Wuxia skills?

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Wuxia skills?

Postby John the Monkey mind » Sun Mar 13, 2011 4:03 pm

Wuxia skills.

For people who are not familiar with wuxia they are Chines sword play novels. The film Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon being the most famous adaptation of a wuxia novel.

The heroes have high and fanciful ability like lightness skills and the ability to paralyse enemies temporarily by sealing their acupressure points. They can use Qi to stave of poison and use it to power strikes. Their throwing weapons are deadly and perception outstanding.

My general musings are to what extent are the rang of skills they poses and the underworld of secret societies and martial sects based on historical fact and to what extent are they fiction?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wuxia#Skills_and_abilities

Clearly both lightness skill and nerve strikes are real but modern martial artists do not seem as legendary in their skills as their fictional forbears. How much was just made up and how much has just been lost?

Also the rang of skills they poses seems bigger than what most of us practise. Are their any people out their still practising a wider rang of skills?

Should we strive to emulate heroes?
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Postby yat_chum » Fri Mar 18, 2011 5:56 am

Although I think that these stories have been embellished they contain a lot of truth especially ones written close to the event they are based on. I have known researchers to look at these novels to try and trace lineages, etc.

I have read that Sijo Chua Giok Beng founder of Ngo Cho Kun was able to leap onto a roof of a two storey house in one leap and was widely known as the crane of Pan Be village and I have no reason to doubt this. We have lost so much. It is worth bearing in mind that Sijo Chua Giok Beng, Ip Man, Yuen Kay-San and others were the sons of wealthy families and did not have to work for living and were able to devote all their time to training.
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Postby John the Monkey mind » Fri Mar 18, 2011 12:55 pm

That is interesting as most of the guys who are really good in books seem to be rich, monks or its their job.

Another historical man with a similar skill set is Sun Lu Tang of course. He defeated the 'flying bandit' after pursuing him over the top of thick shrubbery using light body skill. Also he was a dab hand with presser points.

My interest in legendary skill was peeked recently wile reading 'becoming a Ninja Warrior' by Martin Faulks

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Becoming-Ninja- ... 732&sr=8-1

Not that I want to be a Ninja but I am interested in complete traditional skill sets and the ways people have tried to learn them. That and I watch a lot of Swordplay Chinese TV shows :P
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Postby John the Monkey mind » Tue Mar 22, 2011 12:33 pm

What would a traditional martial arts curriculum include pre modern erra china?

18 weapons
Equestrian skill
Jumping
Cross country moment on foot?
Stealth?
Tumbling?

I would guess it would vary depending on the style, environment and master. I know Dr Yang intended to teach a wider curriculum to his retreat students. How is that side of the retreat working out or is that on the back burner?

There are a broad selection of skills in the far famed "72 arts of Shaolin" :)

I know this topic can be a bit fanciful but its a fun topic.
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Postby yat_chum » Tue Mar 22, 2011 6:02 pm

What do you consider as "pre modern erra china"?
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Postby John the Monkey mind » Tue Mar 22, 2011 7:20 pm

Communism on I guess for kung fu skills. I know you could go from the last emperor with legitimacy.
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Postby John the Monkey mind » Wed Mar 23, 2011 12:24 pm

More random musings.

Thinking about it the heroes in most of the books have a some what narrow curriculum for weapons.
In the book "Fox Volant of snowy mountain" Gully (Fox's father) only knew how to use a Dao and he was one of the two top men, his rival the Gilt faced Buddha hadn't practised with anything other than a sword past his youth.

I know this is fiction but the books are generally basses on genuine skills and concepts. Is specialising in one weapon advisable?
Also how advanced were family styles and how narrowly was family defined for teaching. I know for Chen Taiji it was limited to close relatives with higher teaching going only to the most closely related.

Do family styles still remain hidden at large in the world?
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Re: Wuxia skills?

Postby Monsoon » Sun Jan 27, 2013 9:04 pm

I have read that Sijo Chua Giok Beng founder of Ngo Cho Kun was able to leap onto a roof of a two storey house in one leap and was widely known as the crane of Pan Be village and I have no reason to doubt this.


Considering the world highjump record is 2m 45cm... well, I can only assume that the houses of Pan Be village must be incredibly small. The average height of the eaves of a western 2 storey house is 6m apparently.

That reason enough to doubt? :D
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Re: Wuxia skills?

Postby joeblast » Tue Jan 29, 2013 8:46 am

:lol: I hope you get to meet someone with true internal skill someday, monsoon
Even in mildly complex systems, any outcome is the wrong thing to target, with the process being where the focus should be.
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Re: Wuxia skills?

Postby John the Monkey mind » Tue Jan 29, 2013 2:55 pm

joeblast wrote::lol: I hope you get to meet someone with true internal skill someday, monsoon


Sadly finding them is not easy. I have met a few people with a genuine internal element to their martial arts only one or two of them was spectacular in the skills they could demonstrate.

The others few were either very sensitive and skilled with good rooting or just dripping with power and total body connection. Almost no martial artists have any internal ability finding such an individual is hard.

This guy give a good demonstration and is a first rate teacher if anyone wants to go to one of his seminars.

Miroslav Kovacik

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_uOmyrlA ... r_embedded

http://www.ilc-austria.com/

Very good rooting and good jin. Try pushing him over as he stands on one leg :) His pushing hands is also amazing.
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Re: Wuxia skills?

Postby Monsoon » Tue Jan 29, 2013 3:15 pm

:lol: I hope you get to meet someone with true internal skill someday, monsoon


So, joeblast, you have met someone who can leap unaided 6m into the air?

Do tell!


ps. I have met people with real internal skill, but they don't make ridiculous claims such as leaping 6m into the air!

pps. I have no desire to go down this argument path. Been there, people believe what they want etc.
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Re: Wuxia skills?

Postby EdmundDante » Thu Jan 31, 2013 1:01 pm

Now it's a movie title it self Wuxia with the main character Donnie Yen my one of the most martial artist and actor. The movie 10/10 ratings for me coz' it explains the wuxia skills from hand to hand combat to sword fighting. You must watch it!

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Re: Wuxia skills?

Postby caesar » Thu Jan 31, 2013 1:21 pm

EdmundDante wrote:Now it's a movie title it self Wuxia with the main character Donnie Yen my one of the most martial artist and actor. The movie 10/10 ratings for me coz' it explains the wuxia skills from hand to hand combat to sword fighting. You must watch it!

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________
"A mind all logic is like a fox knives all blade . It makes the hand bleed that uses it" - Rabindranath Tagore


Could you point the movie out from IMDB or somewhere else? I couldn't find a link to it searching with words "Wuxia" I did find Donnie Wu from IMDB but not the movie.
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Re: Wuxia skills?

Postby John the Monkey mind » Fri Nov 15, 2013 4:51 pm

Stefan Holm jumps hurdles.
Gives you the idea that it may not always be such an exaggeration.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZG3_I3zFB0U
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Re: Wuxia skills?

Postby John the Monkey mind » Tue Feb 11, 2014 4:19 pm

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Re: Wuxia skills?

Postby John the Monkey mind » Wed Feb 12, 2014 7:14 am

No Tracks in The Snow - Remembering Sun Lu Tang. Sun Lu Tang and "lightness skills" 輕功
http://benotdefeatedbytherain.blogspot. ... g-sun.html
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