A conversation that seems to come up from time to time in martial art circles especially in weapon and fencing based arts, is the issue of realism in sport and sparring. We all want to be practicing real techniques and methods that work and will serve us in what ever goals we have in the… Continue reading Of Rules and Realism
The Chinese arsenal is full of strange weapons that defy explanation. There is an amazing array of strange and unusual weapons for every mood. Especially blades. There are so many ornate and bizarrely shaped bladed weapons it's hard to keep track of. Many of these are first recorded in the 1800’s or later, so arguments… Continue reading Liujiao Dao 鹿角刀: the “Deer Horn Knives”
Shameless plug time! This August 2nd, 3rd, and 4th, I will be hosting a workshop seminar with my teacher Master Ma Yue. This is going to be a seminar focusing on weapon work and Duan Bing (Chinese fencing). He will being including work with the bian gun or short stick. This is an extension of… Continue reading Summer Workshop with Ma Yue!
The Four Words as discussed in the previous installment, form a sort of conceptual base from which to build a system of sword fencing. Although, it has been pointed out by many, that much of modern swordsmanship is lacking in a foundation like the one laid with the Four Words. Esteemed writers and teachers often… Continue reading S-words: Xi, to wash
Master Ma Yue leads the TPLA group through the basics of Duan Bing The weekend of February 23-24, we had a special event here. My teacher, Master Ma Yue of Ma Family Tongbei, came in to town to teach a group of individuals the basics of the game of “Duan Bing” or short weapon combat.… Continue reading Duan Bing with Master Ma Yue
Below is my translation of the 24 stances of longsword found in the Wubei Zhi (武備志). I continue to work on and improve my translation and interpretation for ChaoXian Shifa(朝鮮勢法), and the challenges of translating old texts like this are myriad. But I enjoy the effort. Figuring out the changing meanings for words in their… Continue reading ChaoXian Shifa: Korean Stances-The Art of the Chinese Longsword.
In the Chinese martial arts, there are certain words and characters that have special meaning. They are often words that are descriptive of familiar, every day actions. They have traditionally been used as mnemonics to aid in memorization and visualization of the techniques they describe. But, because of the metaphorical nature of this practice, instructions… Continue reading “S” Words: The Four Words
