KC Elbows
12-02-2009, 03:36 PM
Having been around here for awhile, I'm fairly aware of the change in attitudes of many practitioners here. While there are some who like to lament the state of kung fu, the reality is that the dreamers are, while still quite vocal, limited to a smaller number of personalities than when I started here. A much smaller number.
As here, in the actual world, the diminished state of much of the kung fu competition scene(in the sense of the old forms/continuous sparring based comps) has weakened the schools of dreamers.
The other schools have generally been moving toward a more open view, and tend to cross hands with a wider array of martial artists, and tend to be more progressive(or, if you will, more traditional) in their view of the need to train their style to practical proficiency, regardless of the cries of alarmists. I can say this, because no one here does my style, so I have no bias regarding this, it is the truth.
For that group, the constant litany of "oh the lamentable state of kung fu" not only denies their progressive efforts, but forces them into a position of being in the middle of an argument between the dreamers, and practitioners of other styles who have no personal reason to give them a break or credit, and who, frankly, agreeing with does nothing useful for kung fu, anyway. It also denies the FACT that the lamentable state of kung fu is something they were handed, and chose to help improve.
So, if you've done something good for your line of kung fu, whether cross training and being more open to outside influences, preserving functional methods, or otherwise, post it here.
Me:
I am one of a handful of teachers in my line of my system here. Given permission to teach, I chose not to, but instead one of the others and I began a long process of reforming the training methodology a couple years back. I pushed for the removal of forms that were not traditionally part of the system, as did two other teachers. This narrowed the focus to one empty hand form and one spear set. I then began working with that same instructor to work live drills, testing the system as we knew it. To support this, I studied a number of sources, including four different Shuai Jiao books in Chinese and English and a number of judo texts for reference to throws that resembled throws in our system, books from a number of wudang styles with similar striking methodologies, Chen style under two different teachers in Henan for elements that resembled aspects of our system that were emphasized, but still not fully clear, every source available from any system on spear(still in progress), a large number of books on san shou, and a number of texts on qin na(still in progress.)
Through live drills, I learned a tremendous amount about the system, as did my training partner, until the friend and teacher who taught us the system began to routinely say that he was learning the system now from us, and he joined in these drills, expanding the project.
I have worked doggedly on designing a training regimen to capture this aliveness and take the center of training off of repetition of the form and application practice, and move it toward an understanding that the system is not a practice done alone when a choice is there, but instead represents a combination of energies. Since our line already worked out extensively, and included a good number of people cross training in bjj and training for mma, this has led to myself being exposed to more methods and forced me to find my style's answer to those methods while going against younger, stronger people. That group seems to highly respect what I know, though I teach no one, but instead work toward improving the training methodology of our line so that they can have better training partners, so that the line can have better teachers and fighters.
I work and do school full time, and have no money or time to compete in any practical sense. Hopefully, next year I will be pursuing my masters and attending law school, and hopefully working as a TA to pay tuition and have a stipend. Still, I train on a regular schedule, and swim and play water polo now while my knee heals from a dislocation from a throw gone wrong. When I say I study various books an fighting methodology, I mean it: they are dog eared, and have numerous notes, highlighted areas, and tabs for those points I feel important. I am selective in sources, and constantly develop theories that are then proven or disproven.
I have always been referred to as talented. In China, I turned away many teachers, and those I had referred to me as 聪明 regarding kung fu. However, I always noted that those saying these things were just like me, and perhaps I have some talent, but it would be nothing without some focus and honesty in my training, and good training partners, and even then, I know that, regarding full contact, I got into the game late. So I try to make my line fertile ground for those who follow me, and use my talent and intelligence to make their training lead to places I may never see.
As such, I am highly critical of those who, ignorant of even the slightest details of the lives of kung fu men who truly have full contact skills, lump all together with the scam artists and loud mouthed mediocrities of the world. Even where there is room for improvement, such people do not truly care about the furtherance of kung fu. I have been in many kinds of martial arts schools, and I know how many, in all styles, ignorantly talk about how much better they are than all others: this path leads nowhere, and when I was studying the system under my friend, I was caustic toward any such behavior on student's part, giving a harsh education on talk versus training. Let others fall down that route, while we work on improving ours.
I am told I am a sifu, but I teach no one. There are those who steal my kung fu, and that is fine, but they must understand it from me doing it in resisting manners, because that is the only place it should exist.
This post required two beers.:D
As here, in the actual world, the diminished state of much of the kung fu competition scene(in the sense of the old forms/continuous sparring based comps) has weakened the schools of dreamers.
The other schools have generally been moving toward a more open view, and tend to cross hands with a wider array of martial artists, and tend to be more progressive(or, if you will, more traditional) in their view of the need to train their style to practical proficiency, regardless of the cries of alarmists. I can say this, because no one here does my style, so I have no bias regarding this, it is the truth.
For that group, the constant litany of "oh the lamentable state of kung fu" not only denies their progressive efforts, but forces them into a position of being in the middle of an argument between the dreamers, and practitioners of other styles who have no personal reason to give them a break or credit, and who, frankly, agreeing with does nothing useful for kung fu, anyway. It also denies the FACT that the lamentable state of kung fu is something they were handed, and chose to help improve.
So, if you've done something good for your line of kung fu, whether cross training and being more open to outside influences, preserving functional methods, or otherwise, post it here.
Me:
I am one of a handful of teachers in my line of my system here. Given permission to teach, I chose not to, but instead one of the others and I began a long process of reforming the training methodology a couple years back. I pushed for the removal of forms that were not traditionally part of the system, as did two other teachers. This narrowed the focus to one empty hand form and one spear set. I then began working with that same instructor to work live drills, testing the system as we knew it. To support this, I studied a number of sources, including four different Shuai Jiao books in Chinese and English and a number of judo texts for reference to throws that resembled throws in our system, books from a number of wudang styles with similar striking methodologies, Chen style under two different teachers in Henan for elements that resembled aspects of our system that were emphasized, but still not fully clear, every source available from any system on spear(still in progress), a large number of books on san shou, and a number of texts on qin na(still in progress.)
Through live drills, I learned a tremendous amount about the system, as did my training partner, until the friend and teacher who taught us the system began to routinely say that he was learning the system now from us, and he joined in these drills, expanding the project.
I have worked doggedly on designing a training regimen to capture this aliveness and take the center of training off of repetition of the form and application practice, and move it toward an understanding that the system is not a practice done alone when a choice is there, but instead represents a combination of energies. Since our line already worked out extensively, and included a good number of people cross training in bjj and training for mma, this has led to myself being exposed to more methods and forced me to find my style's answer to those methods while going against younger, stronger people. That group seems to highly respect what I know, though I teach no one, but instead work toward improving the training methodology of our line so that they can have better training partners, so that the line can have better teachers and fighters.
I work and do school full time, and have no money or time to compete in any practical sense. Hopefully, next year I will be pursuing my masters and attending law school, and hopefully working as a TA to pay tuition and have a stipend. Still, I train on a regular schedule, and swim and play water polo now while my knee heals from a dislocation from a throw gone wrong. When I say I study various books an fighting methodology, I mean it: they are dog eared, and have numerous notes, highlighted areas, and tabs for those points I feel important. I am selective in sources, and constantly develop theories that are then proven or disproven.
I have always been referred to as talented. In China, I turned away many teachers, and those I had referred to me as 聪明 regarding kung fu. However, I always noted that those saying these things were just like me, and perhaps I have some talent, but it would be nothing without some focus and honesty in my training, and good training partners, and even then, I know that, regarding full contact, I got into the game late. So I try to make my line fertile ground for those who follow me, and use my talent and intelligence to make their training lead to places I may never see.
As such, I am highly critical of those who, ignorant of even the slightest details of the lives of kung fu men who truly have full contact skills, lump all together with the scam artists and loud mouthed mediocrities of the world. Even where there is room for improvement, such people do not truly care about the furtherance of kung fu. I have been in many kinds of martial arts schools, and I know how many, in all styles, ignorantly talk about how much better they are than all others: this path leads nowhere, and when I was studying the system under my friend, I was caustic toward any such behavior on student's part, giving a harsh education on talk versus training. Let others fall down that route, while we work on improving ours.
I am told I am a sifu, but I teach no one. There are those who steal my kung fu, and that is fine, but they must understand it from me doing it in resisting manners, because that is the only place it should exist.
This post required two beers.:D