Archive for December 2007
Secret and Advanced KungFu and Tai Chi Chuan
Posted on Monday, December 31, 2007 at 6:33 AM by Sifu Smith
Over the years we often get to meet students from other schools, and
often they want to learn our style of kungfu and Tai Chi Chuan. Many
times they would mention 'close door student' or 'advanced technique
training''; and I honestly had no clue to what they were referring to.
Sifu Chin would often joke about the secret movement kungfu, like 'super
finger' or 'knife hand' that led students to believe that there was a
secret technique that would overcome all others. We know that this
really isn't so, in fact, we know that if we expect for technique to
bail us out of a jam, we are in real trouble.
However, over the years, we also learned that there is deeper understanding kungfu. Most of the time, this kungfu and Tai Chi training were physically simple by instruction, but challenging, methotical, and non-negotiable with the mind-set of the training. We keep our Hsing-I, Hop Gar, and Old Fighting Style Tai Chi Chuan closer to the vest, not because of 'secret', but because of the demands and expectation for both teacher and student.
There were only a few times with Master Chin did he require that we pay him extra for training in an area. It wasn't a fee to learn, it was a committment fee, so that when you were getting it, and realized how difficult it was, you wouldn't quit. Having gone through some of this now as a teacher, I better understand, because it is challenging on both to maintain the perserverance and steadiness to make the unnatural... natural. This was also the reason that Master Kuo had Sifu Chin committ $1,000 to learn Hsing I in the early 1960's, after Master Kuo told him for weeks it was 'too hard'.
As our students will attest, as many are currently going through some 'reverse engineering' of their Tai Chi Chuan, it is the understanding and naturalness of the simple principles that drives all the kung fu. Not the 'Super Finger' technique. Get into practice, and train the areas that need the work, develop your understanding in movement, and non-movement and you will advance yourself.
Ice Festival is Spectacular
Posted on Friday, December 28, 2007 at 8:13 AM by Sifu Smith
Each year in Zhaolin Park, the Ice Festival is an event that has grown
to be one of the most spectacular anywhere. The path as seen here leads
to event, seen in the distance. The pillars are made of ice with
embedded lights.
The event has many incredible sculptures with lighting mastered to
enhance the artwork.
This is my favorite, the Ice Wall Climb. This looks like a wonderful
activity for those that want that Fireroom Work.
Posted in Stories
Survivors of Nepal Bridge Collapse is Ongoing
Posted on Wednesday, December 26, 2007 at 8:00 PM by Sifu Smith
Troops joined police searching Wednesday for hundreds of people missing
a day after a bridge collapsed killing 16 and injuring 40 more in a
steep river gorge in Nepal, officials said.
Nearly 400 people were on the bridge over the Bheri river, 380 kilometres (240 miles) west of the capital Kathmandu, when disaster struck on Tuesday afternoon, witnesses said.
Police said 35 people had been officially reported as missing by relatives on Wednesday and the number was expected to rise.
"The rescue operations began early Wednesday morning. Around 450 police and soldiers have been deployed to scour the river banks from three locations," district administrator Anil Kumar Pandey told AFP by phone.
The 500-metre (1,650-foot) bridge, only a year old and made of metal and steel coils, plunged into the gorge after a catastrophic failure of one of the supporting pillars that rose 50 metres above the water level, officials said.
Despite the search efforts, including two helicopters that were scouring the river, hopes of finding people still alive appeared remote.
Raleigh Young Man Goes to Nepal
Posted on Wednesday, December 26, 2007 at 7:56 PM by Sifu Smith
The Raleigh News and Observer recently had an article from a young man
who is taking a gap year from Broughton High School to College and he
went to Nepal. As a volunteer English Teacher the young man spent much
time with the monks and villagers.
Read The Daily Events from the Young Man
Posted in Raleigh
Christmas Eve Morning Practice
Posted on Monday, December 24, 2007 at 9:47 AM by Sifu Smith
This mornings practice at 6:30 am was quite frosty. There was a thin sheet of ice over my entire car, and when I opened my car door to get my gloves it had that crisp 'crackling' sounds when the ice seperates. It makes it easier to sense how gentle your breath is, when you can count how long the frosty smoke leaves your nostrils. The weatherman said it was in the low 30's, but he hasn't gained my confidence over the past few weeks.
I went out with a tshirt and hooded-sweatshirt and initially didn't know if I was going to make it with that level of clothing. After a set of chikung I was doing just fine. Nothing like exercising, "Scan the Sea" on wet, frosty grass to get you focused. After walking hands at 3 stages of movement I was circulating very well and practice was going well. But it wasn't until I stopped with movement practice and took 45 minutes of posting practice that the sweat started rolling down my back and forehead.
It was this physiological anomaly that compelled me to make a journal entry this morning. It continues to baffle my graduate school exercise physiology education of how I can work diligently in movement for 40 minutes and stay dry during the entire practice; as compared to standing still; and in 10 minutes be sweating drops. We understand that chi circulates exponentially stronger in stillness and all gates open; yet the phenomenon continues to amaze me.
Practice steady, with a smile during your holidays.
Magnificent Recovery - John Came by
Posted on Friday, December 21, 2007 at 2:24 PM by Sifu Smith
Most of you know John, and are aware that couple months ago he was involved in an accident where he was on a mule going on a trail ride on steep cliff, and the mule slipped and tossed him out. After breaking ribs and several lumbar spine, John wrote us and asked what he could do to recover. I had encouraged him to walk when he could, do his posting, and practice whatever Tai Chi and Reeling Silk exercises he could remember.
Well, at our lunch time class yesterday, John walked in. he went through
45 minutes of practice and did very well. Still no chin to toe, but he
is working on it :) 
His physicians have been amazed at his recovery rate and depth, and so is he. He will be around for a week or so..
Bamboo, The popular, ancient and newcoming wood
Posted on Wednesday, December 19, 2007 at 11:07 AM by Sifu Smith
History: Bamboo has been used in China for
over 5000 years - the earliest history of bamboo use in the entire
world. In ancient China, bamboo was used for making books, food, paper,
some of the greatest palace buildings the Emperors had and many other
items. In the Jin Dynasty a special book on bamboo was written in
265-316 A.D., in which many of China's bamboo species were recorded in
detail. It was the last native Chinese dynasty to rule the empire the
Ming Dynasty, spanning almost three centuries between 1368 and 1644 to
use bamboo as bedding. Some historians argue that Early Ming China was
the most advanced nation on Earth at the time.
China is known as the Kingdom of Bamboo because it has the most bamboo of any country in the world. More than 400 species of bamboo, one third of all the known species in the world, grow in China. China leads the world in the amount of area planted with bamboo, the number of bamboo trees, and the amount of bamboo wood produced every year. The areas that produce the most bamboo are south of the Changjiang (Yangtze) River, and the biggest producers are Sichuan, An hui, Zhejiang, Fujian, Hunan, Guangdong, Jiangxi, and Jiangsu provinces and the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region.
The oldest archaeological finds of bamboo articles in China were unearthed from the remains of a primitive society that existed some 7,000 years ago in what is now Hemudu, Yuyao County, Zhejiang Province. As early as the Shang Dynasty (16th-11th century B.C.), the Chinese used bamboo for making household articles and weapons, such as bows and arrows. Before paper was invented, slips of bamboo were the most important writing medium. More widely used than silk, for example, because they were cheaper, resistant to corrosion, and more abundant. Bamboo has thus played an important part in the spread and development of traditional Chinese culture. (This story is located at: http://www.jmxbamboo.com/historyofbamboo.aspx)
Panda: Bamboo is the natural food for the Panda and scarcity of its supply led to the death of 250 giant pandas. On August 21, 1999, however, animal lovers the world over rejoiced as Hua Mei became one of just a handful of baby giant pandas ever to be born in captivity. This week, NATURE's THE PANDA BABY tells the inspiring story of this pint-sized arrival -- the product of years of focused and often frustrating work by scientists and conservationists in China and at the World-Famous San Diego Zoo in California.
Native to the misty bamboo forests of central China, giant pandas are
among the best known -- and most endangered -- animals in the world.
Scientists have named them Ailuropoda melanoleuca, meaning "black and
white cat-footed animal." In China, they are known as Daxiongmao, which
means "large bear cat."
But conservationists estimate that only about 1,000 of the big black and white bamboo-eating bears remain in the wild in China, where they are threatened by habitat loss and hunting. Another 140 live in breeding facilities and zoos, with about 20 of those captive bears living outside their homeland. In the United States, just three zoos -- in Atlanta, San Diego, and Washington, D.C. -- shelter pandas. The animals are precious, with the zoos paying up to $1 million a year to the Chinese government for the privilege of "borrowing" the animals for display and study. (Reference:http://www.pbs.org/wnet/nature/panda/bamboo.html)
Philosophical: The Taoist say that it would be ideal for a person to emulate and recognize the similairity of its growth to our mind development. The Bamboo is very flexible and resiliant. When the storms come through, the large stronger trees break and uproot. The bamboo bends and responds without resisisting, making it through the storm. Chinese bamboo develops much like our minds. One can spend months, if not years to get the bamboo to grow and literally the development is tiny. Then one day, after consistent attention it grows to an astonishing height.
Our minds tend to 'click' in this way. Not until it is time, will it be time, but the care and practice we take in understanding are essential for our development.
Edited on: Wednesday, December 19, 2007 11:17 AMPosted in Stories
New Additions to the Raleigh School
Posted on Wednesday, December 19, 2007 at 10:01 AM by Sifu Smith
The kwoon continues to change and I wanted to update everyone. First,
my apologies on the slow response to several projects and requests. I
was required to buy a new laptop couple weeks ago and it has been a real
struggle transitioning all the information to the new laptop. My first
impressions of Vista are not good, but that is a another story. There
are still a couple of major components that need to happen, but this
week is my goal.
THANK YOU to all the students and the gift of the handmade Gong from
Nepal similiar to this one pictured.
I
did some research and am leaning toward making our stand out of bamboo
like this stand pictured: 
We
have the bamboo under our stair and I will get some good rope.
We will not be open Christmas Day, but Thursday the 27th be ready to roll. Also, we will be open Tuesday, January 1st.
Reid, I want to put the light-stand you brought in the hallway for now and then put it in the Earth Room Later.
Posted in Raleigh
Pain Receive Relief From Drug-Free Treatments
Posted on Monday, December 03, 2007 at 6:17 AM by Sifu Smith
Mind-body therapies, such as Tai Chi Chuan and Standing Meditation, which focus on the interactions between the mind, body and behavior, and the ways in which emotional, mental, social and behavioral factors can affect health, are of particular benefit to elderly chronic pain sufferers. A new study published in Pain Medicine provides a structured review of eight mind-body interventions for older people, including progressive muscle relaxation, meditation, hypnosis, tai chi and yoga.
All eight treatments were found to be feasible for older adults, and no adverse events or safety issues were reported. The article finds evidence that, in particular, progressive muscle relaxation may be effective for older people with osteoarthritis pain, while meditation and tai chi appear to improve function and coping with low back pain and osteoarthritis.
Chronic pain is common among older people. Sufferers are often unable to receive adequate treatment because of limited physician training in pain management for the elderly and the increased likelihood of side effects from pain medication.
"The trials we reviewed indicated that mind-body therapies were especially well suited to the older adult with chronic pain," concludes lead author Natalia E. Morone, M.D., MSc. "This was because of their gentle approach, which made them suitable for even the frail older adult. Additionally, their positive emphasis on self-exploration was a potential remedy for the heavy emotional, psychological and social burden that is a hallmark of chronic pain."
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Article adapted by Medical News Today from original press release.
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This study is published in Pain Medicine. Edited on: Monday, December 03, 2007 6:27 AM
Posted in Meditation, Stories, Tai Chi