Thursday evening 6.50pm. Jordel has just let me know he is stuck at work, Sam S. is not up for it due to a big day’s work and yes George has been called back into work, and Costas is staying home.
Rick, Saleh and Sam B. do not train Thursday.
8.00pm no one is coming but I am here, ready.
So here are a few quotes to think about and a small video.
“ Talent hits a target no one else can hit; Genius hits a target no one else can see.
Arthur Schopenhauer
Knowledge is gained by adding something every day. Wisdom is gained by taking something away every day.
Lao Tzu
Violence happens by Surprise, Closer, Harder and Faster than in most Martial Arts Training.
Everyone that knows anything.
Hit hard, hit first and keep on hitting.
Jackie Fisher. First Sea Lord of the Royal Navy 1904
The majority of the people that practice Wing Chun never think about performing violence.
IS WING CHUN THE NEW TAI CHI?
A common sight for any tourist that has been to Singapore, Hong Kong or China is the morning parks being filled with elderly Chinese performing Tai Chi, slow, graceful and relaxing, I do not think that there is any doubt that these citizens are not involved in a Martial Art, even though at its core Tai Chi is a really effective Martial Art, but if you mention Tai Chi this is the image most people come up with, most Martial Artists, even Wing Chun students scoff at the thought that Tai Chi is still an effective fighting Form.
The Park People are involved in the Chi Kung aspect of Tai Chi, these days the great majority of Tai Chi practitioners are involved in the Chi Kung aspect with very few engaging in genuine Martial Tai Chi, their practice is slow, easy and thoughtful, discussions are held about the best shape, the correct placement of the limbs, the quality of the breathing, condensing the thought process, where to place the energy as you flow and the pursuit of mindfulness.
There is an abundance of proof that this approach is beneficial to the health and mental well-being of senior citizens and by that mark alone is a worthy pursuit for the more mature person. What you very rarely see in the parks are young people doing Tai Chi.
This post has been prompted by a question I was asked regarding the vitriolic criticism that Wing Chun receives from the Mainstream Martial Arts community, a claim that Wing Chun is a pretend Martial Art, the twenty-first century Tai Chi.
Why do so many people hate Wing Chun?
In pursuit of balance, we should also consider “Why do so many people love Wing Chun”?
As a Wing Chun student and Instructor of over 30 years, I am definitely a member of the Wing Chun appreciation society, but I also share some of the less than flattering doubts of the Wing Chun haters, it does concern me where Wing Chun appears to be heading.
To the Wing Chun haters there is absolutely no empirical evidence that Wing Chun works as a fighting art, this is in no way helped by the fact that more and more the widely established history of Wing Chun is turning out to be nothing short of a fable, in Hong Kong, there is constant factional infighting amongst the Ip Man lineages to the extent that each do the style so differently, it is no longer the same style { but of course, everyone thinks their style is best, their Sifu is the best}, in a similar vein to Tai Chi that is composed of Chen style; Yang style, Wu style and Hao style, Wing Chun is breaking into different styles from different Masters that appear more interested in self-promotion than advancing Wing Chun.
And yet despite this obvious diluting of Ip Man’s art Wing Chun lovers constantly claim that it is the best Martial Art on the planet, in fact, the superior or even ultimate fighting art.
Tai Chi translates to Supreme Ultimate Fist, once it was, but now it just exercising.
In the Japanese Arts there is a clear distinction between a style that is done for self improvement and health and a style that is genuinely used for fighting.
Namely -Do and -Jutsu { also pronounced as Jitsu}.
Ju-Do is self-improvement – Ju-Jutsu is intended for combat.
Ken-Do is self-improvement – Ken-Jutsu is intended for combat.
Karate-do is self-improvement – Karate-Jutsu is intended for combat.
Aiki-Do is self-improvement – Aiki-Jutsu is intended for combat.
Collectively they are regarded as Bu-Do and Bu-Jutsu.
The Japanese -Do would be -Dao in Chinese, as in Siu Nim Dao.
If we temporarily borrow these delineations and apply them to Wing Chun then the vast majority of the world’s Wing Chun students are training in Wing Chun Dao.
The lineage that I am from, Chu Shong Tin – Jim Fung is 100% Wing Chun Dao, in all my years of training in my Sifu’s school I do not think that anyone ever got hit with any real intent, there were accidents as there are in all schools, but then everything stopped instead of escalating, to some extent everybody was only learning how to apologise.
Because I trained in Boxing for years I was very aware that what we did was not fighting, even though most of the training would not fly as taught I had no problem with that, it was enjoyable, it was healthy, it was low impact and thanks to my Boxing experiences the IDEAS where convertible into fighting IDEAS, but it appears that most Wing Chun students do have a problem with that and so claim that Wing Chun is a kick-ass Martial Art when neither themselves or most of their Instructors have ever been involved in a genuine “Blood and Snot” fight.
People that do AikiDo, JuDo, KenDo and Tai Chi very rarely posture and make claims, they are fully aware that they are travelling a path of ritual self-improvement, and in general are accepted by the wider Martial Arts Community because of this fact.
The majority of people who practice Tai Chi never think about performing violence.
The majority of the people that practice Wing Chun never think about performing violence.
This is not a bad thing, perhaps the greater Wing Chun community should embrace it.
As I always say, the most important aspect for a Martial Artist to learn is Self-Honesty, we would all do well to find a way to stop self-delusion.
We must own what it is we do.
Or alternatively, find a way to train Wing Chun Jutsu.
Our default setting will always be evolving, always trending to easier movements.
This is a two-part post about the same thing, just from different perspectives.
Last weekend, while working with my very senior students, which if you understand Wing Chun is frequently about understanding what “doing nothing” is and trying to internalise it, one of the guys effortless shunted me across the room.
He looked a bit nonplussed so I said “you do understand that you have just effortlessly thrown a 90kg man across the room do you not”?
He answered, “Yes, but you were not resisting”.
This is a statement that students who have no genuine experience of street violence frequently voice.
Things like asking for their partner to apply “More Force” is a classic example of this thinking.
If a person’s IDEA of a fight is two highly trained Combat Athletes competing against each other this is an easy misconception.
But on the street, attackers have no respect for their target and they do not expect anything except a screaming success in their attack.
Resistance is for defenders, not attackers.
If someone violently lunges at us and we step out of the way there is an even money bet that they will end up on their ass with no assistance from us.
Attackers do not offer resistance because they themselves do not expect resistance.
Have a cup of tea and think about it.
Is this “A-Hole” happily stepping in to get punched in the throat?
If the guy can end up on his ass without our help we do not need to do much to help him achieve his downfall.
Secondly.
Although we talk of doing nothing, we are obviously doing something.
And that something is just being as normal as we can be in the circumstances, and this obviously can vary according to the situation we encounter.
The nothing is that we are adding nothing extra to any move we perform, especially no extra and un-needed strength.
Adding “nothing extra” depends a great deal on us understanding our default settings.
The FORM, the complete FORM, allows us to explore how we can move in an easy and effortless way, the more we train the more we begin to be able to do these movements more easily.
Our default setting will always be evolving, always trending to easier movements.
This is of course the reason for the FORM in the first place.
To understand how we move, to observe our body at its base level and to try to keep it at that level even when the world around us is turning to shit.
This is a difficult task, even when we are training in a friendly environment it offers a challenge.
A challenge we will never rise to, but that is O.K.
Because it is trying to achieve our current default setting without forcing it that is always the aim and the recipe for success.
Yet again it is the lesson from Stravinski’s violinist.
Moonlight floods the whole sky from horizon to horizon;
How much it can fill your room depends on its windows.”
THIS IS A PUSH, IT NEEDED TO BE. BUT THE POWER IS STILL THERE.
The amount of power needed to abruptly push someone off of their feet is commensurate with the amount of power needed to break things.
Hey Tribe, as we are beginning to explore Wing Chun’s “inch power” here is a post from last year.
Richard asked the following question on our whatsapp Group page…
“Hi Derek, question for the week. The 1 inch punch. I have seen vids of Bruce Lee do it with a lot of torsion, and Sigung Fung doing it square on. Is there any practical use? Was Sigung Fung that powerful?”
It is important to understand the nature of any demonstration is basically ‘Infotainment’.
The amount of power needed to abruptly push someone off of their feet is commensurate with the amount of power needed to break things.
Like ribs and eye sockets, good luck finding a volunteer for that trick.
There are many internet trolls that watch a video of my Sifu and scream “Fake”,.
From a video.
How smart are they.
One of the reasons Wing Chun does not have sparring is because the average Wing Chun player wishes to avoid getting hurt and not engage in it, it is the same with any demo.
I have seen my Sifu perform this on many occasions, the body movement is minimal, the focus sublime, it is as real as a car crash.
But it is also a gimmick, or at the least a training exercise.
As I recount in the video my Sifu once gave me a serious tap, not really a punch, but it was as hard as anything I have experienced.
And I used to box.
EVERYONE. HAS A PLAN, UNTIL YOU PUNCH THEM IN THE FACE.
Do you know your weaknesses, more importantly, do you know how to avoid them?
There is something that we should never forget, and that is…
why we are training?
We are learning to defend ourselves against a persons or persons that intends us serious physical harm.
Despite that training is fun and enjoyable, as I think it should be…
We are not playing.
We are not learning to dance.
Question? Do you know your weaknesses, and more importantly, do you know how to avoid them?
How can we plan for something that we do not even know is going to happen?
Let’s start with the worse thing we can think of, it will be different for all of us but be honest to yourself, there is no need for anyone else to know, we all have one darker fear and if we are ever slipping towards it, we will panic big time if we have not at least played it out in our minds a few times.
My favourite military maxim that should always be considered is …. ‘no battle plan survives contact with the enemy’.
This is not about being real, it is about being semi-prepared, engage your imagination, if in doubt about what would happen in a real situation pick the worst option you can think of.
I will use my worst fear as an example, but it is just the thought process that is important, develop, ask and answer your own questions.
My biggest worry is that I am on the floor!!!
Question #1. How did I get here?
Did the Bad Guy knock me down? Did he catch a kick I attempted and threw me? Did I trip over my own feet?
Most fights that end up on the floor are there because people fall over much more than someone does Ju-Jitsu.
Whatever caused this problem becomes an area for involvement in our training, develop a style that kicks less, stays out of reach of your partner, and develops a better, more well-balanced movement.
Question #2. Could I have prevented this?
If it was something the Bad Guy did what happened that allowed him to be in a position to do that?
Was it his skill and speed or was it a case of me being inattentive or late to respond?
Either way, this problem was caused by not being in control of my personal space and something I can take into training is the question “what does it mean to control my personal space”?
As a training exercise in Chi Sau get a friend to continuously press you and work on maintaining the same shape, position and distance from them at all times.
Ask yourself can I control my personal space by standing in one spot while my attacker is mobile, there is no correct or incorrect answer here, just a specific personal idea that we can train to be more natural.
Question #3. Was he fast or was I slow?
We can always work on our speed, especially the speed we think, our body only ever works at the speed of our thoughts, to a very large extent being quick is about having fewer choices to deliberate on.
Do not waste valuable mental processing time on trying to develop or use ‘Mind Force’, be deliberate and only think about things you can do that will actively help.
If we do not know how to transition from one situation or one position to another we will be stuck in both time and space and an easy target.
Again as a Chi Sau drill work on changing shapes, stances, and positions in space.
Create a drill in Chi Sau where one partner applies a strong forward drive, and the other partner tries to find a way to get behind the aggressor, do not be nice to each other, make it a win / lose game.
In training we usually tend to just do as we are told, often there is no genuine connection to what we as students think may happen, or what we may need, and very rarely is there any student input to reflect a personal worry or experience.
As Instructors we should encourage this type of engagement, as students, we should force ourselves to ask questions, even when we think they may be stupid.
Nearly everything we do in Wing Chun falls under the umbrella of simultaneous attack and defence, in so many street situations this is a practical impossibility. The IDEA is sound, but how close can we get to it?
In street situations the attacker has no time to try to find the best shot, there is no feinting, no dodging and weaving patiently seeking a better position, it is just a flurry of whatever and it is instantly in our face.
Most street violence that Wing Chun would engage with, the average mugging, for instance, is over in less time than it takes to read this sentence.
I am serious, if we lose control of the first 4 or 5 seconds it is ‘lights out and go home’.
If we do not see it coming we are not going to stop it from happening, this is an alarming thought, but it is what it is.
There is a saying in the Boxing World, “it is the punch you do not see that knocks you out”!
Question #4. Why was I unprepared?
No one can teach functional situational awareness because the situation changes from day to day and place to place, because of this most situations we find ourselves in will appear to be almost out of nowhere.
Unpreparedness is our default position, get used to it, train it.
If our regular training does not include ways to regain a good position from a bad position then the prognosis will be terminal, do not fall for the fantasy that Biu Gee teaches emergency techniques, find a way to make space and regain balance.
Question #5. How did this situation arise?
The only way to avoid potential problems is to see them as they evolve, and leave before conception.
Most people that fail in a violent situation do not fail because of a lack of skill or ability, it is usually a lack of trust, or a lack of confidence all made more destructive by the shock inherent in being attacked.
There are hundreds if not thousands of violently effective people who have no training at all in our world, but they are courageous to the level of foolhardiness, they will walk into our fists, we have a huge advantage if we can only bring it to the fore.
Think.
Plan ahead.
Survive.
This is what all training should be. Any other approach is leading to the wrong choice at the wrong time.
it is like thinking that 6 different patterns combined in an ornate carpet are somehow 6 different carpets
Hi guys, over the years I have written hundreds of posts and articles, but I think that this is the most important of all of them. If you can take some time to think about the information here it will certainly help you understand how I think about Wing Chun but also get you well on the way to forming your own IDEA.
The main goal for all of us is to make Wing Chun a personal expression of our knowledge.
Then any information can be valuable information.
When we surf the Internet we find many different opinions on what Wing Chun is, this is completely fine and we have no need to worry about it, the difference is only in the training approach which may or may not relate to the learning outcome.
At times like this we do well to remember that all roads lead to Rome.
For my guys, all rivers eventually reach the ocean.
And take their twigs with them.
Wing Chun is usually described as having 6 forms, I do not like this description, it is clumsy and suggests a separation that simply does not exist, it is like thinking that 6 different patterns combined in an ornate carpet are somehow 6 different carpets.
I prefer to regard Wing Chun as having only 1 Form, which is of course the Sil Lim Tao, presented in the way of 3 attitudes, the first Form [that usually retains the S.L.T.title], the Chum Kiu Form and the Biu Gee Form.
And 3 processes, Mok Jan Jong [dummy], Baat Cham Dao [knives] and Lok Dim Boon Kwan [pole] that allow us to combine and explore the 3 individual attributes.
A more contemporary way to perceive this is to see the First Form, the Chum Kiu Form and the Biu Gee Form as 3 separate yet related theories that we test in the 3 processes of Dummy, Knives and Pole with the goal of discovering ‘our own’ Unified Theory of Wing Chun.
This is the code that grants us access to the Sil Lim Tao.
WHAT ARE THE 3 THEORIES?
First Form Theory. A method of how to set up an upright neutral body, how to move the arms without disturbing this neutral body and finally how to positively charge this neutral body to become a powerful single unit.
Core learning objective. Unify/stabilise an [Upright] STATIC FRAME.
Related research process. The Mok Jang Jong.
Second Form Theory. A method for supporting the arms with the body on contact with incoming force, how to coordinate the movement of the arms with the movement of the body, an introduction to the hierarchy of movement and sequential acceleration in a linear orientation.
Core learning objective. Unify/stabilise a MOVING FRAME.
Related research process. The Lok Dim Boon Kwan.
Third Form Theory. A method of focusing attention to specific points of the body, to develop an understanding of how to enlist the powerful core muscles, and an introduction to weight shifting within the bounds of the frame in a rotary orientation.
Core learning objective. Dynamically empower a unified/stabilised MOVING FRAME.
Related research process. The Baat Cham Dao.
While there are established Forms for the Dummy, Pole and Knives they should be seen as good places to begin testing the theories and not as essential patterns.
A unified theory of Wing Chun resides inside each and every one of us, the big question is can we get it to come out?
We should not overlook that Dr Leung Jan had no intention of inventing a new style.
If you research just about any Kung Fu, for each style you will find several books, diagrams and instructions dating back many generations.
But not Wing Chun.
Why is this?
This is speculation, based on good research but never the less still just me reading between the lines.
We know without a doubt, that Wing Chun was formulated [not created or invented] around mid-1850 in Foshan, by Doctor Leung Jan, a doctor, bonesetter and herbalist.
Dr Leung worked with the local opera troupe in a position I imagine much the same as modern-day sports teams have physios and physical therapists.
His knowledge of anatomy and his experience working with active Martial Artists would have deeply influenced his thinking.
Dr Leung was himself a Martial Artist of some merit but his earlier style was not recorded, smart money would bet on it being a Shaolin style, but there is also a decent argument for Xing Yi, Wing Chun shares many movements and ideas with Xing Yi.
Through his work with the troupe, he would have seen at first hand which of the movements/shapes caused the most injuries [ this would be due mostly to poor alignment] and which movements/shapes appeared to be structurally sound.
It does not take a huge leap of the imagination to think that he would have naturally amended the art he practised to fit his findings.
Foshan in 1860 would have been a very tricky place to live, and an even trickier place to be well off financially, this is just me imagining things but it would be no surprise if we found that he had been the victim of several attempted muggings and he may have found the classical Kung Fu not fit for purpose in those situations.
So he embarked on a journey to change what he knew.
He jumped in the river.
Everything physical in Wing Chun already existed in the other styles.
Dr Leung combined his knowledge and intelligence with the physical aspects of his previous training into what became Wing Chun.
We should not overlook that Dr Leung Jan had no intention of inventing a new style.
It was Dr Jan’s approach and thinking that formed the core of today’s Wing Chun.
From the outset, there were no original movements, postures or techniques, just a new way of thinking about existing movements, postures or techniques.
Depending on our frame of reference Wing Chun has either no actual movement, postures or techniques, or it encompasses all movement, postures and techniques.
I prefer the latter option, and as such we are not only free to employ this thinking to any new development of movement, postures or techniques but are expected to make this connection, and advance this progression.
To stay in the past was the very thing Dr Jan moved away from.
Our first task is to decide which house we choose to live in.
Remain in the past, in effect in the thinking and ability of the late 19th century, or to go boldly where no man has been before and try to resolve Wing Chun’s Fist Logic with up to date thinking allied to the ever-changing landscape of Human movement.
How well we understand something is determined by how well we can act upon it, how well we can act upon that knowledge.
The idea that Shaolin monks would seek enlightenment and then go off to war is a Wuxia invention, a Hong Kong Movie Industry Myth.
Now that we have begun exploring along the lines of the Subtle Body we mustn’t wander off {mentally} and think that it is something that it is not, namely MINDFULNESS.
There is nothing wrong with mindfulness or using Kung Fu shapes to practice mindfulness.
Although it should be obvious that when you are using Kung Fu shapes to practice mindfulness you are practising mindfulness and not Kung Fu.
Working with the IDEA of the Subtle Body is very much a part of physical training for physical Kung Fu, albeit psychophysical/psychoneural/psychomotor, perhaps just plain PSYCHO!
Mindfulness practice has no place in fighting and cannot aid with the physical aspects of training.
What we in the west refer to as mindfulness came about due to a Medical Professor named Jon Kabat-Zinn, who created an 8-week course for terminally ill cancer patients to relieve pain, anxiety and stress, he called it Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR).
Mindfulness is a powerful tool when used as intended
The 9 Attitudes of Mindfulness according to Jon Kabat-Zinn
Non-judging.
Acceptance.
Patience.
Beginner’s mind.
Trust.
Non-Striving.
Letting Go.
Gratitude.
I think it is quite clear that none of the above attitudes is of any use in physical training and even less use in a violent situation.
Mindfulness should be an aspect of our holistic training and I will cover that in a later post.
The idea that Shaolin monks would seek enlightenment and then go off to war is a Wuxia invention, a Hong Kong Movie Industry Myth.
Do not fall for it!
The work we are heading towards is influenced by some of the giants of neuroscience the late Prof. Karl H. Pribram, the late Dr. Moshé Feldenkrais and the very alive Dr. V.S. Ramachandran.
Look them up and get a head start on training.
Stay tuned, stay in touch, there is much more to come and as I get a better handle on explaining things it may even begin to make sense.
IN A STREET FIGHT STYLE AND TECHNIQUE ACHIEVE VERY LITTLE AND MEAN NOTHING.
IT IS AGGRESSION AND DETERMINATION THAT MEAN EVERYTHING
Engaging in this kind of mental exercise allows us to step away from what have come to think as reality.
It is amazing how much these old posts echo what we did this past Saturday, you would think we had passed this way before.
Using Wing Chun Fist Logic, Economy of Movement, this is a re-post and not a rewrite.
When we are confronted by abstract IDEAs that we struggle to adequately explain we use the mental tool of an analogy using the description of something we understand at some level to stand in for another completely different thing.
Such as seeing our body as a grove of bamboo that bends and sways with the wind instead of resisting it to imagine how to handle incoming force.
Or in the way the Shaolin Monks crafted their movements after different animals, this is also a kind of analogy.
Tiger, Crane, Leopard, Snake, and Dragon are all essentially the same Kung Fu, the same preparation, the same conditioning, the same body-work it is only their inspiration of how to use their Kung Fu that differs.
Tiger style relies on brute force and upper body strength, Leopard style is defined by fast attacks targeting soft tissues, pressure points, and vital areas, Crane style is more of an evasive style, Snake style relies on speed and intimidation and finally Dragon style, which combines traits of the other four animals.
The chosen movement style of any monk is a reflection of the physical analogy they most relate to and of course, that choice is fueled by their imagination, fueled by how well they can visualise and internalise the analogy.
It is not that big a stretch to say that all Kung Fu is the same body-work and that only the individual analogies separate them, we all begin with the same blank canvas.
In the more word-centric western thinking, we do well to replace the IDEA of analogy with the IDEA of strategy.
In this way, there is only one martial Style with many ways to use it, which means we can learn from a multitude of sources.
Setting up the body, understanding how to maintain the set-up when moving and changing shapes are the core of the training, how and where we use that training is dictated by our chosen strategy/analogy.
Things get a bit wacky when we look into this way of training, there is a need to suspend our chosen reality and view everything as a movie, later on we can decide what the movie was about.
Movie #1. A twig on a river, the twig moves but the river stays in the same place. Our arms are the twig, our body is the river.
Movie #2. A Fire Hose, no matter how much water is gushing out of the hose nozzle, the hose is always full. Our hands are the water, our body is the hose.
Movie #3. Our Body is a Spider Web, it is not possible to only move one part of the web, it all moves together no matter what part we move.
Engaging in this kind of mental exercise allows us to step away from what we have come to think of as reality, step away from the rules that govern it, and get closer to seeing things as they are.
Before we get all Carlos Castaneda stay connected to the FACT that at the centre of all Shaolin Fighting Moks training was Dhyāna/Chan/Zen – a state of being, an IDEA, they were always trying to be in the moment and to understand themselves as men, they were never trying to be animals.
Engaging in out-of-our-head thinking can be more than beneficial in so many ways…
BUT…
…At the end of the day, 2 + 2 must always equal 4.
It is good to keep an open mind, but not so open that our brain falls out.
The universe is founded in symmetry, unification through symmetry, the fundamental theme of Mother Nature, all of the forces of the universe combine to form simpler structures, unifying them through a simple symmetry.
What is simpler than being ourselves?
Unification through symmetry is the theme of the universe.
The governing paradigm of the whole universe is symmetry.
In this Saturday morning’s training I felt that we had in some way finished a rotation and we were once again setting our first steps on the journey that is understanding Wing Chun, but this time with the benefit of the knowledge we accumulated from previous rotations.
Borrowed maps from fellow travellers.
Over the coming week, I am going to re-run a number of posts that are in sync with this IDEA.
ONCE MORE WITH FEELING.
There is more to a Bus Journey than a Driver and a Bus, there needs to be interaction, our Ego makes us think that we bring about that interaction, we think the act of driving is us creating the interaction, but Driving is an inherent part of being a Driver, just as much as breathing or eating.
Interaction is not done, it just happens.
The magic in all of this is that the Bus does not know the Driver exists, and the Driver does not realise that he is part of the Bus.
When we think of Layers we tend to envision them as physical things like layers of an Onion, without realising it we think we have some control over them, that we can separate them manually, move from one to another simply by choosing to, this is rarely the case, we would do better to see Layers as something like a state change or dimension shift, something that happens around us, something we have little control over like the dawning of a new day, one moment it is pitch black, then a sliver of light breaks in and then just like magic it is all daylight.
When we first do the Form we place our awareness into a single Arm and we keep it there as we make the different movements, for a long time that’s all there is, an Arm moving somewhere, we become amazed, and slightly obsessed.
As we become familiar and comfortable with this way of being we start to sense that there is something else here, without noticing the transition our awareness is now consumed by the rotation of the Shoulder, the hinging of the Elbow, the flexing of the Wrist and the extension of the Fingers, in everything we do this is the new reality of moving, and again we become amazed, and slightly obsessed.
With repetition comes familiarity, increased knowledge begins another transition, now our awareness is consumed by the Bridge alone {the lower Arm from the Elbow to the Finger tips}, externally the moves are the same, everything that was happening before is still happening, including the amazement and obsession.
Time, repetition, familiarity, transition, the pattern repeats but now there is just one tiny spot on the Bridge, it could be anywhere, a Finger Tip, an Elbow, a Wrist, as if someone had just marked us with a Felt Tipped Board Marker, a little Green Dot.
Every move every action is just this little Green Dot going about its business, following our intention. Time, repetition, familiarity, transition, we realise that our whole Body is made up of millions of little Green Dots, connected, and unified, when one Green Dot moves they all move, so we only ever need to move one Green Dot.
Any green dot we choose, it could be on our wrist if we are thinking Sil Lim Tao, on our Waist if we are thinking Chum Kiu, on a Shoulder if we are thinking Biu Gee, it is just a thought, just an IDEA.
When any single part of us moves all of us moves.
There is a perception that deeper levels or layers bring greater more complex IDEAS, this is as far from the truth as we can get, every layer underneath is smaller, simpler and closer to the core.
The easiest place to experience these transitions, these layers, these dimension shifts or state changes is of course the First Form, not because it is in any way superior to the other Forms but because there is a lot less going on,
This is why so many people spend so much time on this Form, but there is a danger in this practice, if we cannot, or do not make the connections between all the Forms, if we cannot or do not create one unified method, one unified IDEA we may end up with a deep understanding of the First Form but a shallow understanding of Chum Kiu and Bill Gee.
When we consider that in ‘application’ we only ever use aspects of Chum Kiu and Bil Gee this could become a problem.
There is no special trick or skill to unifying the Forms, we just spend an equal amount of time on each one, if we can find one move, one feeling, that is exactly the same in all the Forms and work outwards from that point, interaction will just happen.
The Driver boards the Bus and takes his seat, the Bus kicks into life and the Journey begins.
Today is a different journey than yesterday, even if we take the same route.
The journey from ‘not knowing’ to ‘knowing’ is very much like travelling along a dark road, when knowledge arrives it does not come as a bolt of lightning that brings instant illumination and clarity, it is much more like falling into a hole in the road that was always there, we just could not see it in the dark.
Wing Chun Sydney, Australia 