22 December 2007
To helix and back again
What interested me about this video is that it's rare to see Yang style movement done with so many spirals and such fluidity. I particularly like the movements that start at around 1:10 with arm rotation and then at 1:23 with sinking and rising horizontal spirals.
This set is allegedly part of the Yang Banhou [楊班侯] transmission, but for me it's impossible to say whether that is true of not. The movements at least have a somewhat "authentic" air about them and seem far removed from the rather "stiff" Yang style forms that I'm used to seeing from the practitioners of the Yang Chengfu [楊澄甫] transmission.
It is also hard to imagine that if the Wu Jianquan [吳鑑泉] transmission actually came from Yang Banhou originally, then how did they end up with such a "square" style with little or no fluid spiral action. It's all very strange and a little difficult to fathom to be honest. Perhaps much was forgotten or perhaps never learnt/practiced at all and thus lost in the mists of time. Basic training was then possibly replaced and supplemented with other auxiliary training, who knows?
But then perhaps Yang and Wu styles have always been "stiff" and the above set is just an attempt to make a Yang routine that is more fluid and spiral like some of the Chen styles, but this I find hard to believe, why do that when "stiff" Yang style is already very popular?
Ah! enough pondering, must get back to some more training, time wasted pondering is time spent not doing what I'm supposed to be doing. Must get back to helix and back again!
16 December 2007
Why learn taijiquan [太極拳]?
I was just asked by a Taiwanese friend why I wanted to learn Taijiquan [太極拳], and this answer came out which I think was pretty succinct and clear. So I decided to post it here and share it with my readers, just so that you can understand a little about my personal motivation.
"For me, I want to challenge myself and learn an excellent gongfu system and do it well, because I'm not a natural fighter. The health aspect is related to developing a suitable physique and state of mind for the job."
:-)
"For me, I want to challenge myself and learn an excellent gongfu system and do it well, because I'm not a natural fighter. The health aspect is related to developing a suitable physique and state of mind for the job."
:-)
14 December 2007
15 minutes of fame
There has been a fair few pages written on the Emptyflower Forum with regards to the video that I posted on this blog.
As far as the video goes, the three of us were all beginners in those days with no more than a couple of years of experience under our belts. Of course the techniques look basic and the forms are a bit lacking in substance and quality.
As Dan himself would say, "If you judge me by my worst student then I'm a bad teacher, but if you judge me by my best student then I'm a very good teacher."
In those days we were unable to demonstrate in a quality way, but Dan was willing to come and help us do the TV programme. He gave his time for free to help out on a local morning TV show for "housewives", "retirees" and the "unemployed". Even then I doubt many were watching!
It was just our 15 minutes of fame, please don't take it so seriously! We don't!
As far as the video goes, the three of us were all beginners in those days with no more than a couple of years of experience under our belts. Of course the techniques look basic and the forms are a bit lacking in substance and quality.
As Dan himself would say, "If you judge me by my worst student then I'm a bad teacher, but if you judge me by my best student then I'm a very good teacher."
In those days we were unable to demonstrate in a quality way, but Dan was willing to come and help us do the TV programme. He gave his time for free to help out on a local morning TV show for "housewives", "retirees" and the "unemployed". Even then I doubt many were watching!
It was just our 15 minutes of fame, please don't take it so seriously! We don't!
12 December 2007
Foreign friends, open secrets
As an English teacher here in Taiwan a fare percentage of my teaching time is spent explaining aspects of irony in the English language, and one particular area of interest is the use of the Oxymoron.
An oxymoron is a self-contradictory phrase where the meanings of each word in the two word couplet appear to contradict each other, but still manage to make sense.
Typical examples include ‘alone together’, ‘government intelligence’, ‘act naturally’ and so on.
Two examples of interest to me are 'foreign friend' which is Chinglish for a 'friend from abroad' [waiguo pengyou 外國朋友] and the other is 'open secret'.
In the case of 'foreign friend', 'foreign' can mean alien in character; remote or strange or unfamiliar. While 'friend' can mean a person attached to another by feelings of affection or personal regard [not remote or strange or unfamiliar]. The two words can appear to contradict each other.
With 'open secret' open can mean to disclose, reveal, or divulge, while 'secret' can mean a method, formula, plan, etc., known only to the initiated or the few, so of course again the two words can appear to contradict each other.
Are there really any 'open secrets' in the world of Taijiquan? Such as the so called Yang family michuan [secret transmission] style, how can it be a secret transmission, an 'open secret'? Even more why would a 'secret transmission' be openly taught to a 'foreign friend' who can openly teach it anywhere he likes once he/she leaves Asia? There is nothing secret about that, right?
If there is a Yang family secret transmission then it is likely still a secret [that is not to say that I believe that it's still only within the Yang family], and only a lucky few dedicated disciples will have the chance to learn it. Why would a master give away his Intellectual Property, his or her Core Competence? Protecting Intellectual Property hasn't only been a problem since the birth of the Internet age. There are many protected traditions in the world, why should gongfu be any different?
There are a couple of general ways that gongfu masters protect their Intellectual Property. One is to not teach publicly at all, or the other is to have public and private aspects to their teaching, the so called neimen 內門 and waimen 外門 concept.
I'm pretty confident that all of the publicly known Taijiquan styles that were spawned from the Yang family before and after the Second World War have evolved from their own public teachings. Even the so called Yang family michuan [secret transmission] style looks to me to be an adaptation of the public teaching. Both Yang Chengfu and Yang Shaohou had public styles, and taught them throughout the 1920s and 30s the Golden Age of Taijiquan popularisation.
Believe me the secret societies, both large and small, are still alive and kicking here in Asia. Not that I have anything to do with them of course, I'm just a humble English teacher learning a little of the local culture and language before I move on.
An oxymoron is a self-contradictory phrase where the meanings of each word in the two word couplet appear to contradict each other, but still manage to make sense.
Typical examples include ‘alone together’, ‘government intelligence’, ‘act naturally’ and so on.
Two examples of interest to me are 'foreign friend' which is Chinglish for a 'friend from abroad' [waiguo pengyou 外國朋友] and the other is 'open secret'.
In the case of 'foreign friend', 'foreign' can mean alien in character; remote or strange or unfamiliar. While 'friend' can mean a person attached to another by feelings of affection or personal regard [not remote or strange or unfamiliar]. The two words can appear to contradict each other.
With 'open secret' open can mean to disclose, reveal, or divulge, while 'secret' can mean a method, formula, plan, etc., known only to the initiated or the few, so of course again the two words can appear to contradict each other.
Are there really any 'open secrets' in the world of Taijiquan? Such as the so called Yang family michuan [secret transmission] style, how can it be a secret transmission, an 'open secret'? Even more why would a 'secret transmission' be openly taught to a 'foreign friend' who can openly teach it anywhere he likes once he/she leaves Asia? There is nothing secret about that, right?
If there is a Yang family secret transmission then it is likely still a secret [that is not to say that I believe that it's still only within the Yang family], and only a lucky few dedicated disciples will have the chance to learn it. Why would a master give away his Intellectual Property, his or her Core Competence? Protecting Intellectual Property hasn't only been a problem since the birth of the Internet age. There are many protected traditions in the world, why should gongfu be any different?
There are a couple of general ways that gongfu masters protect their Intellectual Property. One is to not teach publicly at all, or the other is to have public and private aspects to their teaching, the so called neimen 內門 and waimen 外門 concept.
I'm pretty confident that all of the publicly known Taijiquan styles that were spawned from the Yang family before and after the Second World War have evolved from their own public teachings. Even the so called Yang family michuan [secret transmission] style looks to me to be an adaptation of the public teaching. Both Yang Chengfu and Yang Shaohou had public styles, and taught them throughout the 1920s and 30s the Golden Age of Taijiquan popularisation.
Believe me the secret societies, both large and small, are still alive and kicking here in Asia. Not that I have anything to do with them of course, I'm just a humble English teacher learning a little of the local culture and language before I move on.
9 December 2007
30 things I've learnt so far...
Today is the 1st anniversary of our arrival in Taiwan, and here are some examples of what I've learnt so far...
- I've learnt that Taiwan is a small island with an identity crisis
- I've learnt that some Taiwanese people are really Taiwanese
- I've learnt that teaching English is fun but not funny
- I've learnt that taijiquan is cool after all
- I've learnt that standing still is interesting
- I've learnt that a secret is always a secret
- I've learnt that you know who your real friends are once you leave home
- I've learnt that the Taiwanese summer is a time to stay home!
- I've learnt that the Taiwanese winter is a time to go out!
- I've learnt that London is a "foggy city"
- I've learnt that the English language comes from California [Hollywood]
- I've learnt what an earthquake feels like [makes me dizzy]
- I've learnt what horizontal rain looks like [difficult to hide from]
- I've learnt to hate scooters [well scooter riders at least]
- I've learnt to love cockroaches, but not mosquitoes
- I've learnt that lunch comes packaged in several plastic bags
- I've learnt that tea should be drunk through a straw from a plastic cup
- I've learnt what isolation feels like in a busy city
- I've learnt that being British just ain't what it used to be
- I've learnt that I'm aboriginal English actually
- I've learnt to watch UK TV on Youtube in Taiwan
- I've learnt that Taiwanese TV is...****!
- I've learnt that watching Discovery Channel is more interesting
- I've learnt to appreciate "afternoon tea" again
- I've learnt that the above English custom is still popular [in Taiwan]
- I've learnt that going to hospital is a past-time [not only for the sick]
- I've learnt that "learnt" is spelled "l-e-a-r-n-e-d"; how "learned" that is
- I've learnt that mtDNA and yDNA are what sets us apart, and yet...
- I've learnt that we are all "earth people" [thanks Peter]
- I've learnt that the sound of the "ice-cream van" means take out the trash!
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