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  • #61
    Indeed, Dr Damian, I have been waiting all week to see you. Good thing Bernie is here with me on this course.

    Ok, before the graduation dinner, let me finish my review for the day.

    As one of the "demonstrators" on stage (which almost all agreed is a stressful experience) and under the watchful eye of Sifu, I learnt, or rather, re-learnt many crucial lessons that have been taken for granted. The key lessons were that of swallowing or avoiding the attack before counter-attacking, and to cover and guard against the opponent in the advance. In my own solo practice, I have tended to minimise the resistance and danger from my imaginary opponent. In the freee sparring or even sequence practice, I found this gap tested several times, as I walked into a palm to the face or was surprised by a kick or a side attack. All these were taught to me at my first intensive kungfu course but I had to be reminded of them again.

    There were something like 40 or more pattern-sequences taught today, and some were exotic, but one stood out for me - the simple triple punch. Sifu emphasised the distinction between skills and techniques in this simple move. Anyone can advance with 3 punches in solo practice but the trick or key is to do so safely, covering the opponent, closing or opening him to clear the way for each punch. It is a lot harder as it looks, as those who have tried this on non-compliant opponents in and out of Shaolin Wahnam would know well.

    Sifu highlighted that the focus on skill highlights the "depth in simplicity" of Shaolin Kungfu. Throughout the course and especially today, this rang true for me, as I noticed that many of the counters that we defaulted automatically on stage or used in the sequences taught by Sifu were the most basic sweep and thread, with the most common attack being the Black Tiger.

    Sifu then instructed us to practice each sequence in the most efficient and effective way - first, to get the form and sequence correct, and next, to do so with flowing force. We can then proceed to simulate intereceptions by the opponent in all 4 ways - strike, kick, felling and qin-na. To this, I would add rapid change of direction by the opponent, which I encountered not from Baguazhang practitioners, but Kuntao and Escrima fighters I had sparred with.
    百德以孝为先
    Persevere in correct practice

    Comment


    • #62
      Thank you

      Thank you for sharing brother. I cannot make it to either course due to prior engagement, so i read with great interest your sharing of the experience.

      Warmly Gusty

      Comment


      • #63
        Essence of Shaolin; Combat-Efficiency vs Sport-Efficiency

        IMG_6598.jpg

        As Sifu strode out of the room yesterday on the final evening of the final day of the first Essence of Shaolin course, the distant mountain on the mainland, sometimes floating in misty clouds (but visible throughout the days of the course) was suddenly obscured completely as the heavens opened into a downpour and sheet-lightning for about an hour. Soon followed the Graduation Dinner and another sumptuous feast, a big resounding happy birthday to Leonard and finally the customary speeches.


        Of course, thanking Sifu comes first and I thanked Sifu for sharing with us his almost 70 years of dedication and perfecting of the Shaolin Arts and for teaching us the precious Essence of Shaolin Set. There was so much I wanted to say. IÂ’d started my speech intending to also thank Sigung Lai Chin Wah and Sigung Ho Fatt Nam and all the past masters but I have to work on my public-speaking skills because I lost my thread and finished my speech early. It is only right that they be remembered and those masters who passed down this set over hundreds and hundreds of years.


        Uncle Righteousness, who passed on the Essence of Shaolin set to Sifu had been very much on my mind as Sifu mentioned on a few occasions during the course about how Uncle Righteousness trained him in always covering, making sure he was protected in the stances at all times and engrained this into his teaching. This was the martial lesson I took from the Essence of Shaolin course.

        As Sifu said numerous times throughout the last 5 days, even if you donÂ’t win, youÂ’re protected. If we have faith in the forms and the safety-positioning built into them, at worst in a confrontation we might not win but we donÂ’t lose either. We escape with our lives sustaining minor injuries at worst. Wuji talks about it in his great posts above (post number 59 I think).


        I have been a member of Shaolin Wahnam long enough now that I knew this in theory of course but it struck me more profoundly during this Essence of Shaolin course, watching the endless myriad of counter-attacks for any attack. At times the mind-boggled at the intricacy and sophistication of this most precious of high-level arts. Actually, at times during the Essence of Shaolin course, the mind just boggled. Perhaps this is not a deep insight for others in our school but on my first Shaolin Kungfu course it really hit me. The main thing, as I took from it, was to be protected in every pattern. Sifu, standing on the stage again on the last day of the course stopped the training and drove home the point yet again- that always-covering-approach must be ingrained into us. This reeeeally got me thinking throughout the course.


        Cage-fighting and UFC/ mma is big and getting bigger these days and despite a by now infamous Irish combat-sportsman having had some success in that arena lately, people are often surprised when I answer their queries saying that in no way am I fan of him/ the UFC nor am I in any way entertained by it. It used to be entertaining when I was much younger but in later years as I took the first shaky steps on my Shaolin Arts journey, I lost any of the remaining interest I had in that stuff (these days I would rather switch the television-channel if it was on). The Essence of Shaolin course brought home to me even more, how watching combat-sport and being entertained by it, is like being entertained by people trying to kill a corpse, if the reader will excuse my macabre analogy. The pursuit of the knock-out within the ring or the ‘ground-and-pound’ is not even the symbolic death of the opponent its touted to be because the same movement/ effort/ spacing/ tempo/ transfer of weight etc. which are expended in the delivery of a gloved-right-cross, would result in a fight-finishing move if employed in the execution of one simple Shaolin Shooting Snake pattern (but of course then the crowd would have no blood to bay for or aggression to feast upon because the fight would be over far sooner).


        Combat-Efficient vs Sport-Efficient



        Sure, combat-sportsmen develop good timing and speed, discipline, they can “take a punch” (whether that ‘ability’ is something to be admired is a dubious proposition at best) and they are combat efficient in a conventional sense within their own paradigm which is founded on gum-shields, groin-guards, gloves and a system of rests between rounds to prolong the spectacle. That is to say that their safety mechanisms are prosthetic and external to themselves (it seems like an almost ridiculous thing now to attempt to develop power, speed and timing by walking towards your opponent with your groin wide-open as muay thai fighters and MMA guys do just because they’re wearing a stainless steel cup over their groin and rules against striking the eyes and throat banish any thought of real safety).


        Speed, timing and power which might be developed within such a scaffold of external safety structures still doesn’t equate to combat-efficiency if we define being combat-efficiency as being able to defend your own life and protect your eyes, throat and groin and vital points. Can someone who fights like that be called combat-efficient at all…? It really hit me on the Essence Course due to the marvellousness of the techniques Sifu showed us. Such combat-sportemen frankly couldn’t be said to have Marvellous combat-efficiency by any standard. The day I see a muay-thai fighter or an mma fighter apply a pattern from the Essence of Shaolin without the aid of rubber gumshields, a metal cup etc. and his body positioning not exposing his vital points- then I will congratulate him, “Well done! You’re marvellous! (“Did you do the Essence of Shaolin Course with Sifu?”).


        At no time during the Essence of Shaolin course, was Sifu exposed in any way. Always protected in each and every counter-attack which unfolded kaleidoscopically from the one preceding it (the sequences were truly mesmerizing which is actually sometimes an unfortunate combination when you have the brain-fry. Essence of Shaolin course = Mesmerizing + Brain-fry). Never has brain-fry been so mesmerizing than at the Essence of Shaolin course.


        From a protected position came marvellous attacks and techniques. I really learned that if we, as practitioners fail to utilize correct form or fail to cover or fail to have full-faith in the Shaolin forms and don’t train with an element of threat (as Sifu reminded us) (or simply don’t practice), then we cannot expect to beat other martial artists. “The fault dear Brutus”, is not in our stars but in ourselves~ The fault in that case, quite simply is not with the Art whose 108 most marvellous techniques were unpackaged and displayed for those of us lucky enough to be in the hall. The fault is with ourselves.


        It really was marvellous to simply watch Sifu on stage and marvellous to be in the training-hall at the Copthorne which was almost transformed into a 37th chamber of Shaolin for the days of the course. The Essence of Shaolin course inspired me to train with a high-threat level for picture-perfect form and always covering. Still my form lapsed during the sparring sessions which was disappointing as I fell back into old bad habits but SifuÂ’s exposition of the Essence of Shaolin combat sequences and their marvelousness has opened my eyes fully to the real chance of one day fighting at full speed and power with picture perfect-form. This has also been ingrained in me from attending the Essence of Shaolin course as well as the importance of always covering. This is something to truly aspire to. Being a world-champion of walking towards oneÂ’s opponent wide-open, rigged out with padding on the hands, rubber in the mouth and a steel plate over their groin and knowing you can take a rest after 3 full-contact but unrealistic minutesÂ… they are combat-efficient in their own way within their own paradigm butÂ…why aspire to that? Is that even something to aspire to for oneself or for others? Why not aspire to the best, the most marvellous especially after Sifu has literally shown us so clearly how to do it? All that remains is to practice the best set of the worldÂ’s best martial art- who wouldnÂ’t accept such gift?


        Sifu, once again, thank you for teaching me the Essence of Shaolin and on a non-martial note, thank you for the profound and deeply positive impact youÂ’ve had on my life which was changed for the better since my first Chi Kung course in Sabah in 2008. As was the case last night during the speeches and now, words fail me. The only way I can think of truly saying thank you and so that your sharing the Essence of Shaolin with me will not be a vain casting of pearls before swine, is to practice what you have spent your time so selflessly teaching us. Your teaching has also inspired me to be a better person on every level; the levels of form, energy and mind.


        Thanks again to Wei Foong for peerlessly organizing another wonderful course and during her birthday! Chun Nga; everyone was so grateful for your taking them to temples and looking after us so well. Thank you for taking us to such a special and delicious lunch- one of the best meals ever! I’d like to thank all my sparring partners; I’m sure my ignorance of some of the pattern names was frustrating- thank you all for your patience, advice and “single-tiger!” prompts. Thank you to all our Shaolin Wahnam instructors for your advice and patience; Andrew for your technical advice and precision; always a pleasure sir, a deep bow. Tim for coming down to my level and for that mind-blowing sparring session which I’m still processing. Markus for your crystal-clear and assertive and controlled explanation of a sequence cutting to the core in just 60 seconds, Leonard and Barry for your positivity, encouragement and patience. It was great to practice the forms with you all.


        A Shaolin Salute with grateful thanks to Sifu, to Sigung Lai Chin Wah, to Sigung Ho Fatt Nam, to all the past masters who expended their time, effort and dedication and whose chi-flows aided in the coalescing of the Shaolin Arts and the Essence of Shaolin. As Sifu says, Life truly is a meaningful flow of energy. To those arriving for the second course- I wish you the very best; enjoy this treasure which Sifu is sharing with us.

        Comment


        • #64
          Nice post, John. I am glad we managed to break-fast together before i went to the airport.

          To continue your Shakespearean references, I will add that when I reached home, and my family asked "How is Sifu?", a line from "Antony & Cleopatra" came to mind, duly modified: "Age cannot wither [Sifu], nor custom stale [the] infinite variety of [Shaolin Kungfu]". What I did in fact say was "Sifu is still very energetic, doing kicks I hope i can still do at 73."

          One application to daily life as a result of the course took place almost immediately upon my return. We were all going to church, when I noticed ominous clouds in the sky. I suggested that we all get umbrellas, but my wife vetoed me and just decided to rush (the church is 1.2 kilometers away). Then, when we passed the bus stop, I said that we should wait for the bus. But apparently, her transport app said we had missed the bus, whereas I sensed that the bus was coming, so she hurried on. 20 seconds later, the bus passed us by.

          And immediately after that, rain drops started falling. I diverted with the kids to a sheltered walkway that was slightly longer but would keep us dry 75% of the way. When we were under the shelter, the thunderstorm broke, and in a few minutes, there was a gale and rainwater was overflowing the pavements. My wife? She was caught in the downpour on the other side because she wanted to walk her own way. I then purchased raincoats and umbrellas at the sheltered area which conveniently had shops, and I dispatched my son to fetch his mother from across the road where she was being drenched.

          The moral of the story insofar as it relates to the Essence of Shaolin is that one must always be alert to hazards, be prepared with a sequence of counter-measures if they do occur, and to make instant decisions, and to change when there are variations. My wife had at least 2 chances to stay dry but chose to rush into a known risky environment (impending storm).

          Subconsciously, i applied my Shaolin training thus:

          1) Offer to go home to grab umbrellas after looking at the sky - Study the opponent and then ask the way
          2) Suggest to take the bus - make modifications based on my instincts, and not rely on third parties
          3) The first two measures having failed, change the route to avoid rain - decisive change / modification
          4) Buy raincoats and brollies and remained largely dry all the way to church - seize the opportunity for victory

          My wife's reactions reminded me of Sifu's Tae Kwan Do sparring opponents when Sifu asked them: "What if your leg is caught? What is your counter?". Their answer, as you may recall, was a complacent "See who faster.", which is both ungrammatical and intellectually lazy, as well as tactically naive.
          百德以孝为先
          Persevere in correct practice

          Comment


          • #65
            It was indeed a great breakfast Wuji and a great chat we had. It shall be done again! I look forward to it.
            Also, hilariously funny banter had after the last session of the Essence of Shaolin with Kristian

            Though on the final day of the Small Universe Course, I'm still processing the Essence of Shaolin course. Precious gold. Its still hard to believe that a great Shaolin master would just stand on a stage in a hotel somewhere and demonstrate the patterns and sequences to the most precious set of the best martial art under heaven. I wouldn't believe it unless
            I'd been there but we get used to the impossible in our school by now.

            Centuries of martial and spiritural experitise distilled and coalesced into a precious series of 108 movements.
            On the last day of the course I thought; truly, the Essence of Shaolin is a pathway to the divine. I can't describe what happened after the last performance of the set on the afternoon of the final day. The 108th movement, the final punch before the salute (and before the Chi Flow). It seemed like the whole 5-day course was leading up to that moment, the same way the whole series of 107 patterns leads to that final 108th pattern.

            Comment


            • #66
              Thank you Wuji for another succinct account of this course. It is much appreciated as I'm just emerging from a state of brain-fry to start evaluating and training everything we learned during the five days of this course. Learning 108 combat sequences in such a short time is no small feat, and undoubtedly I'll be processing everything we learned here for some time to come.

              For me, the points that stuck out at this course were so many of those things Wuji already mentioned: the importance of taming as you move in, ensuring you are protected, adjusting for spacing, picture perfect form, moving in with the Three Arrivals, the basics, the basics, the basics. While there was a whole host of brand new techniques, much of what was emphasized for combat efficiency are the things that Sifu tells us from day one at the Intensive Kung Fu course. To me, these principles are the essence of Shaolin and present to us the proper and only way to train-not just doing lip service to those principles, but really enacting them in sparring with a partner, be they imaginary or real.

              As I continue to train with Sifu throughout the years, it is interesting seeing lessons learned at one point crystallize years and years later. As I prepared for this course and tried to understand the applications of various patterns, I realized that I was starting to see the result of what I had learned 10 years prior at the special intensive course titled: How to Think and Act Like a Master. Something tells me that onion has a lot more layers and I look forward to peeling them back further.

              This was by far the most challenging course I've attended, and not having had a training partner in over a year really exposed the holes in my training. Fortunately thanks to our arts, I've grown enough over the years to be able to observe my ego starting to get in the way, then brush it aside which allows me to see those holes for what they are: opportunities for growth and areas to emphasize in my training. 10 plus years of perspective allows me to be grateful for something that would have crushed my precious ego at the outset.

              It was also phenomenal to watch all of the participants at all levels consistently improve their skills day upon day. Despite the vast spread of the material and the short time to learn and practice it, everybody followed along a little better from one session to the next. That we were able to cover so much material in such a short amount of time across so many different levels of skill really speaks volumes to Sifu's teaching ability, as well as how far it has come over the years.

              Thank you Sifu for a wonderful course, I have more than enough material to chew on for awhile. Thank you to Wei Foong for your tireless efforts to ensure everything goes smoothly, and to all in the Shaolin Wahnam family with whom I got to train and learn from.

              With gratitude,

              Molly
              有志著事竟成

              Shaolin Wahnam Twin Cities

              Genuine Shaolin Kungfu and Qigong in Minnesota
              https://www.shaolinwahnamtc.com/

              Comment


              • #67
                Essence of Shaolin course 2 day 1

                So I heard we would be marvelous.
                Let me see, first day, developing a tremendous amount of good quality force. By just doing a few repititions of carrying sun and moon and what seemed like just 10 minutes of stance training. Quite marvelous.

                Doing the whole set with the sneaky changes Sifu put in, with flow, force, speed. After just being shown it once or twice was indeed marvelous to me. I could barely remember the set the day before, not having practiced it for a good 5 days. Now just being in the flow, it just came out without effort . With the changes!. I want to see it on video and I wonder if i can still do it ( but I know there must be no doubts thoughts and worrys and just flow.

                I got some encouragement from Sifu that my stance was improving! To know that daily training is paying off is marvelous!

                In figuring out the applications to moves, they would just come to me! ok maybe they werent always the best but something always immediatly came to mewhich is
                great and they always were ok at least!

                It was surely a zen course! use the flow and wu wei rather than try to memorize and intellectualise in order to perform the set and applications. Thanks to Sifu for a glimpse of using and applying cosmic wisdom to acheive marvelous phenomenal things

                Thank you Sifu and classmates

                Jas

                Comment


                • #68
                  course 2 day 2

                  So we were going through the sequences
                  I couldnt remember the moves well this morning.
                  We did the double dragon emerges from sea flowing and consolidating. Watching Sifus demonstration of it was awe inspiring. Its plain to see thats he is just on a completely different level
                  But funnily for me after doing it, I could remember the moves better!

                  Applying the sparring moves: ok this was marvelous . Sifu must be so naturally in tune with the flow of the cosmos and students state at that moment. In about 1 minute of explanation and 2 minutes of creating a sequence I could apply some marvelous moves.. That is truly marvelous. All I could use before the course was a few basic moves from the basic sequences! Now without thinking I just applied double vertical boss punch vs a middle strike ( applying the move at the same time I got attacked) also using reverse planting of flower against a low attack and floating a high attack and simultaneous strike with horse stance tiger claw. These are marvelous techniques in my mind and I could just flow and apply them!

                  Sifu gave me some amazing pointers and just said a few great things to me about the practice of punching a well. Initially I was asking him a question about it and wae just thinking to myself that he wasnt understanding. But in reality he was answering my question indirectly as well as giving me 2 or 3 extremely(actually more) helpful points. I can see how I and other people may rigidly go after what I/they want and not adapt to the situation. Ignoring things, an analogy may be a person going in hell bent on connecting their attack and just getting hit at the same time.

                  Anyway looking forward to day 3. Thank you Sifu, past masters, classmates and Sije Wei Foong

                  Ps I just realised its been a long day! all day at kek lok si and all evening dragged to bars in georgetown. Maybe its good training for me?! I dont drink but Ive inhaled enough alcohol to do some crazy drunken kung fu tommorow!

                  Also sorry about any grammer errors, typing on an old phone

                  Best,
                  Jas

                  Comment


                  • #69
                    Essence of Marvels

                    Thank you to Sifu and everyone for an amazing and truly priceless course!

                    To all the wonderful folks I was lucky enough to share lovely times with, you are all incredible and I really hope we can meet again soon!!

                    Great posts from everyone and I can only mirror what the others from session one have said; Sifu was a masterful paragon of what the heights and true wonders of this art look like and can bring.

                    It was an extremely invigorating, exciting, and encouraging week and I have taken back so many treasures from this course that I know not where to begin in terms of unpacking them.

                    Truly awesome work from so many and I can't wait to meet you all again somewhere down the road.

                    The mission has now been excellence and not sinfully ignoring the wonderful legacy Sifu has transmitted, as I have begun my daily plan to do in 12 months what I hope will be enough to at least cement what has been generously given and use that to further explore and develop the even greater treasures that are beyond the horizon of successfully unpacking and 'keeping' this course.

                    Thank you once again, and a very blessed 'go work hard and don't waste this gift' to you all!

                    Infinite love <3

                    Kristian

                    Comment


                    • #70
                      Essence of Shaolin Course 1

                      It never ceases to amaze me the quality and depth of the intensive courses, so why would this one be any different!

                      After the essence of Shaolin my mind was racing with other possibilities of reaching various levels of uses for the Shaolin set, It seems that the course has opened up a level of possibility to find yet more combat application. It really made us look at as many possibilities for the use of the form.
                      During the class there were many occasions of 'oooo's, Aaaah’s and wows' as Sigung Showed us the varying levels of application. I'm only being too understand now that I took in more than I
                      Realised.
                      The course was as expected, a significant step up from what I'm used to but as always all students whatever level just crack on and do their best.

                      There were 36 attending and we were fortunate to have 18 instructors guiding us through the course. Previously on the 2017 UK Summer Camp It just so happened that I seemed to end up in a group of all but 1 instructor. This helped a lot as their knowledge pointed out some finer details of the practice. So having 18 at hand was a blessing for sure.

                      I feel quite I'll one morning and did my best to get through the morning session, all the students were understanding and adjusted their practice accordingly. About halfway through the session Siheng Melbourne Michael suggested I take time out and sit aside, I took his advice and observed what I could. At a later stage Siheng Marcus from Finland did a points healing session and Sigung also! I went into chi flow and my energy levels increased within minutes. At the end of the season Wei Foong got some herbs and later handed them to me to ease the symptoms. During the class the students were showing genuine concern for my wellbeing.
                      What struck me about this process was the sense of Family, this is something I haven't experienced on this level before but this time it became very apparent. .....

                      At the graduation dinner we were limited to one speaker per table, and in typical Wahnam fashion the speeches filled with personal experiences, along with gratitude, laughs and thanks to Sigung.
                      I didn't speak at the EOS dinner but strongly on my mind over the past several months has been 3 people that I feel worth an added mention. So I will post here and share my thoughts.

                      Firstly Past master Lai Chin Wah, AKA Uncle Righteousness, one who would instil good form, diligent practice and give Sigung his first taste of Kung Fu. It was he who passed on the Essence of Shaolin set to Sigung onto one deserving successor with our legendary Grandmaster being the chosen deserved successor who went on to learn the set over a two year period of constant evening practice. No internet, just sheer dedication, passion for the art and diligent practice.

                      Secondly Past Master Ho Fatt Nam, who encourage the internal arts in Shaolin Wahnam that has quite clearly benefited all students that practice the schools Kung Fu, again Sigung exploring and searching the hidden art of internal force, Nei Kung, and more whilst continuing grasp a deeper and more meaningful truth of the Shaolin art. Past Master Ho Fatt Nam known for his compassion and moral integrity most certainly resonates through these arts and it is also he who we can extend our thanks to for this essence in our school.

                      Lastly the person who I want to mention is the 6th Patriarch of Zen, Hui Neng. Some may already know why he is worth a mention, but for those who don't here's why. The Venerable Hui Neng became the 6th patriarch of Zen after the 5th Patriarch of Zen, Hong Jen transmitted the teachings and dharma to him. Immediately he was asked to leave and was instructed to preserve and to spread the teachings and enlightenment.
                      Many years later he went on to settle and find a place to pass on the transmitted knowledge but unlike previous Zen successors Hui Neng passed on, spread and taught Zen Wisdom to many deserving students instead if transmitting to one successor.
                      I recall Sigung pointing out he soon realised there were many worthy students to teach the Essence of Shaolin. If it wasn't for Sigung's generosity and passion to spread the Shaolin Arts I definitely would not of been that successor. But as it stands we now have the Essence of Shaolin for sharing with each other and have the opportunity to unpack the set over time from now and beyond.

                      My thanks and gratitude goes out to Sigung for his ongoing lifetimes work and for the constant sharing and generosity the he has passed on to us all.

                      Best Wishes to our Grandmaster and all.
                      James
                      O\
                      Aaahhhhh!

                      Comment


                      • #71
                        Great posts, everyone.

                        Now that I am back in the thick of (office) things, I have little time to post, but here is something that I wanted to write for the past 2 weeks.

                        I wrote earlier that some of the applications for the set were taken from our basic combat sequences, or that some of the applications would be familiar to those who had attended other courses. I am pretty sure none of the participants had this problem, but I was reminded of this story in Sifu's autobiography about the son of a rich man whose Wing Chun Sifu corrected, got irritated and said "I know that already".

                        This mindset is one of most insidiously dangerous one can have, because it breeds intellectual and physical sloth, arrogance, complacency, and lack of respect. It is like the old Zen story that Bruce Lee used to quote about how one cannot fill a cup with fresh tea/water unless one empties that cup first. Except that in this case, it is not a case of emptying the cup, but rather improving the taste of what is already in the cup.

                        There is a famous saying by Confucious 温故知新 which means that by revising what you had learnt before, you can always learn something new. This was indeed my experience at the course - I had written about how I finally understood the nuances of the Tiger Tail kick only now, even though Sifu had taught the kick before at one of my early courses. In a sense, everything that we need has already been taught to us. It is now time to enrich, enhance and master what Sifu had taught us long ago. And this is what the Essence of Shaolin course means to me. Even without practising any sequence in particular, I found my practice of my Dragon Strength set more enlightened, and even my practice of dim mak felt tangibly different.
                        百德以孝为先
                        Persevere in correct practice

                        Comment


                        • #72
                          Wow what a course. I feel like I have eaten an encyclopedia of Kungfu.

                          What amazed me even more than the marvellous applications is how Sifu was working non-stop throughout the course in between classes and at night to compile, cut and upload the videos over the (rather slow) hotel Internet connection. All magically ready for us the next day.

                          We are so lucky in so many ways.
                          George / Юра
                          Shaolin Wahnam England

                          gate gate pāragate pārasaṁgate bodhi svāhā

                          Comment


                          • #73
                            Dear Wahnam Family,

                            I was sad to be unable to attend this historical course, but am heartened to read about your experiences. This may be the first set that I "steal."

                            All the Best from Borneo.


                            Yours,

                            Chas
                            Charles David Chalmers
                            Brunei Darussalam

                            Comment


                            • #74
                              Originally posted by Kristian S. View Post

                              To all the wonderful folks I was lucky enough to share lovely times with, you are all incredible and I really hope we can meet again soon!!

                              Kristian
                              Kristian

                              Do post the movie we produced, wrote, directed and acted in !
                              百德以孝为先
                              Persevere in correct practice

                              Comment


                              • #75
                                Originally posted by Zhang Wuji View Post
                                Kristian

                                Do post the movie we produced, wrote, directed and acted in !
                                Yeahhhhh!!!! Dazzle the worlllld! haha

                                Here is what we managed to do with the #1 director of Universal Singapore; feast your eyes!



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