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Crossroads at Four Gates in St Pete 2016

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  • Crossroads at Four Gates in St Pete 2016

    Dear Family,

    I have been very busy since Sifu left Florida to return to Malaysia, but it would be a shame to not post anything about the wonderful Crossroads at Four Gates course we had here. (Sifu has already posted the videos on shaolin.org, and I have to say that our videographer, Joe Siciliano, did a really wonderful job.)

    This course was the grand finale of Sifu's North America tour this year, and also the grand finale of my series of courses with him. He was really fired up to teach the course, and he was more Tigerish than I'm used to seeing him, which was good for all of us on the course. We had a nice mix of relatively senior and junior students. The result was an intense, brain-fry, be-torn-down-and-then-built-back-up experience for many of the juniors (many of whom were my own students), and lessons on multiple levels for the seniors, including some terrific master classes in how to teach.

    On the first day, we reviewed the basic stances and reviewed the routine of the Four Gates set and focused on form. The course itself focused on the force method, and I can happily say that I gained a deeper understanding and skill of the force method. Sifu emphasized the order of routine, form, force, flow. He also interestingly applied his 30% method lesson to it as a means of gradual progress. For instance, if your form is currently at 30%, you shouldn't aim at 100%, but at 35%. If you aim at 100%, you will confuse yourself trying to keep track of too many corrections, but if you focus on solidifying a few corrections before moving onto others, you will progress faster. Sifu did a masterful job of not only showing his typical picture-perfect form, but of demonstrating making small improvements at lower levels of form. He spent a lot of time making individual corrections in front of the rest of the class so that we could all benefit. I told him that night that he had easily saved me a year's worth of teaching my students.

    One thing that really stood out to me was the general lack of waist rotation when executing patterns in Four Gates, at least relative to some of the other sets I've learned.

    On the second day, we focused on force and then flow. I had the clearest experience I've ever had of force overflowing into flow when, at one point, I intentionally reduced flow and increased force...and the result was more force and more flow!

    On the third day, we went through all 4 combat sequences in 4 hours! David Langford and Michael Helgeson were the real stars, as Sifu entrusted them with learning and demonstrating each piece of the sequences throughout the rest of the course. It was a very fast pace, and while many of my students were brain fried from trying to keep up, I happily noticed that even when they responded out-of-sequence, they still responded well. No small feat for what are some deceptively sophisticated applications.

    On the fourth day, we did some review and then spent some time on special features of Four Gates, like defending with one hand and defending all categories of attack using Four Gates patterns. Again, Sifu was very systematic with his approach, and it's really impressive for me to think about how it has evolved and simplified over the years I've been learning from him. We also spent some time in groups with seniors teaching juniors under Sifu's observation.

    All in all, it was a terrific course, and everyone improved so much over four days. It also really nicely complemented the Wudang 3 Harmonies course and Cosmos Palm course. Where the 3 Harmonies course focused on the flow method and some of the signature skills of Taijiquan, Baguazhang, and Xingyiquan, Four Gates focused on the force method with some good, old southern Shaolin. We used some of the same methods of application in the Four Gates course as we did on Cosmos Palm, resulting in both increased spread and depth for me personally.

    It was a special pleasure to take a course with Sifu along with my students, and we are going to have a lot of fun developing our skills with Four Gates over the coming year! Thank you Sifu and to everyone who took part
    Chris Didyk
    Shaolin Wahnam USA


    Thank You.

  • #2
    Sounds wonderful

    Best wishes
    Mark

    Comment


    • #3
      Originally posted by Grimlock View Post

      One thing that really stood out to me was the general lack of waist rotation when executing patterns in Four Gates, at least relative to some of the other sets I've learned.
      Hi Chris

      When you say lack of waist rotation do you mean that Sifu taught it this way? Only curious

      Best wishes
      Mark

      Comment


      • #4
        Dear Chris Sisookgung,

        thank you for starting this thread, thank you very much for hosting this course, also thank you very much to Sifu Christina.

        Dear Sitaigung,

        Thank you very much for preserving and teaching these precious arts in the US and thank you so much for your enthusiasm and patience and for correcting me.

        Thank you very much fellow course participants, it was an honor and pleasure to go through the course with you; special thanks to David Langford Sisookgung for your corrections as my instructor during a certain part of the ‘Cross Roads’ course.

        All very much appreciated.

        This was a very nice course with an interesting mix of participants ‘on different levels of progress’ and with local participants and some from further away. St. Pete turned out to be worth a visit and the weather around this time of year is very enjoyable in Florida. Went to the Dali Museum twice during these few days. There are some sights left for future visits of St. Pete.

        For me the ‘Cross Roads at Four Gates’ course would normally fit in some more time/years ‘down the road’, but I felt drawn to it and feel humbled and honored and very happy to have been taught the set and applications. It’s sometimes strange to see myself on the videos, because then I can clearly see where I’m not having correct form etc., but it feels like it’s falling into place now practicing after the course. But sort of still feels much to close after the course to ‘sum things up’ or so; also developments are always on different levels and it’s work in progress and still developing. So, for example, after the course the first night at home back in Europe when I went to bed, the set repeated in my mind’s eye and then the application sets and I could feel the moves at the same time and see ‘both positions: initiating and responding’; but at the ‘higher number applications sets’ wasn’t sure any more about the sequence and patterns and applications from the partner exercises came up and on. But this felt like a new development, being able to review it in my mind’s eye like in a video and having a sort of physical feeling of the movements with it. Also, starting during the course and developing now after the course during practice there is a new body feeling that feels lighter and more relaxed and with this the patterns flow more easily and also the form sort of ‘gets right more automatically’ when practicing from within this ‘new body feeling’. So, let’s see how it’s turning out later.

        Also, here I’d like to thank my Sigung Roland Mastel, who prepared the sets with me for the course in St. Pete.

        The mornings started with the Chi Gung courses: generating an energy flow, developing internal force, Cosmic Shower and One Finger Shooting Zen (in a Chi Gung course!). The Chi Gung courses were very good and fun, esp. the Cosmic Shower was the most intense one ever for me. Even after lowering my level at a point as instructed to us to 30% it went stronger and it felt there was just way more energy coming in; like I was wondering even when I lowered ‘my’ level, if ‘the universe means it good for you there’s just more energy raining down’, likewise it felt.

        Also, the dinners with the course participants were very nice. Thank you Sifu Eugene for the car-ride and thank you Burton for the car-ride and for hosting one dinner at your restaurant. It was also very nice to hang out one night with Sifu Christina and fellow bro’s at the ‘Didyk’s pool’, very much appreciated, thank you. The graduation dinner had a very nice and warm ambience, after dinner the participants came around the round table were Sitaigung was sitting and listened to the interesting stories he was telling us.

        Thank you, best regards,
        With Shaolin Salute,
        Michael
        Last edited by MichaelS; 29 November 2016, 11:23 AM. Reason: typo

        Comment


        • #5
          correction (can't edit my post anymore): should probably read Chris Didyk Sipak and David Langford Sisook, sorry, thanks, Kind regards, Michael

          Comment


          • #6
            Dear Michael,

            It was my pleasure to help you in your preparations.

            Wishing you lot of fun with the Set.

            All the best to everyone!

            Roland
            "From formless to form, from form to formless"

            26.08.17-28.08.17: Qi Gong Festival with 6 courses in Bern:
            Qiflow-Triple Stretch Method-12 Sinewmetamorphisis-Bone Marrow Cleansing-Zen Mind in Qi Gong

            Website: www.enerqi.ch

            Comment


            • #7
              Originally posted by Mark CH View Post
              Hi Chris

              When you say lack of waist rotation do you mean that Sifu taught it this way? Only curious

              Best wishes
              Mark
              Yes

              One of the interesting things about it was that ahead of the course, I tried to put waist rotation into everything, which actually made some of the sequences of the solo set a bit awkward and some of the applications not work quite right. One example is Hide Flower in Sleeves -> Precious Duck Swims Through Lotus which is at the start of the first section of the solo set and the first combat sequence. If you rotate the waist for the Precious Duck, you lose some combat advantages. Your Precious Duck comes out slower. Also, while rotating the waist, you are likely to not properly cover your opponent's left hand with your right as you go transition between the two patterns. Instead, if you use a little fajing on Hide Flowers in Sleeves and execute Precious Duck straight from there, you stay well-covered and the Precious Duck is harder to defend.

              This is probably better seen in Sifu's videos than explained.
              Chris Didyk
              Shaolin Wahnam USA


              Thank You.

              Comment


              • #8
                Insights

                Hey Folks,
                Thank You all for insights from the course

                Peace

                Mark
                Sifu Mark Appleford

                sigpic

                Comment


                • #9
                  Originally posted by Grimlock View Post
                  Yes

                  One of the interesting things about it was that ahead of the course, I tried to put waist rotation into everything, which actually made some of the sequences of the solo set a bit awkward and some of the applications not work quite right. One example is Hide Flower in Sleeves -> Precious Duck Swims Through Lotus which is at the start of the first section of the solo set and the first combat sequence. If you rotate the waist for the Precious Duck, you lose some combat advantages. Your Precious Duck comes out slower. Also, while rotating the waist, you are likely to not properly cover your opponent's left hand with your right as you go transition between the two patterns. Instead, if you use a little fajing on Hide Flowers in Sleeves and execute Precious Duck straight from there, you stay well-covered and the Precious Duck is harder to defend.

                  This is probably better seen in Sifu's videos than explained.
                  Thank you

                  Best wishes
                  Mark

                  Comment

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