Cosmos Palm - USA, NH, October 2016

[Nessa]

I am so happy for those who attended the course. It sounds, and what I 've seen from Sifu's videos, also looks wonderful.

Happy training!


Best wishes,

Nessa

[David Langford]

Cosmos Palm, perhaps one of the most legendary arts. The word "lucky" is used quite a lot in our school to describe our fortunate situation of having a Shaolin Grandmaster who seeks to spread all he knows to us. I think that word doesn't do justice to what we have received. Luck is finding a twenty dollar bill on the sidewalk or sneaking into the last parking space. I have trouble finding an adjective that can describe this level of good fortune. Perhaps Legendary? Because we are surely living in Legendary times straight from the stories of old.

Forceful big windmill is without a doubt the most powerful force training I have ever experienced. Even more so than Iron Wire and Fierce Tiger Cleanses Claws.

The Combat Application of the set composed by Sigung is so simple, that is why it is also most effective and profound. Secrets were shared that can end a fight the very moment it starts.

The pleasure of getting to spar with so many high level practitioners of our arts was such a special experience. Where I live there are no other people who practice our Shaolin Kung Fu. One person practices Tai Chi Chuan but our schedules never coincide. So the rare opportunity to have a training partner filled me with extreme joy. I always feel like I make a ton of progress when I can touch hands with someone skilled. To test out where my training has been effective, where it has been lacking, and what I need to improve on.

Breaking bricks and sugar cane supported by eggs was fun as well.

Our Finnish Sister Mirva managed to capture my brick break on her cell phone:

Thank you Sigung, for everything.

[Anton S.]

This course was among others a "must-attain" this year. As Sigung mentioned not likely going to teach Cosmos Palm again!
Too bad I couldn´t make it.
I am looking forward to read and see more.
And I am happy that everyone had wonderful results!

Anton

[Karol]

Congratulations David!

Your hard work pays off.

I could not attend this course, but mentally and in my heart I was with You guys. Trained up to 300 repetitions together with the rest of the students and after consultation with Sigung added some Forceful Big Windmill learned during The Legacy of Ho Fatt Nam course. I hope after some time I will be able to share with You similar video

[Kristian S.]

WOW... WHOAH... Just.... YEAH!!!....

You already know how this has to begin:

WHAT A COURSSSE!!!!

Trying so hard not to repeat what others have said, and, then again, realizing how impossible it is to deny the fact that this course is beyond words that aren't exclamations of joy and wonder!

EVERYTHING was a total blassssst and incredible fun and so empowering and high level and powerful and useful and unbelievable; from the course content, to the feats of Cosmos Palm breaking, to meals, family, sparring, lessons, growth, and unlocking cool abilities and new levels of peace, calm, focus, power, health, flow, force, effectiveness, and spiritual joy!

I only managed to get the sugar cane to 'work,' but, mark my words, you bricks, I'm comin' for ya!!!! SOOOOON!!!!

In my short time practicing chi kung, even before being a part of our school, I have often had experiences of my lao gong points pulsating or giving off strong heat and pressure, and even there being a lot of 'activation' and energy exchange/circulation. But, after this course, and even as I type this now, WHOOOOOAH BUDDDDDY! There has been a new kind of awakening and level of CONSTANT activation and presence of energy/pressure/heat/pulse/force in those points. For some reason, since the course, this has been a constant, every day, 24/7, every minute and second thing now... it has yet to turn off... I can't believe how blessed we all were at the transmissions we received! Now my palms, weak as they may yet be, are seemingly in a state of perpetual openness and 'on'... I feel like they won't be turning 'off' anytime soon, if ever! No thought is required, not even relaxing and focusing on the feeling to check if it's still there; it's just going and dramatically so most times. How do we ever show enough gratitude for even ONE part of what Sifu gave us???

Like my dear brother Karol mentioned, at the Legacy of Ho Fatt Nam we also learned both big windmills and pushing mountains, but this time, not only was the technique slightly different, the force was coming from a different place altogether... Several times when striking out my hand to begin the big windmill, I could feel and sense cosmos palm force from my palm exploding and sending a ripple 'out' into space, like a pulsation into the world, blasting out... maybe someday I can train enough to reach the point where my hand and arm are vibrating and buzzing like a saw made of highly reactive energy and electrifying power, like Sifu's seemed to effortlessly do! I'm pretty sure, if he wanted to, he could just smoothly move his hand right down through the sugar cane or bricks, slicing through them like a plasma cutter or de-atomizing them, without applying any speed or swing of the arm, just like a knife through warm butter... those are some powerful palms, to be sure!

This course was out of this world and so were all the incredible people who attended and made it such a joy and carnival of amazement stacked on top of amazement! With this and the rest of the courses of the weekend I noticed (as did everyone) that Sifu's teaching methodology has yet again taken a quantum leap forward in depth and efficiency (not that it wasn't already beyond comprehension!). Cosmic Shower feels like it passed in a flash and like we journeyed through an infinitesimal amount of teaching all at the same time... I completely concur with Tim's joke that soon Sifu's courses will be one sentence long transmissions of pure enlightenment.

A HUGE thank you to everyone for all your kindness, generosity, open-heartedness, laughter, connection, motivation, and example-setting; thank you Matt Siheng for again organizing a life-changing set of courses and welcoming me back to my Wahnam 'birthplace' for even further growth and happiness; and, as always, infinite thanks to Sifu for absolutely everything and then some! The emphasis on carrying over the skills we develop in courses to daily life have already begun to work marvels in my day-to-day existence and the amazing amount of time we were all blessed to share with you was truly a humbling experience of the openness and generosity you show in creating a family so united and smiling and strong and upright and joyous!

Now to train and make Sifu proud, bring honor and fulfillment to these arts and transmissions, and to make the most out of the gifts were are so generously given by working hard and diligently toward more and more positive success and growth!

It was a distinct and exquisite pleasure meeting and training with you all! My heart is forever with you and your well-being and successes in all you do, and I wish you all the very very best of the very very best in this or any world, now, and forever and ever and always!!

Until we see each other again, soon, family,

Infinite blessings,

Kristian

[haltia]

Notes on 18 jewels in USA, NH, October 2016

Thank you so much to you all for this amazing course galore! Cosmos palm was a profound experience and the effects seem to grow every day. Thank you Sigung for sharing your wisdom and thank you Matt for making it all happen. Spending time with the kungfu family left me speechless - so much warmth and so many wonderful people. Had a blast both on at off the course There was a great Chi kung experience after Cosmos palm and Sigung shared his wisdom in a more detailed way this time... So I made pretty detailed notes to keep the knowledge fresh in mind (thank you David and Michael for your help!). I added some of my own experiences and the advice my Sifu has kindly shared with me when ever I injure my self I wrote Sigung to confirm I didn't forget anything important and he encouraged me to share these notes with you. I hope you find them useful. Infinite blessings and good health to all of you <3

Notes on 18 Jewels in New Hampshire, USA 29.-30.10.2016


As a beginning a short reminder that Chi kung benefits us not only physically, emotionally and spiritually but also mentally. Chi kung operates on three levels: form, breathing and
Mind. All of these components are present in all chi kung. In general the relative ratio of these components is 10 % due to form, 30 % due to breating and 60 % due to mind. The more higher level chi kung is performed, the more energy is obtained by mind.


18 Jewels are used both holistically and thematically. Practising all 18 jewels benefits physical, emotional and spiritual wellbeing both by clearing away any problems as well as preventing them. However jewels can also be used as targeted practise to overcome certain long term or acute problems such long term back pain or acute sparring injury - this is the thematical approach. Key to success is the skill of generating chi flow which is why only trained healers should teach the jewels to others and us students should concentrate on using them as tools to keep ourselves healthy and happy. Especially forceful exercises such as shaking fingers should not be even attempted without proper guidance as it effect the nerve system and can result in damage even without chi flow.


18 jewels follow the familiar stages of chi kung in their effects: first they will restore health, only then will they start increasing vitality and after vitality is reaches, exercises will start growing longevity in the practisioner. 18 jewels are seemingly low-level arts compared to some others taught in our school but when applying our skill of generating chi flow to these techniques the jewels become high-level in their results.


Exercises can be done either individually with chi flow in between or by combining multiple exercises and doing chi flow after. Last exercise performed usually directs how the chi flow develops so it is good to save the one your body needs most as last and then go to chi flow. Sigung also emphasizes spread over depth, meaning that it is good to practise all 18 jewels over time and not just concentrate on the few we think we need the most. Practising all 18 jewels in rotation as a holistic exercise is recommended and thematic approach can be used if and when special problems require more direct approach and attention.


EXERCISES AS THEMATIC SETS


Multifunctional exercises


Dancing butterfly and Embracing Buddha effect on many levels, especially problems with heart, lungs, chest, back, spine and emotional disorders.


Art of Flexibility


Dragonfly plays with water, Lohan takes off shoes and Touching toes are three of the five exercises that form the Art of Flexibility. Other two are from the 18 Lohan Arts: Three levels to the ground and the Dancing crane. These two are not part of the 18 jewels but can be combined with them to form a good basic flexibility practise to improve for example your kungfu forms.


Circular motion to benefit the lower torso


Dancing Fairy, Swinging hips and Bear walk all generate circular motion that is good for the entire lower hip area including sexual organs. his combination has been helpful in endometriosis and menstrual pain as well as alleviating accidental kungfu kicks in the groin area.


Chi flow inducing movements to help lower body problems


Kicking legs and Hula Hoop are used to manifest chi movements that help lower body problems.


Structural problems and depression


General Surveys field was used by Ho Fatt Nam to help people overcome structural problems but later Sigung has found it to be helpful in overcoming also depression. Dancing butterfly


Stomach problems


Rotating hips and Dancing fairy are good exercises for digestive system and intestine problems such as IBS or gas.


Brain and nerve health


Shaking fingers is a powerful exercise to clear blockages that affect the brain and neural functions.


Acute injury helpers


Old Man Rows boat, Shaking fingers and Rocking feet are exercises for expedient needs. Old man rows boat for torso and knee problems, Shaking fingers for hands and arms and Rocking feet for leg and foot issues.


LIST OF ALL 18 JEWELS IN ORDER:


01. Double Dragons (Double Dragons Emerge from Sea) - Seong Loong Chiut Hoi 雙龍出海
Effects: back and kidneys


02. Fish Flip - (Carp Hits Boat) Lei Yu Ta Deng 鯉魚打挺
Effects: back and kidneys


03. Dancing Fairy - (Fairy Starts to Dance) Seen Nui Hei Mou 仙女起舞
Effects: Stomach and chi around the hips, benefits the sides of the body. Generates circular energy flow.


04. Swinging Hips (Green Dragon Swings Tail) - Cheng Loong Pai Mei 青龍擺尾
Effects: Stomach and chi around the hips, healthy spine, and issues like endometriosis in women, and reproductive health. Generates circular energy flow.


05. Bear Walk (Black Bear Seeks Path) - Hak Hoong Tham Lou 黑熊探路
Effects: Strengthens Legs and arms, increases confidence. Bear Walk generates energy to the legs and Sigung has employed Bear Walk to help many people sitting in wheelchairs to walk again.


06. Immortal Takes off Shoes - Seen Yian Tiut Heir 仙人脫靴
Effects: Leg flexibility, back and kidneys


07. Dragonfly Plays with Water - Cheng Deng Hei Sheui 蜻蜓戲水
Effects: Leg flexibility, back and kidneys


08. White Crane Steps on Snow - Pak Hok Tap Sheut 白鶴踏雪
Effects: Balance and knees


09. Drumming Kidneys (Immortal Strikes Drum) - Cheong Gwor Khiak Ku 張果擊鼓
Effects: Kidney health, sexual function, intellect. Also helps with fear (and jealousy, which comes from fear).


10. Touching Toes (Lohan Touches Ground) - Lor Hon Mor Teai 羅漢摸地
Effects: Leg flexibility, back and kidneys


11. Old Man Grinds Rice - (Earlier Old man rows boat was used as the 11th exercise, but this proved more efficient)
Effects: Knee health. Can also generate energy to the kidneys, and is therefore excellent for overcoming sexual inadequacy, intellectual weakness, and fatigue.


12. Shaking Fingers (Two Sparrow Fly Doubly) - Yi Cheok Seong Fei 二雀雙飛
Effects: Very good against carpal tunnel, nervous system issues, shoulders. Shaking Fingers is also very helpful for those with finger problems. Never perform unless formally trained because it could send chi to the head and affect nervous system.


13. Rocking Feet (Ride Reed Across Stream) - Yiat Wai Tou Kong 一苇渡江
Effects: Chi to the feet, clears through feet

14. Kicking Legs (White Crane Kicks Legs) - Pak Hok Thek Theui 白鶴踢腿
Effects: Loosening knee muscles, giving agility and flexibility. Also contributes to the art of lightness.


15. Hula Hoop (Jade Belt Circles Waist) - Yuk Tai Wai Yiew 玉带圍腰
Effects: Kidneys and Knees.


16. General Surveys Field - Cheong Kwan Khoon Cheong 將軍觀場
Effects: Cures depression, opens the chest and heart, improves posture


17. Dancing Butterfly (Butterfly Dances Before Flower) - Tip Mou Fa Chien 蝶舞花前
Effects: Opens the chest, lungs, great for increasing happiness, opening the heart, addressing depression, good for grief issues as well lung meridian


18. Embracing Buddha - Wai Choong Pou Fatt 懷中抱佛
Effects: heart, lungs, chest, back, spine and emotional disorders. Embracing Buddha can also cleanse nerves and help those with allergies to recover.

[Nessa]

Thank you Mirva, for sharing your notes!


Best wishes,

Nessa

[David Langford]

Thank you Mirva for sharing this extremely useful information.

[understanding]

It Came from Outer Space

Dear Family and Friends,

It came from outer space...



I made a poster to commemorate how brave Shaolin warriors were welcoming otherworldly visitors during the course. Now you can share this on your social media accounts and start interesting conversations.

With farout respect,
Olli

[Grimlock]

Dear Family,

I was lucky enough to attend the Cosmos Palm course, and then even luckier to drive with Eugene and Sifu to Toronto and take the Wudang 3 Harmonies course, and then host Sifu in sunny Florida for a slew of terrific chi kung courses, One Finger Shooting Zen, and Crossroads at Four Gates. I decided to just enjoy the experience at the time and collect my thoughts afterwards. Now that it's all over, I'm overwhelmed at where to start or how to separate the individual experiences that have all melded into one giant memory I will treasure for the rest of my life. The day after the St Pete courses ended, I told Sifu that even though the courses were on three consecutive weekends, the Three Harmonies course seemed like a month ago and the Cosmos Palm course seemed like a year ago! We both laughed, and Sifu agreed that it seemed like a lot of time had passed. Sometime I will try to organize my thoughts about the collective experience, but in the mean time, I'll do my best to reflect on the individual courses themselves.

So Cosmos Palm. I think this was the most intense course of the ones I took. It felt like a 5 day course jammed into 2 days, which I don't mean negatively. How can I describe it? I mean it more in the sense of the amount of transmission/downloading of skills from Sifu. Forceful Big Windmill brought about a new understanding of consolidating force through direct experience. The combination of Forceful Big Windmill and Pushing Mountains is incredibly powerful. I found it enlightening when Sifu said that the non-force-training portions of the set are for testing/confirming Cosmos Palm rather than developing it. Speaking of the set, it really is brilliant, particularly how it incorporates some of the best palm patterns from Taijiquan, Shaolin Kung Fu, and Xingyiquan. Sifu went over spiraling force from the back leg/dan tian/waist rotation, from the shoulder, and from the wrist. (This theme was further developed on the Three Harmonies course.)

I didn't know what to expect in terms of combat application, but Sifu has further distilled how to train a pattern to apply it against any attack. First, we used the pattern against a typical hand strike, then a kick, then a felling pattern, and then a chin na grip. Then we gradually "released the reins" from pre-choice to some self-choice. It was clear how to progress the method systematically to free-sparring. We did this with two or three different patterns, which provided an interesting basis for comparison as well as a nice way to work on the same skills in slightly different ways.

I expected the bricks and sugar cane to be the grand finale, so I was surprised when we did them at the start of the second day. For my part, I broke the bottom brick on my first try and then failed to repeat it. But I learned my lesson and after breaking the sugar cane on my first try, I just watched and help set it up for others The tests were nice in that they provided a tangible milestone that I have often missed in my general training. Of course, the daily life benefits of training are far more valuable, but it's still nice to have some sort of feat I either can or can't do.

The other part of the course that stands out is developing our own Cosmos Palm sparring sequence and testing it out. I quickly worked out a very simple sequence but was still surprised at how well I could apply it and adapt it in sparring. It was a lot of fun to do, and I was happy I could also sometimes help my brothers and sisters use their sequences more effectively.

Speaking of which, we had a wonderful group of participants on the course, and some very high level Shaolin practitioners. We all know about the Sifu-Student-Art triangle, but it also applies to courses (where the Student can be the students on the course). The people on the Cosmos Palm course certainly played a major role in making it such an incredible experience.

Many thanks to Matt for his wonderful organizing skills in a very nice and enjoyable town. And of course many thanks to Sifu for his incredible, always-evolving-and-somehow-improving teaching.

By the way, Olli, I love the poster! I never thought about that definition of Cosmos Palm, but when I go outside tomorrow, I will look at the palm trees around me in a new way

[Mark CH]

Dear Wahnam Family

Thank you Sifu for teaching us the wonderful art of Cosmos Palm. So much learned again in two days and such a beautiful set

Thank you Matt for organising this course and being so helpful. It was an absolute pleasure to join you and everyone in New Hampshire.

Thank you Eugene TAISIHENG for the wonderful time we had travelling from New York to New Hampshire for the whole week. So much laughing ha ha ha.

Best wishes to everyone as always
Mark

[Grimlock]

One more thing: the 30% method! I can't believe I forgot to mention it. As Christina said to me, "Would you believe that you can train at a lower level and feel even better?" I admit I was a little skeptical at first. I immediately wondered if practicing at 30% consistently might form bad habits (since previous methods I had learned involved things like intentionally having distracting thoughts). I also wondered if I would actually want to practice at 30% since practicing at 100% usually felt so much better. Sifu's new 30% method eliminated those questions.

It's very simple: set the intention at what level you want to practice. No need for "negative" methods like intentional distractions. Occasionally, I felt myself starting to go to a deeper level and then I just re-set my intention to stay at 30% and resumed enjoying my practice.

I don't think it would've been possible to get through the Cosmos Palm course practicing at 100% the entire time, at least without some serious cleansing. The chi kung courses brought further direct experience of how practicing at 30% can feel better. On many courses in the past, I've reached a point where I feel "done" or "too full" and then Sifu asks us to come up and do another session and then I can't stay awake. On the New Hampshire chi kung courses, if I felt myself starting to reach that point, I used the 30% method and found myself feeling fresh and energized. This was particularly useful on the 18 Jewels course since we did so many sessions.

Sifu emphasized the 30% method on all of the North America courses I attended, and I'm sure it will continue to be a point of emphasis in the future. "Unbelievable, but true" is the phrase I hear in my head when I think about it!


PS Thank you, Mirva, for that awesome 18 Jewels list!