What is Nei Jia, Neigong or internal?

[SPJ]

What is internal?

Here is a link:

an article in Pa Kua Chang newsletter, jan/feb 1992

What is your oppinion?

[SPJ]

This is a common Q. I was asked in a donation banquet.

I paused.

Then I said there are both internal and external exercises or practices. Neigong and Waigong.

And Nei Jia Quan or fists are associated with Tai Ji, Xing Yi and Ba Gua.

[Ou Ji]

External springs from internal which, in turn, is a product of external. The question is, which came first the chicken (external) or the egg (internal)?

[cam]

Some train the external to move the internal
Some train the internal to move the external.

Everyone else sleeps in!

[BAI HE]

I can't do any better than this so read on:

http://www.shenwu.com/Internal_VS_External.htm

[ShaolinWood]

"The key to training qi is to be slow and relaxed,
the key to using qi is to be violent and quick." - Shaolin Poem

Whichever path you take in your training; starting off with external, or starting of with internal you need to finish with the opposite.

External training needs to be finished of with an understanding of the internal and the same with the other.

In Taiji we start by training slow forms and silk reeling techniques, then years later implimenting fa-jing and chinna.

Then eventually you start doing those same slow (seemingly boring) forms in full speed, executing each technique in a martial matter. Sparring changes from soft pushhands to full contact fighting.

And the same goes for the external styles. Shaolin starts off with doing hard strikes and kicking excersizes and drills till you're exhausted, and years later you study the finer arts of qigong and breathing.

Why?

One needs to understand darkness to know light.

You need to know where to punch AND how to punch, you need to know the technique of chinna AND understand why you do it like that.
Soft compliments the hard, and hard compliments the soft.

If you only train hard techniques you will only be as good as to beat someone weaker than you. But if you learn how to flow and feel your apponents energy four ounces deflects a thousand pounds.

[SPJ]

Neigong or internal is difficult to explain.

So usually we just discuss breathing exercise as Qi gong.

Standing post practice as a quiet or not moving practice or Jin Gong.

Forms and other movement practice as moving practice or Dong Gong.

etc.

1. We learn the moves. It is call a Zhao.

2. We learn the end move or posture. It is call a Shi.

3. We then practice the timing and the release of Jing (power) from these Zhao and Shi.

Actually the speed is from proficiency of doing things right everytime.

Internal and external are so interlinked or connected.

It is very difficult to separate the 2.

Or there is no timetable of which is first or later. But all at the same time.

Eventually, we practice the spirits or Shen in the forms of moves and postures.

[TenTigers]

Tim Cartmell's article was very infomative, although not entirely accurate on a few points. I'm not going to go over each point, ('cause I gots things ta do) but the did mention that external martial arts tend to issude power through the waist and upper body through a rooted stance, which is innacurate-at least in terms of Hung Kuen, Wing Chun, Southern mantis,and CLFm to name a few. All these styles generate whole body power from the ground up. The whole body is the fist. Every strike is connected from the points of the foot throughout the entire body. Even the most "external" looking strike-ping choy-the reverse punch, starts from the heel. The development of iron palm si also not about conditioning the extremities, although it is in part. It is about whole power generation,unifying the entire body into the strike. In real iron palm, the entire body strikes. If you look at the opening sequence in Tai Chi Ch'uan, the raising of the arms,sinking and dropping, this entire sequence is the method of power generation taught in iron palm. oops-just gave out a forbidden secret-shhhh! let's just keep this between us, ok?
Many of these so-called external systems, only became this way during the overthrow of the Ching Dynasty, when rebels were trained in a shorter amount of time,and were also expendable, like Marines-or as the Navy Seal refer to them-bannanas-they arrive green, and die in bunches. The big problem is, that after the entire attempt at overthrowing the Chings was over, they should have gone back to the original methods of training-static postures,transitions, slow movement,noi-gung, before going into faster harder training. Tiet Sien Kuen-which is taught last (because it's a "treasure") was most likely taught first,
and in some schools, it actually is.

[ShaolinWood]

Well said SPJ!

"In stillness like a mountain; in motion like the river."