Warfox Bagua 錦園八卦掌

In bagua it is most important to understand how to use steps to manipulate your opponent. By stepping toward the attack we can jam it before it reaches its most powerful position. We can step back to let him waste energy by missing. We can also step in an angular trajectory allowing us to gain a favorable distance while the attack glances past us. This makes it so crucial for us to practice Kou and Bai bu which is almost like the steering wheel in a car. The problem with learning to think with our feet is that initially it is unnatural. When we flinch, our hands come up and cover our face instinctively. Bagua means that you have to retrain mind so that we flinch with our feet instead. The next problem is that the step must be rooted and weight sunken in order to prevent stepping into a trap. If we are in mid step as the opponent attacks our weight must be lowered so that we are able to better roll off the projected energy. It is only arrogance to assume that we will always be a...

These are notes for my the spring semester class I'm teaching at WSU. Just some more information on our basic principles. The eight sides of the Bagua in our lineage (Gao style Bagua or Soft Body Repeating Hands Bagua) are represented by 8 different energies: heaven, water, mountain, wind, thunder, fire, earth and lake.   Each of the sections contain eight movements with at least 6 variations. Each section also contains counter attacks, two person practice and a strengthening technique from the circle.   These strengthening techniques are often known as Preheaven. The 64 applications of the techniques are called Post heaven. Gao Bagua is unique because it contains Preheaven and Post heaven practice. Here are a few bits of information about each section. In this semester you will learn the complete Heaven section. I will still write out the philosophies of each section in order to give you a sense of direction for your training. Heaven-   The heaven...

 This is not really a post, but a list of numbers that can me accessed by students curious of our Xin Zhu Bagua Association. Keep in mind that I have only written out the movements that I have learned. I know there is still much more Bagua gooey goodness to learn. Pre Heaven ( Circle) 10 Second Circle 10 9 Palaces 1 Post heaven 64 Post heaven Counters 64 Post heaven two person practice 64 Unlimited (Formless) Fist 28 Seven Stars 42  Seven Stars (Set 2) 33 Footwork Steps 25 Qing Ping Sword 60 Qin Ping Sword (Set 2) 60 Baji 68 6 Connecting Kicks 27 Guan Dao 40 Tai Chi 96 Strange Spear 26 Bagua Staff 128 Bagua Spear 126 Stealth Tiger Saber 40 6 Harmony Saber 40 Push Hands 9 Wudang Fist 56 Hooks 12 Three Principle Fist 30 12 Steps of Power 12 Five Elements (5)  (12)  Sometimes you have to lay it all out so you can see it.   Thank you Master Wu Guo Zheng for 10 lifetimes of kung fu. 

Winter training is never as enjoyable as the spring or even scorching hot summer time, but it offers many advantages. As I bundle myself into extra layers of clothing, I add weight to every movement. There is also additional weight in my mind as I look out into my now frosted natural dojo of trees. Daily I spend hours with the same trees and watch as they change clothing for the increasingly brisk winter days. In the night time they appear to be a rustic, metallic color. Yet in the morning the fog passes through its bark that shines like smooth glass. My art also changes as I move between the trees, never daring to slow down for fear that the cold will catch up to me. I can feel my movements ever so gradually improving as I attempt to see beyond the white of my breath. After a few hours pass, my Qi reaches its limits and my fingers and toes are fully aware of the brutal cold. I sit in a lotus position on top of the sleeping grass and the earth greets me with a sharp chill. The ...

For a martial artist  a martial arts demonstration is a place to learn and evaluate movements and ideas. Seeing the power of other styles can lead to gateways of how to unlock more potential power within our own art. There is nothing quite as fulfilling as feeling connected with such a long historic brotherhood. Because the arts were designed out of war the demonstrations and friendly competitions are a great way to appreciate other martial artists without having to kill each other. These arts were developed in a severe time that most societies to date have completely forgotten about. Martial arts masters  had a status as respected as a doctor or police. Many of them were very wealthy because they often protected those who wanted to protect their money. With the introduction of new technology martial artists were forgotten to the world. As my father often says, "They threw the baby out with the bath water." Leaving martial artists today in a world that teeters between ...

        小時候三兄弟都不約而同的認為，成為ㄧ位武術高手比醫師或律師來的令我們更值得去追求與尊崇，當時我們壓根不覺的有比練功夫更好的生活方式。學習武術近30年的時間，見到功夫悠久的歷史背景下，產生出現今神祕且多元的表現方式 。             我們三兄弟很小的時候就認為功夫就是要實戰實打，二十多年前種族歧視的社會依然嚴重衝刺著我們的生活，幼小心靈要防遇的不只是語言攻擊，還包括身體，所以學習武術不只是打為了好玩或興趣，我們是打為了我們的自尊，我們的命。我們喜歡練拳沈浸在武術的世界裡，看見自己日益強壯的身心靈，但我們實在不覺的真正的攻擊傷害別人是開心的事。終於我們一家人搬到一個不用每天搏鬥的環境，當然我們沒有就因此間斷，還是天天在練，還是一天比一天進步，還是每個禮拜找到不同門派（截拳道  忍術 合氣道  拳擊  泰國拳 巴西拳...等）的老師或是志同道合的人切磋切比劃與學習。        之後我跟大哥都很幸運能找到ㄧ群真的喜好將武術實以用之的老師，接著十七歲在西岸的武術比賽拿到了冠軍，雖然冠軍這個頭銜是好的象徵，但我依然感到空虛，因為對予我來說打得比別人好，不表示我的程度在提高，反而是一種停滯。我開始思考起比賽的意義，是否贏得只是膚淺的歡呼聲，只是種驕傲的證明而已。習武十四的我，十八歲，我已經很難找到我心目中的老師，所以我開始自己成為老師，授課。我發現當我在教人的時候，其實自己才獲益良多，在這過程中我遇到一位台灣的朋友，他說：『要學更多的功夫，就必須學中文。』       當我真正開始學習中文候後才發現，我對武術的歷史知識和了解還不透徹也不夠豐富。當時我們三兄弟都是已開始傳授他人武術一段時間。一天，二哥給我看一個影片，而其中一段是在解釋八卦掌，第一次看到它就決定有一天一定要找到最完整的八卦掌，在我學習中文三年後，學校剛好有機會能把我送去中國交換學生。中國浩大，要找到ㄧ位真正好的功夫老師其實不易，尋尋覓覓下，我還是找到八卦掌老師學習了半年時間，回到美國馬上想與兩個習武兄弟過幾招，讓他們見識...

In the midst of my search of better ways to fight, think and react to life, something stumbles upon me. I get sick. Something about the viruses in America being different than the ones of my home in Taiwan. It could also be related to the stress of not knowing which country I will be settled in. Always continually searching for the place that the seeds of Bagua will be most fertile, I find myself awake at night with possibilities and ideas. I am usually able to keep sickness at bay  through my Qi training, but some days you're just destined to get sick. As my body shuts down my mind turns on and casts lights at shadowed questions in the room.  The loudest question being the one all martial artists continually ask, "How do I get better?" Next to a cup of used tissues I scan across videos of the masters I met in Taiwan. While watching the videos I felt I was with them again as we exchanged different ideas on what it meant to "Get better." We spoke of diffe...