Pressure tactics

Maxwell Jude Anthony teaches women easy defence techniques at his Shorinji Kempo classes. Vipasha Sinha reports

Maxwell Jude Anthony in action. Photo: G. Krishnaswamy

There is no need to kick and punch to escape assailants, all you need to do is to put little bit of pressure at the right spot. Maxwell Jude Anthony says this feature makes Shorinji Kempo one of the best self-defence arts for women.

“There is now a lot of talk about self-defence for women. They are being encouraged to learn physically demanding defence techniques. This approach may not be practical as assailants are well-prepared and attack after observing the victim. Often they work in pairs. Even if you hit them in the groin and put them down, they may return with more accomplices,” says Maxwell, who considers Shorinji Kempo effective in immobilisingthe attacker.

“All you have to do is apply pressure on certain points in the body and the recipient automatically reacts to it and loses the grip. For instance, there are around 180 points in the wrist, which can be worked upon to desensitise the attacker. It is a camouflage technique, where the attacker is caught off guard and before he comes to his senses, you have enough time to escape, ” he says.

Maxwell has been practising this art for 23 years. “Back in 1990, I saw a poster saying Shorinji Kempo, martial arts classes by Kirtie Kumar Futnani. Shorenji in Tamil means scratching, which piqued my curiosity and I went to the class. He invited me for a demonstration, where he was teaching kids. As past of the session, he asked me to grab his hand and the next thing I knew, I was flying mid-air to the other side of the room and the kids were clapping. I did know what had happened. The science of it got me intrigued and I practiced it regularly under my guru. I went on to be his successor and began practising as well as training,” says Maxwell, who also trains the visually impaired in foot reflexology.

Founded by Doshin So, Shorinji Kempo, translated as Fist Way of Shaolin Temple, was used as a healing technique in Japan post World War to help people in distress. It was used to cure people through acupuncture by activating various pressure points. Later it was developed into a self defence-technique, especially for women and children.

Maxwell organises Shorinji Kempo workshops on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 6 a.m. to 6.45 a.m. and 7 a.m. to 7.45 a.m. Venue: Russian Culture Centre, 27, Kasturi Ranga Road, Alwarpet, Kasthuri Ranga Rd, Parthasarathypuram, Teynampet.

For details, call 4352 9970, 90251 40051.