Martial Arts and Indian Stealth Skills! part three
Happy work out to you! Which is the same as saying, be strong and well, be smart and sharp. Be kind.
This is the third part of a five part series. Subscribe to the newsletter to find the other parts
The most important Martial Arts book ever written.
In the first two articles we have discussed why the native American Indian was the best light infantry in the world. This included a discussion of their hunting prowess, and their devotion to silence, all of which combined to make truly great silent warriors.
In this part I want to discuss motion.
To begin, for most people walking is a process of unbalancing. Simply, people are standing like clumps, and to begin moving, they unbalance their body and fall in a direction. Stick out a foot, unbalance themselves, fall in a direction. I can’t even begin to tell you how inefficient this is.
At rest you should be able to move in any direction, and without the need for unbalancing your body.
Now, consider how the Indians were raised. The woman cared for the child until the age of six. At six the brave took over. The child was trained to be totally and utterly silent, and to move with extreme awareness. Punishment for transgression in this fields was simple: go hungry. If the child didn’t master the skills, then he didn’t bring home the meat, and he went hungry. And the family went hungry. No excuses. This attitude went towards hunting, which was the main duty of the warrior, and which led directly to combat. No excuses. You learned to use a knife the right way, or you went hungry, or… died. Harsh methods, but they resulted in amazing warriors.
Here’s something that many people don’t understand. The white man didn’t beat the Indians. He infected him with disease. It’s true. The Indian had no defense for this kind of ‘germ warfare,’ and he eventually succumbed. He didn’t lose in battle so much as die out from disease.
Now, that all said, I liken the Indian hunting techniques to Tai Chi Chuan. To sneak up on a wild animal you had to move so slowly, as slowly as the wind moved a tree branch. You had to blend with the motion of nature.
You had to have a strong body to support this slow motion. And you had to stand in a manner in which you were still capable at any moment, of moving in any direction as if sprung from a spring. Not falling uncontrolled, but legs loaded and ready to shove off, in any direction.
Okay, if you want to move with total silence, and yet be so balanced that you can move in any direction without the need to unbalance yourself and fall uncontrolled, check out Five Army Tai Chi Chuan.
and make sure you subscribe to the newsletter and read the first and last parts of this scholarly treatise on the methods of the finest guerrilla warriors in the world.
Why would I recommend those?
Because those three forms
focus on grounding,
and dedicated hand motion.
All three forms teach one how to move in any direction,
and yet keep your ground,
and use that ground in your hand techniques.
There is a tremendous swirl of energy
up the body in those three forms.
And,
the energy is easily manifest in the hands,
and the hands,
almost perfectly fit the ‘slap-grab’ concepts
which are outlined in Binary Matrixing.
This is not to say the forms of classical Karate aren’t good,
they are,
but they are ten,
and the request was for three.
And,
this doesn’t mean Shaolin isn’t good,
but Shaolin spreads out over a number of concepts.
And,
why not Matrixing?
There are three forms in Matrixing?
Because the purpose of matrixing
is to put logic in the martial arts.
What good is all that knowledge
if you can’t apply it to a variety of martial arts,
to more than three forms?
So I was sort of caught,
hoist with my own petard,
I believe it is called.
I wanted to say matrixing more than anything,
but if you only had three forms,
then those are the three.
They give more internal energy,
contain more face to face,
hand to hand combat.
And,
I can’t resist,
I would recommend the iron horse
(kima shodan/tekki 1)
as a fourth form.
Just because it causes
oodles and oodles of pure energy.
Anyway,
that all said,
the reason the question was so good,
so appropriate,
was because when I write a book
I always think it is the best.
You have to, or why write?
So I think a book is the best,
but it may or may not be,
I have to wait to see what people say.
And the idea that one could study only three forms,
aligned with my purpose
in the Tiger/Butterfly book.
My purpose,
as always,
is to put together
a better martial arts system.
Each time I sit down to write,
I am thinking,
how can I make this better,
how can I formulate what I’ve done,
into better and better art.
How can I give people the purest information
to cause them the quickest progress,
and the most profound experience
in the martial arts.
So if the question had been,
what seven forms,
then I would have rejoiced mightily.
But…
three forms.
Zowie.
What a question.
You guys feel free to consider your choices.
Put them in the comments for this newsletter
at monstermartialarts.com.
Hey,
again,
thanks for purchasing
the Tiger and Butterfly book (amazon)
Hello sir. It’s going well. Really well. Once I was able to connect Buddha crane with shuri ryu, the pieces began to fall into place all by themselves. The Buddha crane is the foundation of the kihon waza, ippons waza and came into their own flow drills(taezus naru waza). Making changes to the Kata isn’t as easy, but I have done the first few Kata. Even crazier, I found someone who has already blended shuri ryu with something. So, it came rather easy. Upon showing him how I’ve made changes opened his eyes and he’s asking me to give him pointers on how to make his karate be more ‘alive’. My shuri ryu master is dead and I never got the chance to get my black belt. So, I’ve gone thru these people I’ve run into and just from what I showed them they are willing to bring me to the black belt in shuri ryu. I’m not sure if that’s even important now, being that I matrixed the whole art, but I do hope to bring this understanding of shuri ryu to the table. Thus, starting a new (sub) ryu to the family. I couldn’t have done it without you. Osu
Thank you, Timothy, and well done!
And for everyone, please take note of a few things here.
The classical is not suffering, drills and exercises have more flow, which comes from increased understanding.
Making changes isn’t always easy. Aside from the fact of understanding the potentials of the martial arts enough so that you can make intelligent changes, you have to force yourself to change something that you have come to believe in.
Changing a belief system is often the hardest thing a man can do.
He shows his changes to another fellow engaged in changes, and he becomes the authority. Simply, he isn’t just changing, he has the knowledge, and this is something that people really respect and will adhere to.
Upon showing his changes to others he is recognized as expert, or having the ability to be expert. Osu to you, Timothy.
And, finally, here is a very interesting question: how important is the black belt at this point? People going through these changes, are gaining knowledge and that is senior to black belt.
Maybe one out of a thousand people that start karate get to black belt.
But how many have the knowledge to put together their own system or subsystem?
I encourage everybody to get to black belt, but I encourage knowledge more. Understanding is the most important thing you can ever get. Period.
Thanks, Timothy, your win is fantastic, and I hope people understand the trials and tribulations here, and the incredible passion you have for the arts.
Here’s how I analyze forms. I do this for every move. Check out video courses at MonsterMartialArts.com. This particular technique is from Temple Karate.
Now, I know Timothy has other courses and books on Matrixing, but he mentions the ‘Buddha Crane’ book. So let me explain something about that book.
That was the last book I wrote, I believe, before starting on Matrixing proper, before doing all the matrixing courses. As such, I was using matrixing concepts hard and fast, and I was developing a whole art out of what I knew. You can see me reworking techniques, reworking forms, trying to bring everything into a new slant, or, to be proper, a ‘de-slanting.’ A truth.
Here’s the funny thing, the book was actually just a ‘toss in,’ a bonus, on the ‘Create Your Own Art’ course. I wanted to show how I was creating an art, give an example to back up the theories I was pushing. The book is PDF on the Create Your Own Art Course.
You can, I believe, get it on Amazon, if you look around you can find it. You can also get it here…
That’s my publishing company, so I get a bigger royalty if you get it there.
That page I just gave you has a complete write up on what is in the book. And, the Createspace version is paperback, which most people prefer, because it’s easier to walk around with the book, than carrying a computer around while you practice.
And, a final word, the illustrations are most interesting, I wrote it on an old mac, and the software was something called Appleworks. What this means is that I drew the illustrations, hundreds of them, one line at a time. I drew figures, patterns, techniques, everything, with lines. Interestingly, I remember, at the time, not being frustrated by the slowness of it all, but being excited, because I felt like I was, by doing the illustrations in this slow and laborious way, learning something about the human form, writing what I was doing in a new way in my mind. By the time I was done I felt VERY changed inside.
So, that’s it.
Again, thanks Timothy, I hope people appreciate your win, and I hope they take the time to look at the book, and get their own wins, take a stab at understanding, and even changing, their own carefully crafted belief systems.
And everybody, it’s summer, have fantastic work outs!
Newsletter 815 ~ Sign up now on the Free Books page!
New Karate Black Belt Test!
Good morning! Wonderful morning. I just did a whole bunch of forms, I feel like a million.
The most important Martial Arts book ever written.
Hey, there’s lots of stuff happening, so let me start with… CONGRATS! to Peter Carmody
Peter passed his Matrix Karate Black Belt test.
The test was done on video, and Peter went through having to repeat the test, doing all the corrections, and making all the matrix karate material work.
And he made it look good!
Video testing is interesting. You could probably film yourself on an iPhone, don’t wear black against a black wall, white against white, and so on.
Have some sunlight, or a few bulbs glowing.
You don’t need lots of space as long as I can see your whole body.
Have a partner.
Be willing to fail once or twice, at least.
And here’s the thing, Matrix Karate is pretty darn unique. You see, most karate systems were developed for specific reasons, bodyguarding, the element of being grabbed, having to deal with weapons, etc.
Not saying you won’t encounter these things today, you need some awareness of these things, but the real factor is that we are a fist culture. If you are in a fight the usual weapons will be fists. Then something that can be used as a cub, then a knife, etc.
But fists are the base of it all. And, if you can handle a fist, it is just a short step to a knife, if you have enough brains to adapt.
Anyway, Matrix Karate is designed around the structure of the body, it is a complete art, taking into account all angles of attack and defense. But it is SIMPLE! Because the posing and the unnecessary techniques have all been weeded out.
You have to learn about mistakes, but the essence is in the logic where one move leads to the next, with no circus moves.
It’s funny, I remember one of the first wins I ever received, this was about ten years ago. The guy wrote that he had gone to a martial arts school, and the first technique they taught him was a cartwheel into a jump kick. Not how to block and punch. Not even the basic kicks, but a jumping kick off a whole body contortion.
Can you see why matrixing was so desperately needed? A little common sense? And every system, no matter how classical or developed, benefits from the direct infusion of logic that matrixing provides.
Anyway, well done to Peter, and I recommend Matrix Karate and the Master Instructor Course (you need both of them to test). Whether you are accomplished and have a black belt, whether you are a raw beginner, whether you are just in the middle and need to get going, Matrix Karate is the easiest, the best, the most efficient and completely rounded karate on the planet. Period.
Defeating Distractions to Find the True Martial Art
Good afternoon! Special day tomorrow, I’ll tell you about it down the page, but before we get to it, remember this: the only way to celebrate this special day is to… work out!
Okay, hope your interest is piqued, but before we talk about that special day, let’s take a moment to talk about emotion.
Ultimately, you don’t want to have any emotion in your martial arts. You don’t want to cry, or feel fear, or anger, or any kind of emotion.
Emotion is a distraction. It gets in between the thought of what you are going to do, and the reality of what you do.
There is this thing called emotional content, Bruce Lee mentions it in ‘Enter the Dragon,’ but even that, ultimately, is a distraction.
To get to the pure state where you can read the mind of the attacker, see what he is going to do before he does it, and move with perfection, you must get rid of ALL emotion.
There is a problem, however. The problem is that nobody really knows what emotion is.
If you can stick with me through a couple of points I can help you understand, which is to say that I can help you understand something that nobody understands.
Here’s the dictionary definition for emotion: a natural instinctive state of mind deriving from one’s circumstances, mood, or relationships with others: she was attempting to control her emotions | his voice was low and shaky with emotion | fear had become his dominant emotion.
But that doesn’t tell you what emotion is. That is like saying electricity goes through wires, but there is no mention of where electricity came from, what a generator is, or how electricity ‘flows’ through a wire.
It is an inadequate definition.
Here are three more definitions: 1 she was good at hiding her emotions: feeling, sentiment; reaction, response. 2 overcome by emotion, she turned away: passion, strength of feeling, warmth of feeling. 3 responses based purely on emotion: instinct, intuition, gut feeling; sentiment, the heart.
Again, these don’t tell you where emotion comes from, what has generated it, and how it really works.
So, here we go, here is what emotion actually is.
Emotion stems from motion inside the head.
And here is a truth, there are only people in this universe. Everything else in the universe, all the objects and non-living things (or ‘low living’ like animals) are the effect of motion in the universe.
A bug sits on a stalk, a frog sees the swaying stalk and must flick his tongue. A coyote sees the motion of the tongue, and is compelled to eat the frog.
The universe happens like dominoes. And, the ONLY thing in the universe that can upset the dominoes, can change the path of the falling dominoes, can change cause and effect, is a human being.
A human being has choice, and that ability, that decision making ability, is apart from the universe, and can cause the path of the universe to change and change and change.
So a human being can change the universe, but how does he change it? by having a thought first. So he thinks, and does what he thought about, and what he thought about comes to be.
But, in between the thought and the accomplishment, is emotion. Think about it:
A man wants to accomplish something, he sets out on the task, then he gets angry, or fearful, or otherwise emotional, and his ability to make accomplishment is lessened.
He was distracted.
Which brings us to the crux of the matter, why does man create these (his own) distractions? Why does he create emotion and waylay himself? Why?
What happens when you squeeze an lemon? Juice squirts out. Gets in your eye and you cry.
So a man creates emotion when he is squeezed, like a lemon, and ‘things’ squirt out.
things like fear, anger, hate, and so on.
And these things disrupt the mind, cause distraction, and obscure the basic thoughts that one may have.
When I was a child I was spanked, which is to say I was squeezed. I experienced fear, and pain, and anger, and that stuff, because I didn’t know what it is, it stayed with me for a long time.
It would even be fair to say that, like dominoes, certain of those emotions caused me to study martial arts. How weird.
So when you feel pain and anger and all those unpleasant things just say ‘no’ to them. Just refuse them. Refuse to dwell on that emotion, refuse to have motion inside your head, refuse to feel the lingering effects of being squashed (squeezed), and go about your life. Refuse the distraction and accomplish your thoughts.
Of course, it is not always easy to do that. Sometimes what is big in your head is greater than your ability to ignore.
That is where the martial arts come in.
The martial arts train you to accomplish an attack, no matter the distraction, and the heck with emotion.
No other practice on earth does this more efficiently or to greater effect.
You face your partner on the mat. He growls, people yell, you are tired, but because you have endured training, and pain and other distractions, and gotten to your black belt, you are able to ignore the distractions, move forward, and accomplish the thought of the strike, or the lock, or the takedown, or whatever.
You simply train yourself to ignore the motion inside your head, to ignore anything in the universe that tries to stop you, and you accomplish your thought.
Here’s a cruel trap, people who start the martial arts, then quit, were distracted. They let something squeeze them, and they quit. And the cruelty is that if they had kept going they would have found the ability that would have enabled them to ignore distractions, and accomplish their thoughts.
Catch 22. Yes?
One last thing I want to say about this. There are many people who fail, and, there are many people who are studying something thinking it is a martial art, when it isn’t.
You have to study the true martial arts. You have to find forms that work, and you have to make them work. You have to cleanse your techniques so they become pure and can show the thought that created them.
That path creates the discipline.
Just fighting does not. Fighting teaches you to fight. Doing the real martial arts, practicing techniques until you can make them work, that is the discipline of ignoring distractions and getting yourself to the point where you can make your thoughts work.
The best method, because incorrect movements (which are distractions) have been removed, is Matrix Karate.
Okay, that special day I was talking about. For me it is the most important day in the universe, for it is when I decided to have physical presence on this planet. Birthday.
And, if you have been following this blog for the last couple of decades, then you know I always ask for one, specific present.
Forgive me. If I have sent out the wrong order, didn’t answer an email, didn’t answer an email quickly said the wrong thing, didn’t understand something, failed in some way, if i have done ANYTHING that might have offended you, or caused you ANY sort of distraction…
Forgive me.
Help me clean up my universe, help me not have the distractions of bad service, poor communications, or ANYTHING else.
Newsletter 802
What’s Happening in the Martial Arts!
Good afternoon!
Think I’ll do a Tai Chi workout,
those always make me feel so large.
It’s funny…
large on a peaceful scale.
Got an email today,
asking where the newsletters have been.
Here, read for yourself…
Hey Al,
Haven’t heard from you in a while. Are you okay? I miss your newsletters. I’m sorry you’re catching flak from a bunch of little cowards spouting their worthless and unqualified opinions from the safety of their mother’s basement. I’ve been playing this game for a long time (since 1978), and I see you as nothing less than an innovator (if for no other reason than your unique ability to systemize that which has always been chaotic). We live in a unique time where the sharing of information is easier than ever. It’s easy to put people on a pedestal and idolized those who went before us as more than men. But the truth is, they only had a narrow perspective and worldview, and while they did the best they could with their extremely limited access to information, this doesn’t necessarily mean that they are deserving of worship. Just like grade school, only about 5 people out of a hundred actually studied hard and put in the work. The rest either ostracized them, or agreed with them and parroted their phrases to appear more intelligent. I think this phenomenon is seen in the Bible, with William Shakespeare, & in the martial arts. Five percent actually understand what the hell they’re reading (or have read it at all). Most of us do not understand or have not read it, so we agree with those who have and praise the brilliance of the work. The rest think it’s just a bunch of bullshit. My friend, you are among the 5%… No, you are one of those that the 5% study. The difference, is that we have access to more tools than any of our predecessors have had. There will always be the few that create change, and the lazy masses that first violently oppose, and then blindly parrot. You can’t be extraordinary by being ordinary. Keep on pressing on. I value and appreciate your perspective.
-Sean
I thank you, Sean,
from the bottom of my heart.
So let me explain what,
exactly,
has been happening,
and why I am so slow these days.
When I came down from Monkeyland
I was pretty broke.
No place to live,
no job…
no prospects.
Well,
it’s against the law to whine,
so I took on a bunch of jobs.
I drive Uber in the morning,
tutor kids in the afternoon,
do the martial arts in the evening,
and have a janitorial business on the weekend.
And I make sure I work out every day,
and multiple times a day,
if I can.
So that’s what’s been happening.
Survival on the stupid level.
the need for petty, crass cash.
A couple of things happened because of this,
a person gets tired if he isn’t doing what he loves.
So I’m tired all the time.
Poor me.
Whine…whine.
But,
there will come a time when I can shift everything back around,
focus on the martial arts,
and keep going.
After all,
at the end of the road is Monkeyland.
A place where people can go to study martial arts.
Anyway,
it’s not the small people who whine about what I am doing.
There is one common factor in these people:
they have never read what I am doing,
never seen a tape.
They offer opinion without facts.
They think they know everything
based on their own experience,
and they don’t need no durn facts.
So how can I get upset about a bunch of fellows
who offer ignorance as their stock in trade?
It’s sort of like listening to fourth graders
whine about how tough math is,
when the truth is
they just just don’t want to do the work.
And,
the root of the matter,
I’m just stuck in a boring spot,
should be out of it one of these days,
and doing more martial arts.
Then my chi kicks in,
my energy swells,
and life is great.
So that is what is happening.
That is why I am slow in coming out with the newsletters.
It’s my own durn fault,
for putting myself in this situation,
and it continues to be my fault
until I figure out how to right the situation.
So I thank you Sean,
and all the others,
the fifty,
and even the passersby.
Thanks for writing me the email,
encouraging me,
and even chastising me.
I apologize for being a lazy…fellow,
and I guarantee it won’t last forever,
nor probably even long.
In the meantime,
it is up to you.
Work out every day.
Don’t make ignorance your comfort zone,
but delve in,
buy books and videos,
enlarge your cranium with the swell of martial arts.
Put them to work with your friends.
Understand that their is perfection of the spirit
in the study of martial arts,
and that it makes the world a better place.
It calms the spirit,
it undoes undue excitement,
it gives lazerlike insight into the problems of the world.
I’ve been around for a while,
and I will go away,
but the martial arts are your true teacher,
they are the liberator,
the educator,
the enlightenment.
They last forever.
Enjoy.
Now,
I’ll try to work a bit harder,
and stop being a lazy…fellow.
Is there a Disconnect in Boxing and Mixed Martial Arts?
Boxing and Mixed Martial Arts? A disconnect? Something tells me I should stop right now, before people get mad at me.
Click on the cover to find the source of the martial arts…
Except, there might actually be something in the question.
When you box, or perform Mixed Martial Arts, you wear gloves. You don’t wear such gloves on the street.
When you do the ‘Sweet Science,’ or battle in the Octagon, there are ‘fences,’ which means a cage, or ropes, to enclose the fight. There are no such barriers in real life.
When you are down, there is a referred to save you. No ref on the streets, bro.
When you fight in a public venue, such as i have mentioned here, the rounds end and you have a chance to recoup in your corner. No end of round, no corner, no recoup on the street.
I know, this is all unfair, I’m picking on your favorite gladiatorial sports.
Except, I’m not.
Look, I’m not saying these things are bad, I’m just saying they are.
The real disconnect is when you train for things that are, and they might not be. If that makes sense.
The real disconnect, when you study boxing or the Mixed Martial Arts, is merely the ability to break away from your training when you have to.
Training is to enhance the martial artist, it is not to imprison him.
So don’t object to what I say, just consider it, and come up with plans for times when you have to defend yourself and you are not in the ring, in the Octagon, doing Mixed Martial Arts or Boxing.
March, what a wonderful month. I’m going to work out every single day, right into April. You do, too!
I was checking my stats on Amazon, and reading the reviews people write about me. Interesting reading. But crazy. Let me explain.
I’ll get two reviews for a book, one is a five star review,
VERY Interesting.. and I like the “creation” theories and methods… JUST what I was looking for. and one is a one star review.
Waste of time if you are a serious martial artist…poor illustrations…bad
The five star talks about interesting ideas. The one star just says ‘stupid.’ Hmmm.
How could one book provoke two such dissimilar reviews?
Well, let me tell you.
I received an email a while ago, the fellow said: I don’t understand all the writing, but when I see the pictures (videos), then I get it.
Well, of course, a picture is worth a thousand words. BUT the real key here is that he didn’t understand the writing.
Here are some frightening statistics.
50% of adults can’t read at 8th grade level. 45 million people are functionally illiterate. and, one that is very important, 6 out of 10 households don’t buy a single book in a year.
Let’s consider the implications of these statistics as they relate to my books.
Out of the 50% adults that can’t read at 8th grade level, there are going to be a substantial number who are passionate about the martial arts. They are going to read what some people see as five star material, but because they don’t understand it, because there aren’t enough pictures, they are going to perceive it as worthless. At best, they are going to sense that something just passed them by, and they are going to be pissed. Pissed enough to give one star.
Out of the 45 million that are functionally illiterate, some are passionate, they live in blogs with small words, and they are, again, angry. A rich life is passing them by, and though they feel that something is happening, they can’t see it.
But here’s the kicker, 6 out of 10 don’t buy a book in a year. But they do read on the computer, and they are vocally upset, when they don’t understand what somebody has said.
This is the defense mechanism of the ignorant: get upset when you don’t understand something.
Now, why do I bring this up. Because I get a few low reviews, that discourages others from buying, and the vey valuable knowledge that is in my books, is then removed from the hands of the consumer. The intelligent consumer who needs to know, but is being waylaid by the ignorant.
Feel free to give a review. I prefer nice, but honest will do.
When you see a bad review, especially if you have read the book, and disagree, answer them. I can’t, but you can. Set the record straight.
And, make sure you are literate, that your children are literate, and that knowledge can be passed down.
This world is not Rep v Dem, it is not haves v have nots, it is ignorant v intelligent, and if the intelligent don’t set the ignorant straight, then the intelligent lose. So do you want the world to get more intelligent? Or more ignorant?
Here’s the book which received the reviews I listed above.
I have always enjoyed watching Rhonda Rousey. Her string of wins left me arm pumping the sky.
But I didn’t always enjoy her sportsmanship. I was put off when she would just glare at her opponents, reuse to bump gloves, and otherwise treated them in a manner most shabby.
Mind you, some trash talk is good. Some trash talk is nothing more than showmanship, brings in the customers. But Rhonda’s trash talk, her general attitude, was not.
The other day Rhonda went on the Ellen Show, and there proceeded to emotionalize in a terrible manner.
Yes, feeling bad over a loss is understandable. But threatening suicide?
And this unpleasant show of emotion had me considering her fight with Holly Holm once again.
Rhonda walked into punches, which, on the Ellen Show, she claimed had her feeling like she wasn’t there. And behind this tirade was the feeling that Rhonda felt it wasn’t fair.
It wasn’t fair that she got hit. It wasn’t fair that she didn’t feel good after being hit.
And, to top it off, she made a statement to the effect of: ‘I’m not making excuses.’
But she was! Everything she was saying was an excuse, and a display of emotionalism and bad sportsmanship.
Don’t get me wrong, I like Rhonda, I am anticipating her next fight. I want to see a comeback.
But I want to see a comeback with maturity, with a new attitude, with the idea that all fighters deserve respect.
If Rhonda does that, then perhaps she will deserve to win again.
One of my work out partners,
way back in the Kang Duk Won,
decided he was going to do Tai Chi Chuan.
He figured it would be easy,
because of his karate conditioning.
He threw his back out so badly
it took him two years to recover.
Soft, flowing Tai Chi Chuan,
and it was too tough for a young karate guy.
What’s wrong with that picture, eh?
What is wrong is simple,
when Bruce, my friend,
did Tai Chi he thought he could just do a karate kick slowly.
But karate is fast and explosive,
the leg is out and back,
in Tai Chi the muscles have to strain to keep the leg up.
And I mean a whole sequence of muscles.
Bruce’s muscles,
though karate powerful,
couldn’t support the leg for an extended period of time,
and the result of his attempting to do such a thing
disrupted the muscles
all the way back to the spine..
Now isn’t that interesting,
tai chi chuan has more ‘weight lifting’
in its moves.
Karate has the fast explosion,
and the muscle tightening (focus)
builds the muscles.
But those muscles are built
at the beginning and end of the move.
In Tai Chi the muscles must support the weight,
throughout the move,
for a long(er) period of time.
A simple difference,
but it leads to an important concept.
Karate is explosive energy.
Tai Chi is suspended energy.
The difference manifests in movements,
in timing,
in focus of concentration,
in emptiness,
in energy.
Now we could actually analyze these differences
from different points of view.
But what I’ve said here is probably the best point to start.
Not speed,
not sensitivity,
though those are important,
but defining how energy is actually used.
Because how energy is used
defines the other terms.
This concept is core.
This is not to discourage you from trying,
but to caution you,
and help you make the transition.
If you do your karate forms slowly,
and round out the edges of your motion,
you can get Tai Chi power.
Just take it easy when you begin.
If you do your Tai Chi forms fast,
you can find Karate power,
and pretty easily.
But you do have to adapt to a different mind set.
Explosive and slow
two sides to a coin,
two sides to the martial arts.
And there are many more sides that these concepts can lead to.
Here’s the link to the Five Army Tai Chi Chuan course.
Matrix Martial Arts 