Martial arts is a very large genre of diversely encompassing activities. It is natural for people to try and break large groups down into smaller, more manageable groups or ideas. It helps people get a better idea of what specific part you are talking about if you can say that it belongs to a particular sub-genre. Think of your favorite band. Now ask yourself “what type of music do they play?” The answer most people use is “Well… It’s kinda… X mixed with Y” and go on from there. We use genres of music to act as sub-groupings. It gives people a rough idea of the generalities of what the type of music is. Even though people will disagree with where/who the edges of that genre are.
That being said, it is part of the evolution of the human mind to categorize things, and it can often be a useful heuristic tool. Martial arts can be included in this. There are numerous ways to break down martial arts into component groups. One of the ways people can break martial arts down is into “hard” and “soft” arts. Specific techniques can also be described as hard or soft as well. Hard and soft, rather than being two categories are more of a continuum. There is a lot of gray areas in between the two extremes, but we’re going to explore what is generally meant when the terms hard and soft are applied to martial arts.
Hard vs. Soft
Hard, in martial arts terms, means meeting force with an opposing force. Karate and Tae Kwon Do may be prime examples of “hard” arts. They tend to rely more on physical power. When an attack is coming in, their blocks are usually forceful and meant to overcome the incoming force by providing a larger force. This force doesn’t need to be larger, i.e. stronger. That would not work out well for self-defense purposes, as the stronger person will then always “win.” Martial arts are meant to neutralize size and strength, at least in principle. The defender’s force can be maximized by angle, timing, and distance. Saying that is the easy part. Getting it done, that’s the hard part. That’s the reason why we continuously practice that inside-outside block, and will never have it be perfect.
Soft, in the case of martial arts, signifies a yielding, accepting, or non-resistive. When a punch comes towards you, you move your body with it, rather than intercept it with a block. Aikido and Taiji Chuan are the first martial arts that may come to mind when thinking of soft arts. As an Aikidoka, I can feel this concept on a daily basis. For those from a harder art, it may be more difficult to conceive of how this could be used in self-defense. It seems to be more initially instinctual to use hard concepts. The technique then usually involves extending the attacker past their balance point and throwing them, or something similar. The power of these techniques often comes from having the proper physical structure, and timing for the technique. They also seem to take longer to use effectively. However, soft arts have proved themselves over and over. The “ju” in judo or jujutsu (柔) is the soft/gentle/yielding that I was describing, and even the hardest martial artist usually agree that both are effective. In order to properly have a soft technique, the attacker should never “feel” a technique has been applied. In fact, in an expertly applied soft technique, the attacker should never feel anything, except the sense of losing balance, and then either the lock or the throw. As a historical example, those who studied directly with Dr. Kano Jigoro would descript randori with him was like fighting an empty gi. He offered no feedback from which to attempt a throw, and then you’d be on the ground. O-Sensei’s Aikido students give similar stories. It was said to be like fighting air when attempting any technique on him. One second he was there, and then he wasn’t, and you were flying without any concept of being thrown.
Blended Arts
I don’t want to use an absolute and say all, but every martial art that I can think of blends these two concepts together to various degrees. I’m sure there are people who would say “my martial art is all hard style, and there’s no soft in it.” Karate was one of the examples I used for a hard style. However, there is a style of karate created by Chojun Miyagi called Goju (剛柔 ) Ryu. The name of the style would literally translate as “hard-soft.” They demonstrate that even in the harder arts, there are softer elements. Aikido, which is a pretty soft art, has direct, straight line strikes in it. The techniques may not always be taught that way, but it is in the art if you look for it. It has to. It would almost be useless, in terms of combat or self-defense, to have a completely soft art. And a completely hard art would not give you the ability to practice your art for a lifetime. So they have to complement each other in every art. Think about that the next time you’re practicing. How are you applying “hard” and “soft” concepts today, perhaps in the same technique?
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Really good article Mr. Wilson. I practice Tracy’s Kenpo Karate, and there are definitely hard and soft techniques in the system. I also agree that the soft techniques are the more difficult ones to execute correctly.
Good article, thanks. I am a practitioner of Kung-fu San Soo, which is a Northern Shaolin “soft” style but if you watched it you would think it’s a “hard” style due to it’s explosive and fast techniques. I lean more toward the soft styles because I find them – for me – to be not only more effective, but also just simply more fun. Again, good explanation on the differences.
I very much enjoyed both Aikido and Shotokan karate. I had a bit of Taekwondo and judo in the Army. My point is this and many will disagree,you can collect many useful techniques from any martial art,and each individual must also decide what will not work for them personally. It was always 90 percent for self defense in my mind. I have respect for the other aspects of these arts too.