Warfox Bagua 錦園八卦掌

I think one of the trickiest parts of learning Bagua is a matter of time management. This style traditionally has been passed through the hands of individuals who didn't have an additional obligation like a job. Kung fu used to be an occupation for those who had devoted their life to their art. Their missions were related to fighting, teaching, passing knowledge or even research for the purposes of their style. In the process of my own training, I must also make sure that I not only practice the movements, but improve upon them to the best of my ability. The question is, where do I find the time? One thing that I have learned to be true is that because Bagua is a collection of limitless angles and equations of combat, making literally an endless amount of ways you can train and project energy. I have found it best to take advantage of a mundane task such as chores and make it into a way to train, killing two birds with one stone. Loading Dishes When I take the dishes out t...

It is often said that your desires are what cause you to suffer. Chasing after uncertainties and dreams will eventually lead you to be disappointed. You should let life happen around and through you while capitalizing on the opportunities that come. Wise words and mostly true. Your life is a puzzle piece that fits together in the whole of time and the universe, making a beautiful masterpiece. As Ghandi said, "What we do is insignificant but it's very important that we do it."  It is all God's show and we can only do our part. Yet  your desires were also created by God. The things that you wish to do are more complex than you could ever know. Of course on the surface it may seem the same as other people. Everyone would love to have that job or everyone believes the same woman is beautiful. Looking deeper into the details you would find that even at the same job as your co-oworkers, you would rather do things differently. You would also find that there is a mate fo...

Bagua is the art of eternal change. I have been training various methods of moving from one movement to the next while gaining power in every following technique. It feels much like harnessing the energy in the air through an electrical current. The more I relax the more I can feel the power surging within my core and just when I try to control it....it's gone. The energy flows through me, but I do not own it. It is mine as long as I cooperate with the true current in the earth. I borrow it and can use it for many things just as long as I don't try to control it. The moment my thoughts are focused on "How do I control Energy" is the moment the energy leaves. For the energy to continually flow we must learn to let go of our "self". The self is the part of you that seeks to do things for the reward that will come. We work for money and train for power. Everything that the self does is for something else. In our lives we become conflicted with many energ...

Sometimes the flaws in our technique can act as mirrors for the flaws in our character. Maybe we have a weakness in a punch because we lack the patience to practice it slowly. It could be that your unwillingness to commit is stopping your kick from gaining speed. Inconsistent practice doesn't allow for any technique to develop fully. Frustration is the same thing as anger especially when it causes you to be hard on yourself. If you punish yourself for not doing well, you are only going to do worse. We must encourage our technique and ourselves in order to enjoy our art. No technique is perfect just as no person is perfect. In the end we are measured not by how many times we fell, but on how many times we got up. Learn to see your flaws for what they really are, "blessings in disguise." When I was a young man I used to lie and exaggerate stories. I thought by making people think that I was more interesting they would accept me. The ironic thing is that I lied about ...

 We here it so often in the martial arts world, "The basics are the most important for your development." Even as patiently as we may endure the basics we are very eager to move into the more interesting and complex motions of our art. Through time we grow in ways we never imagined and feel new potential power growing from within. Our research, training and trials opens a new world into infinite possibilities. Soon we find movements we like and movements we love. The continual practice is a mathematical equation for your progress and success. We know that we have come to learn so much and have much more to learn. Soon we contemplate why some movements have developed well while others haven't really developed into what we want yet. How is it possible that I have trained so long and this move lacks so much of what it should be. We develop and design countless ways to make the move progress but it is obviously at a plateau. Every new concept and idea bears fruit but th...

Today I was sitting outside reading my Chinese novels that I enjoy at Starbucks. The stories of martial arts masters and lifestyles is like James Bond meets Batman. Some of it is just fiction and other parts are filled with true information about the history of many lineages. With the many responsibilities I have it is important to find those things that are pure joy and relaxation. To my surprise I continued to hear, "Don't work too hard, it's Saturday." from many passing customers. I have always loved how friendly people are in America, it allows me to really see into the culture that I have so long been away from. A common denominator that I have found in both the Western and Eastern world is that relaxing entails turning your brain off and not thinking about anything. It would seem like wisdom at first to want to calm your mind from all of the chaos of work and studying through out the week. So much time thinking about how to do your job better or raise you...

When you practice martial arts you are in a sense opening yourself to become a container for information. Martial arts and traditional dance uniquely share information that can only be held in their truest forms in living containers. No book or even video could ever capture the energy of the tiniest details buried deep into the arts. Therefore what we are able to learn lives through us and we become keys for the future of the style. Every so often the art finds itself in the hands of someone who thirsts for it. Someone who will not be satisfied at just having bits and pieces but should adopt the art into his/her lifestyle completely. The art and this person blend into a harmony that becomes more than human. It becomes something we have grown to know as heroic. In recent times our heroes have been replaced with actors and movie stars who carry the fame of heroes but lack any real heroic intent. We slowly follow them into a blind pathway of logos, sponsors, and name brands which...

It's really not as complicated as everyone makes it out to be. You do good things and the same energy of goodness will be drawn to you. You do bad things and the reverse applies. This rule is as true for individuals as it is for groups or even countries. Usually the easiest decision is the wrong decision, making our society a true collection of easy decisions. Imagine if in martial arts we decided to only train the easy or comfortable moves. No deep stances that would test your endurance and never a moment that would surpass your comfort. What would you gain in the end? The only way for a move to work well is if you have had an intimate moment together. Meaning like a relationship you have had trial and error, misunderstandings and even disagreements.  Through all of these discomforts we gain what we call strength. Strength begins with the acceptance of your discomfort and later maybe even enjoyment. A pearl is merely an irritation to a clam. So as the reflection of a negati...

Today as I feel the brisk wind occasionally accompany the once searing heat of the summer days, I realize  summer is approaching an end. I've decided to slow my training routine to match the rhythm of the winter season. The season adds color to every technique we practice while the theme is established by strengthening of our deepest weakness. Tragically most of us over look the blessings of our self inflicted pain and are distracted by goals that are admirable but meaningless. A goal to become better, be a master, obtain a new weapon or even learn a new technique will only pull your mind to a place that you do not yet exist. Forcing you to guess and ponder on the possibility of a fictional you. The only you that is real is the one who is reading these words at this moment. The "present you" holds all the keys to being joyful in this minute, hour and year. The key is to view things in a larger reality than yourself and know that this moment fits perfectly together to...