phanthomspectre

You have a point. Even http://skepdic.com has a page on "ch'i" However, these methods have worked for years. Even though there is no visual representation of its work. So even though I myself classify it as perhaps just a learning method, there may actually be a reason behind it. But I am too busy to care about that right now.

Bodhidharma was also known as Da Mo wasnt he? Da Mo also wrote the ya jin jing. Some background: Da Mo was a buddist monk from india who traveled to China. Da Mo realized that the buddists who were neglecting their bodys were not fareing well. As a result, he searched for the way to combine the two schools.

phanthomspectre, How did you come to that conclusion? http://www.dragonslist.com/discussion/images/smilies/headscratch.gif I don't think Bak Sil Lum is like Tai Chi,Pa Qua, or hsing-i. Nor do i think other Northern styles like Praying Mantis or Eagle Claw are like either of those styles. My style of Black Tiger is Southern and external ,but we also have a very strong internal side also. Could you explain how these styles favor internal to you? jmd http://www.geocities.com/jmd161/img0007a.gif I guess I was speaking more of origin than anything. Over time different arts spread, and as a result, other people invented their own based on similar principals. I apologize, China the way I remember it is a lot different than it is today. I forgot that Da Mo also influenced the southern part of china. Da Mo and quite a few others were instrumental in bringing qigong like movements to china. Da Mo also saw that the physical was also being neglected by the buddists. Thus he came up with the ya jin jing. For years after even today, people are affected by this. I will leave you to your discussion.

Thanks guys. I didn't even think of that company in Taipei.

Most northern styles are like: taijiquan, baguazhang, hsing-i. (internal) Most Souther styles are external. Its very interesting to note that most people end up combining the two... the end result is something like bagua. Its kind of hard to ignore either the internal, or the external. They both work best together.

Good stuff man. Most people dont know what "taji" is or means. Or even that it is the original dim-mak art. Some background info is that the chinese word "taji" means: Universe, Cosmos, Heavens, Supreme Ultimate, or everything So really Taijiquan could mean: Supreme Ultimate Fist, Universe Fist, Heaven Fist, Or Everything Fist. Taijiquan I must say I really like, but it is hard to find a qualified teacher in the states. I practice Baguazhang now, I must say I love it a lot. It seems to blend internal and external styles. That plus the circle walking techniques have nearly quadrupled my speed since I began. I hope to reach the no mind state soon while doing the form.

Actually, this might be true in a way, or it could be that he was said to be perfect. (I.E. A perfect life, to redeem Adam, who was perfect.) I can recall various accounts where Jesus evaded crowds of people who wanted to kill him. It doesn't say he hurt anyone, but hey, that just goes to show that if we were perfect like Adam(before he sinned), or Jesus, what we could do.

Just a note, the author of ya jin jing (muscle/tendon changing) classic, and the "brain/marrow washing" classic was a man named: Da Mo

Nothing is more closer to the truth. Actually this is what I like to call 'the evangelists' knockout. It involves hitting 3 Gallbladder points above either eye near the top of the forehead. These three points form a triangle. (I am not noting the direction of the strike for safety, as well as the absolute location, so you dont go hitting yourself to death, or others.) Also important to note there are other points in this area, but I will just use the above as an example Traditionally, by dimmak teachers of old, this strike causes a temporary "sunstroke". This is an abuse I believe of the human body. I think it is rather dangerous to play around with things this way, not to mention LEGAL implications as a result. As you can see, it does have its actual reasons, but there is nothing "mystical" or "magical" about it.

I dont think Qi was intended to be a concept to knock down people from a distance. It is possible to heal people with qi, but it is impossible to hurt people with qi... its just how we are made. It is possible to use adverse qi, but this is just a way of blocking the energy flow of another human being. For example: dim-mak. There are some real concepts about qi, however no limitations are given. That isnt saying that qi doesnt exist or that qi can do stuff like you see in dragonball z. However the internal arts, qigong, and a lot of stuff like it prove that the mind does have very real power in this manner. Take for example the fact that medicine is now starting to recognize tajiquan and qigong's ability to heal the body: http://members.tripod.com/~Jane_ZQS/notes/02.html or http://acupuncture.com/QiKung/QiGong.htm

Cool stories guys!

Hi! Ive been in the internal arts for many years, ...but thats not why I am posting this. I guess, I have been able to find many of the old "classics" on the internal arts by Sun Lu Tang, except his fourth book: the esoteric way of the martial arts. Apparently he tried to put down what he knew about the internal arts, but evidently only he knew what he was saying. Anybody eles know where to get more of these works, like Jiang Rongqiao, etc..?

Yes, it is allways important to relax your body completely when meditating. That means every muscle. Another possiblity is until you devlop the ability of thinking about nothing, you can try to complete the microcosmic orbit. This is the junction of the two extra meridans: the ren mai, and the du mai. Or what would be easier is to imagine someone pouring something sticky like syrup on hour head, and it slowly oozing down to the dan tien.

There are many mind techniques. Most internal arts stem from these techniques. I.E. Taijiquan, bagua, xing-yi become a type of moving qigong to one who has practised enough. There are also buddist qigong. There are even wushu qigong like "iron shirt" or "golden bell cover". However at the least it takes 3 yrs to build up iron shirt. It can come in handy against many attackers. Besides that there are the secret tantras of the buddists, and the ancient writings of the Daoists. One of interest to you might be the Ya jin jing. (muscle tendon changing) It was written by an buddist indian monk who traveled to china. Its companion is hard to get a hold of. It is the "brain / marrow washing" classic. You are probably searching for the higher levels of these arts. However it takes many years to develop these, and usually must be completed by the time you reach thirty. There are reasons for this, but then again many chinese masters didnt explain the whys of anything to just anyone.

Many forms of QiGong help one to do this. Especially post standing forms like "Embracing the tree". Its also known as: 3 circle standing zen, or just 3 circle chi kung.