Hangzhou with Master

I was privileged to spend a couple of days with Master and Master Sun.  Here are my notes:

The opponent completes the circuit. When you are about to fall, that is when your power transfers. This goes back to an explanation where Master propped up two cards leaning on each other. Master said that his previous videos showing this technique received a lot of flack since it looked like he was stumbling.

The shoulder has to rotate while the Kua moves up. What is outside is outside. Inside is inside. Hand coming in is the result of failing to achieve this.

Elbow in is the only focus. Any other focus causes power to go to other parts.

Only up and down. No sideways. I have been leaning during Walk Obliquely.

Rock, Stick, Rope

Elbow in, change gear. Once the elbow is in, the power comes from the waist while the elbow continues to come in. Don’t let the power get stuck in one part. The rock is the fixed point, the stick is the extremity, the rope pulls the stick towards the rock. The arm is the stick. Once the elbow is in, the waist brings it further in towards the rock like a rope. This rope is attached to both the arm and the waist. When the waist turns, it pulls the arm.

During Warrior, the knee comes in to towards the opposite thigh. This protects the groin.

The opposing shoulder pulls back and down so that the power would connect to the ground. Master grabbed a straw on the table to push against another object. The power is the greatest when he grabbed the end of the straw. Practice this: grab your elbow from the top and use your fingers to push your forearm and biceps apart. The power comes from this spread, this relationship between the forearm and the biceps.

Knee up, Kua down is extending the line.

The body and mind must change. The way to change is to listen. Listening is doing exactly what master says free of our own bias. The less bias you have the more close you get. You might not get it at first, but you are on the right path. The obstacle, the bias, is at least removed. When the physical and mental limitations are reduced, Kung Fu will surface. Our Kung Fu’s progress is often lodged against these two limitations. The lower these limitations are the more you see and hear master.

My body needs to change more to complement my knowledge.

Adjustments can only come from the parts behind the point of contact. These parts must be in line with the point of contact, then another one following it all the way to the ground. The classics example is the front shoulder to the chest to the back shoulder then down to the back Kua then to the foot.

Treat Taiji as a Profession

We should treat Taiji as work. When we don’t practice, we are skipping work. When don’t blog, we are slacking off. When we don’t vlog, we are playing hooky. There is value in these promotions. Social media attracts attention. Viewership means attention from various bodies for funding our endeavors. Practical Method should receive more spotlight and this is a way to achieve it.

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