SELECTION OF QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
JUNE 2024 PART 3
"Gentle Breeze through Sleeves" in Wudang Kungfu
Question 1
The info about Wudang Kungfu I sent was just to show you what it is I am finding as part of the research for the Wudang Kungfu essay.
— Sifu Angel Perez, Shaolin Wahnam Puerto Rico
Answer
Thanks for your diagram.
You will be a Shaolin master one day.
I was born in the star system of Sagittarius.
Zhang San Feng watched a snake and a bird fighting. I believe it was an eagle, and there are eagle patterns in Wudang Kungfu.
I am very proud that all who spread the Shaolin arts were princes -- the Buddha himself, Bodhidharma, the prince and princess who spread Buddhism to Sri Lanka and later to Burma and Thailand, and the prince who spread Buddhism to Tibet and later to Mongolia.
Malaysia has both Theravada Buddhism and Mahayana Buddhism. Vajrayana Buddhism is catching up.
Question 2
I hope you might remember me. I worked with gorillas for decades, and as a lifelong martial artist I worked on exploring, codifying, and restoring ape movements in the rare art Yuan Gong, which has its roots in southern Shaolin styles.
— Dr Dawn Prince
Answer
Of course I remember you. You are a martial artist who founded Yuan Gong and the Ape man.
"Yellow Oriole Drinks Water" in Shaolin Kungfu
Question 3
Now I have a clearer picture why the cat is "yang" and the ape is "ying". I can understand that the first 4 roads are very fast, sleek, very leopard-like in terms of qi movement, then the next 4 roads develop a different feeling of force and strength, and this is generated from within, and finally the last 4 roads are softer, slower, more meditative. According to Shaolin philosophy one can have internal force, though he (or she) may not realize it.
Answer
The Leopard, the Tiger and the Panther are different. Leopard kungfu uses strength, whereas Tiger kungfu uses internal force. The Panther refers to the lion, the tiger and the jaguar, which is bigger than the leopard.
Internal force has puzzled many people. Size, age and gender are not decisive factors.
For a Westerner, a small person is no match for a bigger person. A small person is no match for a stronger person. One who is seventy years old is no match for a person half his age. A woman is no match for a man. But this does not apply in kungfu.
Ng Mui is a notable example. She was a woman. She fought single-handedly against palace guards and killed Yong Cheng, who wore a special dress to protect himself, to avenge for the burning of the Shaolin Monastery. Even Pak Mei, who was a genius and who founded Emei Kungfu, Pak Mei Kungfu and Dragon Style Kungfu, was afraid to fight with Ng Mui.
Question 4
Something that might interest you is that over my long career working with apes I have known that they, like all sentient animals, can bend time and space -- travel in other dimensions.
Answer
Time and space are human constructs. They can be bent. This happens in Shaolin Kungfu too.
It is strange that you are in other parts of the world, in other timelines. Other people may see this as strange. You sat with a burnt monk, you read a baby abandoned on a bus, and a pilot whose plane was going down.
It is interesting to have these impressions. The world is indeed a strange place.
"Nebula Evolving Round" in Wudang Taijiquan
Question 5
It is great to be able to read Sifu's articles.
— Sifu John O Laoidh, Shaoin Wahnam Eireann
Answer
The "Chi Flow and Cash Flow", the "72 Arts of Shaolin" and "The Amazing Intensive Taijiquan Course" are very important. They explain chi flow, the arts of Shaolin, and the amazing Intensive Taijiquan Course.
"Chi flow" is the result of chi kung. If after performing "Lifting the Sky" or "Carrying the Moon", a person does not have a chi flow he misses the purpose of chi kung. He does not have good health, vitality and longevity.
We use "Lifting the Sky" or "Carrying the Moon" as an example. Other schools may practice other exercises. It doesn't matter what exercises they practice so long as they are chi kung (spelt as "qigong" in Romanized Chinese) exercises. If they do not have a "chi flow", they do not have chi kung benefits, which are good health, vitality and longevity.
We chose good health, vitality and longevity. They are chi kung benefits. It takes a few years to have a "chi flow". We can have a "chi flow" fast, within an hour of our practice.
Many people don't have a "chi flow"; they merely practice gentle, physical exercise, and gentle, physical exercise does not give chi kung benefits. Just because they use chi kung exercises, they think they practice chi kung but they are not aware of it. They are unaware because they used chi kung exercises.
I have often mentioned they are skills that make a difference. They think they use techniques, but techniques do not make a difference. Because of my experience -- I have more than a hundred classes a year -- I can make students acquire the skills. If they don't acquire the skills they don't have to pay the training fees. Every teacher is different.
But we practice high-level chi kung. We also acquire peak performance and spiritual joys irrespective of religion.
Question 6
Reading the article about the 72 Arts of Shaolin, I realize again how ridiculously lucky we are -- thanks to Sifu's teaching.
Answer
In the next title, 72 Arts of Shaolin, I mainly learn the arts from Sifu Ho Fatt Nam and Uncle Righteousness. Sometimes I invented the art, e.g. (64) the Art of Mind Flow.
It means we need to complete a set of exercises, like finding a suitable place to practice and the actual practices. We should find a suitable place and have a few practice sessions. We should have at least 3 sessions.
We should not find a suitable place of and on, and when the practice session draws near, start to think of what to teach.
"Forceful Small Universe"
Question 7
It is great to be able to read Sifu's articles such as the one about the Intensive Taijiquan Course.
Answer
In the next title, the Amazing Intensive Taijiquan Course, more than 90% of Taijiquan practitioners practice without internal force and without combat application, yet all Taijiquan practitioners in the past had internal force and combat application.
I doubt whether a modern practitioner can jump over a chair or run a marathon.
Again I have personal experience. I can transmit skills into students within an hour, failing which they don't have to pay me any training fees.
The amazing Intensive Taijiquan Course benefits much from the Intensive Shaolin Kungfu Course. There are two items namely "Pushing Hands" and "Striking Hands" that are not found in the Intensive Shaolin Kungfu Course.
Students who complete the course can handle any person irrespective of size, age and gender. They can learn stance training which develops internal force which contributes to daily living.
The Intensive Taijiquan Course is in honour of Zhang San Feng, who found Wudang Taijiquan, which is the prototype of all Taijiquan practiced today.
Question 8
I have started practising the Small Universe; both Forceful and Gentle. Can I have a vigorous chi flow after circulating the "Small Universe" for some time?
Answer
The "Small Universe" is wonderful. It is an art that develops internal force which contributes to sports and games but also to daily living. If you have internal force, you will live life longer, have more vitality, and enjoy longevity.
You should also practice your "Big Universe". You can practice your "Small Universe" more often than your "Big Universe".
As mentioned earlier, we practice high-level chi kung. We will have peak performance and spiritual joys irrespective of religion.
You need not practice "Lifting the Sky" and "Carrying the Moon", though they are good chi kung exercises. You can practice your Wudang set, like the San Feng Set, or any combat application, like the Shaolin Combat Application.
You should find a girlfriend.
LINKS
Selected Reading
- Sabah Intensive Chi Kung Course
- Realizing and Maniefesting the Fundamentals of Chi Kung
- Our First Taijiquan Combat Sequences in the 1980s
- Wahnam Taijiquan against Muay Thai
- Using Combat Sequences in Fighting