One of the biggest problems with most martial arts training programs is the tendency to limit yourself to learning only the “official” weapons of the chosen style. The alternative is to borrow the Ninja’s ability to see beyond the shape of any particular weapon and recognize the truth that anything can be used as a weapon and as an aid to your own personal defense.

This article explores the concept of using an ordinary pen as a self-defense weapon. You can, of course, substitute a pencil, marker, or any other item of similar shape and size.

One of the reasons to learn how to use a pen in self defense is that they are so readily available. And, for most people, they carry or have access to at least one during the course of a normal workday. This availability factor makes the pen an excellent choice.

Of course, his “common character” also makes him practically invisible to everyone, including the attacker, who only thinks of obvious weapons such as pistols, knives, clubs, etc.

As a place to begin your training and understanding of how to use a simple pen as a powerful self-defense weapon, the following tactics are offered as examples of how effective this weapon can be in a real-world self-protection situation.

“There in a hurry” – The small size and natural shape of a pen make it easy to handle in the hand. Nor is it necessary that you adapt your hand to the weapon, as you have to do with other weapons such as a firearm.

That said, you can hold the pen in your hand so you can apply pain techniques by pinching its skin between your thumb and the handle of your new favorite weapon. The ears, lips, and thin, sensitive skin on the inside of the upper arms and sides of the neck are the perfect targets for this “sneaky little ninja technique.”

“Convey your point of view” – By gripping the shaft of the pen and holding it like a pick or a dagger, you can prick and stab. You can also hold the pen like you would with the pinching techniques above, allowing you to stab and hook any part of your body that gets close enough to take advantage of it.

“Mightier than the sword” – In today’s world, carrying a sword can make you stand out from the crowd. Do you agree?

But, we can still borrow some lessons and uses from the warrior’s most treasured weapon and apply them with the ballpoint pen. This concept, except in very rare cases, will completely confuse and overwhelm your attacker.

While you can cut and scrape the targets off your body with the pen, this obvious use is not what I’m talking about. What I’m talking about here is “drawing” the pen in the middle of the attack, just like the master warrior draws his sword when the attacker doesn’t see it coming!

Imagine carrying the pen in your shirt pocket and then while avoiding an incoming blow and raising your hand to cover yourself …

… simultaneously you drew the weapon using the natural movement of your hand and arm. Just like a master magician hides his movements, his attacker will never see the pen in his hand and will be completely confused and overwhelmed as he tries to understand the damage, pain and wounds that are causing what he thinks. it’s his “empty” fist!

Of course, this article can only be a basic introduction to using the pencil in self-defense. If you want to take this further and make it part of your martial arts training curriculum, I suggest you learn about using the Kubotan: Self Defense keychain as the basis for your training.