the rum soaked fist: internal martial arts forum

Robert Dreeben
Mar 25, 2019

In this video I share several Pa Kua concepts like "Completing the circle", "Focusing on the line when you walk", "Sensitizing your body", Spring energy" and others.

The art of Pa Kua teaches you how to replicate the sphericity of kinetic movement. The circle is found every where in nature, life and the universe. Why do we walk the circle in Pa Kua? Well, if you can walk a circle good than you can walk a straight line even better. During the course of the day we are always moving forward until something gets in our way then we have to get around that person or object. Pa Kua teaches you how to minimize the friction of that compression.

To learn Pa Kua for combat- if that is your only martial art, takes a decade or more. This is why traditionally the Grandmasters would only accept students who had mastered other styles of kung fu first. Pa Kua is Devine and self revealing in that it's movement is a golden triangle spiraling throughout your body as you run the palm changes and walk the circle. The more you practice, the more rounded and connected your body becomes. Health benefits in Pa Kua, however happen immediately and don't take decades. The system is a great movement modality and rehab for injured joints and poor circulation. Pa Kua opens the energy channels and decompresses the joints allowing healing to take place.

What style of Pa Kua should you learn? There are many. What matters is that your Sifu studied an authentic style that originated from China with a traceable lineage. Any style will impart the benefits and most all actually have the same or similar movements arranged in a different order or performed with a different emphasis. A traceable lineage is necessary because you need that "Pa Kua DNA". With every Sifu there is a "Laying on of hands" that is passed down through the generations and the real Kung Fu is transmitted. When your teacher puts his or her hands on you part of your knowledge acquisition happens in that contact through osmosis.

I learned this particular Pa Kua style as a private student of Sifu Peter Chema who learned his Pa Kua from Master BP Chan. Sifu Chema is also the adopted son of the late Grandmaster Chang Dung Sheng from who he also learned Shuai Chiao, Chang Tai Chi and Hsing I. Grandmaster Chang then Polished the rest of Chema's other kung fu that he learned from other masters emphasizing the "Shuai" throwing aspect contained within all styles of kung fu.

I would like to thank my indoor student and colleague Master Fred McDowell for helping demonstrate in this video and my wife Amada for her camera work


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DBiXP_1RAIc

okay

He's not wrong - when I got into the indoor aspects of Baguazhang there was definitely a Vajrayana Buddhist aspect that is very similar to Nyingma empowerments, Shingon kaji or Reiki reiju. Look into the wording of some of these arts and they're constantly referring to concepts that don't have much context unless you've studied esoteric Buddhist or Daoist material. The golden triangle is something I experienced once we got to the 9 Palaces Walking. It was really cool to see a golden pyramid on fire in the middle of the circle afterward shooting light beams through my heart. Once the transmission is received - the triangle is within and can be passed on.

Isn't the golden triangle where all the heroin comes from?

There must have been a first transmission of stuff, i.e. golden triangle or other things. How did the person who was first in line succeed? Where did it come from and how did he/she figure out how to transmit?

My guess is working insanely hard, having fate on your side, proving character... and maybe an "egregrore" (sp?). An esoteric think tank which is accessible under certain circumstances.

I will stop speculating now, it's just fun to wonder.

There are some secrets that I discovered in my many years of learning and teaching (yes, I am still learning every day).
I picked this up by accident and the lessons of the concept of liuhebafa (6 combinations, 8 methods) should exist in all CMA.. Learning the art called liuhebafa has never made one more knowledgeable just because the art is so called.

Does that mean if I hit someone with the intention of doing so I'm doing Xingyi?

Obviously his main art is Taiji.

The waist and kua usage says it all........

What do the tense shoulders say?

I remember Mr. Drebeen from his many articles in the American martial arts magazines in the 1980s and 1990s. For a while it was a rare issue that didn't have one of his pieces on self-defence {I seem to remember that he was a serving police officer in those days] or taiji or xingyi. He certainly had a powerful build in the photos but the taiji and xingyi didn't look much like what I was used to and he did seem a bit stiff and bulky [for the taiji in any case].

There was one of his articles on a rare style of xingyi in which he claimed the real secret of the basic techniques was shouting "Yeep" as a power sound at the right moment. Reminded me of the bagua website I saw many years ago which claimed that baguazhang got it's name from the founder shouting out "Bagwa" as he launched his attacks.

My apologies to all those who like to shout when striking the air in their forms... never been a big fan of noise and I liked the old kung fu adage "that the fiercest dogs bite without warning.

On the positive side... he's apparently still training after all these years and still in good shape for his age.

Michael - Neil Ripski has demonstrated a Xinyi Liuhe method called Sound of Thunder that has a loud Yeep sound.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uiQApTeaPK0

YYYYYEEEEPPPPPPPP!!!!!! BBBAAAGGGWWWWAAAAAAA!!!!!!

Mr Greytowhite;
The video didn't change my mind about the fighting value of making loud noises of any kind though there is some value to variations of that kind of verbal training if you are doing group classes. Some modern students need to learn to be noisy to get over personal timidity [in my experience as a teacher, women had the most trouble with this but a surprising number of men did as well]. Of course, some liked it too much and wanted to shout/makes sounds all the time when striking or using force.

There's also no doubt that making a loud noise at the right moment can focus one's force momentarily and/or shock and surprise an inexperienced assailant. The key word is "inexperienced". On the other hand, make noises with Mr.-Saturday-Night-Where's-My-Next-Brawl and you may surprise him a little -- the first time you do it only -- but he's just a likely to ignore you and keep coming.

With apologies to Neil Ripski as I have never met the gentleman. I don't know enough about xingyi to make value judgments on what he is doing in stylistic terms except for the Yeep stuff as a loud sharp noise remains a large sharp noise no matter how you wrap it up in stylistic terms.

Mr. Graham B
Nice photo and reminds me of my stubborn Asian Shorthair who likes to back-talk whenever I tell her not to sweep another ornament onto the floor with her paw. She doesn't shout Yeep but she hisses sometimes as a warning. On those rare occasions when she bites or swings her claws in a more serious manner she doesn't make any noise as she does it!

Michael - you're much closer than I am to experience Neil's skill. I live here in Phoenix and have only touched one of Neil's Baguazhang students. I can't speak on their Xinyi - don't know anything about it - what I do know is he produces competent fighters who typically have skill in a few different styles. As to the shouting Bagua... doubtful, more likely something along the lines of OM HNG HNG for the old thunder fist seal.

Someone might also shout bagua at the end of a protection spell kinda like this one:

'Qian, yuan hengli Zhen, Dui ze Yong xiongbing, Gen, Shan feng Gui lu, Li hua botao, Kan shui Jiu Liang in, Xun feng chui wu yue, Zhen Lei pili sheng, Kun tu Liu Ren men....'
Qian origin of power strength and loyalty, Dui the pool of the army of heroes, Gen, mountain names the Ghost Road, Li great billowing waves of courageous fire, Kan is the water that rescues the worthy, Xun blowing to me from the holy mountain, Zhen thundering Vajra thunderbolt. Kun earth, the gate of man is stable....!!