Sometimes a little verbal trick can save your ass. This is not only what Jesse Enkamp is teaching, but really true also according to my own experience. Already when you try to solve a conflict with words, then this can in the mind of a rowdy be enough “nonsense” for confusing the rowdy. With speed and timing and knowing your chance could you avoid a fight at all. If this fails, then the little verbal trick also is helpful for loosening your opponent’s grip, so that you can escape from for example a joint-lock.

But the most interesting piece of information on the little trick is where it came from. In the 22nd Tenka’ichi Budōkai (天下一武道会) within the anime series Dragonball, Kuririn (クリリン) has a match versus Chaozu (ちゃおず / 餃子). At the beginning of the final rounds, the participants draw chits with numbers. Son Gokū (孫 悟空) and Chaozu (餃子) fail to understand that after seven chits of eight are drawn, there can only be a certain one, which still is left. Thus Kuririn (クリリン) learns about a weakness of Chaozu (餃子). When Kuririn (クリリン) during the match must learn that he’s inferior and about to lose, Kuririn (クリリン) asks Chaozu (餃子) math questions. First: “How much is three plus four?” When Chaozu (餃子) hesitates and wonders whether to ignore or to answer the question, Kuririn (クリリン) insists: “You certainly know how much is three plus four, don’t you?” And Kuririn (クリリン) follows up with: “How much is nine minus eight?” Chaozu (餃子) is completely confused and loses the match.

When I think about it, the basic fighting stance of Kuririn (クリリン) resembles very much Jesse Enkamp’s preferred photo pose. Jesse Enkamp shall be a shitō-ryū (糸東流) karateka, who altered many things according to what he learnt in Okinawa. But he now seems to me to only imitate Kuririn (クリリン) from Dragonball!