Day after day
Train your heart out,
Refining your technique:
Use the one to strike the many!
That is the discipline of a Warrior.
(Ueshiba)
Kung fu
Kung fu literally means 'hard work'.
Anything can be considered kung fu, even a mundane task such as washing
dishes can offer the opportunity for you to be invested totally in the task,
to lose yourself.
The term 'kung fu' may have come from the name Kung Fu Tzu or Confucius.
It is an umbrella-term commonly used in reference to Chinese martial arts.
Internal & external
Kung fu is sometimes split into
internal & external,
soft &
hard, Wudang or Shaolin.
Internal, soft, Wudang refer to a dozen systems that focus on internal
movement and the cultivation of
qi.
External, hard, Shaolin represent the thousands of systems that rely on muscular
strength and speed to produce power.
The internal are usually more difficult to learn.
Internal and external are both good for
health and
self defence if taught
well and applied appropriately.
External systems can be used in self defence after only a few months of practice whereas
the internal could take years.
| Internal | External |
| Listening | Planning |
| Blending | Struggling |
| Being with what is happening | Wishing things were different |
| Being in the body and sensation-oriented | Being in your head thinking about what to do next |
| Feeling your vulnerability | Denying your vulnerability |
| Loose, fluid and relaxed musculature | Contracted, locked musculature |
| This list appears courtesy of Ron Sieh. | |
Internal arts
Internal kung fu systems are
sometimes referred to as neijia chuan or neijiaquan.
The three main internal arts
are
tai chi,
hsing i
and
bagwa.
There are only a few internal arts but countless schools within each style,
each teaching a different syllabus.
Some
tai chi styles combine tai chi, hsing i and bagwa - in particular Sun
style.
Although internal styles are quite
different from one another, they share the basic principles that define all
internal martial art styles.
Some of
the basic principles are:
Heightened awareness of your internal body posture and structure
Release of tension, both externally and internally
Letting go of physical, muscular strength to perform movement
Sinking of the qi and the development of 'root'
Linking the internal organs to assist the flow and movement of qi
The development of inner peace and a calm emotional state
Eat bitter
The necessity of
restraint makes it difficult to learn a martial art.
Even when you want to use your kung fu, it may not be appropriate to
do so.
In tai chi
you must not use fa jing or
chin na unless
there is no other choice.
Tai chi was designed for self defence, not for
fighting.
Wushu
In contrast with kung fu, there is 'wushu'.
Wushu is
performance art kung fu - a non-martial
demonstration of acrobatic ability and gymnastic skill.
It is a sport.
Kung fu is pragmatic and serious, whereas wushu is flamboyant and exciting
to watch.
Page created 8 October 2000