The first section of the video: Practicing the two-section staff or nunchaku without emphasis on any fixed form using mixed martial arts techniques, meditation, and some combat techniques. The voice over is describing the philosophy of the Way of the Empty Fist, which is to be like water, roll with the blows of life, and never become stiff because stiffness and holding on prevents us from using creativity to grow. It's a poetic description of what Chinese call the Tao. The form and the postures in this section of the video aren't really meant to be repeated; it's just a sequence that naturally developed through the practice of movements and through the process of experimentation. One general rule of this style is that there only a limited number of basic movements that the human body can create, so moves that develop spontaneously often represent forms that are from fixed patterns, but there is no need to hold on to anything.
The second half of this video is a brief and very basic description of some techniques used with the nunchaku or 雙截棍. The moves are not flashy and complex and basically combine some of the fundamental techniques with the use of the nunchaku as well as ways to emit energy or 發力. None of this is complex or as deep as you would learn in the intensive study of a style, but the focus here is on simplicity and the mechanics of basic movements.
This martial art is not a martial art in the limited sense of a fixed martial art with only certain forms that you can apply in actual combat. Instead, it is a series of spontaneous movements based on a philosophical conception. It doesn't have to contradict one's religious beliefs or other beliefs. It's based on the concept of harmony with nature, of improvisation, of finding complexity within the simplicity of the present moment. It encompasses what is Zen: surrendering to who you are, to the being that you are, and to the moment that is yourself unfolding in the present. As a form that is seeking the formless, there are no fixed patterns, so techniques can come from other martial arts. This is drawing from my experience in martial arts, meditation, and yoga beginning in the early 1990s up to the present. After spending 8 years living in China and practicing the martial arts, I finally returned to America. Here in the United States, I was encouraged to open up a martial arts club at my local university because of my certifications in Chen style taiji, Yang style, and my study of Zhao Bao and Tong Bei Quan, as well as traditional Chinese long fist. Through this experience of teaching, I realized that the cultural context in the U.S. is different and requires a different approach to the teaching of martial arts, one that is more focused on spontaneity, the use of techniques, and actual combat. Therefore, I created the martial art of 虛拳道. In Chinese, 虛 means empty, and this empty force is one of the secrets of Chinese internal energy qi gong practice (literally working with the breath). The idea is to let go of tension in the body, or to create controlled tension and release of tension through spiraling motions or direct movements that opening and closing of the body. Through the practice of spontaneous movements, one can express the inner freedom of the body as one unifies the breath, the body, and the mind. Naturally, as an older person (53 years old), I believe that one of the most important facets of the martial arts isn't only self-defense, but also to remain flexible as one grows older and to shed egotistical ways. Ego can develop from the attachment to a particular form because it leads to mental attachment, and mental attachment inhibits our natural process of creativity and improvisation that allows us to find ourselves. So, if we naturally accept that nothing is fixed in life, we will become fluid like water. Doing spontaneous movements might seem awkward at first, but through this practice, and through the repetition of techniques that we learn as we practice and synthesize different styles, then we can bring them to life in a combat situation. If our goal is health, the practice of spontaneous movement can lead to stretching our body, which releases tension. Relaxation of the spine is one element that one can achieve through the practice of spontaneous movements, bringing together the breath, the spine, and the movement of the whole body. Because 虛拳道 or the Way of the Empty Fist is an internal martial art, the focus is on spiritual cultivation and on helping others, finding peace within, and helping oneself. It is about cultivating the natural energy within, so one's inner freedom can also blossom in this world. The secret of the internal martial arts is also through the development of the principle that the body is an interconnected whole, coordinated through the waist and the feet, rooted to the ground, but also able to seek the rootless and the formless. It's ever-changing, just as the natural world constantly changes and evolves.
4 июн 2024
