversy.