Koppojutsu translated as the art of “bone breaking” or attacks on the bones and skeleton, sounds very intimidating. As it should. Any set of techniques aimed at breaking bones is sure to be painful and likely crippling. The idea of permanent or long lasting bodily damage would certainly be a deterrent to any would be assailant or enemy. Some of us are familiar with images in martial art films depicting memorably broken arms and legs, with the enemy permanently and excruciatingly put out of commission.
These images are not actually very far from the true results of this “art”. Anyone who has had the experience of working in an emergency department or hospital with an orthopedic and trauma service can attest to the plethora of different types of fractures, their gruesome appearance, the pain experienced and the protracted recoveries often endured. Perhaps you have personally lived through a fracture, and know firsthand what it’s like. To have the ability to inflict that on another person seems enviable in self-defense and combat.
Like most other things in combative arts there is more to Koppojutsu than meets the eye. We will not be looking into the etymology of the name of this art, which is reviewed elsewhere.
Koppojutsu, isn’t usually a matter of knowing precisely where to strike someone and how hard, although that does matter to some extent. The real task of accomplishing Koppojutsu lies in the process that sets up the opponent to be subjected to a fracture. To a large extent Koppojutsu happens when the opponent in their technique (or lack of it) presents you with the opportunity to use it.
To recognize the opportunity for Koppojutsu you need the knowledge of osteological anatomy and you have to understand musculature along with the dynamic physiology of a human body in motion. That is a lot.
Certainly, many of us are familiar with moments that when your instructor or master performs them, will pause and inform you, to be careful when executing the technique because of the risk of breaking your training partners bones.
Typically, in martial pedagogy the instruction will not tease out such techniques as bone breaking techniques. Instead it becomes apparent that bones can be broken in a lot of ways and by many techniques that ostensibly weren’t taught as such.
Koppojutsu is better defined as a body of knowledge about how bones and joints break and thereby recognizing these opportunities when training, teaching or fighting. Koppojutsu is not just about breaking the long bones in the limbs, which, not surprisingly, are the toughest, it is about breaking and dislocating complex bony structures like the pelvis, the spine and the skull. It is therefore also about breaking and disrupting joints.
This means that many of the commonly used joint-locking techniques that abound in the martial arts are Koppojutsu techniques. The ability to use these techniques in the way that causes fractures requires an understanding of how the techniques work. It is also a question of whether and how force is used, the position of the opponent, and how the technique is applied.
Frequently, when fractures occur as a result of using martial arts, it is unexpected, unintended and accidental. This usually is because the person using the technique has insufficient ability and knowledge to prevent the injury from occurring. So the knowledge of Koppojutsu is not only to cause fractures, dislocations, avulsions and disability, it is also to prevent it and even to heal it. Martial arts have in common with medicine knowledge the dual characteristic, that used in one direction destroys life, while in another heals and protects life. This congruence is not accidental, it is inherent in the destructive and regenerative process for all living things. We as martial artists (and if we happen to be healthcare workers also) have to make choices about how to use our knowledge. The careless, reckless, unscrupulous or ignorant healer can hurt their vulnerable patients in the same way a martial artist can who does not recognize or understand the power hidden in their activities.
This raises the question as to whether the teacher of an art should systematically point out the risks associated with their techniques. Some might argue that if students follow the teachings correctly they should not injure their enemies or training partners, and that if it occurs it is better that it be accidental and unintentional. This conveys that the teacher did not intend for their students to cause harm.
Others might argue that the dangers of the techniques should be consistently pointed out, such that the student using the technique has the choice and discretion about how to use the techniques. Then they can use the art as they see fit, and not only that, but if their goal is to survive a potentially dangerous encounter, the teacher should give them all the tools they need to make that possible. It also assumes a higher level of maturity and selection of students. This second perspective is the one advocated in the Geijin Ryu. How the students behave is a reflection on the caliber of the teaching and the selection of the students themselves.
In order to understand how Koppojutsu works, a few underlying concepts have to be understood. It also is worth pointing out that in a brief article on this subject, there can only be a perfunctory and superficial level of discussion and that the body of knowledge of Koppojutsu could fill one to two volumes of text with needed copious illustrations. The principles of Koppojutsu have to do with understanding weaknesses in anatomical bony structures. These change with the body posture. In order to utilize these weaknesses, the structure has also to be made temporarily static. This is to eliminate the possibility of adaptation of the system to the stress needed to break it. Thus even while a human body is in motion, as long as it is touching the ground it has a fulcrum and a static point. That static point creates the leverage for the rest of the body to move. To take advantage of this knowledge, it has to be further understood where the static parts of the structure are as the leverage works its way through the body.
In order not to chase static and leveraging points in a moving body, which by process will always be too late. The martial artist will, by the use of applied leverage, create their own leverage and static posture in the enemy’s body. Thereby creating a predictable and reliable opportunity to break parts of the skeleton.
In most martial arts training, these concepts are not fully articulated. Instead the technique is shown, the set up (usually a joint lock) will be applied and it will then be explained that it can break thus and such a joint. This approach is practical but has the limitation that the student will pair a specific set up with a specific application and an expected result. Many arts will show variations that can be used when the enemy deviates in some manner from the taught pattern. Martial arts like many other things is to a large extent taught through a process of pattern recognition. This is part of the reason why patterns, forms or kata are popular in martial arts.
In Geijin Ryu the approach more heavily emphasizes and relies on applying knowledge of the body adaptably. Although pattern recognition is used in the very beginning, competence and later mastery of techniques can only occur through the deeper understanding of body systems. In many ways, this makes the art harder to learn and conceptually challenging. The advantage however, lies in being able to use the knowledge in many postures, situations, with or without weapons and in a non-scripted fashion which in real combat is the norm.
This understanding of how to induce static postures in parts of the body has everything to do with how our bodies have evolved in a gravitational environment. To some this may seem like stating the obvious. What is less obvious is what are those adaptations, and what are their implications regarding the strengths and weaknesses of the skeleton? The translation of gravitational force is the single most important force used in Koppojutsu and body weight is a natural stressor that can be manipulated through the center of gravity.
In water this changes, and the system characteristics are different. Although gravitation is still present, it is counter acted by buoyancy and this complicates things. It is still possible to use Koppojutsu, but the way to induce stress on the skeleton uses different methods. Learning this requires an understanding of the kind of force needed to break bones, and in which direction this can happen.
Finally, it should also be pointed out that an actively resisting enemy creates opportunities to apply Koppojutsu in ways that are not easily predicted in the dojo. It is not uncommon to hear of fractures induced by security personnel, law enforcement or civilians trying to restrain a resisting individual. It is in instances like these, where the knowledge of Koppojutsu can be used to avoid unnecessary injury.
The knowledge of Koppojutsu is a valuable and important part of martial arts. It is common to think that it has a high abuse potential. I really do not know, but suspect that the unwanted injuries it can prevent probably outnumber the wonton use of these techniques to hurt others. Koppojutsu takes a lot to learn in any detail. Most of those who would go to the length of acquiring this body of knowledge, are unlikely to be the same individuals to abuse it, when there are so many easier ways to harm people.
People interested in the greater culture of the martial arts will take this learning as a serious responsibility and will use it ethically.