Customer Reviews

Black Medicine: The Dark Art of Death

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

NOTE: Two reviews written by me are in this section. For some reason, volume 2 of this series ("Weapons at Hand") is listed seperate from the other three volumes, and Amazon further erred by placing my review for that book in this section as well! I am writing this to let readers know that, unlike "Weapons at Hand," volume 1 of this series is NOT "5-star" material! Let there be no confusion about that!

Of all the questionable "atemi-waza" and "pressure-point" books available, "Black Medicine" is one of the best. However, like these other books, the effectiveness of these strikes is greatly exaggerated. Sure, gouging an eye or blowing out a knee will end most fights, but if you attempt to grind your knuckles into a nerve cluster or pull some silly stunt like the "Vulcan nerve pinch" in a real right against a determined adversary, he'll just laugh in your face before slamming said face into the nearest wall! Pressure points take years to master, and are of dubious value, providing a false sense of security to the beginner. Read this, and all such books, with skepticism.

Being the author of several books on the martial arts and fighting, I am always looking for books of exceptional quality to add to my library. If I have a book in my library, it's definitely worth owning. One such book is N. Mashiro's, "Black Medicine: The Dark Art of Death."

This was one of the first books that I ever purchased years ago when I was in high school and starting to learn about the martial arts. This book gives you a very good overview on the vulnerable and vital points on the human body and is very informative. If you are interested in self-defense or any of the martial arts, I would definitely put this book on your too buy list.

Introduction:

1. The 3 Ways To Get Your Attacker To Stop Hurting You

a. Make him lose his concentration.
b. Interfere with his control over his body.
c. Destroy the integrity of his body.

2. The 3 Ways To Kill Your Opponent

a. Destroy the central nervous system.
b. Destroy or interfere with circulation.
c. Interfere with breathing.

What the author does with this book is to give you a fairly basic, yet detailed description of the locations of certain vulnerable and vital areas of the body, and the effects that certain blows can and will have when directed against these areas. This is done not only through accurate written descriptions, but also through the realistic and practical use of photographs and in some cases, illustrations.

The author breaks down the following chapters to vital points located in certain areas of the body and its extremities. They are as follows:

1. Vital Points of the Head
2. Vital Points of the Neck and Throat
3. Vital Points of the Upper Trunk
4. Vital Points of the Lower Trunk
5. Vital Points of the Hand and Arm
6. Vital Points of the Leg and Foot

The author concludes this book with a section on the vital points of pistol shooting. Which in and of itself is a remarkable section and one in which an entire book should be devoted.

This review is without a doubt the shortest one I have ever written, and on a book that should be a staple in the library of every martial artist and/or self-defense practitioner. Simply stated, "If you could only have a select number of books in your library, this book would definitely be one of them."

This book basically covers a list of target areas. Points on the body to strike and what effect a strike to that area might have. It isn't a "death touch" or "instant kill" kind of goofy voodoo psuedo martial arts book. It is more of a basic anatomy book for martial artists. It is very interesting but not very through, but how could it be at 92 pages especially when many of the pages are simple black and white photographs. An example of one of the pictures is a woman biting a man's ear. Does one really need an expalination AND a picture to figure that one out? Over all, an interesting book with good information.

This book seeks to train the mind with the following principle: "It's not the force of the blow that matters, but where you place it." This also applies to firearms shooting, as Mashiro demonstrates. The "stopping power" of a bullet has a lot less to do with the caliber and muzzle velocity than with where you place it. The body has certain vulnerable areas that can be exploited and attacked with remarkable success. This book should be read twenty times by anyone wishing to prepare him/herself for a violent encounter.

Shows in detail the human body's most vulnerable points which one could attack during a self-defense situation be it with empty-hands or weapons(including guns). This book is best used when complemented by some type of street fighting martial art or a self-defense course which will teach you the techniques to use in order to attack the vital points illustrated in this book. A definate must buy for anyone interested in protecting their lives in a tough world

Deffinetly a must have book for anyone who is interested in Martial Arts and fighting techniques. When I got the book, I didn't expect so much information in such a small package. The book doesn't only teach what you can do, but in my case it showed me, what not to do. It explains the complications and outcomes which can be caused by someone in a fighting satuation. The book makes you understand the sevirity of the damage one can cause and explains it in the greatest detail. It is a very well written and easy to follow manual, with great illustrations.

Ok, When I first recieved this book, I was a little dissapointed, because it almost reminded me of a school book on anatomy. But when I actually started reading the thing, I started realizing how valuable this information really was! I mean, it practically maps out every point on the body, and how to use this information to your advantage. When I looked at his book, and the date, I was skeptical about ordering anything this old. But now, the only reason I didn't give it 5 stars, is it was too short, I want more. I'm very interested in the rest of the series. =)

This book is just great. It's very technical at some points (I don't know very many anatomy terms). But the author explains everything very simply and with diagrams. If I wasn't taking martial arts though, I wouldn't know what he meant by "knife hand" or "hammer fist". He does not explain (from what I could tell) how to preform these strikes. This is not a book on how to take someone out with a flick of the finger. It's for the martial artist to know where to strike and what damage you could possibly do. This is very important to know in a real life or death situation. Very empowering.

I am no martial arts expert or even amateur. However, my conclusion on reading
this book is that anyone reading it thinking it is a shortcut to self defense knowledge
will be disappointed. In the end, learning these moves (and practicing them, which
I wonder exactly how one does) requires patience, time, and training from an
experienced martial arts expert.

Some specifics I noted:
1. Some of the moves require a sharp blow. If you are a 98 pound weakling,
delivering that blow still required strength.
2. Some of the moves talks about a hard hit with a stick or solid object, which is
great if you happen to have one.
3. Some of the moves would only work if you had an opponent in a disadvantaged
position, which it is hard to see how you would achieve.
4. In a brief section on vital points (instantly lethal) for pistol shooting, the author
makes too much of what is not realistic under a stress shooting situation. Look,
you can shoot 10s all day at the range, but shooting an uncooperative target
while you are under stress will see your shooting skill drop 50% or more.
Unless you are a trained sniper or SWAT, go for the center of mass and
keep shooting. You want a clean one shot kill, go hunting.

For an experienced martial arts person, I imagine this book could be a good
review of basics.

For the inexperienced, you will learn how frail your body is. But if you really
want to use this stuff, you need training.

Though this book is dated to some degree and the black and white photographs are not very clear; nevertheless, there is some valuable information that could be applied in self-defense situations. Experienced martial artists might find this book interesting, but in my opinion, the text would be more of value to new students of the martial arts and self-defense.

This book covers in detail the vital points of the head, neck, throat, upper trunk, lower trunk, hands, arms, leg and foot. In conclusion, this is a book that has information all martial artists will find informative and interesting.

Rating: 4 Stars. Joseph J. Truncale (Author: Knife Handling & Knife Defense for Law Enforcement and Security officers official course manual).