quarterly summary - Q1, 2007

following the 1st quarterly summary written in december (reference: quarterly summary - Q4, 2006), it's time to post the quarterly summary for the past 3 months.

original goals

following the "objectives for the future" given in the previous quarterly summary, the objectives for this quarter were:

• continue attending class (making it an integral component of my athletic training schedule)
• continue practicing during the week outside of class
• increase 2-person and multi-person drills and sparring (to improve combat application of techniques and concepts)
• learn the more fundamental components of the curriculum i missed by beginning in the middle of it (e.g., the 8 palm changes of mother palm, xiao ka men, qigong, etc.)
• learn more about martial arts in general (to get better perspective on bagua in the topography of martial arts)
• acquire reference materials (e.g., books, DVDs, etc.) to use as study aides
• figure out a long-term plan in terms of learning bagua and proceeding to other styles
• figure out just how i should go about progressing in bagua in relation to everything else in life

summary of events

with respect to the curriculum, this is what has been covered--or at least, what i've picked up:

• tantui (lines 5-7)
• two-person footwork drills (stepping on feet)
• two-person circle walking drill (touch/separate)
• multi-person circle walking drill (engage/disengage)
• bagua principles in combat
• mother palm
• xiao kai men (line)
• 64 palms: palm changes 7-8 (line, side A)
• walking the circle: palm changes 1-8 (side A)
• bagua zhang qi-gong: level 2, qi projecting

other things that have been covered that were not necessarily within the curriculum:

• numbers 1-8 in Chinese--no big deal, i know, but i figure small victories are still victories
• names of bagua techniques in Chinese and English--now i can actually use the names instead of just describing them figuratively
• bagua curriculum handouts--covering the names of techniques for xiao kai men, 64 palms (side A and side B), and qi-gong (levels 1-3)
• taoist and buddhist philosophy--particularly taoist and buddhist thought relating to martial arts practice
• Chinese martial arts history--ancient, traditional, modern
• Chinese martial arts styles--i'm starting to learn the names and characteristics of other traditional Chinese martial arts, such as tang lang (praying mantis), chang quan (long fist), tai chi quan, hsing-i, baji, piqua, wing chun, white crane, hung gar, etc.
• traditional Asian medicine--mostly in terms of the medical reasoning behind qi-gong, but also in terms of herbal medicines, nutrition, external/internal harmony, and yin-yang concepts

evaluation

i think i've achieved most of the goals carrying over from last quarter. in terms of the ones that were stated, i can say the following:

1. continue attending class and integrating it into my athletic training schedule: i've done this without too much problem. admittedly, there has been some reshuffling of my normal training routine, some of it major (i.e., changing weekends so that Saturday was kung fu and Sunday was a rest day, whereas before i had Saturday as a rest day and Sunday as a long workout day). although, i should note, that the possibility of symbiosis between kung fu and triathlon is as yet unproven to me, and something for which i need some more time to fully assess.
2. continue practicing during the week outside of class: yes. this was relatively straightforward. i had to curtail practice in exchange for more recovery time as my athletic training schedule intensified, but i still managed to find time each week for kung fu practice.
3. increase drills and sparring to improve combat applications: this is probably one of the goals with mixed results. we did do more drills and sparring, but probably not as much as necessary to really improve combat application. recently, i have been attending the lei tai training, which features more of this, so this may be rectified. but otherwise, there probably has not been as much as i think is needed.
4. learn the more fundamental components of the curriculum: this is another one with mixed results. i did learn xiao kai men in a line. but definitely don't know it that well to understand it--at least, not to the same extent as 64 palms. i also learned the more basic mother palms. beyond that, we have gotten more qi-gong. all of which is good. but i am increasingly of the belief that i'm going to have to join some of the other beginners and schedule a xiao kai men plus basics session(s) with Sifu at some point.
5. learn more about martial arts in general: yes. i have done this. a lot of it was random searching on the internet, and comparison with comments made by Sifu and other students in class.
6. acquire reference materials: yes. i acquired the bagua curriculum handouts which seem to comprise the basic primer for bagua students within Sifu's school, and this has helped in understanding class content immensely. i have also acquired DVDs from Sifu's school, which while not related to bagua still provide background material regarding qi-gong and the other styles he teaches, and so provide some basis of reference in terms of what i'm learning regarding bagua relative to other Chinese martial arts and traditional medicine.
7. figure out a long-term plan in terms of learning bagua and proceeding to other styles: definite no. this is a work in progress. and it also depends on what happens to me after graduation--for which i currently have no answer.
8. figure out just how i should go about progressing in bagua in relation to everything else in life: who knows. i sure don't. i just keep doing the best i can, and riding out the contours of life according to whatever seems to make the most sense.

obviously, some things were accomplished more completely than others. but overall, i think progress has been good, and so encouraging. i hope to keep things going in the same direction.

observations

my comments can probably be summarized as follows:

• philosophy: well, i've always curious about philosophy. and i've always felt some lack of familiarity with Eastern philosophy, having had most of my exposure to Western thought. i have delved into taoism and buddhism at various times in my education, but knowing a philosophy on an academic level is very different from seeing how it manifests itself on a cultural level. learning kung fu with Sifu has given me an opportunity to see the application of taoist and buddhist thought into what is in many ways a unique expression of Chinese culture. admittedly, Jason tries to gear his class more towards practical application, and so has only infrequently discussed philosophy, but what he has offered has been very insightful--not just about kung fu, but life in general.
• cross-over: i am starting to see more cross-over between endurance sports and kung fu. enough that i'm starting to make it a regularly recurring series cross-posted between my triathlon blog and my kung fu blog. in some ways they are very different, but in other ways they are very similar. it's been interesting to see the comparison of wisdom between the two regarding training, well-being, and personal development.
• combat applications: we have gotten a good dose of this. but i still hold the belief from the last quarter that i am nowhere near ready to apply the lessons from class in self-defense--at least, not effectively. this is mostly because in the pressure and urgency of a fight, there's a primacy on speed and decisiveness, meaning movement that is instinctive and natural, which are things i am not confident i have right now. it's just simply going to need more practice and diligence, particularly in terms of sparring work. the lei tai training that recently begun may help with this, but i think that at some point i'm going to have to make a committed effort to start practicing with others (as opposed to solo). Sifu suggested this in class, with the comment that eventually you have to do more than learn forms to really learn and apply a martial art.
• qi (or chi): i am getting some conception of qi, although not quite clear. i can see it as a metaphor used by Asian culture to describe certain kinds of phenomenon, much as Western societies use metaphors like kinetic and potential energy to describe physics. but i still don't sense it the way other people apparently do, especially in terms of feeling power or heat or intensification of energy in localized parts of the body (or outside of the body). i don't know if i should be, since i haven't been at this too long. i'm trying to keep an open mind about this, but i still hold a reserve of scientific skepticism. who knows. i'll just give it time.
• qi-gong (or chi-kung): i'm pretty happy learning qi-gong. it's interesting on a number of levels: philosophically, culturally, medically. however, because of my uncertainty over qi, i'm not getting the same kind of feelings over qi-gong that others are getting--i'm not feeling any surge in energy, or feeling of energy moving in the body, or of manipulating energy outside the body. i am, however, feeling its calming effects and meditative aspects, and so i find it more of a mental process. whether this is a part of the training process remains to be seen.
• learning: based on what others have said to me, my pace of learning is fairly rapid relative to the normal schedule for the bagua curriculum. however, i don't know if this necessarily means i'm learning things any better. my progress really depends on who i'm getting instruction and feedback from; i notice that i learn better from some people than others. in particular, i seem to learn the easiest from Sifu, Phunsak, and to some extent Kieun. i have some difficulty learning from senior students like Art and Mike in terms of physical movements, but find them excellent for qi-gong or philosophy and history. everyone else is a bit of an adventure.

objectives for the future

obviously, the main objective is to keep making progress. this means that i'm keep a number of the same goals i had from last quarter. but looking to the future--and not just the next quarter, but also longer term--i'm also forming some new ones. as a result, the list of objectives is a little different than before.

the objectives carrying from last quarter are:

• continue attending class
• continue practicing during the week outside of class
• increase 2-person and multi-person drills and sparring (to improve combat application of techniques and concepts)
• learn the more fundamental components of the curriculum
• learn more about martial arts in general
• acquire reference materials

the new objectives to be added to this list are:

• find commonalities and/or mutually beneficial connections between kung fu and endurance sports
• learn more traditional Asian medicine (e.g., qi-gong)
• learn more cultural context of traditional Chinese martial arts (e.g., Taoist & Buddhist philosophy)

my final note is that i'm finding the class worthwhile and enjoyable. i'm happy with my choice of Sifu, the quality and manner of instruction, and the things i've been learning. enough that i'd like to maintain going and learn whatever there is to learn.