critical question

[White Warlock]

so were do u make eye contact and i dont get when u say look behind the opponent

Well, i didn't say 'behind,' I said 'beyond' the person. The person you are dealing with right then and there. Beyond is not behind. Nor did i say 'opponent.' I know these may seem like plays on semantics... but opponent is a definitive singular, and there is always the possibility for plural. I.e., always the possiiblity of more opponents.

As i see it, there are three basic tendencies:

• Before the Person
   
  If you look before the person, you find yourself 'reacting' to things without a precursor, a warning of intent, being that you are unable to read telegraphed actions. This is the state of most 'untrained' combatants, who look at the weapons presented (fist, knife, etc) and thus are easily 'setup.' Essentially, they are looking at the extensions, the moving parts.
   
  At the Person
   
  If you look 'at' the person (depending on 'where' you look, preferably center mass), you can read telegraphed actions at the cost of being susceptible to feints and other deceptions. This is the state of many trained combatants. And while this may be useful for sport/competition, it is a detriment for real encounters... where there is always the possibility of more than merely 'one' opponent, as well as disruptions and distractions presented by audience and environment. Also, adrenalin can 'enhance' this action and cause one to 'overfocus,' losing all sense of awareness on your surroundings.
   
  Beyond the Person
   
  If you look 'beyond' the person, somewhat 'through' your 'immediate' threat to some unperceived field, you gain a higher degree of awareness and a stronger application of peripheral vision. As well, when adrenalin hits, it will be far less likely that you will 'overfocus,' since you are not focused as it is, nor is there anything 'concrete' to focus on.

I am not sure if you ever juggled, but i believe it can help you develop this habit of looking beyond, and can also serve here as an example of all three approaches:

• Before the Person
   
  A beginner juggler looks at all the balls as they are being juggled (extension, moving parts). Their eyes dash from one ball to the next, and back again, a flurry of ocular motion commeasurate with the amount of energy thier arms put in. If they fumble, suddenly their focus is lost and all the balls go flying in every which way.
   
  At the Person
   
  An intermediate juggler looks at some 'point' on the path, or in the center of the oblong path of the balls being juggled (center mass). They rely heavily on peripheral vision, yet occasionally flit their eyes to examine the activities of the balls, especially if a difficult action is committed, or a fumble occurs. More often, if a fumble does occur, only one ball is lost. The activity of the balls can continue without that one ball, but the juggler is somewhat distracted. His focus has been disrupted.
   
  Beyond the Person
   
  An advanced juggler looks beyond what he is doing, to some undetermined point or possibly to various persons in the audience, with a smile here, a facial contortion there, all the while maintaining his juggling. Indeed, because he is not dependent upon his eyes for direct focal attention, nor for peripheral vision, he is able to handle numbers far greater than even the audience's eyes could follow. He can make changes, perform unique tricks, change angles, engage in direct eye-contact conversation... all while still juggling, and even changing of his juggling.

With an advanced juggler, he can be busily juggling a multitude of things and someone can throw something at him. He can catch that item and mix it in with the rest of the items he is juggling, and hardly miss a beat. With an intermediate juggler, someone can throw something at him, but it needs to be 'carefully timed' and 'predicted.' With a beginner juggler, throwing anything to that juggler will cause him to lose focus, with the end result being the balls flying in every which way.

The feats presented by an advanced juggler cannot be performed with a dependency on direct view or peripheral vision. It requires a development of awareness on one's environment. The ability to see 'beyond' the target.

[Goju_boi]

I didn't know that martial artisit were into juggling.we should start a new trend of juggling mixed with martial arts he he he .