spiraltao

THANKS A MILLION! Getting ready to watch the DVD in it's entirety. That was SUPA FAST!

I highly recommend these two links. They both work for me. Very simple, but very effective. The first is Ken Cohen's Bone Marrow Cleansing, for cleansing your chi: bone marrow cleansing Next is Lam Kam Chuen's excellent series to get one started on Zhan Zhuang as Marcus has already recommended. While these appear highly simplistic, they are very functional and powerful! I do both in the morning as a chi kung before I begin my circle walking.

Thank you zerostao, for turning me on to this wonderful site! I honestly concentrated to get a number, and I seen 676 in a misty fog with the numbers looking a bit yellow. That is the best I can describe it. What excites me the most, to be honest, is how great this will fit into my current training and life situation!

THANK YOU! I am so stoked! I just read the sentence and got my number in my mind's eye. PM sent. Awesome, many thanks!

I have had two highly skilled guitar teachers and both said that knuckle popping was a big NO NO. ...and the arthritis thing, which I already have, so I dont do it. ...with that said, when I am starting my silk reeling in the morning, very slow and stady to be SAFE, i can often hear a lower lumbar crack rather loudly or something in that region, after that, every single time, I can feel a surge of energy travel up my back and I can direct it from there. That might be a bit off topic, but it is something that I have thought about lately.

-double post, don't see a delete button, heh-

six hundred seventy six 676

I am going to give another YES! Not only is good for martial art, it is just good for life in general. The wonderful tthing about chi kung is that it is not a bunch of mumbo jumbo (forgive the cliche), it works if you do it, that simple. Like Sifu Garry said, just choose the set that best fits you. Your heart will let u know the answer.

Thanks for the link!

Actually there is a funny story behind that book -K-, it was the first book on baguazhang that I ever purchased. I acquired it at the very beginning of my training. Then, I let Sifu borrow it. LOL He is still reading it, that was in about May of last year, lol. So I bought the Liang Shou Yu and YJM BGZ book. I remember reading the history of bagua in that book. I found it very well written and easy to understand. It covers Cheng style, no? I gotta get that one back. THANKS for the sugggestion -K=! Any other books on bagua you would recommend?

@yangluchan-Thanks so much! To know that I am inspiring inspires me! lol Lemme tell you, from what Zerostao has taught me and their kindness to take the time to answer more than one of my questions, you can NOT go wrong with DGS. I would love to own the Bagua Basics DVD. Can't decide on it or empath's guide to the universe for a Christmas present. hehe-_- Erle and I corresponded, as he was a kind and humble human being as well. He knew my Grand Master Pickens and they done alot of corresponding. So, I suppose you and I have quite similar training methods and theories. @joeblast-Yet another great analogy! Thanks for helping me understand and come to a conclusion. @Sloppy Zhang-By precursor I mean in training and historically in regards to liang yi. In my opinion, this suggested order and not starting str8 out with baguazhang is exclusive to the training ideas of the modern day Victor Fu. My conclusion is that I will continue my bagua practice until my heart leads me other places. My training as a child had bagua methods hidden in it that I am still seeing and understanding. Why just the other day, I realized that double leg fajin was a huge part of class. (not sure if this is the correct term, but making sure both feet land at the exact same time to issue power) We also had a stance form that was encouraged to be held for long periods of time, ala, ZZ. Our three point blocking system is nearly the same as Erle's from one of the clips of Bagua fighting. We learned to make a block a strike and snake in for another strike, to stick. A few key baguazhang concepts. So my conclusion is that Grandmaster Pickens prepared us for the bagua in my childhood training. It was far more than wing chun and tiger for me! I am getting wonderful results, so there will be no change, I tend to think a lot.

I don't usually sleep alot, I tend to use it as time to plan my day and my general path in life. Last nite was no exception. I think the Fu stylist was sincere and it may well be because of the spins, but the system I am training in does not emphasize the spins as much, but they are there. The footwork preparation has been a year so far! lol I truly didn't understand at first, ask Zerostao, lol. Triangle footwork drills, crane stepping, mudstepping, inside turns, outside turns, single change, double change, reeling palm, are all drilled daily. To correct myself the fu style practitioner said that Liang Yi was the precursor to bagua and tai chi the precursor to Liang Yi. I am not backing up from baguazhang though, it has changed my life and it keeps getting better. Best wishes to ya buncha towel bums HAHAHA luv ya guys

Sifu Harris is open for seminars. Grandmaster Pickens might be as well, but I can't speak for him. If you don't mind message me some contact info and location and I will get ahold of Sifu and relay the message. Dr. Ng doesn't teach anymore. EMAIL @ [email protected] is me, Jaysahnztao.

@ Sloppy Zhang-Thanks for the information. I own Whirling Circles. It's the only Baguazhang book that I know of that has the animal postures in it. In our system we have a weight form which is walking the nine palace stepping with weights attached to the arms. I know this seems very external, but Master Ng's training methods have always worked for me! Sorry to go off topic. I appreciate relaying the tai chi story! @Dainin You are right. What you posted is exactly what my conscience was telling me anyway. My opinion is that it easy to get pulled in the wrong direction when one supplements their training with what one WANTS, not what one NEEDS! Does this make sense? I do love da cheng chuan, though. ZZ has played a part in my healing and Da Cheng Chuan would be the next step. ...but so far using ZZ with my bagua has worked GREAT! Thanks for the insight. :excl:

Thanks Baiqi Baguazhang is mos def my favorite martial art too! I am going to pose a brief but very profound question in regards to baguazhang or the learning thereof.

Thanks Seth! My Sifu is Scott Harris, his master is Grand Master Rick Pickens under GGM Hui Wing Lok Ng (John). If this helps. Grandmaster wrote a book on chinese ring dagger. However much of my qigong came straight from Master Lam Kam Chuen's book Way of Power and Dragon Gate Sanctuary material that Zerostao taught me. My sifu kinda gave me the kick in the ass I was needing. The support here is palpable. I am a better person for have being a member here and it felt great to annouce my success. I have still been monitoring my hepatic panels. They have remained HEALTHY. I am so happy about this, I know that the sky is indeed the limit. My mind is in hyperdrive at just about any point of the day with all the energy I seem to gather after a morning bagua play session. I suppose that is the only disadvantage to having energy in spades?

Thanks Seth! My Sifu is Scott Harris, his master is Grand Master Rick Pickens under GGM Hui Wing Lok Ng (John). If this helps. Grandmaster wrote a book on chinese ring dagger. However much of my qigong came straight from Master Lam Kam Chuen's book Way of Power and Dragon Gate Sanctuary material that Zerostao taught me. My sifu kinda gave me the kick in the ass I was needing. The support here is palpable. I am a better person for have being a member here and it felt great to annouce my success. I have still been monitoring my hepatic panels. They have remained HEALTHY. I am so happy about this, I know that the sky is indeed the limit. My mind is in hyperdrive at just about any point of the day with all the energy I seem to gather after a morning bagua play session. I suppose that is the only disadvantage to having energy in spades?

great read!

" So the best way to control your qi, is to totally abandon your control and let go." Scotty, this makes no sense. Perhaps, that is a way to FEEL one's chi. ...but what little control of my chi that I have, is done with intent(visualizations, too) and breathing.

Indeed it does, that is why I love standing meditation so much, Zhan Zhuang. I would highly recommend it. The postures also teach very important concepts of combat, like hollowing, rooting, relaxtion (not sure if it is song or not?). Just my opine, hope it helps...

WOW! Thanks for all the pointers. I've been doing jam jong for a year now. ...and I am highly interested yi quan. I know the five energy strikes, pretty much the same as xingy five elements, but the way master lam kam Chuen describes them in his book "Chi Kung Way of Power", they seem more natrual for me. ...but for me, I have always tried to maintain the clear mind, or rather mind of no mind as the Grand Master Rick Pickens and Sifu Scott Harris have taught.

I agree K. ...and I think our answer to this is Lao Xie, Christopher Matsuo! That is just my humble opine.

I meditated with my hands in a mudra that looks like the devil horns. Middle and ring fingers folded touching the center of the palm, with the thumb on the ring finger. Lie hands in your lap, and point fingers at each other and just concentrate on breathing. One needs to concentrate on stilling the breath, not holding it, but making it as long and smooth as possible, this is done through the nose. The breathing must be relaxed and long. ...but my best results always included vibrating palm and whipping palm drills, too. you can just whip your palms out into the position of the great circle in ZZ. This would be for starters, I whipped all eight mother palms like this, different mother palms require different parts of the body to whip, but the waist is always involved and I done used the great circle as my frame. It is important to leave hands relaxed and let them be the tip of the whip. Not sure if just any shaking fajin type movements would work, but those and the meditation coupled with slowing the breath are the best. ...and don't get angry, lol.

Is anyone here familiar with the Ken Cohen's version of this?; in his book, "The Way Of Qigong" it is only a few movements. I have been practicing it everyday. Ken spends more time describing the breathing than the movements. Anyone who owns the book would be a great help.

I love the idea of lying flat down to initiate inner quiet or nothingness/stillness! Great tip!