One of the crowd?

[SaMantis]

Something spiralstair said in the Wah Lum thread got me thinking. I'm not going to print the exact quote here because I'm going off on a tangent and don't want to print his intended words out of context.

Basically, spiralstair was talking about being "one of the crowd" vs. stepping out on one's own.

It got me to thinking about the progression of the student, from beginner to mastery (or at least being dubbed master). When a beginner joins a kung fu school, he wants to be one of the crowd. But he also wants to make an individual mark on the art, in some way.

Many beginners fit into the crowd just fine, but get frustrated when they don't become masters overnight. A few work through the frustration and persevere to become advanced students. And even fewer become real standouts -- people who "step out" of the crowd and make a real mark on the school/system.

How long were you just one of the crowd at your school? When did you decide to step out on your own (not leave the school, but take the material you learned and "own it")? And, how did you do it?

[yu shan]

Hi SaM

Practice, Practice, Practice...sweat your bums off, become one with yourself! You will gain respect in the hierarchy! It takes time, alot of sweat, and true diligence. It`s all good!

[BeiTangLang]

I'm just guessing, 'cause I am still just one of the crowd,
Those that do "stand out" usually do not know it & don't know it for several years. By the time they do know it, its not something they care to talk about in an open forum.

[SaMantis]

Thanks, guys.

I guess I was just wondering if there was some sort of "magic moment" when martial artists come into full bloom, and if they even recognize it when it happens.

[Hua Lin Laoshi]

It seems to me that you progress from being one of the (large) crowd to one of the (small) crowd. The more you progress the smaller the crowd you identify with until at the Master level you're one of the few.

And then there are those who were never one of the crowd to begin with. :D

"When a beginner joins a kung fu school, he wants to be one of the crowd. "

There's the fatal mistake. You either merge with the arts and become what you can or follow the crowd. Not that following the crowd is a bad thing. It's a good way to become one of the few. However, if Wong Long was one of the crowd we wouldn't be discussing this on a Northern Praying Mantis forum.

[TaiChiStorm]

Do you know my (favourite) book (and movie) "Iron and Silk"???? I think it has somethink to do with "stepping out of the cloud".