[bamboo]

Could you not just buy a saw bench and shorten the legs, like the chinese did? It would be much cheaper. I'm sure once the regulars come onto the board someone can help you.

cheers,

-bamboo

[themeecer]

Awesome idea. I bet I could find a cheap used one somewhere.

[Thaddru]

Originally Posted by EvilScott

As an example of what exactly I'm looking for, here are Wing Chun's principles...

Guard the Center
Face the Point of Contact
Economy of Movement
Touch Reflexes (Chi Sao)
Watch the Leading Elbow
Use Linear Striking Action
Avoid Fighting Force Against Force
Train to Use Two Arms at the Same Time
Uses Pressure Points to Make Striking Techniques More Effective
Uses the Same Meridian Pressure Points as Treatment of Injuries


This is the kind of thing I'm looking for. Not generic principles like "hit hard" or "the pointy end goes in the other man."

If you do not put your principles into words, how do they govern your techniques? How do you know you are doing your forms with correct emphasis, besides a teacher's approval?

Here are some of the governing principles of what we do as best as I can list them in the same manner as you did without getting too off base.

If they push you pull, if they pull you push.
Redirect the line of attack.
Position for advantage on the weakest side of their line of attack.
8 lines of attack stragedy and counter stragedy.
Iron and Silk quality. Move like silk, stike like iron.
Springiness in the legs. Tan tui.
Every attack is a block, every block is an attack.
Kill someone three times in a single punch, 1st with Iron Hand, 2nd with vital point strikes, 3rd with internal energy.
Penetrating power/Fajing. "Strike the paper to break the brick."
Economy of movement and power generation.
Have balance in all aspects, right side as important as left. Hard as important as soft, external as important as internal.
Power and energy is invigorated by the breath. Without the breath the power is weak.
The mind and the will direct the intention, the body follows the intention. When the mind says block/hit, body already there...
All power eminates from Tan Tien.
Vital points are used to destroy as well as heal.

These are some of the governing principles that we teach our students, and they take a long time to understand and master. Kung fu = Time and effort

[L_Z Wong_Fei_Hung]

Well said Sifu Thaddru, are these are principles you teach???
Hmmmmm...

These theroies, concepts and priciples. are pretty advanced........

[EvilScott]

Originally Posted by L_Z Wong_Fei_Hung

These theroies, concepts and priciples. are pretty advanced........

Not really. I see a lot of similarities with principles of other disciplines from the Fukien Shaolin temple. Looks good to me.

Another question - how big of a deal is footwork?

[themeecer]

Footwork is very important. It dictates where your power is coming from, it dictates the flow of one move to the next. Correct placement of the knee in relation to the foot is very important as well.

I feel like every word of ours is being scrutinized by a fine tooth comb. To be quite honest, for some of these principles, I do not put them in words. I do more 'showing' than 'talking,' in class. When I see a student not displaying these principles I show them the right way, versus telling them the right way.

[EvilScott]

Originally Posted by themeecer

I feel like every word of ours is being scrutinized by a fine tooth comb.

You have yourself to thank for that. Your initial behavior in the forums was unbecoming of a career MAist.

As I told Judge Pen in a seperate thread regarding lineage - if a MA is as young as Shaolin Do, has not been tested in battle, and has some very obvious differences from arts that influenced or combined to create it, the MA is by no means damned. It just means a smart MAist will look VERY hard at it before accepting it as truth. I personally do the same thing with many arts - some turn out to be OK and some turn out to be bunk.

I won't know for sure until I check out one of your schools - are there any in Houston, Texas? I will be spending my summer there.

edit: I don't doubt that they are Sais - there are many weapons common to both cultures. To play devil's advocate, though, some of those look much more like the head of a tiger fork than a Sai.

[themeecer]

Originally Posted by EvilScott

edit: I don't doubt that they are Sais - there are many weapons common to both cultures. To play devil's advocate, though, some of those look much more like the head of a tiger fork than a Sai.

I was only saying that the one was a sai, in the antique picture. Many of the others are have hollow ends for placing on the end of a staff, like the tiger fork looking one.

[Judge Pen]

Originally Posted by themeecer

Footwork is very important. It dictates where your power is coming from, it dictates the flow of one move to the next. Correct placement of the knee in relation to the foot is very important as well.

I feel like every word of ours is being scrutinized by a fine tooth comb. To be quite honest, for some of these principles, I do not put them in words. I do more 'showing' than 'talking,' in class. When I see a student not displaying these principles I show them the right way, versus telling them the right way.

Exactly meece. We don't always have a nice coined phrase for every principle, but we stress them in class through correction.

One of the best things about SD, and one of the largest problems, is that the number of forms allows individual students to find what principles and footwork works best for them. Certian core principles are the same, but some people prefer the tiger that is taught over our crane. Some people prefer Hsing-Ie fighting while others prefer tai chi. The student starts to focus on what they find works best for their body mechanics and they develop thier own unique fighting flavor.

Of course the detraction is that some students don't distinguish between the different types of forms and blend it all together into their own mismash. They usually don't last too long, though.

[Judge Pen]

Originally Posted by EvilScott

I won't know for sure until I check out one of your schools - are there any in Houston, Texas? I will be spending my summer there.

There is a small school in Houston. The instructor is only a 1st degree black. I've never seen his stuff so I can't vouch for its quality. Your better bet is to check out the schools directly overseen by one of the senior masters. Bill Leonard (Lexington KY), Bob Green (Sommerset KY), Garry Mullins (Johnson City TN or either of his sons in Knoxville or Morristown TN) etc.

If in Texas, the Austin school is oversaw by Joe Schaeffer an associate Master (5th degree) who is a good MA. He is injured right now though.