Your Fav IMA strike

[Nexus]

Projecting with the eyes need not be some advanced application TCBob. It is actually something you learn at many schools early on, though few remember to do it!

It was taught to me first by Lao Ma and then by Master Zhang both doing two different applications. Lao Ma taught it doing push hands working with the 'push' where you open the eyes and project intention to the horizon, increasing the power of your push. Zhang taught it with hsing-i chopping (wood element), raising the eyebrows and opening the eyes wide.

[TaiChiBob]

Greetings..

Intention, by my experience, is not dependent on vision.. I usually push-hands with my eyes closed.. the energy doesn't deceive.. but, the appearance of movement is often designed to deceive, to elicit a response from the opponent.. Now, i don't spar regularly with my eyes closed (i figure it's just bad luck).. but we do get aggressive while blindfolded.. learning to fall while blinded is a very useful asset..

In the late '70s i accidentally got some toxic chemicals in my eyes (organic acrilymides) and my eyes were bandaged for 6 days.. the first couple of days were torture, but the remaining time was a life-altering education.. learning to sense balance without the benefit of sight is difficult, but rewarding.. you can actually "find your center".. from there you move much more differently than when guided by sight, much more instinctively.. In fact, i am considering some sensory deprivation training.. It's too easy to assume we will always have the benefit of all our senses.. not to mention the heightened awarenesses when training without them..

Just a different perspective, non-contentious.. Be well..

[Nexus]

Tai Chi Bob,
Thank you for sharing.

RIght you are, we should not and shall not become attached to our senses for they can give us over-confidence. As my teacher would say, A person with a weapon usually feels overconfident because of the weapon, and the first mistake they make with that overconfidence is attacking you, even if you dont have one.

As far as closed-eye training is concerned, your recommendation several months ago or perhaps it was guohens :shrug: was inspiration to do some eyes-closed standing meditation work. It has certainly paid off and has become much easier with time as well as obviously identifying the center which (low and behold) is the lower dan tien (them chinese had something, they did!)

Well thank you again and always open to your insights and experience.

[Waidan]

I'd have to say my "favorite" strike changes weekly, depending on what material I'm focusing on. Generally though, I really like zuan chuan. It's fast, difficult to intercept, and I can get a lot of mustard behind it.

I've also got some methods using heart piercing palm and our "bear strike" (basically a downward slapping palm) that are just dynomite