"If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to get far, go together." African proverb.
“The judicious man only thinks of his difficulties when it has some purpose; if not, he thinks of other things.” Bertrand Russell
s humans are the only inhabitants of the planet who strive to make the world fit our vision. As children playing with geometric figures, we want to get the circle into the square and vice versa. The positive side: commitment, perseverance, evolution. The negative: stubbornness, "goodism", stupidity. The other animals live in the present and in the day by day; they don't complaint about their fate when it comes crooked, because they are not aware that there is another possibility than the one they are living. We were given the ability to dream... and we created nightmares. We were given the aptitude to intervene... and we paved the path of hell with good intentions. We humans are demons capable of both the most fantastic achievements and the most horrendous creations. In our interior, clinging to selfishness and the consciousness of being separated from the rest, pulsate all the passions, tendencies and stagnations which can make us lose our way completely, in one jump. And no... there is not a single remedy to so much evil, because it would be very easy, wouldn't it? Besides, why making it easy, when can we make it difficult? Containment, discipline or asceticism do not work as an unshakable guarantee of anything; and neither does the fact of surrendering to absolute hedonism, or succumbing to our visible or invisible wants. Our tendency to act as a pendulum, here and there, is not an unexpected episode or trend, but a continuous process of nature that surrounds us and of which we participate; the force that moves that spring is eternal, but trying to keep it centered is a personal choice. However, we cannot stop considering the central path and that the winds that flog us can eventually go beyond our control, so it is fair to say that you can try things, but it doesn't imply that you will achieve them. So there is no recipe, although implicitly I have called you towards "the middle way" a few lines higher. There are only discretionary advice, which, being ambivalent and pretending to encompass much... they don't press too tight. In spite of everything, we cannot stop proclaiming them, because in these slippery areas, a little … can be a lot. When we see that a tree has endured a thousand disasters, we can learn from this "grandfather", as American Indians would call it. Firm, well rooted, bends to the winds sufficiently, not to turn its branches into a sail, but not beyond the limit that would break its trunk. Attitude, determination, flexibility and acceptance seem to be secrets of eternal worth to withstand the storms of life. Sure, easy to say but hard to apply. Because very unlike the tree, we think, we despair and, in the course of the storm, we lose flexibility. When we become petrified with fear, we waste our connection with the soil, with the simple and elementary
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“I do what you cannot do, and you do what I cannot do. Together we can do great things.” Mother Teresa of Calcutta
things. Feeling our branches flagellated by the storm, in our urgency, we hurry to put out the fire, most of times with the hose unplugged. However, as a group, we humans meditate, impose ourselves, learn and even evolve. This strange mixture of individual and collective sense gives an overall result reasonably positive. Where one doesn't reach, another one will, and when one is blind, if he listens carefully enough, he can even get to receive good advice. Yes, the best thing of humans is our weakness, because it makes us receptive instead of arrogant; it impels us to compassion instead of indulging in selfishness; it pushes us to go beyond ignorance and to move our ass toward action; it teaches us to see ourselves in the other and in a moment of sincere need, impels us to trust in our brother; not for what he is, but because we recognize that we need him. That humbleness that emerges from there, graciously coupled with gratitude, is a tremendous power in the lives of each of us who pass through dramatic and tragic episodes (we all do, sooner rather than later!), or simply so overwhelming that they completely destabilize us. Accepting the help that might reach us at that moment, is not only a virtue of our survival skills, but furthermore, it will be prerogative of wisdom; because admitting that we are not alone, and learning to trust when we see our own branches bend in the face of the storm, is also knowing that you are embraced and protected by the entwined roots of the other trees that surround you, that is, a step towards true compassion, that, as in the case of true charity, it always begins at home. We can focus only on the negative, but also on the positive. Both solutions are wrong because both ignore the reality of circumstances and things. Nothing is good or bad in itself, but it can be so, depending on how we live in it. Hence, opting to accept the negative shouldn't be an obstacle to perceive also the positive; and being what we are: spirit, mind, body and emotions in a tight unit, we better choose (if only because it's proven that it makes us work better!), to imbue ourselves with positive attitudes; to encourage, hard as it may be, the most insignificant trace of optimism; to focus on the carrot and keep moving forward, without wasting our time in regrets and wailing. Who can be wiser than he who perceives the light of noon in the middle of the night? Because although reflection is an indispensable exercise to overcome difficulties, it must be avoided when in its course it ends up becoming a episode of continuous delight in the misery. And when do we know that we have reached such a point? Simple, when self-pity becomes present in such a way that all we want to do is throwing in the towel. Licking your
“Self-pity is the autophagy of the sick spirit and it can tire the one who suffers it as much as the one who hears it, if not more.�
own scars is one thing, but biting them is a totally different thing. Selfpity is the autophagy of the sick spirit and it can tire the one who suffers it as much as the one who hears it, if not more. Letting off some steam to vent oneself is good and necessary; convert it into a raison d'ĂŞtre is to be sowing miseries instead of grain... and eating misery, is bad business. Darkness cannot be fought because it lacks identity. Its basic nature is its tendency to emptiness and this, like a black hole, is constantly absorbing everything that is around. When facing the dark, our first guideline must always be to turn on a light ... and if you don't have matches at hand, approach anyone you see walking around with a burning torch in his hand. A single torch doesn't illuminate much, but when many torches get together, the day can be made, even in the middle of the darkest night. Only together we humans are better ... (and worse!)
Great Masters
A DIAMOND OF KUNG FU By Sifu Paolo Cangelosi
A treasure of Kung Fu, a pearl of the Southern Shaolin Once again, GM Paolo Cangelosi has gifted us with a Kung Fu gem fr om southern China: "TIT SIN KUNA", the Iron Thread form, which belongs to the Hung Gar style. It is the most advanced form of the style and one of the most difficult to interpret of all Chinese Kung Fu. It is considered an esoteric form with high contents of corporal alchemy. Until some years ago, it was transmitted in secret and only to some experienced students who deserved it. We, in Budo International, had already had the opportunity to see Sifu Paolo Cangelosi in the form of the Iron Thread. It was many years ago, when he recorded his first video of Hung Gar; it was really impressive and aroused a great interest in all of us, but, at that time, Sifu Cangelosi didn't want to talk about it or enter into the peculiarities of this form, precisely because of its secret nature. That's why we wanted today to write the Foreword to this article with some questions to Sifu Cangelosi.
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Sifu, Sifu Chan and P. Cangelosi. Sifu Sifu Chan and P. Cangelosi
Budo International: What made you write an article about this precious Kung Fu gem? Sifu Paolo Cangelosi: For many years I have kept this knowledge in my heart and inside the walls of my house. I completed the study of this form in 1989 in Hong Kong, with my Sifu Chan Hon Chung. It took me many years of practice to begin to understand the meanings and acquire the "feeling" of the energetic mechanisms of the form. I then began a research and a study of its technical, symbolic, terminological, psychological and medical components, as well as the mechanical factors related to the body's musculoskeletal system, and its principles relating to dynamic tension, which alternates internal and external work in a perfect balance. In the 80's I travelled to Canton and Fut Shan several times, where I met other masters of different lineages, and I had other experiences related to this form. Today, unlike before, you can see many masters represent this form, maybe too many...In the 80's I travelled to Canton and Fut Shan many times, where I met other masters of different lineages, and I had other experiences related to this form. Today, unlike before, you can see many masters represent this form, maybe too many... B.I.: But we thought that the knowledge of this form was secret. Has it spread so quickly? S.P.C.: It would seem so; and it's precisely for that reason that I felt obliged to put a little order and clarity in this treasure of Kung Fu, out of respect for the old masters who knew how to convey it correctly. It is not a simple form in which you have to coordinate the steps with kicks and punches right and left, but something completely different. In my research in the last 30 years I've seen everything, very serious errors that could compromise the health of the practitioner, besides not transmitting the true content of the form.
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Some students from the school with Sifu P. Cangelosi, Sifu Chan on the left. 1984 Sifu Sifu Chan and Sifu P. Cangelosi in a meeting with the "Chinese Martial Arts Association"
I understand the differences that may exist among schools that have different backgrounds, and we are aware that things change with the passage of time, but here we are dealing with a much too important and sophisticated matter that only great masters should convey to duly trained students in whom they can trust. The foundations, keys, and basic principles of the Iron Thread form are the same for all Hung Gar practitioners, regardless of whether they are from different schools. The "Tit Sin Kune" form is itself; it was created and founded in only one way and with a well-defined purpose. Even I myself, in my experience of study with my master Chan Hon Chung, assimilated two versions of the form, but with slight differences; the "skeleton" of the form as well as the important things were the same. Let me explain: in 1987 my Sifu shut down his mythical Nathan Road School which had been opened back in 1938, and retired to a street near a skyscraper where he continued to practice the Traditional Chinese Medicine system called DID DAA, "Bone Setter", a type of bones and body tissues manipulation in which he was a true specialist. At the time, I continued to travel to Hong Kong and China and I was going to see him constantly; and it was just there, in his small doctor's office, where Sifu continued teaching me privately for two years to give me the final lessons of the Hung Gar style, and transmitted me the Tit Sin Kune form. It happened that at times, he would change some technique with respect to those he had already taught me. I was very careful and I practiced constantly, and I wrote down everything, so it finally came the day when I couldn't help asking the question: "Since I am studying two versions, what is the technique that I should train?� He replied that he was old and he had conveyed this form only to a few disciples, in an equal manner for all of them, but every now and then the teachings of his master "Lam Sai Wing" returned to his mind, and it was that what made the slight difference with the form that he had handed down to his students
Sifu Chan and Sifu P. Cangelosi in the mythical tea room where they had breakfast every morning at 06.00, before training. 1985 Sifu P. Cangelosi was training in the advanced program of the Sap Ying Kune form.
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in the past, which could be considered his version, his interpretation and codification; but his mind and his body, sometimes reminded him of other coding that created tiny variations. By this I mean that it is normal that there exist glaring differences from a master to another, but the essence should not change and, above all, the form must be executed correctly.
The "TIT SIN KUNE" form, known in the north as "TIE XIAN QUAN", IRON WIRE or IRON THREAD. This article is particularly addressed to Hung Gar practitioners, so I will not take up space or text to present the style and its history, but I will start out directly from what is the origin of the Tit Sin Kune form. It is said that the origin and the matrix of the form is Naam Siu Lam Ji, which many call Gar Faat, the family of Buddha. Some ancient texts mention the nun Ng Mui, others refer to the abbot monk Kwok Yan, from the Siu Lam Po Tin Ji temple, as founders of the first rudiments of this form, but it is very difficult to establish its real historical origins That's why everyone agrees that the form, in its current structure, was created by GM Leung Kwan, known by his nickname Ti Kiu Sam, the legendary Iron Arm, which, in the posture of "Tan Ji Kiu", lifted six people in his arms and walked a hundred steps. He was a pupil of the monk Ng Kwok Yan, who was training partner of GM Lok Ah Choy at the Siu Lam Ji Fu Kien monastery. Here I'd like to open a parenthesis to disclose a technical part, only known to few, that has been kept secret and limited over time, within the lineage of Master Ti Kiu Sam. There are technical programs,
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based on the dynamic C'hi Kung martial techniques that can be found only in a few Naam Siu Lam schools. It is said that Kiu Sam practiced certain techniques to strengthen his body, even before creating and spreading the Tit Sin Kune. These techniques, called "the nine dragons of the iron bridge", were sequences of movements that could be separated from each other in nine combinations, and at the same time they could be joined together and be practiced as a unique form, that some students of Master Ti Kiu Sam like master Ma Jic Tim and master Si Yu Leung transmitted it with the name of "KOWLOON TIT KIU KUNE". The observation of its technical structure and energetic content makes us think that perhaps it was in this program where Master Ti Kiu Sam was inspired to encode the Iron Wire, based on the principles of HEI GONG and LOI GONG, the outer energy in balance with the inner one. The was just to cite a part of the culture and martial tradition of South China's Kung Fu, of which is heard very little, although it's very important because of the origins of some of the practices and forms of the South Shaolin. On the other hand, the Hung Gar that is practiced today, and which is spread all over the world, answers to the Wong family and all its successors, however, we know that there are other traditional sources that, in parallel, in small, and in a more familiar way, have spread with their own technical programs. Let's return to our form Tit Sin Kune and let's continue the tour of its evolution. Ti Kiu Sam conveyed the form to some of his head students, among whom we find Master Lam Fook Sing. History records that Master Lam Fook Sing was a reserved man, who liked neither to show off nor to fight, but his Kung Fu was LAM PONTE Chan Hon Chung at age 24
Master Lam in the position "The butterfly perches on the flower". Masters Chan Hon Chung and Lam Sai Wing.
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excellent. He always carried with him a pointed whip (a three sections chain) and when the time came to make a demonstration, he used to show his weapon and after making it turn in the air, he threw it away and nailed to a wooden table. The story goes that Master Lam came to Canton and, in a street near a drug store called "Po Chi Lum", where Wong Kei Yen and his son Wong Fei Hung, the Hung Gar Kung Fu heroes, worked. Master Lam gave a small exhibition and, on that occasion, his whip was stolen. On hearing the roaring crowd, both masters got out of the shop and when they learned what had happened, they took matters in their own hands and, because of their fame, Lam's whip was found in a very short time. Out of gratitude, Master Lam taught them the Tit Sin Kune form, which enriched the technical programs of the Wong Fei Hung lineage, making their school the most famous and important of the Hung Gar style. It is said that afterwards, Master Wong transmitted the form to only seven students. In this way, Lam Sai Wing, one of Master Wong's most important disciples, inherited the Iron Thread form. Over the years, in 1911 Master Lam Sai Wing had to move to Hong Kong, where he spread his style. It appears that at an advanced age, Master Lam Sai Wing introduced some changes in the programs of his style to make it more practical and easy to learn as well as to give it a greater diffusion. That is a reason for which we find slight differences in his form, with regard to those of other students of Wong Fei Hung, such as masters Zhu Yu Zhai and Tang Fong. But who knows whether Wong Fei Hung himself transmitted exactly the form of Master Lam Fook Sing, and who knows whether the form of Master Lam was identical to that of its founder, Ti Kiu Sam. We cannot stop to these questions; we must read and translate, analyzing the history in a best possible way and, especially, the practice of Tit Sin Kune. That's why we must dissect the rules that represent it and that make that all true masters and scholars of the Iron Thread come to an agreement. The rules are represented by 12 bridges, arms postures that generate the loading and unloading of energy,
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Master Lam Sai Wing "carrying the moon over the earth"
strengthen the body and prepare the attack and the defense channeling the vital breath along the meridians of the body. The techniques of the sound of the entrance and exit of the breathing with different tones that transmit vibrations, contractions and relaxations to the vital organs, stimulate their function and strengthen them structurally and energetically, and create an alliance and a connection among them. Special attention was paid to physical work in dynamic and isotonic tension that improves blood circulation and tones up muscles and tendons. The body posture and the positions of the legs are given by small movements that correct and stimulate the spine, maintaining the energy flow in a balanced way and strengthening the bones, especially the legs, as well as giving the whole body vitality and longevity. The concept expressed in Cantonese of the terms GONG and YAU, translated as "hard and soft", is an alternation of an energetic situation and a muscular work that we find during the execution of the form and, in particular, in the techniques of the 12 bridges "SAP YI KIU". Even from the physical and biomechanical point of view, our muscles are subjected to stress and tensions which, through a kinetic chain, stimulate the muscle red fibers of slow release, that determine the resistance and the strength. At the same time, in another work, concentrate the stimuli of the brain, that are sent through the nervous system to the white muscle fibers of fast release, that optimize the speed of contraction and relaxation of the tissues, developing a greater explosiveness and starting power in the execution. A little what is called JING FA and BAO FA LI in the Kung Fu internal styles (Tai Chi - Pa Kua - Hsing I - Ba Ji Quan), a type of force and energy that all use from the beginning . In the form Tit Sin Kune, it is said that all its technical components, put together, develop and stimulate the chemistry of our body and our genetics, through an energy mechanism of ANAEROBIC - ALACTIC type, that creates division and re - synthesis of certain
For information on seminars related to Iron Wire, Iron Thread or Tit Sin Kune, please contact: Cangelosipaolo@libero.it Fb: School Sifu Paolo Cangelosi Headquarter Kung Fu Genova - ITALY Phone +39 010 8391575 - mobile. +39 340 6848475 Practitioners are required to send their curriculum. The seminars will be to a limited number.
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molecules in the muscle fibers, with the help of specific enzymes that are activated in the fibers with this type of training. This body and physiological alchemy could be interpreted in formulas and molecular components of the type: ATP (ADENOSINTRIPHOSPHATE), ADP (ADENOSINDIPHOSPHATE) and CP (PHOSPHOCREATINE), from which derives the result of the speed and explosiveness of a technique, which in the Kung Fu external styles is known as “SHOCK - POWER “or” HEI GONG MO KING LEK. Breathe seasons and mixes the whole, intervening on the emotional sphere of the individual and causing to emanate diverse expressions such as anger, joy, fear, sadness and happiness. The whole transforms this form into a combination of the inner and the outer, maintaining a martial gesture, but with a subtle and complete work of Chi Kung, the energetic power. To ensure that the work is worthwhile, the form must be practiced with willingness, a high spirit and a correct concentration, a particular attitude of our mind and our will that manifests itself in the techniques. Precisely for this peculiarity, and for its valuable and complex content, it is said that the Tit Sin Kune form must be executed correctly; in this way we will gain health and well-being, strengthening "our vital energy C'hi", which may be applied in all other practices, forms and techniques; our body will be stronger and more resistant, our life will get longer and our spirit will rise. Warning: if the work is carried out in a superficial way, only at the level of technical sequences, and practiced with serious errors, then the result will spread, the effects on our body will not be seen, our techniques will not be filled with C'hi and our health will be affected, creating disorder in the physiological functions of our vital organs as well as an emotional and psychological weakening. But even so, wonderful contents of this form are the "YAMNGOHK LOI", translated like the inner music, and the "CHEUNG GO CH'I", the inner chant; the fusion of sounds plus some words, accompany the techniques of the form like a song that, by making them slide in the sequence, obtain the sound of the universe. With its ancestral sounds, the song of TIK KIU SAM could tie the universe and the human being; perhaps the secret lies there as well as its true strength. That's why I decided to open a door in relation to this practice, and use my knowledge and years of study dedicated to Kung Fu in order to help those who want to delve into the most advanced levels of the Art. It's clear that everything that has been mentioned above can't be transmitted through the pages of a magazine, but it is my intention, after creating this written introduction, to organize an open retreat only for those who love and really to learn and share this type of practice. I AM COORDINATING FOR BEING ABLE TO CARRY OUT SEMINARS OPEN TO THE WORLD WHERE TO DEVELOP A WORK RELATED TO PRACTICE AND THEORY WITH TRADITIONAL TRAININGS CENTERED IN THE HEART OF THE FORM TIT SIN KUNE. THE FIRST SEMINARY WILL TAKE PLACE IN ITALY ON JULY 1st, 2nd, 3th and 4th, 2017, in GENOA - (CASELLA) in full nature, in a structure equipped to eat, sleep, study and train ... a real and complete immersion...
The work with this film is a primer in the difference between Kyusho and Dim Mak, as they are not based on the same targets. It is a continuation of the 6-Ji Hands and Iron Shirt study and films available through Budo International. The 6 Ji Hands that are prevalent throughout an art called Pangai-Noon or Uechi Ryu. It is one of the very few styles that contain and focus on these specific hand positions to get to the Deeper Tissue of the body. This film shows the use of hands not as bludgeons, but rather daggers with the transitional torqueing type power utilized in the 6 Ji Hands* to properly use Kyusho‌ this is a missing facet in most Kyusho practitioners skill sets. 8 KO's (including compression and blood KO's). In this DVD set, works the seemingly simple Sanchin Kata through 8 stages of fighting skill (a complete Martial System in one Kata with Iron Shirt methods as well). DVD Vol.2 Contents: Leg Targets, Takedowns, Kyusho Grappling, Tuite, Kyusho Knife Defense
Ref.: • DVD/Kyusho-26 All DVDs, wichi is produced by Budo Inter national, si provided and alone in the formats DVD-5 or MPEG-2, in VCD, DivX or the like is however neves offered with a special holograma sticker. Besides our DVD is characteristed coverings by the hig quality in pressure and material. If this DVD and/or the DVD covering do not corespond to the requirements specified above, it concerns illegal pirat copy.
ORDERS: Budo international.com
Kajukenbo
Eskrima
Kajukenbo
Eskrima
Today we will talk about that connection between Kajukenbo and Eskrima that we have inside our ar t, and that some people don't know or don't understand where it is if they don't have a Stick in their hands. We will begin by saying that it was Adriano D. Emperado the introducer of this discipline in the arte of Kajukenbo. Let's remember that in Hawaii there is a large Filipino Community and it is said that this was the first art that Emperado practiced, before practicing Kenpo with W illiam Chow. As Emperado himself said, he trained with the father of SGM Al De la Cruz, in a similar system or derived from the system of the Twelve Pairs of Cebu in the Philippines.
Kajukenbo
have had the pleasure and the honor of training with SGM Al De la Cruz a few years ago. During these trainings, apart from the Kajukenbo Chuan Fa, we practiced a little Eskrima, which he knows so well. But after clarifying how the connection began, we will see where it is integrated into the art. Every practitioner of Kajukenbo must know the Tricks or Punch Counters, because in them we have one of the principles of the Eskrima, such as the Gunting, that is to say, the simultaneous blow to the biceps that we carry out during the technique. Here it's very clear this concept / principle, something typical in the hand-tohand or Panantukan of the Filipino styles.
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Eskrima
Kajukenbo
Another connection is the concept of checking, which is typical of Kenpo systems. But what both arts share doesn't end here: flowing is something characteristic of these two self-defense systems, which are not based on a single blow; the body fluidity is something important that we must keep in mind in our workouts. In Eskrima, the concept of shifting or triangles, which in Kajukenbo / Kenpo is called the "clock" or the "Octagon", are the possible displacements in a time zone or lines of movement that both arts share. From this concept we can work out all the possibilities and combinations of displacements, as well as the movement of our body and of balance / imbalance. Filipino people have a saying, if you remove the fangs from a snake, it cannot bite and poison you; said otherwise, destroy the member with which the reptile is attacking you and thus it won't be able to continue fighting, doesn't it sound to you? Many Kajukenbo SGMs have worked and keep working the Eskrima Twelve Pairs of Cebu and every day more Masters work in different Filipino
Eskrima
styles because of their similarity and effectiveness. Some of these Masters would be, for example, Adgung Tony Ramos, and SGM Al Dacascos, with whom I've worked for a while. Within the Eskrima, we have a style such as the Balintawak, that many other Masters are adapting; it's a system that works the middle and short distance, and above all the reaction and the counter, therefore it is also denominated as Cuentada, "counter for counter"; being highly versatile and fast in its movements, this Philippine system is practiced more and more every day. I have had the opportunity to practice both Eskrima systems in Cebu for years with the best Masters of the Philippines. As for Twelve Pairs, I trained directly in the General Dojo of Cebu, with SGM Dionisio CaĂąete, my Master to this day; also with other GMs. I have been the first Spanish to be certified as Black Belt and of the few in the World that has been examined by the Philippine Government in the Advanced Course / Professor of Eskrima, vouched by the TESDA. As for Balintawak, he had the opportunity to count on the best Masters worldwide and train with them in Cebu, such as the VĂŠlez Brothers, Sergio Arcel, GM Bobby Taboada and my Master GM Nikelstick, of whom I am Certified as Guro in Balintawak; for years I've shared and I keep sharing whenever possible, always with the idea of improving every day a little more within the arts of Kajukenbo and Eskrima.
Not everything ends here, because these two arts also share the distances of attack and defense. Let us not forget that that both systems have had influences from many cultures throughout history, and have been nourished by them and their fighting arts. Finally, something that I consider the most important of all, is that they are not a sport and their quest is the effectiveness of their techniques without flourishes or superfluous movements, as they are designed for Self-Defense in the street and not in a point competition.
What would be then what most unites them? Efficacy and survival in the streets, something that is more and more necessary today. In short: Fluidity, Checking, Gunting, Distances, Shifting, Effectiveness... ultimately the search for Survival and the effectiveness of our techniques, which can save our lives at a given moment when we least expect it.
Kung Fu
Tiger (虎) The tiger techniques, respectively the claws shaped hands are even known to the laymen as one of the animal-imitating styles within our system. But of course, as always, it is more than just a position of the hands.
Shaolin Hung Gar
虎
Kung Fu
虎
Shaolin Hung Gar hrough the way how the tiger techniques are practiced in everyday training, the bones and muscles are greatly strengthened. The powerful claws techniques mimic the nature and character of the animal and form tearing and scratching tools. The attacks of the tiger are always frontal and straight. The tiger style is often regarded as the most important of the five animal styles. This perception is probably due to a misunderstanding. Many Hung Gar practitioners consider the name of the first main form "Gung Gee Fook Fu Kuen" and see the word (Chinese character) "Fu", which means Tiger. The same word is found in the name of the second main form
T
Kung Fu
虎 of Hung Gar style, "Fu Hok Seung Yin Kuen". Therefore, many Hung Gar practitioners assume that special attention must be paid to the tiger. According to the traditions, the name of the first main form refers to the strongest animal in the Ling Nam Mountains in southern China, the tiger. "Fook Fu Kuen" or in English "the tiger defeating fist" indicates that the practitioner, who exercises this form intensively enough, could even defeat the strongest animal. In the second main form the reference to the tiger in the name of the form really refers to the tiger techniques. The most important aspects of tiger techniques are the strength of the muscles, tendons, and bones. In particular, the limbs and the
虎
back are strengthened. The punches are done with the heel of the hands. Very often, particularly in earlier times, the "claws" are used to tear the opponent. If the legends are to be believed, whole pieces of flesh were often torn apart from the enemy. My own experience while learning of the tiger techniques can described as followed: I was very early very enthusiastic about the tiger techniques, but the true value of the techniques came to light only after a few
years. First, the body must be strong enough, the fingers and heel of the hands conditioned, and the techniques clean to be able to be performed with proper body application. It seems my students follow the same learning curve. They too are instantly inspired by the techniques of tiger style. Many, however, very quickly realize that the techniques are only of limited use without appropriate training.
In this first DVD of "Wind Warriors XXI", Master Rui Ribeiro presents a work that anyone can do, in traditional martial arts and combat sports, to improve your health, your techniques and your way of working both in training and in combat. EVIDENCE, REFERENCE and CONTROL IN MARTIAL ARTS, COMBAT SPORTS and LIFE, MAN MOST BE WILD, NATURAL and PREPARED. Show no afraid. Touch your body. Make a relation with your Spirit. Take your time to understand the values of what you are. Feel the diferences of your constitution. The way that your brain act. External signals exist to notify you against further errors. Understand the signals, the relation of body and soul, the relation with others, with your senses. KIND of NATURE / KIND of REASON Kind of Evolution achievements / Kind of Systems. All it's on you. Make your body an empty place. In the exercise of nothing only spirit can be attacked, if you loose natural instinct. OSS
Ref.: • DVD/RIBeIRO-1 All DVDs, wichi is produced by Budo International, si provided and alone in the formats DVD-5 or MPEG-2, in VCD, DivX or the like is however neves offered with a special holograma sticker. Besides our DVD is characteristed coverings by the hig quality in pressure and material. If this DVD and/or the DVD covering do not corespond to the requirements specified above, it concerns illegal pirat copy.
ORDERS: Budo international.com
Text: Omar MartĂnez Sesto Photos: Š Budo International
Golden Rules for surviving a high-risk situation Surviving a high-risk situation is the central issue in self-defense. It doesn't matter what style you practice, everything is very different when the moment of defense occurs. Getting ready for that moment is one of the biggest concerns for security professionals and so we asked Omar MartĂnez, an expert instructor of the U.S. Special Forces to give us some of the key points for
Golden Rules for surviving a high-risk situation
confronting an extreme situation such as those that his teams are accustomed to confront day by day. It is clear that this is one of the most difficult questions that can be asked of an expert, especially if we don't outline a previous scenario, as is the case here. For this reason, and very wisely so, the first of his rules is: "there are no rules". Complete security doesn't exist as the terrorists have demonstrated to us so many times, however, we have to constantly perfect our methods and training in order to survive.
"In a S.A.R. (Situation of High Risk) surprise, panic and loss of control wipe out our margin of survival, by impeding the full use of our mental and physical resources"
Golden Rules for surviving a high-risk situation he present material is a Synthesis of Concepts and Special Tactical Actions, directed to the common citizen, as formative material about response methods in the face of aggressions and threats of great danger (submission through exhibition and threat of the use of sharp weapons; firearms and explosives). This documentation has been developed by the American Associations of Special Combat and Tactical Responses A.K.O. (American KOKKAR Organization) and F.R.A.T.O. (Florida Red Association Tactical Officers); whose objective is to provide the police and military sector with evaluation parameters, programming and response operatives for Situations of High
T
Risk (from now on S.A.R.). These situations are habitually designed for: a) Individuals belonging to the less favored social strata, b) People with emotional and/or mental dysfunctions, c) Criminal Organizations: attacks against economic interests, d) Terrorist Organizations: attacks against government interests. Each one of these groups requires specific response models on the part of the Special Units; however, they all share a common nexus: operative capacity, material power and the eventual resolution of attempts against the life of third parties. There are no magical recipes that guarantee that you or your acquaintances will not suddenly be involved in a S.A.R.; if this were the unfortunate case, we hope that the following principles that can save your life are burned into your memories.
"There are no rules" It is fundamental to remember that in a S.A.R. the primary objective is "to SURVIVE". We are not talking about those situations where we can come
Golden Rules for surviving a high-risk situation out unhurt simply by giving up our wallets. At this point we are in imminent lethal danger and so it is essential to examine your own conscience in order to determine if you would be capable of acting until the final consequences in order to protect your life and that of third parties, if there are any.
"Expect the unexpected" You should try to avoid by all possible means being paralyzed by the surprise of the attack, entering into shock or falling prey to a state of panic. These "primitive
responses" in the face of a potentially mortal aggression usually have fatal consequences. Under a S.A.R., surprise, panic and loss of control annul our margin of survival, and impede the full use of our mental and physical resources. The key here resides in preparing your mind for what is implied by and what characterizes a S.A.R. For this purpose intense visualization exercises have proven to be very useful in recreating at the mental level, the pressure, the psychological stress and the different levels of loss of body dynamics that different S.A.R. scenarios can produce. Of course, this exercise doesn't replace real life experience, or specific tactical preparation; but it does represent help of incalculable value for the non-professional and allows him to work on and substantially improve his primitive behavioral response patterns in the face of an aggression or very serious threat. Recent investigations in the field of Neuro-physiology have corroborated this position: the brain doesn't distinguish (in physiological response) a real action from an imaginary one (intense). At the organic and psychological level, they produce and set off the same responses, but with a lower relative intensity; that is a variable depending on the proportional form of the intensity, duration and frequency with which you do this mental exercise. Here is a simple example to illustrate this principle: ask someone in your environment to collaborate by simulating a threat with a firearm at a short distance.
Golden Rules for surviving a high-risk situation Carry out your defense neutralization or disarmament techniques. Now take a few seconds to analyze your mental state. How do you feel? How did you perceive the threat? Did your body obey your orders? How did the physical actions feel in sense of time, opportunity, speed, power and fluidity? Well, now you are going to repeat the exercise, but before doing so recreate in your mind in the most vivid way possible the following scenario: your acquaintance once again takes aim but this time he is using your wife, girlfriend or daughter as a shield. You can see the terror on the face of that beloved person, and all the while the criminal continues yelling and intermittently directs his weapon at you and at his
hostage's head (the being that you love); an error in time or in distance and you can imagine the result... act now!! Once the exercise is concluded, again carry out an analysis of your feelings and mental state. This is a very revealing experience.
"Act, don't react" We refer here (continuing our previous point) to the enormous importance of adopting a course of intelligent action. Never forget that your survival depends on your acting on the spot as well as the precise distance and the level panic. "Analyze the Situation" In order to guarantee the maximum possible security in your actions, you should pay attention to the following variables:
Variable Number I: Surroundings Where is the conflict taking place, in a building, airport, bank, in an airplane, in a street, etc.? Where are the entrance points located? And
Self-defense
Golden Rules for surviving a high-risk situation the exit points? (If it is a building also look for emergency exits, are they "clean" or obstructed? – parked cars that prevent escape, blocked security doors, criminals placed at entrances and exits -) What are the characteristics of the area? Does it have wide dimensions or reduced ones? Does it have a regular or irregular surface, etc.?
Variable number II: Criminals How many are there? How are they distributed? What weapons have they got? (Pointed weapons, firearms, and explosives)? Is there an identifiable leader?
Are they out of control or highly unstable (consider if they have hurt somebody)? Are they cold and calm? Are you the only hostage or are there more victims around?
Variable Number III: Personal situation Are you wounded or not? What is the distance between you and the criminals? Do you have a safe distance in which to act (in the case of firearms and explosive the closer the better)? Don't act if you are more than three meters from a criminal that possesses these weapons). In the case of multiple criminals will you be able to defend yourself from the rest once you have attacked the first one? Will your action expose the rest of the hostages or on the contrary will you serve as a distraction? Are there walls near you that can be used as a refuge from an attack with a firearm (never use tables, armchairs or dividing partitions for protection, you will be wounded or killed without any doubt)? Do you have within your reach anything that you could throw as a weapon or use as a distraction (paperweights, notepads, staplers, etc.)?
Self-defense
"In the case of firearms and explosives, don’t act if you are more than three meters away from the criminal holding the weapons!”
Golden Rules for surviving a high-risk situation "Manipulate the variables" If your position is extremely difficult and you do not have a safe margin in which to act you must be prepared to alter the situation. In these cases, the best tactic is deceit. If the criminal threatens you by taking aim with his weapon, you must get out of the line of fire before acting and you can achieve this by simulating a panic attack, submission, etc. This type of tactic has two effects on the criminal’s behavior:
1) It produces a distraction and alters the fellow’s state of alert. 2) It produces an instinctive feeling of control and power that facilitates the escape maneuver. Both reactions will automatically increase your possibilities. With regard to possible armed opponents with pointed weapons, apply the tactic mentioned above, in addition to your physical deceptive moves and the angle of your body as a physical block in a lateral direction with respect to your opponent. The objective we seek is "to close" the vital areas of our body: the neck (front and lateral) and the inside of our arms and legs. If these targets are reached they produce unconsciousness and death quickly.
"Attack" Once you have analyzed and reviewed the most important variables that govern the progress of a S.A.R. the moment to act arrives. You should attack with speed and forcefulness the following specific areas of your opponent: eyes, back of neck, windpipe, cervical vertebras, base of nose, genitals etc. An attack on
Self-defense
Golden Rules for surviving a high-risk situation
these areas impacts tremendously on the criminal’s perception and will, instantly annulling his capability to operate. Within the KOKKAR system of Special Combat, we recommend you use the open hand as the main weapon of attack (using the edge and back of the hand, the fingers, the base and the palm of the hand) at the same time that you hold the aggressor's body or the arm that is holding the weapon, in order to stop him from escaping backwards and to create "a human shield" to protect you from possible attacks from the rest of the aggressors. In summary, the use of an open hand gives us an invaluable difference of tenths of a second, in anticipation of the opponent’s responses to our actions (open hand = strike-grab; fist = strike-opening-grab)). Techniques that depend on our stability and physical balance (kicks and strikes) and those that take away fluidity and freedom of movement (conventional dislocations) in S.A.R. with multiple criminals are not reliable. The use of these maneuvers can imply falls or changes of status that transform us into fixed and easy targets. We believe that the best option resides in the maneuver of strike, capture and manipulation of the criminal's body as a defensive shield and the capture of his weapon.
DON'T FORGET!! By way of summary, the methodology is: 1º There are no rules: you have to fight for your life and that of a third party, if there is one. 2º Expect the unexpected: you should prepare yourself for the physical and emotional stress to which you will be exposed in a S.A.R. 3º Act, don't react: remember that you won’t have a second opportunity, nor is there a margin or error. 4º Analyze the situation: if you can restrain yourself and study your environment and the variables at play in the S.A.R., you possibilities of survival will be considerably increased. 5º Manipulate the variables: with intelligent use of deceptive tactics you can transform a difficult situation into an opportunity. You can manipulate the distance, attack angle (cutting or firing line), defensive overlapping of the criminals’ bodies, etc. Do not underestimate the power of this tactic, because it works on the "central command " of the criminal - his own mind. 6º Attack: in a decisive and overwhelming way you should attack the vital areas of the body that are without bony or muscular protection, and which will have immediate repercussion on the different central systems of the human body (nervous system, circulatory system). You should also make a high-priority use of the open hand as an attack weapon, preventing the opponent's flight and creating a protective shield in relation to the rest of the gang. Then the capture of the weapon and then an exit toward points and areas previously located as safe (walls, barriers, etc.) Remember, "Your goal is to survive until the Professional Forces arrive."
Self-defense
Materialism and Idealism (MISSION STATEMENT OF THE WORLD HWA RANG DO® ASSOCIATION) HWA RANG DO®: A legacy of Loyalty, Relentlessly seeking Truth, Empowering Lives, Serving Humanity Philosophy teachings from GrandMaster Taejoon Lee – “In philosophy and science there is a battle between two juxtaposing views: materialism and idealism. Materialism states that everything in existence can be explained through matter, whether visible or invisible. Whereas, idealism states that all things in existence is consciousness and is invisible, ethereal. And before the technological advancements of our era, people devoted their lives to God, to spirituality, to family, to living. As we come into the modern era, the advancements in technology has made our labor easier, creating more time for leisure, but relieving more than just the burdens of living, but the knowledge in how to live free and independent.
“Materialism states that everything in existence can be explained through matter, whether visible or invisible. Whereas, idealism states that all things in existence is consciousness and is invisible, ethereal.”
“At one point one man possessed all the knowledge necessary to survive in the world and that person was then responsible to transmit that knowledge with whatever else he has gained to the next generation and so on, and so on�
At one point one man possessed all the knowledge necessary to survive in the world and that person was then responsible to transmit that knowledge with whatever else he has gained to the next generation and so on, and so on. However, when there was so much knowledge, no one person could possess it all so we began to compartmentalize, specialize, to give more and more power and dependency to government, to the landlords as the state began to offer more than just protection. Then, finally with the advent of currency, it allowed the rapid expansion of cities, empires, and civilizations. In the beginning, people understood the value and limitations of currency, as it was only a promissory note backed by real commodities just as well as knowing where their food came from. We have lost the understanding of purpose, of foundation, of meaning. And, in my opinion that is the greatest cause of suffering, the root of the problem. We have to ask ourselves if science, knowledge, intellect, materialism is truth,
then why is the world in so much chaos, so much hunger, so much sickness, so much war. And more people today are lost in purpose and meaning as it is evident in our millennial generation that desires above all things than success and money; they want change, any change, just something other than what is: Not realizing that the change must come from them rather than asking for it, but of course in order for them to create change they must know what must change and for what end.� About the author: Kuk Sa Nim Taejoon Lee – Hwa Rang Do 8th dan and President of the World Hwa Rang Do Association. http://www.hwarangdo.com http://www.hwarangdo.it http://www.hwarangdo.nl http://www.hwarangdo.lu http://taejoonlee.com http://cyberdojang.com
We are pleased to present the second work of the KMRED group. This video bearing the name "Concept and Education" aims to make you discover a part of the concept Krav Maga Research, Evolution and Development, as well as the pedagogy developed within our group. The different exercises that you will discover here are not intended to "feast your eyes" or demonstrate our combative attitudes, because our priority here is that of explaining how we prepare our students so that they become "warriors", capable of "adapting" to the different evolutions of street fighting.
REF.: • DVD/KMRED-2 All DVDs, wichi is produced by Budo International, si provided and alone in the formats DVD-5 or MPEG-2, in VCD, DivX or the like is however neves offered with a special holograma sticker. Besides our DVD is characteristed coverings by the hig quality in pressure and material. If this DVD and/or the DVD covering do not corespond to the requirements specified above, it concerns illegal pirat copy.
ORDERS: Budo international.com
WT Universe
EDITION CANOPUS - Wing Tsun Universe (WTU) The first book of the WTU was published in February this year. It bears the title “Gedankenfragmente / Begegnung mit dem Unbekannten”. It includes selected articles of the WTU, which are published monthly. These revolve around philosophy, psychology, martial arts, WTU Wing Tsun and the TRADITION. A second and a third band will follow in the coming years. The books series of the WTU is published as Edition Canopus. This year, WTU's Leader of the Group (LotG) will be translating Gurdjieff's first booklet into German on the occasion of the 5th anniversary of Wing Tsun University's WTU Thinking Center Courses. In the autumn, the WTU Guide – “Wegmarken des WTU Wing Tsun” - will appear. This is the structure of the WTU Wing Tun and its theoretical structure and its Backgrounds. At the end of the year, the first edition of the Fiz lez Lou Equinoxe Journals NO 1 will be published. This is a journal with pictures and other from the first 6 years of the Wing Tsun Universe (WTU). Further editions will appear every 2 years. Furthermore there will be the “book of the book”, a children's book for the WTU Young Bloods, a quotation book, as well as a transfer of the “Tao te King” from the WTU. All this appears in the edition Canopus.
WT Universe
With Budo International we will publish the forms or Movements of the Wing Chun / Wing Tsun in the WTU version on DVD. This year the “Cham Kiu / Four waves” and the corresponding partner Movements and applications will appear. In 2017 appeared the “Siu Nim Tao / Nine ways” with applications and the first partner movement of the WTU. For 2018, we are planning the “Wooden dummy / Double waves”. SALVE Alfred Johannes Neudorfer (AJN) and Rosa Ferrante Bannera (RFB)
The work for WTU Level X by Si-Mo on „Comprehension" What is comprehension? The word suggests that it has something to do with the mind. But it is not intellectual thinking. Intellectual thinking is record & repeat, analyze, connect (associate). But first of all to the basics: We work in the WTU with our tools of the WTU Wing Tsun, the university area and the AMA area at the seven qualities that are dormant in every human being, but usually have not developed the full potential.
WT Universe
These seven qualities are: - Attention - Elasticity - Balance - Sensitivity - Agility / Dexterity - From right moment / timing - Intention If these seven qualities are developed and interlinked to a certain extent in all three centers of movement (MC), the mental center (TC), the feeling center (FC), two higher abilities in humans can be released: - Higher thinking center / Clear Thinking - Yang - Higher Center of emotion: Insight / Stilent Knowlege - Yin All these qualities, the seven basic qualities and the two higher qualities - or abilities - are now not in a finished final state. There may be times more or less "clear thinking" there. You can sometimes have more and less "insight". You can get into a state where you see or perceive something.
WT Universe
“With Budo International we will publish the forms or Movements of the Wing Chun / Wing Tsun in the WTU version on DVD.�
It is something that is not tangible, can not be determined. It can also be lost again. If one does not remain aligned, dissipates, descends from the "way", one can get into a wrong way, a dead end, if one has the wrong coordinates. It may be that someone has insight or clear thinking, but then goes in a wrong direction and gets lost in this way. Qualities can not be bought. One can only work out. Clear thinking and insight is not just knowledge. Knowledge is digested information and experience and prerequisite for understanding. Information can be bought, in books, in seminars, in "teachers". But that does not lead to insight or clear thinking. This can only arise in man himself. Firstly, he needs a real teacher, the second the unyielding will to work on his own and remain on the way. Then he receives from the teacher coordinates, exercises and food for the three centers. He is faced with challenges that challenge him and make him work hard. These situations can put him in a wary and attentive state. Remote from habits, conveniences, possibilities of "let oneself go“. As already said, qualities are not a finished state. You can go more and more into the depth, the quality can go up more and more. Because it is a process. Some trainings or pupils / seekers imagine that a moment comes, then one is enlightened, simply because you have read so many books or it
WT Universe
“What is comprehension? The word suggests that it has something to do with the mind. But it is not intellectual thinking. Intellectual thinking is record & repeat, analyze, connect (associate).�
so much wishes and then you know everything. Anyone who can think a bit clearly knows that this is not so and will not be so. The only thing that can happen is that a person can get through a shock, through an extraordinary situation, through drugs into a state in which he sees something for a moment. Only this condition can not be maintained. And the next question is, what does this person associate with an underdeveloped thinking center then what he perceived at the moment? What does he interpret at that moment? There are even teachers who have an insight in a moment, and on this building they build up a complete intellectual doctrine or a training route. Only these teachers have never led a person to develop completely. They might have a flash of lightning and clear thinking in a certain area, but not a permanent access to the state. They are not intentional and can not intentionally produce this state. Each of these 7 + 2 qualities is assigned to a WTU level as the motto. So we have assigned these to the first nine levels.
WT Universe From Level X to XII, we have the motto: - Comprehension - Level X - Wholeness - Level XI - Integrity - Level XII These are not abilities or qualities in man, but man's actions in the world. Understanding is therefore not just comprehension or understanding. It is a presence in man, from him into the world. It is a person who is harmonized on a high level and feels the intention and acts on it. It is a measure of trade. As the intention is felt, one acts as necessary. This is true "doing under will“. Rosa Ferrante Bannera (RFB) SALVE
“The first book of the WTU was published in February this year. It bears the title “Gedankenfragmente / Begegnung mit dem Unbekannten”. It includes selected articles of the WTU, which are published monthly.”
WT Universe
In this DVD, G.M. Larry Tatum (10th Dan) develops techniques of the Kenpo program at the highest level. Particularly, some of his “favorites” like Flashing Mace, Parting Wings, Entwined Lance… Masterfully executed and based on the experience of the movement, G.M. Tatum incorporates his innovative teachings in these techniques that will help you add and complement your training in the Kenpo system. Besides, they provide the individual with the best choice for selfdefense, based on the logical and practical thinking, and place him in the path of understanding the art of Kenpo. These are the self-defense and fighting systems of the modern times we live in. They are designed so that the practitioner gets all the benefits that training these techniques can provide. This DVD has the support of Master Adolfo Luelmo (9th Dan), who goes on with a series of techniques performed in a smooth and strong way, for situations of extreme aggression, in which can be appreciated different states of the movement, in a logical and effective way. As a conclusion, Master Camacho Assisi (8th Dan), displays a technique that combines the strength of the arms and his expertise with legs.
REF.: • DVD/LARRY4
All DVDs, wichi is produced by Budo International, si provided and alone in the formats DVD-5 or MPEG-2, in VCD, DivX or the like is however neves offered with a special holograma sticker. Besides our DVD is characteristed coverings by the hig quality in pressure and material. If this DVD and/or the DVD covering do not corespond to the requirements specified above, it concerns illegal pirat copy.
ORDERS: Budo international.com
Sifu Alfred Johannes Neudorfer and Sifu Rosa Ferrante Bannera, founders of Wing Tsun Universe - WTU, a movement which characterizes not by the use of techniques, but of qualities, exchanges, principles and concepts of movement - focus their first DVD in Siu Nim Tao (SNT) or "9 ways". The SNT is the basis of Wing Tsun, Wing Chun and WTU. The understanding thereof is the basic condition for everything that comes after, because if you observe the way people perform the sequences of this movement, you can easily deduce what they will be able to do. If something is wrong with the movement, everything the practitioner will later develop will be erroneous. WTU movements (forms) involve inherent functions from which can derive applications. The significance of the primary movements makes them derive in other movements and to generate applications based on the principles and interactions that help to their understanding. The WTU also incorporates an extra "set" its founders considered necessary due to the current circumstances. The DVD includes the Movement (form) Siu Nim Tao, its 9 sequences and applications, sequences 1 to 3 of the first movement with a training partner (Chi Sao) and a revealing interview with the founders of the WTU.
REF.: • DVD/WTU1
All DVDs, wichi is produced by Budo International, si provided and alone in the formats DVD-5 or MPEG-2, in VCD, DivX or the like is however neves offered with a special holograma sticker. Besides our DVD is characteristed coverings by the hig quality in pressure and material. If this DVD and/or the DVD covering do not corespond to the requirements specified above, it concerns illegal pirat copy.
ORDERS: Budo international.com
Psychology and The cobra and the anaconda Today as in the past, strikers and fighters are athletes endowed with powerful physical abilities and refined mental qualities, and they stand out among combatants in each combat class because of the resolute effectiveness of each of their movements, that one after another, like the pieces of a huge puzzle, become part of a tried and true strategic plan
Fighters and Strikers are defined by many differences Fighters and strikers are two kinds of athletes who when analyzed in their specific components only have the common characteristic of always winning in each combat class, but who are diametrically opposed in everything else. In fact their physical aspect, psychological qualities and fighting strategy are characterized by multiple differences. From a physical perspective, fighters are stout and powerful, while strikers are tall and agile and from a psychological point of view the former have strong resistance, while the later are nervous and restless. Strategically speaking, in any confrontational situation strikers look for an effective and final resolution of the conflict with each movement. During combat, the main objective of these athletes is to conclude the fight in the quickest possible time, minimizing damage, and achieving their opponent's knock out quickly. A striker’s opponent often doesn't have time to figure out what is happening, since he often finds himself out of the game after only a few strikes and even possibly only after one single deadly strike from his adversary. To achieve this mastery in the art of combat, strikers train with specific and proven methodologies, to develop blows that have great impact power and they hit the most sensitive and accessible points of their opponent's body. Fighters, on the other hand, have a longer action time during combat and slowly circle around their opponent making him physically and psychologically breathless. In short, the last aspect that explains the difference between fighters and strikers is their specific use of combat distance. Strikers are footwork artists and they own the space that separates them from their opponent. They manage this space with great intelligence, applying their combat strategy and never falling prey to their opponent's action. During combat strikers maintain their opponent's distance with low dissuasive actions, then suddenly assault like arrows, delivering devastating blows that paralyze limbs or even if taken on the body can even go straight to K.O. Fighters, on the other hand, are always looking for body to body combat, and during a fight they keep shortening the distances and impeding their opponent's action who is immobilized and overcome by the strong and powerful hold that fighters relentlessly maintain until their prey is down.
Psychology and Combat Like two snakes… While observing strikers and hitters expressing themselves in the art of combat, and appreciating the qualities of their movements and their clever action strategy, I found myself reevaluating the primordial animal qualities that characterize these athletes and was inspired by the image of two snakes: the cobra and the anaconda. The cobra and the anaconda are two snakes that have unquestionably devastating power that inspires fear simply by thinking about them. Just like the fighter and the striker they look different and their movements are different but with each action they both have the power to eliminate their prey.
The cobra striker Thomas Earns, the terrifying fighter of the 80’s and 90’s was called the cobra. The striking athlete is in fact usually agile in his movements and endowed with effective and lethal techniques, and expresses the same agility of movement as a cobra. Like a cobra, the striker assaults his prey with quick, sudden and almost imperceptible movements. Facing his prey, just like the cobra, a striker alternates his movements between phases of dangerous immobility and sudden quick movements that impact on the space that separates him from his opponent, entering like an arrow into his guard. The surprised prey, unaware of the movement of the cobra, is already a victim of the lethal power of the bite. As the cobra injects a lethal poison into his prey that immediately paralyzes him, so too the striker executes his blow in a subtle but sharp way, neutralizing everything that it touches. Each blow of a striker is made "as if it were the last one", just like the cobra who finishes off her prey with a single bite. In order to deliver an explosive blow you must have a normal psychophysical character that is not too extreme but balanced and coordinated, a cheerful intelligence and a strong determination in the expression of your own actions. According to psychoanalytical approaches an athlete’s character may be called a schizoid-rigid character. During combat a schizoid-rigid athlete exploits his schizoid qualities and stays cold and determined and dauntless in his actions and insensitive to emotion. He combines these with the rigid qualities that allow him to maintain control of the situation and to find a victorious solution. Like the cobra, the schizoid-rigid striker tends to concentrate all his energy upwards, a condition that could be seen as dangerous because of the loss of contact with the floor and the unavoidably rapid expenditure of energy. Although he is assisted by his psychophysical characteristics, he may also be a victim of them when the stress of the situation reaches high levels, so in order to increase advantages to the athlete we may have to intervene in psychophysical terms. The exercise of grounding, acquired through bio-energetic analysis, used in total mind-body integration with striker athletes can improve contact with the floor and increase the stability of energetic power. How many times we have seen small athletes in a fight attacking their opponent as if they were actually flying, pushed on by dauntless determination, and executing mortal blows against the opponent that seem to reach a victorious solution to the confrontation. But although these athletes are tremendously effective, when they are under stress they risk using up all their energy in a very short time and thus lose their efficiency. To overcome this psychophysical limitation characteristic of striker athletes we have to complete the athlete's technical training with psychophysical training in grounding, in order to improve and solidify his support base and to have him gain the appropriate ability to administer his own energy.
“Fighters and strikers are two kinds of athletes who when analyzed in their specific components only have the common characteristic of always winning in each combat class, but who are diametrically opposed in everything else.�
Psychology and Combat The fighting anaconda They called Royce Gracie the anaconda A fighter is characterized by a masochistic character structure, and prefers wearing down techniques resulting in a "body to body" confrontation. Only specific training can prepare someone for this kind of prolonged confrontation with its concomitant physical and mental weight. The body and mind of this athlete have characteristics that are both anatomically and psychologically opposite to the athlete type analyzed above. As a result the fighter needs to have a powerful physical body structure and psychological characteristics based on perseverance, resistance and the capacity to be identified as a machine that forcefully and without tiring advances forward bringing down his opponent's guard. Unlike the striker’s opponent who was "dribbled", the fighter’s opponent finds himself squashed as much psychologically as physically by an unstoppable opponent who doesn't give him any leeway and advances inexorably. Although a fighter is supported during combat by the force and tenacity guaranteed him by his masochistic character, in conditions of stress he risks blocking his energy level and not being able to react in an affirmative and definitive way. This mental condition easily becomes a state of anxiety that is aggravated physically by a reduction in breathing activity. To improve the performance of a fighter, sensitive to the symptoms of the stress of the confrontation, he should train in a psychophysical way to achieve better results and effective control of anxiety. In this case psychophysical training uses instruments that favor control of breathing and use of the floor. Learning how to appropriately control breathing in this class of athlete is decisive not only because his breathing is strongly influenced by his emotional state (anxiety, fear and the breathlessness sensation often present at the moment of a fight), but also because the control of breathing works together with the use of the floor and the athlete's strength, conditioning how he will bring down his opponent’s guard and in this way impede the performance of any kind of strategy and take away his physical and psychic strength. Therefore if a fighter trains psychically as well as physically, during combat he may achieve the same level of power and danger as the slow and relentless movement of an anaconda, a snake that encircles its prey, slowly adjusting its hold around its body and finally squashing it in a lethal hug. Thus strikers and fighters that aspire to reach the heights of the Gracies or Earst in their relative fields, should complete the first step and acquire total awareness of their technical and physical characteristics, and lear n how to use them in a more functional way.
“While observing strikers and hitters expressing themselves in the art of combat, and appreciating the qualities of their movements and their clever action strategy, I found myself reevaluating the primordial animal qualities that characterize these athletes and was inspired by the image of two snakes: the cobra and the anaconda.�
“The iron wire” The Secret Form
1 - 2 - 3 - 4 July 2017 - Genoa (Casella) - Italy I ° Hung Gar Special Seminar The Secret Form Taught and analyzed in all its secrets by Grand Master Paolo Cangelosi. The form of the 6 moods, the 5 emotions, the 12 bridges, accompanied by the sound of the inner singing, the sonorous poem of Grand Master TIK KIU SAM. The seminar is open to all those wishing to delve into the advanced level of Kung Fu. It will be carried out in the midst of nature and includes study, practice, room and board. A total immersion.
ENROLLMENT IS OPEN AND IN LIMITED NUMBER For more information and details: tel. +39 010 8391575 / cell. +39 340 6848475 email: cangelosipaolo@libero.it www.sifupaolocangelosi.com fb: School Sifu Paolo Cangelosi - Headquarter Kung Fu Genova - ITALY
Report
Vincent Lyn Cinema and Martial Arts A brief review of the facts gives us the profile of an intense professional life: musician, model, film-star, teacher of martial arts, Kickboxing champion‌ A deeper analysis reveals a restless spirit, where the desire to achieve, will and tenacity, are the axis that sustains a selfmade man, in an unconscious and incessant search for his own essence, a long road toward the truth‌.
Report East and West: his origins Vincent Lyn was born into the bosom of an unusual family. As the son of an interracial marriage, his father was of Chinese origin and his mother was British, creating an explosive genetic mixture. Both the East and the West shape and determine his life and are revealed in his characteristic eyes, which are green and almondshaped. His father came from a family that had been traditionally educated for seven centuries in Kung fu, and his mother was a popular woman and a BBC television star with an enormous musical talent. They were the seed of a land that Lyn didn’t take long to fertilize. As a boy, and in fragile health, he already had a sense of the first steps towards his own spirit. When he was only eleven he began his piano classes in the Royal College of Music, and shortly after began studying dramatic art in the Royal College of Dramatic Arts. He was a prodigious student who got the highest marks in both arts. One year later he began to feel his paternal inheritance. Coinciding with the visit of a relative who taught Thai Chi to his mother and the hurricane that was Bruce Lee, he began Judo classes in a local gym. Because of his flexibility and his Sensei initiative he changed to Kyoshin-kyu karate, and four years later just before taking his black belt exam he moved to the United States and with him went Sun-go, his relative and honorable Thai Chi Master. Doubts, uncertainties, and dreams moved through Lyn’s mind: the karate was not flowing, it was not enough and his uncle's morning exercises don't fulfill him and none of it had the energy or the force of Bruce Lee, who was the mirror in which he saw himself. Then his university years came and with them his awakening maturity. He studied in Boston, where he continued his Judo and Karate classes. He also took up once more his superior studies in piano and composition in the Conservatory. His incessant search took him to Chinatown to learn Dragon Claw with Master Wan. He researched other styles, made contact with philosophy,
Report psychology, physiology, and biology in a permanent effort to grow intellectually and internally. He was living an indefatigable struggle to find himself.
Bruce Lee: the road to film success Lyn began his film conquest. In his yearning to follow in Bruce’s Lee footsteps he traveled to the Far East where he discovered his roots and his Asian ancestors. Days before leaving he decided to contact the most prestigious studios in action cinema - the Shaw Brothers Studio. He realized he would have to prepare himself and train with the best, so he returned to the United States with the clear intention to learn southern Kung-fu and he taught himself the basic kicks of the Shaolin system, he went to seminars - Bill Wallace, William Cheung and "The Dragon" Wilson – and from them learnt stretching and kicks, Wing Chun and ring fighting respectively. The final result was that he became Kickboxing Champion on four occasions: he was American champion in 1983 and 1984 and took the world title in 1985 and 1987. In his zeal to achieve his film-star dream he returned to the East, to Hong Kong, where he worked as an advertising model, and composer of pop songs and when his money began to run out, and $1.50 rice
became his staple meal, he met Fish Fong, producer of "Tiger Cage", a movie directed by Yuen Woo-Ping and in which he finally had a part as an actor giving life to the only character in his professional career who doesn't die on screen. At last, now aware of his success as an immensely popular actor, a model recognized throughout Asia, a composer of two musical successes listed amongst the ten most sold, Lyn nevertheless felt a strange dissatisfaction and this feeling together with the unlikely possibility of achieving even more led him to make the decision to abandon Hong Kong.
The end of the search to find himself In Los Angles he had a stunt man role in two movies: "Ring of Fire" and "Best of the Best 2". However, once again dissatisfaction invaded him. He returned home and with his family became more conscious of his genetic inheritance and his roots. He was the last bastion of Ling Gar, the family style of Kung fu, and he discovered the technique through repeated observation and then, adapting it to his needs, he developed “Ling Gar Tzai Kune Do" a style that immobilizes an attack at its origin. He created the "The Lyn Academy of Martial Arts" in Stanford, Connecticut, in honor of his family. He became part of the World Martial Arts Hall of Fame, the Martial Art Masters, Legends, and Pioneers’ Hall of Fame and the World Sports Medicine Hall of Fame. For two years in the school with the motto "where the Mind and the Body join" his teachings united opposing concepts (old/new, feminine/masculine), and he developed a Kickboxing program and selfdefense program based on the southern style of Shaolin Kung-fu. In answer to his student’s favorable response he emphasized Wing Chun, Chi Gung and Thai Chi, even Chi Na in his classes and even took a step further beyond, but still he recognized that he was not transmitting to his students the essence of the Kung-fu that flowed through his veins. There was too much time and concentration spent on administrative issues. At this point, Lyn decided to assess his students, in order to find out which were the most important styles for them, and take account of the differences among the Chinese and American forms. Surprisingly enough, his family style was the one that penetrated his students most deeply. They understood the concept, the Ling Gar known as "The Wanderers´ Style" where the practical forms don't contain
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Lyn transmits his teachings to us and the light of his talent can be seen in new projects: a modern jazz CD, new health and sport offices, a new book, a new movie. All this is an expression of an internal and mature full �ness that transcends, invades and calms.�
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mysterious subtleties created to frustrate foreigners when they learn the art. It is an easy style to understand and to apply and it is not only a question of image. The concept of "the main central line" developed in Ling Gar and in Wing Chun, was a natural continuation that he knew and had taught, with the exception that the first one is four hundred years older and it integrates sixty percent of open hand techniques and forty percent of leg techniques. Suddenly all those memories, his uncle exercising at five o’clock in the morning, the teachings of his relatives, the techniques, the concepts, the essence came back to him. He became aware of his roots, the consciousness of "I", and the assimilation of himself as the last Master of Ling Gar in the world, a millennial family tradition developed over twenty-two generations. Finally, after the encounter with a life philosophy and an profound look inside himself, the Academy grew: Thai Chi, Chi Gung, Wing Chun, Kickboxing and more and more students come to take the special and authentic classes of Ling Gar. Lyn transmits his teachings to us and the light of his talent can be seen in new projects: a modern jazz CD, new health and sport offices, a new book, a new movie. All this is an expression of an internal and mature fullness that transcends, invades and calms.
In this new DVD of Vovinam, Patrick Levet has wanted to show the facets of the use and handling of the Vietnamese Stick. Although little known, the Vietnamese long stick is, without a doubt, the most important weapon among all the weapons of the traditional Martial Arts of Vietnam. The Vovinam school, in its official program, only proposes the Stick Form (Tu Tuong Con Phap) and the counterattacks of stick vs. stick (Phan The Con), without explaining the intermediate movements. But the Vietnamese stick goes far beyond these two facets and Master Levet offers us 2 detailed DVDs on all the applications of the numerous intermediate movements of the Stick Quyen. This first volume includes a series of specific stick warming up and bodybuilding exercises, the guard, fundamental principles, stylistic handling of the weapon, defense against disarmament, blocking and dodging, displacements, as well as combat techniques. An original work that shows for the first time the Vietnamese stick in a complete and exhaustive way.
REF.: • DVD/VIET7 All DVDs, wichi is produced by Budo International, si provided and alone in the formats DVD-5 or MPEG-2, in VCD, DivX or the like is however neves offered with a special holograma sticker. Besides our DVD is characteristed coverings by the hig quality in pressure and material. If this DVD and/or the DVD covering do not corespond to the requirements specified above, it concerns illegal pirat copy.
ORDERS: Budo international.com
Consonance and
When the Way of the W
emptiness
Warrior reaches spirituality!
Arnold Sports Festival March 2-5, 2017 Columbus Ohio USA
The Arnold Sports Festival began three decades ago and has grown to be the world’s largest multi-sports fitness lucrative sports competition. This spectacular event has been extended to Europe-Spain, South America-Brazil, Australia, Africa-South Africa, Asia-Hong Kong. Gov. Arnold won his first Mr. World contest weight lifting championships in 1970-1975 in Ohio then went on to become partner with sports promoter Jim Lorimer to create and manage this phenomenal festival held yearly at Ohio Columbus Convention Center. Today the Arnold Sports Festival attracts over 200,000 visitors, an estimated 20,000 athletes from 78 nations in 75 sports and events. The ASF which began officially in 1989 has taken over the city bringing in over 130 million dollars additional revenue to the city of Columbus from all the yearly visitors and athletes. When you factor all the expo vendors, families, fans, athletes in attendance it is definitely the busiest and most successful weekend of the year for the state of Ohio.
Text & Photos: GM Maurice Elmalem
This year’s sports and events at the Ohio Expo Center included Arnold Sports World Kids & Tens Expo, Archery, Baton Twirling, Boxing, Cheerleading, Dance, Gymnastics, Lacrosse, Table Tennis, Taekwondo, Powerlifting on three stages and of course a lot of fun. Watching World’s Strongest Man Jerry Pritchett lifting 1031 pounds off the ground was a moment to cherish for the new world record, aiming to stop Brian Shaw at 970 pounds lift. However, at the finals (March 4, 2017) Brian Shaw surprisingly won his third Arnold Strongman Classic title collecting the winner’s prize $73,000, 2nd place was captured by Hafthor Bjornsson of Iceland known as one of the world strongest man in history secured prize money of $22,000, 3rd place winner Jerry Pritchett received $17,000. It was an amazing moment when Brian Shaw tied for second after he lifted the 430 pound version of the Austrian oak overall two times finishing with 47.5 points against Bjornsson 41.5 and won the title. This brought much excitement to the audience especially when he invited his wife and newborn
son to the stage in celebration of his winnings. Saturday night finals of Miss Bikini International was captured by Brazil’s Angelina Teixeira. Gov. Ar nold congratulated her and presented her with and presented her with a $7000 check. In 2nd place was Courtney Kirk of Chicago who won a cash prize of $3000. 3rd place winner Jennifer Ronzitti received $2000. The 2017 Arnold Sports Festival Men’s Physique 1st place winner of $5000 was Ryan Terry prize. 2nd place cash award recipient of $2000 and a trophy from Rogue Fitness Magazine was Andre Ferguson. 3rd place won by last year’s defending champion was Brandon Hendrickson. Then come the most exciting moment, the Arnold Classic Body Building as all the final competitors muscled their perfectly toned bodies to the sound of high powered music defining victory. Cedrick MacMillan won 1st place and received congratulation from Gov. Ar nold who presented $130,000 check, a Tony Novak official champions jacket and trophy. Dalas McCarver won 2nd place, 25 years old whom many believe is on a fast
track to the top of the sport, he received $75,000 and medal from Rogue BSN. 3rd Place winner Max Charles from Huntington NY received $5000. This year’s 2017 Lifetime Achievement Award winner was Ms. Betty Weider who has been a model and wife of Joe Weider co-founder of Sharpe Magazine for women’s fitness. She has been instrumental in helping women live by healthy diet and exercise. The International Sports Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony at the Ar nold Sports Festival that took place on Saturday March 4th and was hosted by Dr. Robert Goldman MD known for his outstanding Achievements World Chairman of the Board – ALM, Founder and Chairman of International Sports Hall of Fame, Holder of numerous World Records, great martial artist and just an awesome inspiration the this segment of the sports world. This year’s HOF 2017 inductees were Lou Ferrigno known as the “Hulk” a movie star and bodybuilder, Bill Kazimaier, winner of many titles as world strongest man, broke several
world records, referee and active member of the Arnold strongest man contest. Dr. Tom Rosandich, former President and CEO of United Stated Sports Academy who has played a key role in helping to promote and educate the world on the importance of health and physical educational programs he created especially for universities and institutions around the world. Hershel Walker, a man of many talents in Sports, NFL Player, boxer, superior athlete who achieved sports best accomplishments. Apollo Ohno, winner of several figure skating world champion-ship medals, winner of Dancing With the Stars, a great athlete and innovator. Each of this year’s ISHOF was presented with 24K medal by Dr. Bob and
a chance to be congratulated by Gov. Arnold. Tokey Hill, lead person i n t h e K a r a t e and Taekwondo Division of the festival did a superb job. Martial artists demonstrated t h e i r s k i l l s i n forms, breaking, wrestling, fighting as well as kick boxing. Winners in this segment 1st to 3rd place received medals of gold, silver and bronze. To sum this year’s event it was once again a moment of life time to
cherish. All the best and thank you to our hosts Jim Lorimer and A r n o l d S c h w a r z e n e g g e r, a l s o media coordinator Matt Lorz, for a job well done. Until next year we at Budo International Martial Arts Magazine. As a compliment we at Budo offer free monthly magazine download. Visit w w w. b u d o m a g a z i n e . c o m or www.mauriceproma.com. World’s Largest Digital Magazine all the
best and congratulations to all ASF 2017 winners and athletes. About the Author GM Maurice Elmalem 7 Time World Champion, 8 Time Guinness World Record Holder Author, Producer, Artist. www.mauricepromartial arts.com President and CEO of United States Sports Academy
REF.: • DVD/TOYAMA-2
This DVD is the result promoted by the Spanish subsidiary of the Zen Nihon Toyama-Ryu Iaido Renmei (ZNTIR - Spain Branch), to publicize the technical content of the ToyamaRyu style as practiced in the ZNTIR Honbu Dojo in Machida, Tokyo, unchanged, with no alterations. The loyalty of the program is such that is its president and maximum technical manager, Yoshitoki Hataya Sensei, who, accompanied by some members, executes personally the entire compendium of the current style program. In him you can find the basic structure of the methodology that is applied, from the coded exercises of warming up and preparation and through the cutting exercises; the guards; the school Katas, including those corresponding to the Toyama Army Academy, the Gunto Soho and its explanation; work in pairs, both in Kumitachi and Gekken Kumitachi, and the cornerstone on which the Toyama-Ryu is based, i.e., Tameshigiri or cutting exercises on a real target. Zen Nihon Toyama-Ryu IaiDo Renmei (ZNTIR) is the body that currently - once reviewed and adapted the concepts and methodology of a school that comes from a method of actual combat intends to maintain alive this tradition and the original forms through a system that unifies body, mind and spirit in a realistic and effective way. Thanks to the commitment of a few graduates of the Toyama Army Academy (Rikugun Toyama Gakko), who continued secretly keeping alive the art until the lifting of the bans and the return of sovereignty to the Japanese people, today can learn a fencing style framed among the current schools of Iai-Do. This is a meticulous DVD in different languages, which proves to be a valuable source for researchers and practitioners of Japanese sword, and for martial artists in general or interested in the history of Japan and its last world war. It's a real stroke of luck being able to observe the techniques it contains, and at least for serious researchers, is well worth having it in your video library. We practitioners of the style want to share loyally the knowledge of our Japanese fencing school, in the hope that at the same time, the own inter nal values of those armed men impregnate the new generations and allow to glimpse a revulsive, in a traditionally way very different from the current approach to combat disciplines of Japanese origin. All DVDs, wichi is produced by Budo International, si provided and alone in the formats DVD-5 or MPEG-2, in VCD, DivX or the like is however neves offered with a special holograma sticker. Besides our DVD is characteristed coverings by the hig quality in pressure and material. If this DVD and/or the DVD covering do not corespond to the requirements specified above, it concerns illegal pirat copy.
ORDERS: Budo international.com
In this comprehensive instructional video, Andreas Weitzel, founder and head instructor of the SYSTEMA Academy Weitzel (Augsburg, Germany) and one of the leading SYSTEMA Instructors in Europe explains the most important fighting fundamentals. First he vividly elucidates how to walk naturally focusing on the correct execution of steps. He then shows how to use this work in combat applications. A variety of different topics are explained in this movie including: How to unbalance an attacker; How to strike and kick correctly; How to defend against, grabs, throws, strikes and kicks. The explanations in this video are simple but clear with the aim for easy comprehension and lear ning for everyone. During his explanation Andreas always includes and focuses on the most important principles and fundamentals of SYSTEMA by showing how different topics are tightly linked to each other. Furthermore free and spontaneous work against different attacks including weapons is shown under realistic conditions and full speed. In this video Andreas is assisted and supported by Michael Hazenbeller (Rastatt) and Thomas Gößler (Augsburg), two experienced Systema Instructors.
REF.: • DVD/SYSWEITZEL1
All DVDs, wichi is produced by Budo International, si provided and alone in the formats DVD-5 or MPEG-2, in VCD, DivX or the like is however neves offered with a special holograma sticker. Besides our DVD is characteristed coverings by the hig quality in pressure and material. If this DVD and/or the DVD covering do not corespond to the requirements specified above, it concerns illegal pirat copy.
ORDERS: Budo international.com