Yang Family Tai Chi Discussion Board

The real secrets to fighting exist in understanding principles and remain hidden to us in plain sight. Most teachers just don't know about them they think all lies in technique and endless conditioning. Instead the secret lies in understanding.

The problem I see with that is too many people too focused on being strong, fast and aggressive (nothing wrong with all of these) which is like training with no direction toward understanding. When somebody comes along who is stronger faster and more aggressive; we're dead.

Principles have no form and that makes things tricky.

Now fighting and martial arts is one of the stupidest acitvities we can do as human beings, aside from killing one another. Fighting is brutal and ugly and for some reason our training methods seem to follow suit and not allow for much intelligence, beauty and skill.

The main reason I see people not learning skill is they are too busy trying to win, look good, and they believe what they are taught without questioning or experimentation, or they are just too dumb to realize there is something else out there. A world of fighting possibility that would blow them away if they gave it a chance.

There are some who are starting to learn fighting with intelligence in mind. It shows up in the fighters with skill. In my opinion a few of these are, Bruce Lee (unfortunately hes dead), Muhammad Ali (clearly skillful), Eddie Bravo (Understands principles like, Staying Tight, Following; "when they move you move with them," "Anaconda mode..." etc..) Denney Prokopos, Anderson Sylva (he knocked out Forrest Griffin while backing up), BJ Penn (His skill and manuverability on the ground and standing up are incredible), to name a few. I have also seen Quinten Jackson start to move his head instead of block.

The secret to mastering fighting lies in powerfully understanding principles that govern and create interaction. It requires a shift in mind that creates a reality in which you win and your opponent loses. Check this out.

http://chenghsinart.blogspot.com/2013/0 ... lanet.html

Artofwar,
Why would "Real Masters" not be able to pass this, or any other technique/principle, on? What's stopping them?
Is there a list of things that "Real Masters" are not allowed to teach but that other Masters can?
And how does one become a "Real Master" as opposed to any other kind of Master? Who decides which ones are "real" and which ones are just the run of the mill kind?
Why are "fighting and martial arts" so stupid? Would it be smarter to not fight if you are attacked by an aggressor intent on taking your life? How is that "smarter" than defending yourself using martial arts? What do you suggest as an alternative?

By the way, I have "checked out" your link.
I found no incredible insight that lead me understand the "secret to mastering fighting" there. While there are some good responses to questions there, there certainly was nothing that jumped out to me a secret that would lead me to pugilistic mastery.
Perhaps I missed it. Would you be so kind as to point out which of the postings there will lead me, all by itself with no further training, to this secret?
I already have no desire to "win" or to "look good" (those ships sailed a LONG time ago). I experiment, I question (just as Master Yang Jun if you don't believe me) and I do realize there is "something else out there", though I am not entirely sure what that is or where I can find it.
Perhaps you could relay that information on to me as well, since you seem to know it already.
That would be awesome.
Thanks.

Bob

Dear Bob,

Suddenly it came hitting on me. I recalled a very famous movie staring Dustin Hoffman and Roy Schneider in the "Marathon Man".
If memory serve me right, a younger person wanted a fist fight with him (Roy the dentist) and he quoted " I am too old and too wise to fight with you". Just as the guy turn his back, Roy plunged a 6 inch jaggered edge into him.
So fighting is about element of surprise, in this instance, I guess.

Cheers and a very Merry Christmas.

Isaac888

Isaac,
According to the movie "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid" there shouldn't be any rules in a knife fight.
So...
I can see where he was going with that.
1, 2, 3, GO!

Bob

Like what Tony Leung (in his role as Ip Man) said in the movie "The Grandmaster", martial arts fighting is summarized into a horizontal line and a vertical line. Those who lie on the floor (the horizontal line) have no right to stake claims. So having a knife into the back probably put me down flat on the floor, so I would do well to keep quiet..... since I am dead.