Balogun Ojetade - Ori: The Afrikan Warriors Mindset

Balogun Ojetade is the author of the bestselling non-fiction books Afrikan Martial Arts: Discovering the Warrior Within , The Afrikan Warriors Bible , Surviving the Urban Apocalypse , The Urban Self Defense Manual , The Young Afrikan Warriors Guide to Defeating Bullies & Trolls , Never Unarmed: The Afrikan Warriors Guide to Improvised Weapons , Ofo Ase: 365 Daily Affirmations to Awaken the Afrikan Warrior Within and Ori: The Afrikan Warriors Mindset .

He is one of the leading authorities on Afroretroism film, fashion or fiction that combines African and / or African American culture with a blend of retro styles and futuristic technology, in order to explore the themes of tension between past and future and between the alienating and empowering effects of technology. He writes about Afroretroism Sword & Soul, Rococoa, Steamfunk and Dieselfunk at http://chroniclesofharriet.com/.

He is author of eighteen novels and gamebooks MOSES: The Chronicles of Harriet Tubman (Books 1 & 2) ; The Chronicles of Harriet Tubman: Freedonia ; Redeemer ; Once Upon A Time In Afrika ; Fist of Afrika ; A Single Link ; Wrath of the Siafu ; The Scythe ; The Keys ; Redeemer: The Cross Chronicles ; Beneath the Shining Jewel ; Q-T-Pies: The Savannah Swan Files (Book 0) and A Haunting in the SWATS: The Savannah Swan Files (Book 1) ; Siafu Saves the World ; Siafu vs. The Horde; Dembos Ditty ; and The Beatdown contributing co-editor of three anthologies: Ki: Khanga: The Anthology , Steamfunk and Dieselfunk and contributing editor of the Rococoa anthology and Black Power: The Superhero Anthology .

He is also the creator and author of the Afrofuturistic manga series, Jagunjagun Lewa (Pretty Warrior) and co-author of the Ngolo graphic novel.

Finally, he is co-author of the award winning screenplay, Ngolo and co-creator of Ki Khanga: The Sword and Soul Role-Playing Game , both with author Milton Davis.

Reach him on Facebook at: https://www.facebook.com/Afrikan.Martial.Arts and on Twitter at https://twitter.com/Baba_Balogun.

Find his books on Amazon at: https://www.amazon.com/Balogun-Ojetade/e/B00AVEA7SU.

Combat Speed

We have discussed the development of Ori through living and exercising the principles found within the Student Creed. Now we will examine how Ori is fine-tuned to help you become a superior warrior by increasing your combat speed your speed in relationship to time, place and opponent to the highest level.

Speed is a key attribute for success in combat, competition and self-defense.

The speed of your actions and reactions are often the sole difference between winning and losing a physical confrontation; between living and dying.

Regardless of how many techniques you know, you cannot apply them unless you react and respond with speed and ferocity!

I have heard about countless people who have enrolled in martial arts schools and trained diligently for months or even years, only to find their so-called deadly techniques have failed to help them during a violent encounter.

What went wrong? Why didnt their techniques work as they did in class?

Were the techniques they learned ineffective? Probably. Most schools even the ones who think they are combat-oriented, or self-defense-oriented are ran by instructors who have never actually been in violent encounters, so all that they teach is limited to the realm of their imaginations it is all theoretical. But I have witnessed Special Ops soldiers and Marines get their asses whooped in street fights. Why? How? Because the person they fought had greater timing greater combat speed.

Warriors must learn to instantly separate the useful from the useless. By doing so, we are able to get much more out of our training and achieve high levels of skill much faster.

And no throwing twenty punches in a second has nothing to do with combat speed.

Can you really hit another person 20 times in one second? Well, lets see. It depends on the distance from your hands to the target. If your hands are just one inch from the target, and you are just tapping the person lightly, then it MIGHT be possible.

But, if you are attempting to throw 20 punches that can actually do damage to an opponent in one second nope. Nobody can!

In a violent encounter, I would much prefer to throw three explosive strikes perhaps a jab, cross, rear knee combination than to throw 20 light taps.

Touch-and-Go

Touch-and-Go means quickly reacting to the stimulus of touch. It is the attribute referred to as sensitivity in many martial arts.

Most violent encounters on the street end up with the combatants at a close distance, grappling with each other either standing or on the ground. At this close proximity, it is not likely that you will see an attack coming. Using Touch-and-Go, you will not need to see where your hands are in relation to your adversary because you will feel your position in relation to your opponent.

With practice, you will learn to instantly feel what the opponent is attempting to do by quickly reading the direction of his or her force. Using this awareness, you can take the opponents energy and do one of three things:

1. Dissolve the energy by evading.
2. Redirect the energy by parrying.
3. Stuff the energy by countering.

To make maximum use of Touch-and-Go, it is imperative that you stay relaxed when you come into contact with the opponent. It is through relaxation that you will find speed and explosiveness in your actions.

Sensitivity Drills

There are many drills that you can use to develop your Touch-and-Go. However, be careful not to get caught up in the drill itself. The drills are only a means to an end. Your purpose is to develop superior Touch-and-Go that will enable you to easily dominate an opponent in close combat.

It is difficult to learn sensitivity from a book or a video. As always, when doing anything Afrikan, it is a must to work with a partner and best if you find a partner who is familiar with the drills of Afrikan Martial Arts. The drills you choose are important, but the effort you put into each drill is just as important.

To get better results from any sensitivity drill, try it blindfolded. This forces you to heighten your sense of touch, which will lead to rapid improvement in your Touch-and-Go.

Nkyinkyim

Nkyinkyim pronounced EN-chin-CHIM is an Adinkra.

Adinkra are visual symbols that represent deep concepts . Adinkra are used extensively in fabrics and pottery among the Akan and Asante of Ghana and the so-called Ivory Coast. They are incorporated into walls, iron gates and other architectural features.

The symbols have a decorative function but also encapsulate evocative messages that convey traditional wisdom about aspects of life or the environment. There are many different symbols with distinct meanings, and were one of the means in a pre-literate society for supporting the transmission of a complex and nuanced body of practice and belief.

The design of Nkyinkyim depicts the tortuous nature of lifes journey. These twists and turns require you to be versatile, resilient and highly adaptable in order to survive.

In the Afrikan Martial Arts, Nkyinkyim is the quickness and accuracy of your Ori. You must develop the ability to instantaneously select the most effective movements to use at any point during a confrontation. You must learn to do this without conscious thought. Your reflexes will carry out the selection process automatically.

Without Nkyinkyim, you could perceive an attack or opening, but you would react improperly. Even with great movement speed, you must have Nkyinkyim to be effective. You cannot initiate a movement until you consciously or unconsciously think about it first. Your goal is to transfer all of your simple responses and reactions from the conscious to the unconscious from Ori to Ori Inu. The achievement of this increase your speed exponentially!