TRADITIONAL MARTIAL ARTS
est. 1976 Martial & Healing Arts
Class Descriptions
Meditation
Seeking enlightenment or peace. Meditation is a tool to help train the mind to focus as it calms the mind and spirit. At our school we encourage all students to develop good meditation skills.
Internal Arts:
Tai Chi Ch'uan & Chi Gong (or Qi Gong)
Tai Chi Ch'uan translates to, "supreme ultimate fist", a centuries-old Chinese discipline for health, relaxation, meditation, self-defense and self-cultivation. Sometimes called Chinese or Taoist Yoga, it emphasizes an inner calm that must be be mastered in order to use for self defense. As a health exercise it has been scientifically proven for alleviating many ailments, such as hypertension, gastric problems, arthritis and heart disease, to name a few. It improves circulation, bone density, balance, and helps relax and strengthen the nervous system.
As a meditation, Tai Chi is a way of harmonizing body and mind and spirit. It fosters an inner calm and quiet, that nourishes a continued awareness. It blends well with other kinds of meditation.
Qi Gong is a breath practice, dated to be more than 4,000 years old. This breath work creates a force of energy to work, move and flow throughout the body, improving our innate qi or chi flow. There are many different types of qi gong, overall it is a type of breath work, part of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tai Chi Ch-uan and meditation, giving one a strong bill of health.
Advanced Internal Arts:
Ba Kua Ch'uan
Ba Kua is fairly new in the ancient world of Martial Arts. Its short history starts with its creator Master Tung Hai Chuan, some time between 1866-1880 though he claims he learned it from a Taoist Monk, some feel he was being humble. Ba Kua emphasizes the application of palm techniques and circular movements. Ba means 8, so Ba Kua means the 8 palm fists. It stresses the speed of stepping in a circular direction, twisting of the waist and speed of arms and palms.
Internally it increases the practitioners coordination, strength and vigor.
A very short system, the highest level of this form is called the Dragon Form. In this form the practitioner trains not only in a circle around an imaginary opponent, but also rotates, twists and turns within the Ba Kua circle. This system also is famous for the use of Ba Kua Knives or Butterfly Knives and the Ba Kua Da Dow or large sword.
Hsing-Yi Ch'uan
Hsing-Yi, the first documented history of this style was around 1649 AD. Hsing means mind and Yi means form or shape; Hsing Yi means mind form.
A very short system that originally consisted of a set of fast punching and stepping movements. There are 5 basic punches in this linear form, one for each Chinese element: Fire, Earth, Wood, Metal and Water, each fist characterizes its element. These punches are performed with muscles relaxed and power is generated from what we call the Tan Tien, the center of the body. Later, the Hsing-Yi 12 animals was introduced bringing a complexity that will give a student years of investigating movement.
Hsing-Yi is practiced in a straight line, it is very fast and a very powerful internal martial art. Also, included are Hsing-Yi weapons, the staff being the most famous.
External Arts:
Shaolin Kung Fu
The comprehensive training program at our school includes both Northern and Southern styles of Shao-lin Kung Fu, to experience all facets of Kung Fu. Our school offers a full complement of classical weapons, such as the double and single-edged sword, spear, staff as well as, other exotic weapons.
