Part of the KFA Gym Group
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Khum Na The Seizing Grasp |
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Written by siukee wan
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Khum Na (Canotonese) or Chin Na (Mandarin) is roughly translated as Grasping or Seizing Control, which is precisely what it is. Many are familiar with many of the trapping and joint locking techniques, but equally important and effective are the subtle elements of control that can be delivered by the hands.
Through the action of leveraging and manipulation, Khum Na focuses on controlling or throwing through the locking of joints  either from the wrist, elbows, shoulders etc right through to fingers and neck restraints. There are also various techniques in pressure points and weakness exposed by dividing specific muscles, but in my opinion unless you are very experienced much of these are more suited for demonstrations than for practical self-defence.
In order to be effective the core foundations need the elements of Yin & Yang, otherwise the success rates of the techniques would not be much lower and effective only with a compliant partner. Thus training is required to build an awareness of physical forces of Ying Yang, whether using the whole of upper body, arms or just the hands in isolation.
The ‘Ying’ element is there to control, forming the base or anchor from which the Yang can be applied, whether it be, restraint, throws or joint dislocation. Without a sound understanding of the Ying platform, control and execution wouldn't be as effective.
The other side to locks and throws is the control element and ‘Teng’ (Listening) and this mainly achieved through manipulation of the opponent’s bridge structures using various handgrips. To improve effectiveness in the various grips and holds, physical conditioning of the arms and hands is required. Thus Kung Fu styles that incorporate Khum Na, normally have specific conditioning drills that help improve power and speed.
When executing any Khum Na techniques, the opponent’s arms should at the very least be neutralised or drained, before implementing the attack. Otherwise we would be relying too heavily on brute strength and speed.
Khum Na’s flexibility and diversity allows it to be a stand-alone system or as usually the case, forming part of a wider armoury. Some use it as a stand-up grappling system for disarming through the use of locks and throws whereas others focus on the control through manipulation. But no matter how it is applied, both are equally effective and
is an essential part of any traditional Chinese Martial Arts.
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