Kindergarden Taiji

http://www.littleriverkungfu.com/articles/children.html

Pre-Taiji Course for Kids



Introduction to philosophical concepts and Chinese terms
Yin Yang (Taoist principle similar to Western dialectics)
("Opposites like - Up/down, left/right, male/female, in/out ...")
Ch'i (energy which can be cultivated)
("Seeds turn to plants when nurtured by soil, water and sun.")
Shen (spirit)
("How you feel after winter's first snowfall ...")
Jing (innate, finite energy)
("Jenny is a good jumper and Jimmy runs fastest.")



Chinese meditation for health and energy (Chi Kung)
breathing practices
Buddhist breath
("Inhale - push tummy out, exhale - squeeze tummy in.")
movements form Taiji form coordinated with breath
calms and focuses the mind

Introduction to physical exercises
warm-ups, stretches, joint rotations
use of imagery ("Your head is hanging from a string from above.")
shapes, alphabet ("Make a 'V' with your feet.")
Stance training
leg strengthening and coordination
sinking weight, finding root and center
("Your leg is like a tree, with roots that grow to the center
of the earth.")
jumps and turns, landing silently



Introduction to Tai Chi principles
slow, synchronized movement that radiates from the waist (dantien)
connects the mind and body, generates awareness and control
light stepping ("Jump and shhhhhh...")
generates control
relaxation
reduces stress, produces calmness


Turtle Races
move across room in a group
"Slow, Big and Quiet" are the commands
the last one there wins
repeat going backwards


Push hands solo exercises ("Rock and Roll")
rocking - stepping forward, shifting back
develops spatial awareness
develops ability to advance with a firm root in back
rolling side to side
develops spatial awareness
develops ability to roll with force by turning the waist
teaches how to stay relaxed by using whole body coordination, not stiff arms




Push hands with partners
develops sensitivity to others while maintaining one's own center
("Stiffness is not strength.")
spatial awareness
move harmoniously, not competitively ("Feel your partner's energy.")
further integrates mind and body


Taiji Field Games
Follow the leader
partners touch lightly (as if holding a piece of tissue paper in between the wrists) on backs of each other's‚ wrists (both rights or both lefts)
leader initiates movements, from slow to fast, up and down, etc., then switch hands, then switch roles.
follower must stick and follow
develops awareness of ones own movements in space while feeling partner's energy
develops correct Taiji body frame
moving from the ground up with relaxed, but firm arm position


Sword fingers
"A" points fingers towards "B's" chest and walks straight in, certerline
"B" backs up with fingers up on outside of "A's" palm after a few steps back, "B" turns, rotating waist
the fingers roll off the chest
"B" must attack as "A" steps back
switch hands after a good while
partners may build up to running
teaches rotating to deflect force
teaches changing from offense to defense, and vice-versa


Group Meditations
group forms circle and touches palms lightly
teacher initiates movement, by looking towards and lightly pressing adjoining person's hand to send energy around whole circle
teacher announces when energy arrives, then without looking, sends it by pressing the other side, other direction
same exercise with eyes closed
same exercise without touching, palms on dantiens, just feel the energy circulate
remain standing for meditation session
kids feel their own energy centers
stimulation from controlled group interaction
kids feel calm and stable

Kuatro Konto 12 Cuts (Doce Teros)

(reposted from the Flowah)

(for the right hand) (directions are for feeder.. not
receiver)
1. Right shoulder to left hip
2. Left hip to right shoulder
3. Right hip to left shoulder
4. Left shoulder to Right hip
5. Center Thrust
6. Head to Feet
7. Feet to Head
8. Flat cut Right side to left side
9. Flat cut Left side to Right side
10. Thrust to the their right eye/face from your left
11. Thrust to the their left eye/face from your right
12. Upward Center Thrust to their throat


Pretty simple... you just do it a few zillion times and
you're nastier than hell. it's like magic.


(this is the Kuatro Konto 12. I do this 12 cause it
works for me. 9-10, 10-11, and 11-12 have
rolling/sawing actions in the transitions. The order of
the last 3 thrusts varies and is the template for the
C and J cuts I use for my knife work. The KK-12 can
be double-tapped, live-hand augmented and cooked
in endless variations. ).

Bagua

Bagua vs. Aikido

"The Four Basic Principles
1. Keep One Point to Develop Calmness
2. Relax Progressively
3. Find the Correct Posture in Everything
4. Develop your Positive Mind
by Shuji Maruyama Sensei"

Interesting.
Sounds like
1. Sink the Qi to the Dantien
2. Sung
3. Six Harmonies
4. Unify the Yi, Qi and Li

LST Curriculum

The LST curriculum (basically everything in
Fundamentals vol.1 & 2, plus bits of basics
taught by GW, and stuff from the PaKuaChang
Journal) as I know it.

"Warm-up/ Neigung Set"
1. Bent Over spine rotations
2. Neck Rotations
3. Side to Side Bends, Hands Overhead
4. Clasp Forearms, Bend Forward and Back
5. Elbow-Toe Touchs
6. Hip Rolls
7. Front Kick
8. Swinging Back Kick
9. Side Kick
10. Straight High
11. Diagonal Kick
12. Outside Crescent Kick
13. Side Squat and Reach
14. Open and Close Arms, Strike the Back


"Eight Basic Stances"
Stance #1. Bow Stance
Stance #2. Horse Stance (Mabu)
Stance #3. Kneeling Stance
Stance #4. Cat Stance
Stance #5. One-legged Stance
Stance #6. Leg Sweeping Stance (Lower Palm Change Posture)
Stance #7. Twisted Step Stance ("Dragon Twists from XYQ)
Stance #8. Dragon/Guard Posture

"Forty-eight Month Palms"
Preparatory Exercises
1. Du Zhang / Shaking Palm
2. Lungji Zhang / Dragon Back Palm
Main Eight
1. Single Palm Change
2. Double Palm Change
3. Throwing Palm
4. Lifting Palm
5. Slapping Palm
6. Chopping Palm
7. White Clouds Chasing the Stars Palm
8. Sliding the Window Shutter to Look at the Moon


"Standard Eight Qi Gong"
1. Fan Zhang, Circle Fan zhang, T'ien Fan Zhang
2. Sliding the Window Shutter to Look at the Moon
3. Double Palm Change
4. Unicorn Turns It's body
5. Serving Teacups
6. Serving Teacups with Throwing Palm
7. Yin and Yang Opposing Palms
8. Scooping the Moon from the Sea Bottom

"Eight Elbow Combinations"
1. Up & Across
2. Up, Across, & Spike
3. Across, Spike, Pierce
4. Up, Across, Backfist
5. Across, rear, du zhang
6. Diag-Down, Side, Split (clouds chase stars)
7. du zhang, elbow block, high elbow block, chop
8. du zhang, elbow block, rear, across

Eight Animal Palms (Mother Palms)
1. Lion
2. Snake
3. Bear
4. Monkey
5. Unicorn
6. Phoenix
7. Dragon Flying
8. Swallow



(................in progress..............)

San Ti

" Santi, piquan-nine breaths each posture. Gods and ghosts will fear you." -Buddy on EF

Ruminations on the nature of the art

Quick review... on Fan's marvelous martial arts journey.
My very first art studied was baguazhang or "Eight Diagram
Palm". Not the easiest thing to start with (putting it mildly)..
but since then very few arts I've dabbled in have posed much
in the way of a conceptual challenge. After spending a few
years mucking about with my Nashville teacher I went away
for work purposes and started training with my one of my
original teacher's kungfu brothers (my "grandteacher" showed
up from time to time to watch.. give correction.. collect his % of the
take etc.).
When work transferred me away from the Baltimore/DC area
to Virginia Beach I began studying filipino martial arts (Lastra Family
Arnis). I was still full of amazing prejudice about other styles...
in retrospect I lost lots of time by not training my bagua enough..
and more time by not going and exposing myself to the JKD people
in Virginia Beach (also the brazilian jiujitsu, the other filipino martial
arts teachers etc.). While in Virginia beach I got my walking papers
from Artume's predecessor ("Draga") but found myself back in the
DC/Arlington training with the guys at Zongwumen, a Gao style bagua
and xingyi school in Luo De-Xiu's lineage. Sadly since leaving my
position in VA Beach (and yes I'm being evasive.. I don't like to talk
about that section of my life) getting back to DC has been a serious
bitch. It's been over a year since I've seen Geo (the instructor) and
my other bros.
Recently I've been going back into my immense amounts of practice
material to try and get to the root of what I've been playing with for
all these years now (has it been 7 years aleady? wow!).
I broke down and got a large bagua saber from ATS, and began
feeding my arnis de mano (filipino sword and longstick style) to
the bagua drills.
Btw this saber is about 5.5 ft long. I'll probably post pics fairly soon.

I'm thinking eventually if the saber blends well (and it certainly
seems to be the way... since I'm *ALL* about knife work), and
if I can get my old Yin lineage rehabbed into usefulness(my first
teacher was Dong Hai-quan/Yin-Fu/He Jinkei/Lu Shu-Kui/Lu
Shui-tian lineage) for work with saber and short knife.. I may
start in on the Lion system of Yin style Bagua.
My bagua seems to be a solitary sort of art... I get most of my
partner practice with other live bodies doing jiujitsu/grappling
or the occasional bits of weapons work.

One conclusion I've come to is one reason why my first bagua
school didn't teach me to fight effectively was 1.) I didn't train
hard enough (very true.. this is the reason I always assumed
was true).. but more importantly.. 2.) insufficient partner
practice.

Once a week, for a beginnner, where much of the class is
effectively being led through solo exercises. This simply
isn't going to get you very far in terms of martial ability.

Gladly I am no longer quite so green... and I know a bit
more (most of it courtesy of the rabid stick/knife fiends
of the kali/arnis/escrima world).

Pics coming up I think... sadly Artume's videocam is
berift of it's charger (she's visiting.. how great is that?)
so no vid. But pics we can do I think.

Training blogs and keeping at it.

This is a training blog, originally prompted by Artume's LJ and a thread over on Emptyflowah on He Laoshi's students putting up a group training blog. I'm not thinking of pointing anyone I know this way.. but it will probably come to someone's attention... giving how much time most Emptyflowah posters spend dredging the martial arts portion of the net.