Punch Yourself Into Alignment

By Shifu Andrew Miles L.Ac

This is something I thought I knew, then looked deeper and realized I didn't. After a hearty attempt at getting the old intensity into bag work I realized that it wasn't comfortable.

 When we punch, the strike travels into the bag, but part of it comes back though the body. If your chin is forward as mine was, then the shock will wrap around your head and enter the brain through the feng chi point (gb 20) point.  Oops. As I put my chin down the force traveled up through the top of my head and down through the feet.As I relaxed and spent more time remembering to align myself  the force traveled from of the foot directly into the bag with no obstruction int the body. I thought I had mastered and integrated it, but then I started hitting harder and realized that this was a continuous process of exploration. There was something different about punching with allignment and releasing the punching force more directly into the bag, it felt relaxing like a massage. I was no longer beating myself up. After a lifetime of this kind of punching we get Qi and blood stasis which can result in strokes or coronary problems.


Around 40 many martial artists lose steam. Years of getting hit and striking imperfectly causes qi and blood stagnation. At this stage it gets hard to meditate and qi gong doesn't seem to do anything. It is advisable to take a special martial arts formula based on "xue fu zhu yu tang"  http://www.rootdown.us/Xue-Fu-Zhu-Yu-Tang designed to clear these obstructions away. This allows you to get a second lease on martial arts training and prevents strokes, heart attacks and joint damage at this time. This is the key to being able to train well into old age. After clearing this stasis it is imperative to change your style of striking so that it no longer strikes you back at the same time.  To train this, try the following exercise with a heavy bag. If you don't have one you can simply punch a sturdy wall.

1. Hold your elbow to your body and put your fist out perpendicularly.

2. Let a heavy bag make contact with your fist. Feel where the force travels. Continue to give the bag more force until you can feel it.

3. Draw your chin downward, lengthen the spine and relax until you can only feel the force through the sole of your food. After you think you have done a good job, increase the force and adjust your posture accordingly.

Once you learn this your posture and martial arts will change. Your punches will serve to relax and align your body rather than recoiling into your own body. 

Combat Case Studies: Mantis

Combat Case Studies: Mantis

By Shifu Andrew Miles

 A mantis strikes faster than you can blink and follows through to the death.  The forearms strike while the most distal aspect of the arms draw inward. The mantis uses camouflage and grabs as it strikes, seperating as it draws its prey into an unbalanced position. The praying mantis never strikes with one technique in mind, rather this instinctive three part attack involves the frame of its whole body. It connects the entire structure lunges and pulls back within an instant. Where the arms land is not as important as the overall movement and the timing of the attack. Once its prey is pulled in off balance the mantis can attack relentlessly.

If we look at stances they allow humans to perfectly lunge and draw the opponent in and off balance.  The techniques at the heart of mantis make it both an internal system and a highly predatory one.  One technique in mantis would be enough to allow a fighter to attack people with ease.  True mantis techniques are not flashy or complex, but rather leave the opponent with no place to go.  If you look at hunted animals you can see that there is a point at which they are physically able to escape and yet resign themselves to death.  They relax as the life drains from their eyes.  This is the heart and essence of the mantis system.  Having kept mantises for years I can not remember a single time they used complex hand changes.  They strike, pull and eat.  They use timing and drag the opponent off balance.  The grab enables them to separate its prey's defenses.  Modern mantis practitioners must remember that timing, dragging and separating must happen with every attack and that every strike should be done with intention to finish.  A prolonged fight is a dangerous one and if your every meal depends upon it, you will find the fastest way.  The secrets are kept in the mantis sets.  One technique is enough when applied with the same spirit as the praying mantis.

Combat case studies: Felony Fights

                       Combat Case Studies:  Felony Fights

By Shifu Andrew Miles

The following video highlight several key points in mantis boxing and sheds light on fight psychology as it relates to Chinese Medicine.

1. Relax and don't posture before the fight.

2. Good base, perfect 50/50 stance for fighting

3. No emotions/no fear

4.  Connect the waist and legs, hit from the ground up.

5. Sink low and strike continuously.

6.  Follow through and then overkill.

7. Use a figure 8 motion in the strike.  At the end of the strike he recoils as he ducks in a figure 8 which leads him around his opponent for a viscous follow through.

8.  Fight psychology, fear and humanity.


Fight psychology and the Hun -Po  魂魄

The 3 Hun relate to ones higher or altruistic nature and resides in the liver. The seven Po relate to ones more base animal/electric aspect of the human body。After the abuse Tommy makes a groan which is typical of the 魄 Po and lung pathologies. Tommy is expressing the hungry ghost. This is one of the names of the seven po. Although it is difficult to watch the brutality it is important for diagnosis and understanding the true nature of humanity. To truly understand medicine it is important to not only look at the body when it is dead, but to see exactly how it comes out of balance and dies. Many patients present with this groaning tone of voice.  Before an altercation or during diagnosis you can pick of these vocal inflections. It tells you that their death instincts have taken over. You can already assume to a certain degree that they suffer from an immunological or lung pathology.  This can tell you about their psychological state and the state of their endocrine system.

From the beginning you can tell that Tommy's yi zhi 意志 or intention/willpower is weak. His hun魂 is away or damaged so he lacks humanity. His 意intention can not direct his killer instinct so he floats like a ghost in sadness and fear.  He brags about hurting stabbing someone in the neck in order to soothe his own fear and hides his eyes behind sunglasses. Miguel, by contrast is very humble in the beginning and tries to hold back a smile. This shows that his heart is clear.  If his confidence was false and coming from a place of ego he would freeze after getting a hand in his face.  In order to fight we must consider the other person and not dwell upon our own pain. Miguel fights with 神shen spirit and 意志 intention/willpower. This is what allowed him to bend his knees, advance and use natural leg springing power to win. 

During the bout Tommy's fear manifests as he leans back. He is also relatively stiff in the legs which is a manifestation of fear. Miguel by contrast is going forward and down. Those who study the four directions can determine a lot about the internal organ balance through this. Miguel is crouched between heaven and earth and uses the earth power in his strike. His internal balance makes a hook enough to drop the opponent and create an opening for destruction. He is fighting the way an animal hunts. After the fight you can see him at ease and joking. If he were in a state of rage his voice and psychological state would be very different.  He remained focused and relaxed in the present moment. He is someone at ease with his animal nature and directs it with a healthy degree of humanity.

Although he unleashed a fierce white tiger白虎, it is checked by the azure dragon青龙 of higher consciousness. His ancestors might have called it  the jaguar "ocelotl" and the feathered serpent "Quetzalcoatl".  In the Aztec language of Nahuatl "Ocelocoatl" is a boys name and it means jaguar-serpent demonstrating the ideal of balancing these forces within the human conciousness.  Both the Chinese and Aztecs viewed the green serpent as rising from Earth to Heaven and the Jaguar/Tiger as having a descending and deadly energy. 

Miguel is someone who has a warrior foundation and is likely to be a very good person because he has the courage and internal balance to be upright.  At the end he checks on Tommy to make sure he is alright.  Were his power dependent on others he would posture and show dominance to try to take the other person's power. This shows that he is more connected to Heaven and Earth and is self assured.

Most people defeat themselves before their challenge begins.  Through combat we can learn about ourselves. When we know how to release the beliefs and fears that hold us back we can regain our ability to survive and thrive.  In the space of this savage violence we can learn a great deal about humanity and healing.

Swat Push Block

Swat Push Block

 

拍推擋 

pāi tuī dǎng

by Shifu Andrew Miles

Pai Tui Dang in 8 Step mantis can be applied at three levels.  

The first is the wrist.  This is a foundational technique in which the fist is deflected. 

The second is at the opponent's elbow.  This required a degree of poise to advance into the incoming strike.  The advancement turns this from a deflection into a palm strike.  This can redirect the opponent's punching force through their elbow causing enough strain to injure the elbow.  When contact is made at the level of the elbow it causes the opponent's whole body to turn, especially if they are attacking with intention to harm.

The third requires the greatest degree of courage and timing.  You sink the right foot, stomping down at a fourty five degree angle and use the combined power of the legs and waist to strike the opponent along their spine.  The ming men (Du 4) and feng fu (Du 16) points are the most preferred targets when coming from the outside gate at this range.

For the third level of pai tui dang you need to have poise, relaxation and a degree of bravery.  The stepping must be accurate, smooth and the transition relaxed and combined with breathing.

Swat block is one of the most overlooked tools for fighting.  It is one of the first techniques students learn and it gets glossed over.  People do the blocks to get to the spectacular technique, not realizing that the block itself is enough to neutralize an opponent.  At close range a simple block can turn into a palm strike to the opponent's neck.  When the body movement is effectively combined this allows for an easy knock out.

Once in Chengdu I sparred in the park using open palm mma gloves.  My opponent came in with a barrage of strikes.  I covered from the front so the strikes started coming wider.  A hook came to the outside.  I high blocked and from the inside gate reflected the blow back to their tian you point using swat block.  It was not applied with any intention, I had planned to simply deflect and then throw him, but when the palm connected, even lightly his attacks stopped, the expression ran from his face and he sank to his knees in a daze. I immediately stopped because I could see he was unable to continue.  Fearing for his safety I  applied acupressure techniques to open the tian you point and then applied pressure to the jing well point of the san jiao channel as well as to the ren zhong acupuncture point to restore normal cerebrovascular flow.  From the information below we can better understand why this simple block had such a big effect.

www.acupuncture.com

Chinese Name: Tianyou (English translation: Celestial Crevice)

Location: On the side of the neck, directly inferior to the posterior aspect of the mastoid process, at the level of the angle of the mandible, on the posterior border of m. sternocleidomastoideus.

Indications:

• dizziness
• inability for the legs to support the body.
• Headache, neck rigidity
• Eye pain, deafness
• Scrofula
• epilepsy

Functions: Clears Heat, clears the sensory organs, benefits the head, alleviates pain.
Needling: Perpendicular insertion .5 - 1.0 cun.


If we look at this point we find that it affects inflammation, neck musculature and has direct affects on opening the sensory orifices.  By abruptly closing this point it caused a loss in consciousness.  This point is classified as one of the window of heaven points which have been shown to affect cerebrovascular circulation.

The secret to this technique lies in the form.  It teaches us to intuitively understand power generation, footwork and relaxed palm striking.  The movement should be repeated in a long form continuously and trained with bone conditioning medications.

17 Styles: Mandarin Duck legs

17 Styles: Mandarin Duck Legs

By Shifu Andrew Miles

Do not fear 10,000 kicks.  Fear the kick that has been trained 10,000 times.

Double kick (yin yang leg) in mantis stems back to the mandarin duck legs of the 17 styles of Shoalin that went into creating the original mantis system.  It was said to be founded by Zhou Tong and passed to Wang Lang through Lin Chong.

Incredibly this system has been preserved.  We can know this is a living system by looking at how they practice.  Forms are not done as much as training skills.  Medicine is also used as an integral part of the technique.

The intensity with which they train repeated single movements is lost in most martial arts.  This is an ancient system and one should consider these training methods to be fundamental to any martial art.  The training is done in line form with one movement repeated. What looks like a bone shattering kick, is actually far worse.

Every step is a kick.

Every step is footwork.

Every step is a throw.

If you somehow manage to jump in the air, the grinding mill strike will  bat you out of the air.

  In the poem of the 17 Styles Wang Lang countered all of his former masters using Mantis.  How did he do that?  As an ancestor system, mantis preserves the training principles of mandarin duck leg.  The achilles heal of this system is also a well guarded secret.  In guarding this secret, we thank Lin Chong for his contributions to the mantis system.  Whenever you see a double kick in a mantis form, remember that you are referencing an entire martial arts system, which you may draw from in order to further explore leg techniques.  Mantis was an amalgamation, a shorthand of ancient systems uploaded into Wang Lang.  As we practice, the secrets of these single movements will come pouring out, enriching our lives and creating a martial arts Renaissance.

Precarious Martial Arts Training

Precarious Martial Arts Training

By Shifu Andrew Miles


Warning:  By reading the following, you agree that you are personally responsible for yourself. I'm not suggesting that this training is good for anyone. Please consult your doctor, religious leader, lawyer, mother and insurance company before doing anything..ever.

Much like the Daoist tradition of blindfolded balance training, Shidejian practices on precarious ledges to refine his kung fu and overcome his fear of death.  They key is in keeping the body soft and sinking the qi.  Inspired by his training I practiced an advanced 8 Step Mantis set several times on the rooftop of the nearest building. It wasn't as high as Shidejian's perch, but it was slick and high enough to do some damage. The lessons I learned made this training worthwhile. 

1. It's actually easier than it looks. If you have trained stances and postures, you should already be able to sink qi through you feet and maintain balance. Once you decide to go for it, the fear lessens. It seemed that  stepping onto the edge was more dangerous than actually being on it.   

2.Using climbing the mountain stance on a steep incline involves sinking the breath. I often tell students exactly how they should step, however gravity is a better teacher.  Using anything but perfect movement caused me to slide dangerously downward on the wet, moss covered tile.  I became afraid as the momentum of my descent sped up. I began to tighten up raising my qi and increasing speed. I relaxed and sunk my energy and suddenly stopped.  The idea of sinking qi, breath and intention is important. This gave deeper insight into this stance.

3. The rotation of the bottom foot on uneven terrain while kicking is scary. Jumping and turning kicks were most frightening. It reminded me of the times I practiced kicks on a frozen pond requiring poise rather than power.  Retreating footwork was also tricky. At first I tried to do a slow and stable version of it which was strange.  The way the feet were places was not as stable.  It was much better when I just did it as I have practiced a thousand times. When jumping and turning in the air I felt distinctly aware of uneven distributions in body weight. 

4.  Sinking down into movements felt good. Whenever one climbs a mountain they reach the heavens and hug the earth closely.  I remember climbing Mt. McLoughlin with my dad when I was 5 years old.  Terrified I moved over the rocks like I was an octopus keeping my body as low as possible. It seems a paradox that one can learn to conform to rocks so perfectly when at the level of heaven, yet when we normally walk on the Earth we are not so intimately acquainted.

5.  It required softer movements, better stances and overcoming fear. It put me right into fight mode as dangerous training does. Unless you train with a degree of danger, you can not realistically prepare to deal with it.

After effects: After training this way I feel more serene. My movements are more stable, relaxed and supple. 

Five Phase Hitting

 Five Phase Hitting

By Shifu Andrew Miles

In traditional Asian Martial Arts it is said that the hands must be tempered with the five phases of nature: Water, Wood, Fire, Earth and Metal.

 

Training dummies

For a martial artist it is important to have a variety of targets to practice on.  Standard heavy bag, focus mit and muay thai pads all have their merits, but it is better to leave solo training for home and make use of training partners for more complex drills.

Shaolin was said to have 108 wooden men some with springs and levers making them slightly robotic.  Here are some modern renditions of the shaolin dummies that are effective and of good value.

Body Opponent Bag- Bob's are great.  I've worked with these for years.  The bonus is that you can mark acupoints on it to practice targeted hitting.  You can also hit downward and around the neck.  This is also an excellent bag for uppercuts.

Arms: 

Hanging wood- A variation of this can be to put sand bags around the exterior.  They sell 500lb heavy bags, but I think these are of little use.  At this point the bag is mostly immobile, so it makes sense to simply pad a large rock or a tree.  The benefit of wood is that you can find pieces with limbs sticking out.  Cut them to size, pad them or duct take them.  If you can find an old tree, then its even better.

Tires:  Cheap, effective and resilient.  These should be used often for martial arts training.  You can lay them flaw and practice circular footwork.

 

Not a bad idea.

Choy Li Fut Dummy patterned after Shaolin dummies.

Bagua dummy:  I saw versions of this on plum flower posts for stepping patterns  A convenient DIY version of plum flower posts is to fill coffee cans with cement.

Sandbags

Collapse Press Hammer （Beng ya Chuei）

 Hammer Time:  Backfist

By Shifu Andrew Miles

The Chinese word for fist 锤 literally means "hammer".  Let that sink in for a moment.  Think about how a hammer strikes.  Does it resemble the striking we practice?

 Melon hammers.  When they say "fist" they mean this.

One of the eight hammers is 崩锤 beng chui or collapse press hammer.

 Beng chui is more than hitting with the back of the fist.  The purpose of backfist is to crush through the opponent's structure and bounce them off of the ground.  The fist strikes downward and the arm (handle of the hammer) presses against the opponent's body.  Mantis classics say that one should bear down with the weight of a mountain.  Think of the elbow and knee as jaws of life coming together in a pincer movement. 

 

That is also  the way mandibles work.

Li Kun Shan demonstrating beng chui at long distance.

Wei Xiao Tang demonstrating sitting belly posture which makes included beng chuei.  Master Wei was fond of backfist which is why he was called "Thunder fist."

How to practice:

Start swinging a sledgehammer and you will soon notice where your stance is weak and after an hour or so you will have learned a lot about power generation.  Start looking at the fastest ways to knock people to the ground with a large hammer while retaining balance.  Exploring this will give you realistic feel for stances and  empty hand application

The end result is something like this.

Complete Freedom: Forging a Daoist Warrior

 Complete Freedom: Forging a Daoist Warrior

By Shifu Andrew Miles

Emotions hold the body.  They create tension.  They are chemical processes designed to meet the needs of the human body.  We are not our bodies and we are not our emotions.  Emotions can be used to help direct and fuel the body, but past emotions can hold areas of tension in the body that keep us from operating smoothly in the present.  Think of the body as a vehicle.  If it is Summer and you still have chains on your tires, you will be doing damage to your car.  The brakes should be applied sometimes but driving with the emergency brake on will cause you to lose gas mileage.  In the same way our past emotions interfere with our intention and goal setting.

I have used the word intention but I am referring to yi 意。  This is a kind of relaxed intention associated with alpha brain waves.  She xiang 设想 is closer to the word intention.  It has to do with bringing dreams to fruition.  Yi leads qi.  Qi is directed through planning and the qi becomes manifest in the end result.

When we fall down, we feel hurt.  Is it the injury then caused by gravity or from fear?  The change has happened, but we lose the ability to adapt due to emotions.  The seven emotions pull the seven major joints out of alignment.  Over time the effects of emotions may limit my life causing one to suffer pain, injury, emotional frustration and cost a fortune over the course of one's life.

In a Chinese parable it is written that a man who is drunk can fall off of carriage and not get injured.  Wine, rather than fear flows through his veins.  How much safer are we if we rid our bodies of fear and store wisdom instead?

Wine can protect a man who falls from a carriage.  How much more can wisdom protect us?

How do we rid our bodies of the seven emotions to find true alignment with the seven stars (joints)? 

The struggle is between heaven and Earth.  When the body rules the spirit, the spirit is harmed, when the spirit rules the body, the body is well ordered.  Emotions are from the Earth and not eternal, when they interfere with our vision and spirit we must return them to their origin. 

 Inner Meditation:  1.  Imagine the floor as a grid of light.  The entire plane comes up through your feet bringing the emotions up and out of your body, your hands raise up and the emotions come out the lao gong point on the hands and out the bai hui point.  They continue upward and taken in a basket by two 金刚 (jin gang) or golden heavenly messengers who bring it to heaven, slice it with a sword of light and let the emotions fall to earth where they become spiders, worms and other creatures of the Earth. 

Jin Gang or Chinese angel depicted riding a tiger.  Armoured in gold, they serve the king of heaven as messengers.  The angel is represented as a general riding a tiger.  The general represents the liver and the eternal soul.  The tiger represents the animal nature.  The general must ride the tiger.

Inner Meditation: 2.  Imagine that sparkling coming is falling from heaven.  First it washes down the Shaoyang meridians, then after 5 minutes it washes down the yang ming and finally down the taiyang meridians.

After these purging meditations the body should be free of obstruction and begin the naturally warm up.

Ritual of Heaven:  The student is lead to mountain precipice and made to stand somewhere dangerous.  They relax and let their body lean and collapse in different ways trusting the seven stars of the body to naturally keep them from plummeting to their death.  In cities, the roof of a building works just as well.

Done properly, it should resemble the collapsing giraffe toy.

Just don't let anyone get the wrong idea.

Ritual of Earth:  The student is then brought into a cave to meditate.  The meridians should be open and filled with heavenly light.  The heavenly light is brought into the subconscious.  Spiders and worms will actually crawl on them, but they should remain aloof.  The body already belongs to worms.  It is dirt.  The spirit already belongs to heaven.  Life is a temporary meeting of the two. 

Sometimes even kung fu masters have to sit in time out.

Exercise 1.  Fall down while holding your breath.  It hurts

Exercise 2.  Fall down while exhaling.  It doesn't hurt.

After you get used to this so that is feels gentle and soft.

Exercise 3.  Fall onto a place that looks dangerous, such as onto stairs or into a corner.  Then do the same exercise blindfolded.

Exercise 4.  Get into your most uncomfortable position on stairs or in a corner and have your training partner choke you with their hands.  Using breath, allow your body to fluidly come out of the awkward position into a position of safety.  Gradually increase the intention of the attacker so that they can experience fear as an illusion which hinders them and train the body to not overreact.

If they are breathing, relaxed and moving is is nearly impossible to strangle someone this way, still countless people have died from this due to their own fear and tension.

Exercise 5.  Stand blindfolded and get beaten up using breathing and relaxation to absorb the strikes.  Flow around the attacker using breath.  The strikes are points of impact no different from falling onto the ground.

Ritual of Mankind:  The student is blindfolded and brought to what they think is the cliff and made to repeat the first ritual.  During that time the master should push them. They will think they are going to plunge to their death.  You can accurately assess their fear of death by seeing how hard or softly they hit the ground. Those who transcend death can become average human beings who can see through illusions and easily attain their goals.

Time to die!  Psych!  Lolz.