The Bubishi
Tracking the Legacy of the Bubishi
Before the widespread use of industrial technology applied to information—which started with the printing press, continues with modern digital channels, and allowed to quickly create identical copies of data packages (be it books, films, or files)—the biggest challenge related to the conservation of knowledge was how to avoid distorting the very same data that was being transferred. Human beings are keyed to applying mnemonic shortcuts to everything they see or hear in order to store it more easily. Over time, the accumulation of these necessary changes passed from individual to individual, creates a distortion that only deepens the more complex the data become.
Martial arts knowledge and lore are not exempt from these hurdles. In fact, their transmission has two added aspects that make them more difficult to secure their integrity.
- On the one hand, teaching martial arts before the development of video images meant it was necessary to explain dynamic movement using nondynamic media. As a result, even the most detailed written description or pictographic image had a high probability of missing crucial aspects of the technique.
- On the other hand, the sectarianism of the different schools of martial arts and the desire to keep a certain set of fighting movements secret meant that information needed to be encrypted in a manner that only members of the group could decipher it and eventually became the reason why so many techniques got such poetic names as “Snow gives way” or “Immortal leaves the cave.”
Martial arts manuscripts were the solution adopted by the masters to preserve and transmit secret knowledge outside of their reduced group of direct disciples, and “Bubishi” is the name given to, arguably, the most famous of these manuscripts.
The Bubishi is an undated, anonymous document that compiles tactical and philosophical applications of fighting techniques derived from the Chinese martial tradition. It is actually not a single book but a set of different versions of a manual created by several fighting schools in the Okinawan archipelago.
There is consensus that the Bubishi as we know it today is the result of multiple authors, and its disjointed nature shows the hands of generations of contributors who sought to add and enhance the contents of the manuscript. The name itself is unassuming: the Japanese interpretation of the Chinese-written characters is simply “Martial Manual.” The most prevalent theory about its origins is that Chinese exiles from the southern Fujian province arrived in the Okinawan archipelago and spread the practice of their native fighting styles, like White Crane, Monk Fist, and so on. The Bubishi was the outcome of different masters putting onto paper notes about their fighting lore. Senior students of each master would, in turn, copy the manuscript before setting out on their own. Over time, each new version would differ slightly from the source in order to match the particular preferences of the individual, and it is estimated that, at one point, over 20 different versions of the Bubishi existed in Okinawa.
The content is divided in sections and includes, among others, the following:
- Philosophy principles and social etiquette.
- Chinese medicine and herbal pharmacology.
- A summary of vital points (also called pressure points) in the human body.
- An explanation of fighting techniques.
The importance of the text lies in the view it provides of the historical development of martial arts. Okinawa has had a long fighting tradition and eventually became the cradle of karate, but before Gichin Fukakoshi, developer of the modern system of karate, wrote the first treatises in the 1920s, there were virtually no documents about the subject besides the surviving versions of the Bubishi. Funakoshi himself relied on the text and, acknowledging its value, included passages from it in his works.
Transmission of Knowledge in Martial Arts
When reading the Bubishi at some depth, there is one particular thing that stands out: over and over, the information that the authors present is conveyed as a set of principles of arcane knowledge, something that is both secret and mysterious. But what they often speak of seems fairly obvious to the modern reader: using movement to prevent attacks; targeting weak areas like the neck, eyes, or groin; or bending the joints to submit the opponent are all notions that appear self-evident. Even people who had never taken up martial arts or fighting training are aware of these, since many biomechanical principles are shared with other forms of physical activity and sports. Why the need, then, to collect them in a secret manuscript?
Modern citizens living in the age of communication are constantly exposed to information: movies, documentaries, and news stories are channels where the principles of fighting appear regularly, and even those not interested in the topic will have some understanding of how a punch is thrown or evaded. But that is a recent phenomenon, and, for centuries, the average person in the pre-industrial Far East was oblivious to concepts like biomechanics and the laws of physics applied to the human body. Related ideas like kinetics, kinematics, as well as the study of inertia, torque, and motion were not only unknown but so removed from their day-to-day experience as to be incogitable.
Furthermore, the basis of scientific thinking as the self-correcting and analytical process we are accustomed to now was not present at large during the time covered by the Bubishi, so the systematic and rational view it takes about the art of fighting in its pages was far above the consideration that any normal farmer or manual worker of its time may have had.
The masters of the Bubishi not only spent years studying and systematizing their first-hand experience about what worked and what did not when engaging in physical conflict but also had to solve the puzzle of how to transfer that information in a manner that was confidential and reliable.
Eventually, three paths of transmission appeared:
- Direct contact. These were lessons in which teachers would host selected students (such as family members or properly introduced acquaintances) at their own homes. The teacher would impart lessons in exchange for remuneration or services, although martial arts practice was generally not considered a hobby or a sport but a serious, dedicated endeavor.
- Forms or kata. These were prearranged sets of movement that represent a fight. Teachers would create the form so their disciples could learn and further transmit how to move during a confrontation and where and how they needed to use the different techniques. Forms were arranged in such an order that made them progressively more complex so that students could build on their own foundation of expertise. These forms acted as mnemonic systems, and teachers emphasized the need for accuracy when performing the moves to avoid deviation from the original movement map. An untended result of the creation of forms was that during the process that transformed karate from a free, intuitive, and rather loose set of fighting styles to a strict hierarchical institution, there was a shift that focused on maintaining the corpus of knowledge rather than achieving true fighting prowess. This process, in turn, remodeled the forms or kata from being a tool to learn how to fight into an end in itself, where the actual performance of the kata was the desired result regardless of any practical application.
- Written texts and manuscripts. These were written documents used to compile fighting knowledge. In the Bubishi, the final section, called Article 29, collects 48 images representing multiple fighting scenarios; one person attacks with a particular technique and another applies the appropriated response. The 48 self-defense diagrams are a treasure of knowledge not only for the detail they show about each particular technique but also for the strategic insights they impart.
Point 1 has limited application for the world of business, but from Points 2 and 3, several lessons can be observed.
Business Learnings from the Bubishi’s Kata
One of the most defining characteristics of the Okinawan martial arts that would eventually become karate is the practice of solo drills called kata, where the karateka moves around punching, kicking, blocking, and parrying in a precise sequence.
Kata is mentioned continuously across the text as the basic training method and practice tool, one that provides multiple benefits, including the somewhat metaphysical concept of opening the breathing and energy passages of the human body, which are often clogged due to both “vice and inactivity.”1 From this perspective, kata is both a therapeutic and a moral practice, which involves a set of physical and mental aspects:
- Physical aspects.
- Breathing: This is a way to eliminate distractions. Technically, correct breathing comes from keeping the spine parallel to the stomach in a two-tempo pattern: when inhaling, the body becomes light; when exhaling, it becomes rooted.
- Balance: In the Bubishi, balance is “an external reflection of what is within and a prerequisite for combative proficiency.” It relates to correct body posture and proper alignment from head to toe in order for hands and foot techniques to be delivered properly. A weakness in balance is an opening that a competent opponent can exploit.
- Movement: The principles of movement involve the combination of strength/firmness with mobility/pliability. The text gives some precise advice: “foot movement, both in a forward and backward direction[,] should correspond to the crescent shape of a quarter moon, with the knees slightly bent, moving quietly.”
All three aspects are dependent of and related to each other; breathing has to be harmonized with movement even when walking, so that in the event of being suddenly attacked, balance is not lost.
- Mental aspects.
- Introspection: Fang Qiniang, the mythical founder of one of the Chinese martial styles that appear in the Bubishi, White crane boxing, admonished the placing of too much emphasis on physical strength and noted that true power comes from within, as a result of both wisdom and a philosophical understanding of the fighting principles.
- Discipline: Discipline in martial arts practice translates into discipline when engaging an opponent. As a result, the Bubishi details, the mind will be calm but alert, the eyes will look for what is not easily seen, and the body will have a confident posture and facial expression.
- Patience. Karate training sought to imprint character in its practitioners by demanding full dedication and patience: “Study diligently two or three hours every day. After four years of unremitting effort one’s body will undergo a great transformation, revealing the very essence of karate.”
The three mental benefits of kata practice are also interrelated: introspection leads to self-understanding, which increases discipline. A disciplined mind controls itself and breeds patience.
It is easy to dismiss the physical and mental aspects of kata described in the Bubishi as either self-evident or impractically esoteric, but that would mean missing what its authors were trying to convey. In business, just as in martial arts or any other serious occupation, internal attitude and external action have to be harmonized. A successful mindset needs to translate into actions that are oriented toward success. A disciplined workflow can be put into practice only by a disciplined mentality.
In fact, this duality permeates every aspect of corporate behavior, even today. The strategic PDSA (plan-do-see-act) action flow is a planning and testing method commonly used in companies to develop new processes and to improve existing ones.
- Plan: Create a theoretical blueprint.
- Do: Apply the strategic plan into specific actions with limited scope.
- See: Evaluate the result of the test.
- Act: Roll out the new strategy based in the learnings of the previous three steps.
It is, at its core, the modern enterprise equivalent of the pairings of mental and physical actions described in kata.
Business Learnings from the Bubishi’s 48 Diagrams
for Self-Defense
Among the most studied parts of the Bubishi are the 48 self-defense diagrams. The section, located near the end of the book, is given less space than the medicine chapters or the pressure point explanation, but these are the pages that, arguably, have given the Bubishi the cult-like status it has today.
The 48 diagrams for self-defense do not showcase complex martial arts techniques or flowery moves; the attacks are simple, direct, and often ruthless. But, above all, they are highly strategic, driving home the need for scientific thinking applied to physical confrontation and the understanding of body mechanics, distance, and timing.
Although they contain a wealth of fighting knowledge, the accuracy of the images and the actions performed by the figures has been diminished by the multiple reinterpretations of the text, while the names given to the techniques are purposefully obscure and ambiguous. Author and martial arts historian Patrick McCarthy has worked for decades in refining the understanding that can be gleamed from the original Bubishi2 and has added explanations that go a long way in clarifying the moves of each illustration.
The strategic insights derived from the diagrams go beyond fighting and can easily be applied to business. From this perspective, the techniques can be grouped into several categories:
Level Change
Level changing is an advance fighting fundamental. Once basic competence has been developed, the fighter discovers that variations in the height of an attack can create opportunities. If the opponent strikes high to the head, he will be vulnerable to a low attack and the fighter can respond by targeting the legs. And vice versa, if the opponent strikes low, he will be open to a high attack to torso or head. Level changing helps reduce predictability, and its aim is to reach areas that are left unprotected.
The business application seems obvious: rather than meeting force with force, be it in a negotiation setting or in other work situations, it is better to cover oneself up and then react by taking an action that uses a window of opportunity. This often requires a degree of creative thinking or an out-of-the-box approach in order to catch the opponent off balance. Planning capabilities are less relevant than reaction time and the ability to accurately read the movements of the adversary.
Informal styles, like the promoter or the supporter, will find this type of approach easier to apply due to their flexible nature and adaptability. Formal styles, like the controller or the analyst, on the other hand, may discover that it is harder to step out of the established processes they favor to apply the on-the-spot corrections that effective level-changing requires.
Diagram Number 3
When the fighter on the right tries to grab with both hands, the fighter on the left drops to the ground and applies a leg scissor technique.
Diagram Number 10
When the fighter on the left attempts a takedown technique, the fighter on the right responds by striking the temples or slapping the ears.
Fighting is not just a physical conflict; psychological advantages play a significant role, and a fight can change its flow depending on the wavering perception fighters have of themselves or their adversaries. It is not uncommon that a strong, sudden blow creates doubts in an otherwise-confident fighter and leads him to defeat.
Several techniques in the Bubishi refer to the importance of psychological combat with two different applications:
- As a way to appear weaker or inept in order to lure the opponent into a false sense of security.
- As a way to appear more threatening in order to discourage the opponent from attaching.
In a business environment, a clear translation of the second case into action is the use of legal written deterrents to stop competitors from acting in a certain manner. When these take the form of “cease and decease” letters, they may not have the ultimate intention of moving into a legal procedure but leverage the explicit threat of doing so to force the other party to give up. Even when lawsuits do happen, they can also be interpreted as posturing to scare competitors.
Out of the four behavioral styles, the promoter is certainly the most suited to apply this type of feint and deception techniques because of his or her emotional and bombastic communication preferences. It is intrinsic to the promoter’s nature to project an image of invulnerability, which may deter others from engaging directly.
Diagram Number 16
The fighter on the left feigns intoxication, weakness, or cowardice and waits until the fighter on the right drops his guard to attack.
Diagram Number 23
The fighter on the right intentionally leaves an opening in his guard to lure an attack from the fighter on the left. When this happens, it is easy for him to block and counter at will.
This is a very recurrent theme in the 48 diagrams: no less than 10 of them show a fighter striking the eyes, groin, or neck of the opponent or pulling his hair to yank the head back. Although knowledge about these biological weak spots was hardly a martial secret, what the Bubishi shows in the illustrations is how to strategically select one target or another, depending on the opponent vector of attack and the fighter positioning, for maximum effectiveness.
The business application of these techniques relates to the somewhat merciless nature of corporate conflict, where any advantage a company may have over another is exploited without qualm. Weak spot targeting in a corporate setting requires a similar dehumanization of the adversary and will-to-win at any cost to the one presented in the legacy of the Bubishi’s karate masters. Dumping prices to hurt competitors, forcing suppliers to reduce their margins, even internal processes that increase pressure on employees to secure the company’s bottom line are all adaptations of these same principles.
While a profile like the analyst may lack the necessary drive, the controller, due to its formal leaning and proactive focus on efficiency, is well suited for weak spot targeting actions. The promoter and supporter may find them more difficult to apply due to their empathic nature.
Diagram Number 32
The fighter on the right attacks with a short punch, which the fighter on the left checks before responding with a strike to the eyes.
Diagram Number 33
The fighter on the left tries to grab, and the fighter on the right defends by striking the groin and grabbing the hair to throw his opponent to the ground.
As the science of fighting and the interest in historical martial arts increase, the contents of the Bubishi also continue to be studied and rediscovered. The text is far from being considered an austere relic of bygone eras but, rather, offers a vibrant window, through which two of the most human compulsions (the will to fight and the need to communicate) come together and are laid bare for study. As McCarthy quotes in his analysis:
Through studying the past we are brought closer to understanding the present. My analysis of the Bubishi has had a profound effect upon not only my art, but upon my life in general. I hope that the glimpse of the past provided by the Bubishi and its profound teachings will have as positive an influence on you as they have on me, and that it has brought you closer to that which you have yet to discover.
(Diagrams in this chapter are courtesy of P. McCarthy).
1 P. McCarthy. 1995. “The Bible of Karate: Bubishi.” Rutland, VT: Charles E. Tuttle.
2 Ibid.