In
Karate the word
Uke refers to a
block. The two most
common and
elementary blocks are
gedan barai (down
block) and
age uke (rising
block).
The
idea is not to stop the
energy of the
attack or
absorb it, as this can
weaken you, but to
deflect it and redirect it. Thus neither the
Japanese word Ukeru (receive) or the
English word "block" accurately
describe what is
supposed to
occur. When you
perform one of these
techniques, you send the energy of the attack slightly
off-course so it misses
you. The block is also an
attack in itself since you forcefully hit the
limb of your
assailant. It can also become the prelude to an
attack since you can take advantage of the redirection to
initiate a move yourself while your
opponent is off-balance.
None of the blocks in the
collection of
Uke are nearly as
effective as what my
instructors have described as the "
black belt block." Which involves simply being
somewhere else when someone attempts to
hit you. It's tougher than it sounds, though, since you have to be
quick to move out of the way and then manuever yourself so you're still close enough to
respond.