52 Hand Blocks- Martial Arts by Ferdinand P. Dela Rosa; MA Economics

According to the legendary martial artist Bruce "Dragon" Lee, "Absorb what is useful, reject what is useless, add what is specifically your own”. The philosophical underpinning elicits the importance of cross training in the different disciplines in order to be a well rounded fighter.

I have been into martial arts for almost 23 years. I was a late bloomer from a layman's perspective. I started to familiarize myself with the different disciplines namely wrestling (Freestyle and Greco Roman), Boxing, Muay Thai, Jiu Jitsu , and Kali/Arnis/knife fighting which can be correlated to a learning curve at the age of 33 years old.

The advent of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) paved the way to the introduction of hybrid martial arts which typifies the concept of cage fighting. As a student of martial arts, I could infer that the aforementioned scenario would be classified as a controlled environment whereas the conditions in an actual street fight scenario would be different since there are no rules and referees that will control the fight.

I have conducted a series of research and simulated sparring sessions among the different fighting skills and its application on the actual street fight scenario and from my perspective, the 52 BLOCKS would be considered as the one of the best martial arts in the category of surviving an actual street fight confrontation. I believe that it would be a futile endeavor to learn martial arts if we could not apply the skill set in an actual street fight confrontation.

The 52 hand Blocks is a simple system that integrates the essence of boxing, grappling, ground fighting and Wing Chun. Indeed, the reason the craft is called 52 has to do with the science of protecting the body using the angles which conform to geometric configuration. The number 52 represents the geometry that the hands take while defending/shielding the body from harm.

The name 52 was formulated based on the concept of playing 52 pickup cards. The more likely explanation is that it simply refers to the fifty-two blocking techniques encompassed in the art using unorthodox blocking methods such as skull and bones, Peek a Boo Style and Philly Shell defense techniques.

The 52 Blocks entails the fusion of African and European/American bare-knuckle fist-fighting styles of using angles in order to deceive the opponent who is said to have been practiced by champions such as Jersey Joe Walcott, George Foreman, George Frazier, Sugar Ray Leonard and Mike Tyson. The system was also integrated by Rashad Evans, former mixed martial light heavyweight champion.

The movements are very intricate. Based on the technical discussion of the techniques of the 52 blocks, "I had even seen certain guys demonstrate a flamboyant series of defensive arm movements that looked as though they were designed to confuse an opponent: an individual would stand with his guards up. One arm remains in the defensive position while the hand on the opposite arm slaps its elbow. When that hand returns to its defensive position, the movement is repeated with the other hand. The movement is repeated in rapid and furious succession. It's fairly simple, but its use always signaled the presence of a true street fighter". (The Deadliest Art You Never Heard Of: Enter the 52 Hand Blocks by Scott Tre)

The formulation of the 52 Hand blocks shows how mental discipline can deviate from a structured approach and use a more practical approach in self defense. It could be achieved through perseverance by transcending cultural boundaries and personal limitations.

There is no such paradigm as a perfect martial art but I firmly believe that life should be a perpetual learning process whether in our career, academics and sports undertaking. We should always learn to improve ourselves on a daily basis in order to be successful in our chosen field of interest.

The various cultures around the world posit the importance of self defense as shown by going beyond the limits of various cultural orientations that are of questionable origins. It is very essential to embark on various possibilities and by exploring divergent philosophies pertinent in our quest for personal growth and development.

?From my personal standpoint, the 52 Hand blocks would be ideal martial arts in a self defense scenario. There could be criticism but I believe that the applicability in a street fight would be the basis for training but realistically, if someone, for whatever reason, is determined to hurt you, you need to be prepared at all costs. I also believe the integration of wrestling and edge weapons would be a primordial component in a real street fight scenario.

Rigid training and the application in a real life scenario would be the essence of martial arts. Bruce Lee said, "Be like water my friend".