In late May our local Katori Shintō Ryū study group at Capital Aikikai under a student of Sugawara Tetsutaka-sensei had the good fortune of having one of his senior American students visit us in late May for a weekend seminar. We spent a lot of time reviewing the Katori kata and getting corrections in our body mechanics and movements. The approach the instructor took was enlightening in that his explanations were very compatible with the ideas I have been exploring in bagua, xingyi, and taiji. So, it gave me some encouragement that I could continue my Katori practice in a manner that was compatible, and not at odds with, my primary focus of training. We hope to invite Sugawara-sensei to visit this fall so we can get further corrections on our practice. I've been focusing on trying to be more precise in my movements on the sword side of the omote bo and naginata kata. I also hope to get some more time in at iai this summer at home.
I had hoped to attend a Gao bagua seminar hosted by George Wood in Virginia this June. He invited his teacher, Luo Dexiu (kung fu brother of Su Dongchen, whom I have written about before in this page) to teach a week of seminars in Gao Bagua and Hebei Xingyi. I was hoping to attend his session on "Black Dragon Waves Its Tail," which are a series of short palm changes taught once one learns the mother palms and the sixty-four linear tactics. However, I noticed a leak in my house that morning – thus the "house projects" statement above. So, hopefully next year!
My personal practice has been going well. I've been focusing on doing yoga more regularly now that I am teaching again and find it a good counter point to cycling. I am really enjoying riding my fixie – so much so that I will probably sell my cyclocross bike in a month or so. Once August passes, I hope to get back into running as well. So, fitness and body integration progress ever so slowly, but progress none the less.
I am continuing to practice neijia in the morning. Besides foundational practice, of which I can't get enough, I am trying to gain a facility with the Xingyi animal forms and Yin bagua palm changes I know. Working the movements and trying to drive them with a proper engine is a very rewarding investigation for me, as I am reaching my saturation level in terms of forms I want to learn or arts I want to learn. I am slowly shifting focus to how I can integrate the patterns I know into my general way of movement and be able to remain well-balanced within them, and able to express power correctly when needed.
When I am able to get together with my friend Ben Lawner, I have been focusing on working on better entries into the jujutsu locks and throws that we still practice. That is coming along well, although I wonder if I am being very good as a teacher as at this point in my approach I am just developing entries based upon the dynamics of balance at a particular moment and not looking at particular techniques. That is, the drills vary a great deal, depending on what is happening. This is effective from a martial standpoint, but I hope I am being clear enough my explanations that Ben can see the underlying patterns and ideas behind my actions and understand how to apply them in a way that works for him.
Shanghai Form
Oh, okay, here is a video clip, since I haven't posted one in a while. A friend pointed me to this clip of the southern Wu style taiji "fast" form. In it you can see some attempts at fa jin and some more dynamic movements than usually expressed in a standard form practice. It is supposed to be, in the Wu style found in Shanghai, a form one only does once having acquired a great deal of facility with the standard long or short form.
Wu-shi Taiji: Fast Form (opens in a new tab)
[Important Disclaimer: I often write about my YCGF Wu Taiji practice – the above clip is of Wu style out of Shanghai and is not YCGF taiji (which is from Beijing).]
