Another practical wu-dang class

Attended another class today. Was quite a challenge tearing myself from work to go. The act has benefitted that as well as me, giving me time to think and resolve some of my frustration. Duty is an odd thing.
The class itself was fun. Odd mixing fighting drills and t'ai chi. I am still a poor student though. I am reminded of the story of the philosopher who went to the master to learn from him. The philosopher sits as the master poors his tea - asking questions and talking through what he knows. The master sits silently pouring tea, eventually filling the cup and allowing it to overflow. The philosopher cries out in alarm that the cup is already full. So the master replies "How can I teach you, if your mind is already full?"

So it is with me, I have learnt bits of yang style, lee, chen and read a great deal. I have fought and sparred with wing chun and karate - although I was never adept at the old fighting malarky.

Now I find that in the fighting I fall back to the wing chun drills when I am unsure, I also find myself assimilating knowledge with what I already know, rather than accepting all that is before me, what I am taught. An interesting task, simply learning. Simple yet so hard.

Still, learning I am despite myself. I hope that fortune allows me to continue with the class.

Zen, Buddhism, Confucianism and Taoism...

As with any philosophy and group of people that are together at a time, all influenced each other. As with stories, ideas, any thing that can be passed from one to another, people take what is pertinent, fit for purpose, useful and combine all these into ones being. The writings of a philosopher is a view on this I guess. A two dimensional picture seen at a certain time.
Taoism it seems is quite neutral, or was. The influence of other philosophies introduced the idea that the Tao, the common consciousness is benevolent.
Not sure where I'm going with this. I am just wondering about the source of right and wrong, its definition. What makes a good person? What makes a good culture? A good nation? A good entity? What makes a thing an entity?
Confucianism is quite close to something I dislike. I don't know it well enough to really comment, but when has that ever stopped an English man. It seems like a set of rules, a code of conduct, something that on the face of it is where Christianity is today. Perhaps this is what people see of Christianity these days, not the mystical/spiritual side of the religion. Perhaps this is how Confucianism complemented Taoism. From what I have read it looks like zen strengthened the ideas around the development of the mind and the diminishing of ones desires. Taoism was initially most interested in longevity and immortality and concerned itself with changing and strengthening the body.

I must find out about the wisdom out there, come up with my own philosophy. I like the idea that if we clear our mind, our ego - then what is left knows the difference between right and wrong. This is hard to prove I suspect, although so many people can't be too far off wrong. The major sticking point is that I don't really want to rid myself of my desires. How does one tell the difference between right, wrong and desire???

Practice I think...

T'ai chi class with fighting drills etc.

Great fun throwing people around and getting chucked about.

The practical Wudang class out of town was worth the journey.

history of taoism and stuff

It is quite an interesting book. Quite bizarre how the philosophy has been turned into a variety of texts. One thing I found quite odd is the adoption by the 'taoist' community of the study of longevity. I think this goes to show the range and number of influences on taoism and the taoist practitioners. Taoist alchemy is well known area and used in the martial arts and arts of longevity. This is based on cultivating internal energy and using it to alter ones mind, body and spirit.

This however, seems inconsistent with quelling ones desires and living in a non-acquisitive way. However that sentiment comes from the karmic and action sects of the taoist tradition. Where does modern taoism come from?

Interesting book - thoroughly recommend it.

Taoism n' stuff

just reading eva wongs book on the history of taoism. Have a look here. Not sure what to make of it all yet, although it is an interesting book. I'm certainly more interested in the philosophy rather than the religon although the shamanic side is interesting.
Could shamans talk to animals? That would be handy. seems unlikely to me though. hmm... could one intuit what an animal is thinking/wants? i guess thats plausible. hmm.. proof would only come by experience i guess.
Haven't got to t'ai chi yet. There are references to taoist yoga-like movements, which interests me immensely. I practiced some of these when studying lee style at the croydon buddhist centre. I could find no texts on these at the time and since joined the wudang school.

I wonder if what they share with yoga and/or pilates if anything. hmm....

Wicca fest

Today I visited witch fest as a couple of pagan friends came to visit. It was an odd event for me, quite different. Nice to see so many people not quite conforming to the normal view of how one should look. Haven't seen quite such a display since my university days I suspect.
There were a few things that interested me there. One in particular was a workshop on moving magic. Looking at it from my perspective (i.e. not with my head being completely empty) it seemed like a bit of group energy work, with bits and pieces in common with all energy working practices. An interesting observation and odd to see this idea of some "energy" tied up with ritual practices (by that I mean following some sort of order).
However this wasn't struck me most. The big part that struck was that watching this I saw people of many generations, different backgrounds all working together, having fun and laughing with each other. Rarely have I seen teenagers having fun with older folk in modern english society and actually wanting to be there and contribute. If nothing else I like some of these practices for their greater sense of community.
I am personally still unwilling to commit myself to a religon as yet, though so its unlikely this blog will turn to paganism. The day brought me an interesting insight though.

Birthday meal

Went for a friends birthday meal this evening. Fun was had by all.

Reiki 2

I recently did the reiki one course to essentially see what this was all about. I note now that the reiki 2 course (i.e. practitioner level) is available and I would like to attend. However it is a considerable amount of money, especially this close to christmas so I fear it will wait till the new year.
If you're interested the guy who taught me reiki 1 has a website at www.reiju.me.uk.
An interesting art.

Zen tea ceremony

My other half got me a text on the Japanese Zen tea ceremony. This is something that has intrigued me for some time so I look forward to flicking through the pages.

Round form wudang

Round form is cool, it feels much more flowing than the yang style forms - perhaps an indication I was doing those incorrectly. I do strongly recommend Dan's book though. A very good read although I should state it doesn't cover the round form.

commuting

I spent the last week commuting to and from london. Typically only a 40/50 minute journey each way but it certainly was enough to change me. I found that I became very competitive about getting a seat on the train, to the point of almost getting one in front of an elderly gentleman walking with the aid of a walking stick. Madness, I'm 27 and reasonable young and fit, I don't need a seat but the mentality of the crowd almost seemed to be survival of the fittest, first come first served.
It took me a day I think to lose my sense of chivalry and a few moments to snap back to my senses and not follow the crowd and try to do what I thought was right, even in this small way. I don't know when I lost my sense of perspective, probably when someone jumped ahead in a queue. A seat isn't very important though. What a difference to those journeys it would have been if only half those travelling were more polite and less worried about getting where they were going (in a seat).

Dead like me

Just thought i'd pop a quick post up about Dead like me. A great show that looks at all bits of life from the point of view of someone who's died. Odd idea, but a different point of view often leads to simple insights.

Good luck to a friend off on his journey

hopefully he'll update his blog while he's away.

been a while since posting

much there has been to do. missed last weeks wudang lesson but hope to go to the 2 hour one in carshalton tomorrow. that reminds me - better get my bits together for that.

Who am I if my knowledge of right and wrong comes elsewhere?

This is an odd question that popped into my mind a while ago. Where does freedom of thought and expression and personal choice come in where one believes that one can enter a state of mind which dictates right from wrong?

I think however that this is an immature view of something I do not yet understand. Most of the processes around achieving enlightenment etc. seem to be about clearing out the old impure (for want of a better word) thoughts so that one can think clearly from ones core/true being. Thus, one is less influenced by fear and adverse experiences of the past and one can observe now with clear eyes. In such a state I imagine it is quite obvious what must or should be done - its only fear and self delusion that hides this or prevents us from taking that path.

Could one interpretation of the tao in this context be used to mean that which is our true being? hmm...

The Force and the Tao

"You will know (the good from the bad) when you are calm, at peace. Passive. A Jedi uses the Force for knowledge and defense, never for attack." - Yoda

Could almost be a quote from the tao te ching eh? Its an interesting idea and consistent with Lao Tzu's writing, if we are calm and aware then we will know the difference between right and wrong, good and bad. Wonder if Mr. Lucas ever read it. hmm...

looking forward to episode III...

backs, gardening, squatting and tai chi

just having a break from a spot of gardening. well, potting more like. putting small pot plants in a big pot in other words. odd exercise it is. Both the pots and the plants were on the floor and I was squatting down to do my work and found out a few things. The most interesting for me was a theory of how i hurt my back a while ago and a knowledge that it was still injured. As I was squatting down I was getting uncomfortable after a while and shifting around here and there. I found that I would stretch the tendons in the bottom of my feet in certain positions as I lifted my heel but still had my weight on that foot. I also cut off the circulation to my feet here and there by having my leg bent such that my hamstring muscle rested on my calf muscle. Anyhow I shifted around and eventually stood up and bent down to carry on. My instinct was to support my back by placing my right arm on my right thigh and twist down with my left hand to reach the plants etc. This was apparently bad. Conciously I know this to be true but I guess its a habit I have gotten into. Oddly if I take a wide stance and squat down (horse riding stance), bending my back forwards rather than twisting it is quite strong and this is how I completed my work.
twisting seems like it should be easier and it is for a while, ones back doesn't get as tired. Clearly though it has done me harm. Aligning the body properly however was ok, and even though the injury is still there (it let me know when I twisted) by moving properly it didn't affect me and I made it no worse. I feel like i'm stating the obvious - move properly, look after yourself, twisting your back while moving heavy stuff is bad. It is obvious and yet I had this little habit that I resorted to as I felt a bit tired. I think this goes along the lines of "the path is obvious but it is easier not to follow it".

3rd wudang lesson

Its still proving interesting and challenging. The section on the taichi classics at the taichichuan site is a darned interesting read. I've yet to compare it with the translations that I have but its free and a good guide to taoism and one on one combat.

The art of war and war craft III

well, i was hoping to write a bit using the art of war to analyse a game I am currently playing but time has eluded me. should get time over the weekend tho, so look out for that.

where and what is wudang?

After joining this club I had started to grow concerned that I was learning a small family style. The book I got (see below) states that the wudang style was created by the author and was his form. This is a little worrying as if anything happens where my current teacher is unavailable I won't complete learning this form. I figured I would try to find out a little more and a google search later pointed me to a few interesting sites. In particular taichichuan.co.uk is an excellent resource and has some interesting discussions on the tai chi classics (a series of texts concerning the practice of tai chi) - neat site. Looks like there are plenty of instructors nationwide and around london so my concern is eased.