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One Touch Principle

This article is not about the dim mak-the fabled death touch. It refers to a universal situation: first contact between enemies in a combat situation.

At the very start of combat there is a moment when the 2 combatants touch for the first time. Remembering that what we contemplate we naturally become more aware of and gain power over; then this initial contact is worthy of our attention.

A long drawn out battle, saps strength and increases the chance that something can go wrong including the unwelcome interference of other attackers. Maybe the hypothetical ideal martial artist would only touch the enemy once.

One touch does not necessarily employ a single knockout strike. It can also mean that our strike de-moralizes the aggressor to the extent that they discontinue further attacks. There are many ways that our first contact with the aggressor can dissuade them from continued violence.

The actual first contact could be initiated by us or the aggressor. So when contemplating first contact we have *at least* 2 main catagories to organize the basic elemental situations. In situations where the aggressor initiates the actual contact our reaction to it could end the battle in our favour. For example if we absorbed their attack confidently as if it had not hurt us, that could de-moralize the enemy to the extent that they stop further attack. The chances of this favourable result can be increased by good contitioning. A martial tactic is to swap the enemy's intended target for a harder target at the last moment by moving the targets and/or re-directing the attack. In some such situations it is ideal to not only prevent damage to ourselves but also to cause the enemy's "weapon" (eg fist etc) to become damaged. This result can also be achieved by encouraging the aggressor to strike a target that seems soft and can be damaged by the strike but in reality is hard and will damage the striking area.

Mastering first contact could also mean that as soon as contact is made it should be maintained until victory. If someone trains to be able to *maintain* this intital first contact then they will have a fantastic advantage in the martial realm. This is because some circumstances do not allow for an "instant" one touch victory. In some situations it is advantageous to stick to the opponent after the initial contact so sticking and maintaining contact is a branch of first contact that should be explored. A mirror idea to this is to explore how to escape continued contact if it is advantageous for us to do so.

Diligently exploring each conceptual branch surounding the concept of *first contact* is a fundamental technique in the Shhhhh philosophy.

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