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What are they?

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Clusters of nerves, where a nerve ends, where nerves cross, etc. About 700 or more of them located all over the body with different "activations types".

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Do they exist?

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Yes.

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If so what is their function?

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To promote interesting internet forum discussions.

I think the easiest way to explain pressure points is to mention a few that are fairly universal for people of diverse styles.

Do you use an arm bar? If it is called something else, it is a grappling technique that threatens to break the elbow on a hyperextended arm with pressure either on the middle of the muscle mass on the back of the upper arm, or in the back of the elbow joint at the bottom of the upper bone.

The point on the muscle mass on the upper arm is called Triple Warmer 12. The point in the elbow joint itself is called Triple warmer 11 and 10.

The "why" it works is another post.

Another kind of pressure point would be the mental foramen of the jaw. You can look it up in an anatomy map. It is a hole through which the mentle nerve travels through the skull. It is located on either side of the chin almost under the angle of the lip.

You can strike it down and toward the center line to give someone a bit of a buzz, or you can use it in grappling pressed with your knuckle to encourage someone to turn his head.

Pressure points have explanations which are physiological. No mystical beliefs or chi is necessary to understand how they work.

Does this explanation help at all?

I was talking about the discussions, not equating one with the other. You might as well be talking thermonuclear physics as pressure points to people who discount their validity. It takes a few pushes on the right spots to make believers out of them... and they'll still try to say the effects were caused by something else... solar flares, maybe?

Yes.
Your input does help but something I will have to come back to at later date.




To BrianS.




To Wrist Twister.

Maybe it takes time but I think some people can change their views. I think fileboy might agree. There again he might not.




Jude

It sounds like what you object to is skepticism. But skepticism is a healthy thing, and in far too short supply in our culture.

I don't object to anybody's perceptions... but the way to solve them is to "bring them too the mats" and test them out. "Altitude adjusts a lot of attitudes"...

I've seen a lot of skepticism go out the window as the skeptic came crashing to the mats or got his lights knocked out. It's hard to block a good right hook with an argument.

While there's a mental aspect to martial arts, in the end, they are physical skills... whether manifested using "training", chi, or whatever, and highly connected to good body mechanics. Skepticism can't block a good Uchi mata, or shiho nage... and the trip to the floor for the skeptic is usually a real "eye opening" experience.

Be skeptical if you like, just don't whine when you get slammed.

But no skeptic would ever doubt the efficacy of a right hook or any other well-executed technique. To suggest they would is to erect a straw man.

What skeptics doubt are things like being able to knock someone down from a distance using chi.

No one has made that claim specifically--I used it as an example of the kind of claim a skeptic might question.

Equally questionable claims have been made, however. For example, someone once claimed chi could enable a person to plung their hand into boiling water without getting scalded.

Pretty crazy, huh?

Why work yourself up about unusual bizarre claims that have nothing to do with martial arts? I've never heard of that one, but suppose for the sake of arguement that 3 people in the world could do it. Does it have anything to do with martial arts?

If the claim is not true, is it worth throwing out everything of value in pressure points, because some people make claims to being able to do extraordinary things?

I don't worry myself about those things. I just train the things that have value to me now.