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Thomas Dixon wrote:
As for stabbing [thrusting] (which to reach the heart, you'd probably have to) I've only seen it for the Neck, Face, and I believe the stomach. I'm not sure about any of this, so any Iaido or Kenjutsu students please correct me
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we use thrusts that are generally to the throat or abdomen, but yes it really is primarily a cutting weapon. Finishing move is always a cut.
rather than the heart which is behind the rib cage (see below), the target is more likely to be the descending aorta (either the throracic section below the rib cage or the abdomen section where the armor is weaker for reasons of mobility for which success, not that easy, results in a quick kill.
there is an interesting discussion of this is here in terms of western sword techniques,
http://members.iinet.net.au/~bill/ha.../cuthrust.html
to quote from this --
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One would imagine the heart is an excellent target for a thrust; and a dead cert for a kill too but... In fact the ribs are excellent protection and you are unlikely to thrust though a rib bone. Of course you could thrust between the ribs. This would mean rolling the sword over to present horizontal to the chest. In this case you would have less than a 50% chance of going between the ribs and then into the chest. Then all you have to do is find the heart or one of the main blood vessels at least. This of course is pretty hard to do. Even if you managed to penetrate the chest the more likely outcome is a mortally wounded opponent who will insist on taking you along for the ride. I have seen some glorious forensic pictures of stabbing victims and the amazing thing is the number of glancing wounds to the chests and the horrific tears in the abdominal wall.
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