mike staples

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mike staples

Postby windwalker on Fri Sep 30, 2016 5:31 pm

an old teacher of mine

Image

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http://focusingemptiness.com/index.php/about-the-author

In the 1970s, Michael was one of the primer U.S. writers in the martial arts field, his area of focus being Chinese martial arts. He was the author of four books; White Crane Gung-Fu (the first book about the White Crane style in English), Hop-Gar Kung-Fu (the first book about the Hop-Gar in English), abouttheauthor2Tibetan Kung-Fu, and Wushu of China (the first book about the Compulsory routine in China called Chang-Chuan, or Long-Fist).

He published a little over seventy feature magazine articles, served as Chinese styles editor for one of the first Encyclopedias of martial arts, Chinese styles editor for a Dictionary of martial arts, and wrote a Special Edition magazine, in its entirety, entitled The Elegant Wushu of China, published by “Inside Kung-Fu” magazine, while he was a Contributing Editor.


the old days, power of the net ;)

note: looking for this issue
Staples, M., 1980, Kung-Fu in Korea. Inside Kung-Fu Magazine, April, 38-41.

if anyone should have it please contact by pm
Last edited by windwalker on Fri Sep 30, 2016 6:38 pm, edited 5 times in total.
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Re: mike staples

Postby windwalker on Fri Sep 30, 2016 8:14 pm

in light of some of the other threads this might help some sort their own paths out.

I was just thinking that I should probably say something about "What Ever Happened to Michael Staples," since that was the original question for this thread: And it's a great way for me to point you to my book, because in essence that is what the book is about. At one point, a dramatic point, I came face-to-face with the question of what I was doing in the martial arts...just what was I trying to accomplish, if anything at all. What was all my kicking a punching about? Where was the sense of the spiritual in my practice? Was I just trying to be the best at kicking ass, or was there something deeper... and if deeper; what was it?

The path these questions took me down is the path my book discloses, and the reason why I dropped out of the kung-fu scene when I did.

I never really left kung-fu, but I suppose you have to define what you think kung-fu really is. Is it kicking and punching? Cage Fighting? If so, then perhaps you should turn your attention inward, and ask yourself why this is so important for you.

Is there something or someone you are afraid of? Did someone kick sand in your face, and you lost the girl on the beach? Or are you drawn to the mystery of kung-fu, the potential for self discovery? What is it that draws you to it?

Those were questions, very personal questions, that finally came up from the very depths of my soul and grabbed me by the scruff of my neck... and said "You MUST pay attention to me now!" And so I did.

At what some would say was the height of my career as a writing in the field of kung-fu, and the height of my physical capabilities as well, I put it all down. I closed the school I had built. I put everything in storage. I put a few essentials in a backpack, and I went into a forest... and began to look inward for the answers.

From the Shaolin side of things, you probably know that the temple was the home of Chan Buddhism, and that after six or so generations, perhaps with the teachings of Hui Neng, Chan lost the last vestiges of it's Indian core to become a legitimately Chinese, home-grown practice. And that many generations later Chan made its way into Japan as Zen Buddhism.

And of course you know that Shaolin was also the home of the very important school of kung-fu by the same name... with all its offshoots. But there is more to kung-fu that kicking and punching, or seeing who can kick whose ass. There is a whole side of it that is often relegated to the quaint, which it should perhaps be its most important feature.

I may have "dissapeared," from view, but "dissapeared" into clarity. I became both lost, from view, and found within myself. What more could one ask of kung-fu than this?

If you go to my website at FocusingEmptiness.com I have a blog page. Don't know if it is quite up and running yet. But I would be happy to answer any questions I can there. I will also be checking in here. I want to support Gene Ching and this website as best I can.

http://www.kungfumagazine.com/forum/sho ... ples/page2
Last edited by windwalker on Fri Sep 30, 2016 8:16 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: mike staples

Postby KEND on Sat Oct 01, 2016 1:16 pm

Wow, blast from the past. I visited George Long's studio, I think it was 1970, his students Staples and a Chinese guy were practicing. George was very friendly, I worked out with them and later wrote an article for a british MA magazine on the school and system. Also visited Brendan Lai and Kuo Lien who were also friendly and allowed me to work out with them[west coast was friendlier than the east coast in those days]
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Re: mike staples

Postby windwalker on Sat Oct 01, 2016 4:39 pm

KEND wrote:Wow, blast from the past. I visited George Long's studio, I think it was 1970, his students Staples and a Chinese guy were practicing. George was very friendly, I worked out with them and later wrote an article for a british MA magazine on the school and system. Also visited Brendan Lai and Kuo Lien who were also friendly and allowed me to work out with them[west coast was friendlier than the east coast in those days]


Chinese guy? haha which one...
Might have been Ron Dong,

Mike along with Gary, and some of the other students of Gorge Long, where big influences
on me as a young teen in the city.

The style and way of practice was geared only for one thing
and one thing only,,,"fighting"

The training back then was quite severe and brutal also secretive.
Some times we would get visitors from China town 8-) instead of staying in our 20min ma bo, as usual
we would sit until they left....we had specialty hands like "burning palm" and others that to this day
are not widely known nor talked about much....anyone who's practiced it or come in contact with it
would know what it can do...like in another thread some might question it...its ok and expected ;)

Mike, could just by dropping his hand, using just the back of the hand crumble a cinder block...
Reflecting back on the conditioning training I would have to say it was quite destructive to the body....
For some things, it might be 1 person out of 10 that would get it,,,the rest usually quit or got damaged in the process.

Mike was ahead of his time,,,for the time,,,,Gary, and him, modified the style to include boxing hands,,,which he held in high regard.
It would be at this time I would leave the gym feeling that it was getting away from the "style" that I was interested in.

this thread talks to some of what Mike did back in the day.
viewtopic.php?f=6&p=418672

Met David Chin,

Sometimes Mike and I would go to his gym to practice.

Mike was very emphatic that what one trained had to work, and one practiced until it did...
Of course this meant "testing" something that the styles of the day where noted for, and also not
as CMA then and now is not noted for its ring accomplishments ...

Studied with Brendan Lai, 7* mantis,,,very different then the plum flower
I had learned while in Korea.

CMA very rich in history, styles and deep practices....
Respect to all past and present teachers of the art....
Last edited by windwalker on Sat Oct 01, 2016 5:12 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: mike staples

Postby windwalker on Mon Sep 11, 2017 8:40 am

By all accounts I hear Ron Dong is a tough guy. I also heard from Michael Staples that there was another "Ron" from the school known as "Big Ron" who would go out and fight against rival gangs, sometimes up to 4 on 1, just to test out whatever technique they were learning. Long's "burning palm" was his "trademark" technique and would raise welts on Staples arm by merely slapping.


Doing some research came across this from another site.
Thought some might find it interesting.

Some of the other threads, questioning what boxers could teach or add too
a CMA art, causing a little inner reflection of the old days.

Boxers train hard and use their training against boxers.
They are limited by their style but train in a reality IME
that few really train for or have to deal with.

This makes what they do very effective working within the context of their training,
allowing them to adapt it as needed outside it.

IME the most important thing they could add to ones training or teach
is getting hit, and hit hard if what one does, does not work.

It forces one to confront their own training and figure out whether its the training itself,
or the lack of training by ones self, or a combination of both.

In talking with Mike, many old memories were brought back, in meeting Mike.
the essence of his training still very evident in usage. ;)

There is a burn in process that occurs when things are used and work under pressure.

Work with anyone who's used their method under pressure it will be one of the first
things they go back to when pressed, sometimes preventing them from learning other
things that may be counter to what they learn or know. Very hard to break reactions
that work or worked.

Some who practice taiji coming from other arts sometimes
have problems with this aspect.

Many talk about whether a style is used or not or how it looks when used.

I've always found this odd but understandable. Some finding what they do didn't work
as advertised are left with a couple of choices. Either practice to make it work, or adjust what ever it is
to make it work.

Most seem to use the later "adjusting" in so doing often losing the essence of their training.
Whether this is important or not depends on the outcome.."winning" or understanding the nature of
their training making it functional.

The type functionality very important to understand.
Last edited by windwalker on Mon Sep 11, 2017 1:08 pm, edited 3 times in total.
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Re: mike staples

Postby KEND on Mon Sep 11, 2017 8:48 am

In the early days [ 60's--70's] it was not unusual for students to go out, pick a fight in a bar and try out their stuff. I taught in Newark in the mid 70's and students would regularly get in brawls, coming back the following week to tell me what did or didn't work. Probably would be arrested nowadays
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Re: mike staples

Postby Michael on Mon Sep 11, 2017 9:41 am

Gee, sounds like toxic masculinity was more permissible back then. /s
Michael

 


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