Deepwater Spring 2014 Web

M a rt i a l A rt s M a s t e r s I n The ir O w n W or d s
Martial Virtue
Rank Lust
Age Prejudice
Time Changes All Things
East Meets West

What Is A Gunfighter?
Animal Insticts
Mantis Master Jon Funk
Spring 2014
Internal Vs. External

An Interview With Dr. Yang Jwing Ming
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Table of Contents
Internal Vs. External
Volume 2 Issue 1
Interview With Dr. Yang Jwing Ming
In This Issue
Cold Mountain
Letters To The Editor

Scattered Lightning
7
10
Spilled Wine
14
Cloud Hidden...
24
Animal Instincts
28
The Woodcut School
34
East Meets West
38
Martial Virtue
42
Wisdom Of The Crane
46
Heavy Hands
50
Our Contributors
Editorial
Welcome To The Spring Edition
Age Prejudice
The Old Masters And Internal
Development
Self Inflicted Loneliness
Building Martial Bridges
The Woodcut School
Kindling Martial Fire
Seven Star Praying Mantis
InterviewWith Jon Funk
The Sword As Distraction
Drop The Sword To Grasp It
What Is A Gun Fighter?
The Life Giving Gun
Rank Lust
The Deadly Martial Sins
Which One Are You?
The Comfortable and the Seeker
Iron Egg
A pictorial look at a different
technique every month
18
Legends
Masters That Matter

Lau Fat Mang (1902 - 1964)
51
DeepWaterMagazine.com
IN THIS ISSUE: OUR CONTRIBUTORS

Dr. Yang Jwing Ming
Page 18
Dr.Yang, Jwing-Ming () started his Gongfu (Kung Fu) training at the age of 15
under the Shaolin White Crane (Bai He) Master Cheng, Gin Gsao (). In thirteen years
of study (1961-1974) under Master Cheng, Dr. Yang became an expert in the White Crane
style of Chinese martial arts, which includes both the use of bare hands and of various weapons
such as saber, staff, spear, trident, two short rods, and many others. He also studied White
Crane Qin Na (or Chin Na), Tui Na and Dian Xue massages, and herbal treatment. At the age
of 16, Dr.Yang began the study of Taijiquan (Yang Style) under Master Kao, Tao (). After
learning from Master Kao, Dr.Yang continued his study and research of Taijiquan with several
masters and senior practitioners such as Master Li, Mao-Ching ( ) and Mr. Wilson
Chen in Taipei. Master Li learned his Taijiquan from the well-known Master Han, Ching-Tang,
and Mr. Chen learned his Taijiquan from Master Chang, Xiang-San.
When Dr. Yang was 18 years old he entered Tamkang College in Taipei Xian to study Physics and also began the study
of traditional Shaolin Long Fist (Changquan) with Master Li, Mao-Ching at the Tamkang College Guoshu Club in 1964.
He eventually became an assistant instructor under Master Li. In 1971 he completed his M.S. degree in Physics at the
National Taiwan University and then served in the Chinese Air Force from 1971 to 1972. In the service, Dr.Yang taught
Physics at the Junior Academy of the Chinese Air Force while also teaching Wushu. From Master Li, Dr. Yang learned
Northern style Gongfu, which includes both barehand techniques, especially kicking, and numerous weapons.
Yangs Martial Arts Association was established in Boston, MA in 1982. In 1984, Dr.Yang retired from his engineering
career, to undertake his life-long dream of teaching and researching the Chinese arts and introducing them to the West
through many books and videos through YMAA Publications. With the intent of preserving traditional Chinese Kung Fu
and Qigong , Dr. Yang, Jwing-Ming began training students in the rigors of Shaolin Long Fist and White Crane Gongfu
as well as Yang Style Tai Chi Chuan. After decades of teaching around the world, YMAA has grown into an international
organization, including over 50 schools in many countries..
Professor Kevin Wallbridge
Page 10
Kevin has been training since 1985. While living and training in China, Kevin studied a
great deal of Chinese martial arts including - but not limited to -Northern Shaolin, Zhaquan,
Taijiquan (Yang and Chen styles), Xingyiquan (Henan and Hebei styles), Baguazhang (Liang,
Cheng, Fu, Yin Fu, and Ba Xian styles); Classical Chinese weaponry including straight sword,
spear, single edged swords; Qigong including hard and soft martial styles, Daoist meditation
and internal alchemy, medical Qigong and Emei sword Qigong. He is a co-founder of the
prestigious Academy of Classical Oriental Sciences school of Chinese medicine. Kevin is a
medical anthropologist who is also trained as an acupuncturist and Chinese herbalist.
Sifu Neil Ripski

Sifu Ripski has been training in Chinese Martial Arts since the mid 1980s and has attained
the rank of Sifu (instructor/teacher) in Ba ying quan (Eight Shadows Fist) Kung Fu, Ba ying
jiu quan (Drunken Boxing), Wing Chun, Lohan and Taijiquan. Sifu Neil Ripski resides in
Creston and has instructors currently teaching around the world, in Tel Aviv Israel, Aberdeen
Scotland and Taipei Taiwan ROC. Sifu Ripski has judged and competed successfully in the
Tiger Balm International Tournament and now focuses his attention on his students and
their journeys through the world of Chinese martial arts. Sifu Ripski is a lineage holder in
the Piercing Cloud Style.
Page 14
Spring 2014
Jason Deatherage
Page 24
Jason Deatherage has studied the major Asian religions and philosophies for over 30 years
in both academic and practical contexts. His experiences as a paramedic, professional
musician, parent and life-long martial artist have given him the opportunity to live many of
these philosophies deeply and richly in various ways from the mundane to the very edge of
life and death. Jason has studied martial arts for almost 30 years beginning with Karate and
Tae Kwon Do as a child. As a young adult, Jason studied Aikido and the Japanese sword later
encountering the complexities of Kung Fu through the Ba Ying Quan system in which Jason
holds a black sash under Sifu Neil Ripski. Concurrently with his ongoing Kung Fu studies,
Jason returned to the study of Aikido, Kenjutsu and Iaido with Sensei Daniel Kempling. He is
also a student in MataSaBagyo Serrada Escrima under Sig Nubla and NNG Balintawak under
Sig Nubla and GM Nene Gaabucayan. Jason is a lineage holder in the Piercing Cloud Style.
Shifu Jon Funk
Page 28
Page 38
Over 50 years of martial arts experience including; Direct 8th generation descendant
in the Wong Hon Fun clan from the founder of Seven Star Praying Mantis Kung Fu, Wong
Long; Trained in Canada, Hong Kong, and China; Canadian forms champion, kung fu full
contact fighter; Featured on the cover of Inside Kung Fu magazine and Karate/Kung Fu
Illustrated; Historian, author, and columnist; President of Wushu BC; Certified in 2002
by the Confederation of Canadian Wushu Organizations (CCWO) as a Level 8th Master
Degree; 9th degree certified by the World Organization of Wushu Kung Fu Masters.
Peter Burlingame
Peter Burlingame is the president of Self Defense Initiative, Inc, a company which develops
and provides firearms, baton, DT, and security training, locally and nationally. Self Defense
Initiative is currently responsible for the safety, security management, and physical security
functions of 20 facilities on St Thomas, St Croix, St John, Tortola and Virgin Gorda. Based on
St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands, Peter Burlingame has been a tactical firearms instructor for
over 20 years. As a member of IALEFI and ASLET, he is also deeply involved in law enforcement
firearms training. As a staff instructor for ASLET, he has taught classes all across the country.
He is a graduate of Gunsite, Lethal Force Institute, Thunder Ranch, Executive Protection
Institute, Bondurant High Performance Driving School, and Heckler & Koch.
Sensei Daniel Kempling
Page 42
Sensei Daniel Kempling is a lifelong martial arts student, holding a 5th degree black belt
in Aikido and teaching credentials in Iaido and Kenjutsu, the art of Japanese swordsmanship.
A student of Professor T.K. Chiba (8th dan, disciple of Aikido founder, Ueshiba Morihei),
Daniel graduated from Chiba Senseis kenshusei (teacher training) program in 1994 with
the teaching rank of shidoin, and continues to teach as the Canadian President for Birankai
International. Daniel has lead dojos in San Diego, CA., Capetown, South Africa, and
currently teaches in Creston, Canada..
Shifu Ron Goninan

Shifu Ron began his martial arts training at the age of 10 and is now Australias leading
martial artist in White Crane Gongfu. Shifu Ron teaches White Crane Gongfu, Tai Chi
Dao, Chinese Gongfu Weapons, Qinna and the rare art of Dian Xue Dao (Chinese Pressure
Point Hands). He has taught Police, Army & Correctional Services Individuals in aspects of
personalised Life-Protection Skills based upon his 22 years within Front-Line Security.
Page 46
COLD MOUNTAIN
Welcome!
Message From The Editor
elcome to the Spring Issue of Deep

Water Magazine! A new year of
exploring the deeper aspects of the martial
arts begins in this issue with a beautiful new
look and layout. 2014 is the Year of the Wood
Horse in traditional Chinese astrology, which
indicates a fiery and energetic year ahead. We
hope that our readers training and inquiries
into the deeper principles of the martial arts
are similarly energetic and productive. Our
labors must always continue unabated if we
hope to learn and improve, whatever the art
we study.
We are proud to feature the first part of a long
interview with the venerable Dr. Yang Jwing
Ming, which will continue throughout the next
Photo by Kevin Wallbridge
Spring 2014
four issues of Deep Water. Also notable in the

Spring Issue, we welcome Peter Burlingham,
who will be writing articles pertaining to the
most modern of martial arts: fighting with
firearms. Peter is a highly respected and
widely known firearms instructor and security
professional, and brings decades of experience
to the pages of Deep Water.
Its been an exciting journey so far, and were
honored that our readers continue to join us
in our explorations of the deeper aspects of
the martial arts. As we gallop into the new
year, we will continue to bring you the martial
arts in the Masters own words, and add their
unique perspectives to the body of martial arts
literature today.
Jason Deatherage
Editor, Deep Water Magazine
We welcome your letters to the editor, comments

and article submissions. Feel free to email us at
letters@deepwatermagazine.com. Any letters
or articles we publish may be edited for clarity
and space at the discretion of the Deep Water
Magazine staff.
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Relevant To Interests
Dear Sirs,
I have been reading the magazine and enjoying
the greater depth of coverage that it provides
about the martial arts, however I think it covers
Chinese martial arts far more than other arts.
Since Chinese martial arts are so different
from normal Japanese martial arts, I wonder
how relevant some of the writing really is to
my own interests.
Regards,
Sword Saint
Dear Sword Saint,
Glad to hear you are enjoying the magazine
and your observation appears to be correct,
we have had more writers from the Chinese
Martial Arts than the Japanese to date. However
the approach of Deep Water is to work at
pointing directly at the deeper principles of
Martial study which are not principles bound
by style or even culture of origin. The first
aspect that we look for in a submitted article
is the pursuit of truth of these concepts. A way
to look at this is by looking at the human body
itself and its ability to move, all martial arts
are bound by this reality and its limitations so
we find while techniques may appear similar
or even vastly different on a physical level the
torso and limbs are moved, usually in circling
or spiralling ways.
On a deeper level of combat efficiency we
find that some arts favour some methods.
For instance Aikido is known for its circular
movement and ability to harmonize with
incoming force, traits that are present still in
even the most straight forward and violent
appearing arts. A deeper principle of harmony
comes into play here and it can be found in

any art if one looks deeply enough. Looking
at other arts that involve percussive strikes as
their forte we can see the generation of power
becoming a part of the art that is studied
deeply.The creation of spiral force through the
torso and ground force from the legs in order
to deliver power is also a concept that applies
even to the seemingly gentle Aikido.
I would suggest you read Deep Water again and
again and try to look at the concepts discussed
from the point of view of your own art, from
your own experience, I think you will find it
useful no matter if you study the arts of Japan
or China, all the arts have common ground.
Real Fight Testing

Dear Deep Water,
Do you think a martial art is really worthy of
the name if it hasnt been tested in a real fight?
I enjoy the esoteric content and understand
that some people practice this stuff as an art,
but shouldnt we all have to put up or shut
up at some point? When does a martial art
become just an art?
Lefty Jackson
Dear Lefty,
This is a truly important question and should
be addressed to every practice that calls itself
a martial art. By definition anything calling
itself a Martial (War) Art should have been

tried and tested in a field of battle or single
combat numerous times. The idea of an art
being passed down for generations is that it is
continually tested and modified to be efficient
and powerful at its purposes for combat.
However alongside the evolution of the
combat skills there has also been a long history
through the arts of entwining themselves
with philosophies of the culture they come
from and are imported to. For instance the
origins of Taiji are rooted in Chen Wangtings
battlefield experiences and family gongfu but
after his retirement back to Chen village he
studied Taoism and changed and improved his
way of thinking and combative ability through
the use of these philosophical concepts.
it is the practitioners and their understandings

and goals that show what an art truly is at its
current state. I say you should be able to cross
hands with anyone, win or lose and be able to
perform and exercise in a pleasing manner.
Without the yin/yang balance in all things,
disharmony is created.
...in my opinion to be truly

called a Martial Art there must be
a still a live combative aspect to
the training...
Dear Rylan,
Deep Water Magazine is named for our interest
in exploring the deeper aspects of the martial
arts. Most martial arts magazines today are
aimed at a more beginner-level audience; there
are introductions to various styles, techniques
laid out in pictures, and advertisements.
Deep Water aspires to look past the surface
appearances and examine the principles that
underlie what we call the martial arts today.
By studying principles rather than superficial
stylistic differences and techniques, we are
able to use other perspectives to positively
fuel our own practices. By appreciating the
similarities rather than differences between
the arts, we can join with each other on our
path of learning and improvement.
Some people do only practice the Martial

Arts as an art form nowadays and the Martial
Arts have always had an appealing aesthetic
quality to them. But in my opinion to be truly
called a Martial Art there must be a still a live
combative aspect to the training, otherwise
they are good exercise, but just a qigong
practice or interpretive dance. This of course
can vary from practitioner to practitioner
as well, some Gong Fu players cannot fight
their way out of a paper bag, while others
are among the worlds most dangerous. As
always the truth lies in the middle and the
heart of the practitioner themselves. If you
are training an art and finding it rewarding
then it is exactly what it should be for you.
Entire arts cannot be written off because
a visible group of Live Action Role Players
seem to be their representatives. In the same
club we can find people who are examples of
both sides of the story, determined by their
own approach to training. It is in this way that
judging arts themselves can be found to be too
general and dishonest to the arts themselves;
8
Spring 2014
Whats In A Name
Editor,
Where did the name of your magazine come
from?
Rylan
Traditional Asian Masters

Editor,
I have heard that training with a traditional
Asian Master is different from training here
in North America under non Asian teachers.
No one ever really goes into how though and I
would really like to know what I am missing....
Have any of you trained with both? Can you
write about the differences?
Nicolas G.
Dear Nicholas,
Though each teacher is different and has their
own way of teaching, if one were forced to
generalize, one could say that the cultural
background of ones teachers can certainly
influence the type of training one receives.
Traditional teachers often come from
more conservative cultural backgrounds and
emphasize a strong work ethic without a great
deal of verbal discourse. This approach builds
hard working, skilled students, but often cant
be easily articulated. This type of training arose
in times when students could dedicate great
amounts of time to training. Due to western
cultural norms, when studying with western
teachers, more discussion and theory is mixed
into the hard work, generally with the goal of
giving the student a bit of a map of where their
training is heading. This approach can allow for
a certain degree of self-correction in students
that cant dedicate all their time to training.
To emphasize Asian vs non-Asian is a bit
THE CRANKY TAOIST

You know what I hate about Chin-na?
I hate that it really doesnt work on its own. The nature of
it is that there always seems a way out and a counter. Very
often I CAN do something to get it to work... but its not
going to be very nice. Its especially evident when someone
braces against the lock. Do that and I will be able to move
very quickly into a couple of heavy hits. The thing is, because
the person is braced, the hits need to be pretty wet to get
through the armouring; so a distracting tap may not be
enough. Basically I need to hit through to the internal organs
to show how dangerous simple bracing-up can be. Bracingup against a joint lock is a request to be pounded by heavy
artillery, please dont make me do it.
- The Cranky Taoist
It is best to evaluate the

teachers you encounter on
their own merits...
deceiving, because there are Asian teachers
that teach in a very western fashion, and nonAsian teachers that teach in very traditional
ways. Often because of the Asian origins of
the well-known martial arts, it is assumed that
an Asian teacher will be a superior teacher, but
there is no guarantee. The reality is that there
are good and bad teachers of all nationalities. It
is best to evaluate the teachers you encounter
on their own merits and on the level of their
actual skill, rather than their country of origin.
Look beyond the surface and find a teacher
that resonates with you and your martial goals,
then study diligently.
Illustration by Lorna Foot
Copyright 2014 DeepWater Martial Arts Ltd. Design & Layout by Bruns Illustration ~ www.warrenbruns.com
The DeepWater Magazine is produced quarterly. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited. Any
advertisements or graphics designed in-house are property of DeepWater Martial Arts Ltd. and may not be used in any other
medium without permission. Views expressed in the magazine do not necessarily reflect those of DeepWater Martial Arts Ltd.
SCATTERED LIGHTNING
Age Prejudice
Professor KevinWallbridge
o it has come to this. I woke up one day

and I am an old guy. I was always a bit of
a fogey at heart. I grew up with older siblings
and no first cousins, so I was socialized mostly
by much older people. Family gatherings had
lots of people present who were born in the
19th century. The first veterans that I knew
were survivors of the trenches of the First
World War. The first thing that I did in my
life that was an activity that was truly of my
own time was Saturday morning cartoons and
Dungeons and Dragons (white box version). I
muse about these things because I am starting to
see something in the world of Chinese physical
culture that I hate. The young masters.
Young masters are mostly people from
Western cultures who have gone to China for
a couple of years and learned the real stuff
and then come back and start marketing
themselves. Its not that they are teaching,
its not that they adopt a mystique cultivating
nickname, its not the slick marketing. I see
no problem with any of that. I dont even care
if they want to offer black belt programs
or MMA clinics. What gets me is the loss of
generational depth that was once so critical in
Chinese culture.
Andy Dale once told me that it takes three
years to get your legs, ten years to connect
some internal power from the legs across the
waist and to the hands, and that something
else happened at 25 years. When I asked
What? What happens? with deep curiosity,
he looked as if he was searching for the words
to reply and then just stopped and said Well,
its different. That same day climbing up
to the waterfall at Camp Koolaree my foot
slipped off a mossy log and dipped half-way
10
Spring 2014
into the water. I was pretty happy to not have

completely face planted in front of Andy and
Mike Smith, who was also there, but Andy
noticed and said, You need to practice your
footwork. Its those off-handed lessons that
always have stuck with me throughout my
training and so I spent some time trying to
figure out what that meant. Finally, a couple of
years later I began training with Sam Masich
and he was able to articulate in a very detailed
way what was meant by footwork in terms of
the hips and the feet. For the next three years,
no matter what else I was learning, my focus
was on training the legs. I didnt say to myself,
Im going to work on my legs for three years.
I just started working on my legs, and after
three years my legs changed and my footwork
was never vague or uncertain after that. Even
today my footwork is not perfect, but when it
fails I know exactly why.
The experience of leg training gave me a
very interesting model or template with which
I could examine other aspects of training or
study within Chinese physical culture and
beyond. It seeded within me a bias towards
older styles of training that are often dismissed
today because their use is not understood.
Training legs and having them be different in
three years, and feeling the change happen
in a very obvious way was profound. When I
teach about legs today I offer possibilities not
truths because I know training legs will change
legs but I do not know how it will change any
particular persons legs. If I just describe my
experience of my legs it wont bring any of my
students any closer to a leg experience. We
each need to undertake the journey. I believe
that this is what stopped Andy from being able
to continue the conversation about the 3, 10
and 25 year stages. One big problem is that
you cannot explain the far side of the process
in a meaningful way before someone goes
through it. In this we start to get back towards
the issue of young masters.
As I close in on the end of my third
decade of martial arts I am beginning to see
something about the teachers that I have had
11
Ten thousand flowers in spring, the moon in autumn, a cool breeze

in summer, snow in winter. If your mind isnt clouded by unnecessary
things, this is the best season of your life.
~Wu-men ~
www.KootenayChinWoo.com
12
Spring 2014
over the years. I have trained with teachers

who were younger, my contemporaries,
older teachers as well as elderly masters. Not
only has each of them taught from the their
own experience, they have also taught from
their own generations. At each stage there is
a quality that comes from the amount time
that the practitioner has been immersed in
the practice. Just as martial arts looks one
way before you get your legs and another way
after your waist starts to light up and so on; so
does the perspective on the material change
depending on the raw amount of time spent
in. Im not saying being in martial arts for a
long time is enough to understand it, that is
so obviously not true, but I am saying that
there are some minimum times for certain
perspectives to develop.
So the thing that really is starting to bug me
is that I am starting to see something about
Neigong that I couldnt see before. The real
internal transformative practices are not just
Qigong or exercises or breathing methods or
systems for developing phenomenal cosmic
One big problem is that you cannot

explain the far side of the process in a
meaningful way before someone goes
through it.
power! They are, I am starting to believe,
based in the existential perspectives of age.
I am starting to really see the things that Xu
Gongwei and Yeung Fook were laughing about
when I asked them questions so many years ago.
So when I see a punk in his late 20s teaching
Neigong and putting himself out there as a real
source in the world, my cranky self says, Hold
on Buttercup, where are YOUR grey hairs? I
believe that there are some things in Chinese
physical culture that are so grounded in the
harsh realities of the ageing process that they
cannot be expressed from the perspective of
youth. You really can be too young to read
that.
13
Photo by Warren Bruns
SPILLED WINE
Shifu Neil Ripski
oneliness. I never thought that the

martial arts would lead me to a place
where loneliness became the norm but it
seems that it is a part of the path. I write this
after hearing the same words from many of
my colleagues in the arts, people who have
studied different lineages of Chinese Arts,
Masters in Japanese Arts and Taoist Scholars,
all saying the same thing; The longer I train,
the less people I have to train and talk with.
Its interesting how much I wanted to talk
about my martial arts when I started training,
I wanted to tell everyone how cool it was and
what I learned last class and eventually how
hard I was working. But it slowly gradually
becomes something that you want to discuss
less and less with others since there seem to
be fewer and fewer people to talk to about it
with.
14
Spring 2014
Take the typical dinner party or social event

with your peers. The inevitable question of
what you do for a living comes up, hoping to
break the ice in a conversation and suddenly
mentioning martial arts becomes a confusing
and sometimes startling statement to other
people. Usually a polite enquiry about what
thats like comes up and then if you want a
real conversation killer dive into whats really
going on in your training. Well I have been
exploring the use of drinking an opponents
power with my torso while I try to cut
through their torso with a strike meant to tear
their liver.... Yeah that one is a real defense
for any social normalcy. Truthfully, even less
involved discussions about how youre training
for a tournament and have been working a
lot on how to catch an opponents limbs for
use in high speed take downs seems to turn
people off. Suddenly youre the one person

who is standing around listening to everyone
talk about their facebook and television with
a drink in your hand (probably not even a
socially acceptable beer either; that might
interfere with tomorrows training).
But really where the loneliness starts is
not at the dinner party (most of us serious
martial artists are very used to not exactly
fitting in with the cool crowd). I mean how
many of us started training to try and get some
confidence, defend ourselves from bullies and
so on? Not the origin story of the popular
kid in school. No instead it comes when we
start reaching out to other martial artists for
the conversation and sounding boards we are
looking for. This has gotten easier throughout
my training due to the creation and popularity
of the internet. I used to rush to buy the latest
martial arts magazine from the corner store to
read the articles and maybe (if we were brave
enough) to write a letter to the editor. Now

of course we have the internet forums to rely
on and of course there is one for everyone
including the Chinese arts, Japanese arts,
MMA, modern arts, old arts, scholarly forums,
sporty ones etc. When the internet took off I
found a place to call home and starting posting
all the questions I had and discussing as much
as I could with those other anonymous martial
arts people on the site. But you can only read
or write about the mundane beginner subjects
for so long. I am X years old, am I too old to
start martial arts? I want to learn to fight in
the cage should I learn X? and so on. So the
pool of internet forums grows smaller and as
the pool grows smaller so does the number of
people in the depth of the water with you.
Eventually it seems you are answering
questions more than you are asking them but
the questions keep coming endlessly and while
it may feel good for a time to the person who
15
has some answers, it does not (and should

not) be the end of the road. Stroking the ego
and being the all knowing one can be fine for
a little while to grow your confidence, feel
good about helping others etc, but eventually
one must get back to the work. The problem
is that when you start asking questions that are
really on your mind or posting something to
try and start a discussion that you are actually
interested in, eventually either you are ignored
or very very few people work to engage with
you. Now remember here I am talking about
the internet, not in your own school or dojo,
the pool there grows smaller even faster.
Suddenly you feel more alone than ever in
your training and then, one day, your Master
will pass on too. Maybe it is not him or her
actually dying, maybe you move far away and
no longer have them in your lives. Suddenly
you are surrounded by students who you
care for and appreciate but really they are not
looking to discuss the things you are wanting
to work on. They are asking you the questions
you asked twenty years ago. Lucky for them
you have some well worn answers.
The state of your own martial arts is

your responsibility and no one elses...
The state of your own martial arts is your
responsibility and no one elses, either you
are moving forward and pursuing them or
your not. Its that simple. So there you are,
Master gone or removed from you, class
time spent mainly working out and teaching
others instead of working on your own stuff.
Remember the good ole days when you could
stand in the corner and spend an hour or so
with a technique or skill and just lose yourself
in it? Not anymore there is always someone
who needs some help and truthfully you owe
your teacher and the art more than you can
ever repay so you take the time to teach and
help them rather than on your own. So your
training becomes a solitary pursuit. If you are
a professional teacher like I am, then it means
training in the middle of the day before the
16
Spring 2014
students arrive, working on those things that

you know you should be working on. Alone in
the midst of the population of not only your
town but many times your art as well. How
often do we get to link to someone else who
is working on the same things we are? Our
Peers? Be they in our art or a different one we
are all climbing the same mountain. But still
there are barriers.
Although there may be other martial artists
in exactly the same situation as ourselves,
training and toiling in solitude in the same
area there are still so many things standing
in our way some that can be easily overcome
(if we really have the fortitude to do it) and
others that are most difficult indeed. Lets take
as an example a large city for a population of
martial artists. Say in a large city of two to
three million people there are 300 000 people
studying martial arts. (Nice easy numbers
here, this is not a dissertation on percentages
of populations that train). Of those 300 000
how many are say Black Belts? Well I have
always found that the real truth is that about
1 of each 100 people who train can actually
do it (which does not mean they actually will)
but lets say that of those 300 000 people there
are 3000 black belt level players. Already this
is a staggering and lonely number but at least
a newly annoited black belt is still in some
company and probably has lots of peers to
discuss and train with. So of those 3000 how
many will train 10 years? 20 years? 30 years?
Even if we are generous and say that 1/10 of
them will train 20 years that puts us down to
300 people in a population of two to three
million. Think they are all friends? Have they
ever really trained together in the past?
So heres the rub of it: most martial artists
do what they do because they believe in it
whole heartedly. People who train for decades
more so than dabblers who train say a more
normal martial stint of say 5 years or so.
So these 20 year veterans (of which in our
imaginary city there are 300 of them) are
all in different arts and schools. This means
that even in the best intentioned gathering of
these people, it will be extremely difficult to

really break through all the cultural, stylistic
and personality barriers to allow them to just
train, discuss and drink tea together in a real
way as friends. Culturally, each of these arts
have different rules of respect, and they can
be so very different that during a meeting
of minds, where everyones ego is at stake, a
small faux paux can create a huge issue and
ruin any chance at friendship. Stylistically
everyone will think differently too and if a real
discussion takes place there will be differing
opinions. Imagine the twenty years veterans
from different styles discussing a statement
like All fights go to the ground. Potentially
dangerous? Now if you have surpassed these
barriers you have come down to personality
types and whether or not, even with all their
martial arts aside, they can be friends just as
people. Not everyone is compatible and thats
just the way it is, so what kind of number are
we left with after all that? How many of those
300 veterans could actually, completely openly
discuss, spar, train and fight with one another?
Whats most interesting is that we all used to
do it with our classmates under our teachers,
so what is so different about it now?
training sessions with one another then there

will be no issues. Everyone wins no matter the
result of a sparring match or debate. But the ego
is such a powerful thing (especially in martial
arts teachers who are constantly reminded by
their students how wonderful they are) that
not everyone can tame it. My advice is to look
back to when everything in martial arts class
was amazing and getting your butt kicked was
a great lesson. What has changed now from
then? Only we have. You know why I have,
with much help, put together the Deep Water
Martial Arts Convention and the Magazine?
This. We need to reach out to one another
and embrace each others experience and do
it without all the pomp and ceremony and ego
that seems to be everywhere in the martial
arts world. We are all just people and we are
a small group that can really understand one
another. So lets just get out of our own way,
put the black belts in the closet and become
friends damnit! What have we got to lose?
Some of the highest level people I have ever

had the opportunity to train with or under
have all in one way or another mentioned this
phenomenon. From the Master who had been
training 50 years to people I am proud to call
my peers about 30 years in. What happens
to them all? They train alone, have no one to
bounce things off of for one reason or another
and live in solitude. It is a sad state of affairs.
But of course it is not so bleak a picture at all;
the rewards of good training outweigh it all
easily and of course we still have our friends,
spouses and parties to go to. The topic of
conversation is just not going to be about our
one true passion with them, since they are not
interested or just wont understand anyway,
and thats fine too.
So what to do about it?
If we can find the beginners mind and truly
remove our ego from the conversations and
17
18
Spring 2014
FLOW LIKE DEEP WATER
Internal & External:

With Dr. Yang Jwing Ming
Interview by Shifu Neil Ripski
eil: Hello, Dr.Yang, how are you?
Dr.Yang: Very good Neil, thank you!

Neil: Lets start with the first question weve got
written down on Internal Martial Arts and QiGong.
How would you define internal vs external martial
arts?
Dr. Yang: You know, to understand this,
Neil, the first thing you have to understand
is Chinese history, and when internal style
martial arts started. Ok, if we trace back along
martial arts history, before 500 AD there is no
such style called internal martial arts. And

after 500 AD we start having internal martial
arts develop. There were 2 major styles: one
called Xiao Jiu Tien or Small 9 Heaven, and
the other called Hou Chin Fa, or Post Heaven
Technique. The two martial arts styles
develop after about 570 AD, but actually two
of the styles still exist but arent that popular.
So since then there is internal martial arts,
so from here we can see that if you want to
understand what is internal martial arts, you
have to trace back what happened about 500
AD. If you look at Chinese history, you realize
that Chinese martial arts are heavily influenced
by the Indian Monk called Bodhidharma.
Bodhidharma himself, as I know, was not a
martial artist. When he taught the Shaolin
monks the Muscle Tendon Change and the
Bone Marrow Washing techniques, he taught
the monks how to change their body from
weak to strong. Since then, the Shaolin monks
19
used the theory and used the practice to

enhance their power significantly in the martial
arts. So, since then theyve trained that, and
thats the start of our internal arts. We have
to trace back and try to understand what was
Bodhidharmas theory behind it. It was always
very simple. It was use the mind to lead the qi,
then manifest it into the power. Remember,
mind is the thinking, which leads the qi, qi is
energy, and this energy manifests into actions
which become more powerful.
The more your mind concentrates, the
stronger the qi can be led, the more power
can be manifested. Because of these reasons,
then some martial artists began understand,
especially from Shaolin Temple, they said, well
if the mind is the key to power, then why dont
we train the mind? First, well learn how to
focus and how to lead the qi. So the mind is
internal and action is external. Some Shaolin
monks said no, no, no we have to train external
because these are dangerous times so we have
to learn how to defend ourselves. And there
were some monks that disagreed, so thats how
Shaolin Temple became divided into internal
and external. Thats why theres some legends
talk about a monk from the shaolin temple.
So the whole idea is that the minds internal
and the actions external, so thats how they
started. So that means in Chinese it doesnt
matter how you do it: internal goes from
internal to external: from the mind into
the actions. External is from external to
internal. So it doesnt matter that Shaolin
studied external first to learn the techniques.
In order to reach high levels of martial skill
and power they still have to go to internal.
For this reason, in China they say external is
from external to internal, and internal is from
internal to external. They are different paths,
but they reach the same goals.
So that means in internal martial arts you
can see, starting from if you look at Xingyi
Quan, Baguazhang, Liuhe Bafa, Taijiquan, all
they talk about is if you can use the mind to
lead the qi first, and only then do they start to
20
Spring 2014
apply the mind and the qi to the actions and

become external. Is that clear?
Neil: I understand what youre saying. Its an
interesting perspective because Internal martial arts
werent really defined as such until Sun Lu Tang
wrote his books, so its an interesting perspective to
look at that DaMo (Bodhidharma) was the first way
of looking at internal.
Dr. Yang: The fact is really that in Chinese
history there are no internal arts before
Bodhidharma. The reason it was influenced
by Bodhidharma is because of qigong training.
The Shaolin Temple found that it was so
powerful for training their techniques.
Neil: Ok, but doesnt Taoism heavily predate
Bodhidharmas coming to China, and Taoism was
practicing qigong before that, werent they?
Dr.Yang: No, no, no. Taoists didnt do that.
Taoists didnt use that too much at all. Because
Taoists they do have some qigong, but you see
Taijiquan didnt even exist in 500 AD.
Neil: Im aware of that, I just mean that Taoist
internal practices could have been considered qigong
like the TaoYin.
Dr.Yang: Yeah, it is qigong, but still wouldnt
be considered internal arts because Taoists
at that time didnt even get involved in the
martial arts. It was more like a religion.
Neil: So Shaolin was the melting pot where the
two came together.
Dr. Yang: The Taoist martial arts actually
originate from Shaolin.
Neil: I agree, yeah, absolutely. Thank you, thats
great. How would you define the terms qigong and
neigong? Do you see them as different training
methods?
Dr. Yang: Ok first I try and define what
qigong is. Qi is the energy circulating in the
body, Gong is gongfu. Gongfu means the hard
...internal goes from internal to external:

from the mind into the actions. External is
from external to internal.
21
study; if you take a lot of time and patience

to accomplish anything, its called gongfu. So
qigong means the study or the practice of the
Qi. Neigong means internal Gong. People get
confused because neigong exists commonly
in martial arts society. Neigong is compared
with weigong, which is external Gong; the
form, the technique or the sequence. Neigong
is talking about how to use the mind to lead
the qi, thats called neigong.
...if you take a lot of time and patience to

accomplish anything, its called gongfu.
They say in China that in qigong there are
four big schools in qigong society. One is
medical qigong which traces back to 4000
years ago, which starts from acupuncture.
After that, we go to scholar qigong where
we talk about meditation, about Taoism, and
about scholars like Confucius. Those are the
two major schools of qigong for regulating
the mind. After that in about 0 AD, Indian
Buddhism enters China so now religious
qigong started. At that time there was a man
named [tsung tao ling?] in the Han Dynasty,
only 50 years after Buddhism entered China,
and then he combined the Buddhism and also
Taoism to become Tao Jong. This was a Taoist
religion, which is not the same as the scholar
Taoism.
Scholar Taoism was based on the study of the
Tao Teh Ching. And the Tao Jong is about 400
years later, after the Tao Teh Ching is written,
then tsung tao lin, he combined Buddhism and
Taoism to create the Taoist religion called Tao
Jong. From then the Taoists became more like
the religious side, but they trained qigong,
combining the Tao Teh Jing inside qigong
training combined with Buddhist training. So
that was the origin of qigong. Then after that,
the martial art qigong didnt even get started
until 500 AD when Bodhidharma was in
Shaolin temple. Before that time, the Chinese
martial arts were all external, there was no
internal.
22
Spring 2014
Ok, so since then, the internal training the

Chinese call neigong and the external training
is called weigong, so this terminology should
be properly used in martial arts society. So
martial arts qigong is neigong, but eventually
it is called qigong sometimes.
Neil: I see what youre saying, thats interesting.
Dr Yang: You see if you go to China and talk
to people about neigong, immediately their
mind goes to martial arts. You wouldnt be
talking about qigong. You would be talking
about martial arts because neigong is compared
with weigong. But theres a lot of people
now that say neigong is the internal kungfu,
yes it is true, so if qi gong is about internal
qi cultivation then yes its neigong. If youre
talking about the external weigong training,
even 8 Pieces of Brocade is weigong, just like
walking or jogging.
Neil: So when Bodhidharmas influence was
felt, thats when you feel that neigong became a
terminology that was used by martial artists.
Dr Yang: Yeah, because when you look at
Chinese history, Neil, because I have written
so many books I have studied so deeply about
Chinese martial arts history, and unfortunately
the documents are very scarce. But in
everything Ive found, there is no mention of
something called internal arts or neigong until
after Bodhidharma.
Neil: So, qigong sickness is something that is
generally not spoken of too much, so when youre
teaching qigong, how do you make sure your students
avoid it?
Dr.Yang: Yeah, because today a lot of people
have a big ego and they dont listen, they dont
listen to their teacher, and thats where theyll
probably have a qigong problem; what they
call deviation or a qigong problem. Ok to
teach students, you have to teach them from
shallow to deep. If they dont know shallow
and you teach them deep, because people have
a big ego they say Ok I dont need shallow.
They have to start from shallow, understand

the theory and move toward deep. The theory
and the training have to be together, because
theory is the map.
A lot of teachers that teach today dont have
the theory; they dont know why theyre doing
this and that. They dont know the theory and
they are teaching, so of course they are blind
and of course their students become blind as
well. Thats the cause of sickness. So thats
something thats so important to me because
Im a scientist; you have to know the theory
behind it, because theory is the map. So once
a student learns theory, they have a map and
they can follow the map and they can always
follow the right path. So usually to avoid the
danger, I teach the student the weidan first,
the external elixir which we can call weigong.
Then slowly, slowly after they learn to regulate
the mind and regulate the breathing, I can teach
them the internal elixir. So if the students not
ready, dont teach them.
When I teach seminars, unfortunately I have
to teach people who arent ready. So thats
why they have to go home and read the theory
book and make sure they understand. Once
they understand the theory, usually they dont
go too far and make big mistakes. Its the same
thing when you have a map, you can drive and
follow the map and you wont make too many
mistakes.
Neil: I like the way you put it: from shallow to
deep. In relationship to qigong training, how do you
feel about visualization training? Do you think its
potentially harmful?
Dr. Yang: Well it depends on the students,
some students visualization will help them.
Because for beginners visualization will help
them much easier. For example when I teach
them to calm down their mind. They visualize
they have a Buddha in their mind. Once
they visualize that Buddha in their mind, that
Buddha is teaching their mind and they try
and copy that Buddhas calmness and peaceful
feeling, then thats how they calm down. This
is no different from the western religions, for

example the Christians. Christians when they
go to church, visualize God and the power of
Jesus Christ. The mind is more powerful than
everybody thinks. So this mind can create
so much power, especially inside the body
with the qi. So once your mind can have that
confidence, that type of belief, then everything
can happen. You dont have to believe it can,
but visualization is one of the easiest ways
for beginners to do that. Unfortunately,
The mind is more powerful than

everybody thinks. So this mind can
create so much power, especially inside
the body with the qi.
also, beginners can get too deep and begin
to fantasize things, and because they fantasize
things, they can go to the wrong path. In
Chinese this is called enter the fire enter
the devil. This means the mind enters the
wrong thinking and thats why the energy goes
to the wrong path and this can be dangerous.
So thats the reason when I teach beginners,
usually I will teach visualization, for example
to visualize how qi circulates.
You need your mind there in order to make
it happen. Once you visualize and you can feel
the qi, I say no visualizing anymore. Now you
have to actually feel the qi. Its very important
to realize that visualization is only temporary
to help beginners to build their confidence
and help the mind concentrate and lead the qi,
thats all.
(continued next issue)
23
CLOUD HIDDEN...
The Woodcut School

Jason Deatherage
hough this is the Cloud Hidden

column, we thought that this month
wed discuss the practices of our friends
over at the Woodcut School. The finding of
connections between all the various activities
of our lives brings richness and fullness to our
training, and gives that training a real purpose
besides fantasy fulfillment. It is precisely these
connections that are the true goal of hard and
diligent training. Rather than following our
martial stylistic path so far that we become
increasingly isolated from so-called everyday
life, our path should begin to draw everything
else we do into its circle of illumination. The
insights and perceptions we cultivate should
begin to penetrate even the most mundane
activities and bring them alive with the magic
we seek in our martial studies. If we can
allow our minds to penetrate to the central
principles of everything we do and return to
the real world with the treasures found there,
then real Mastery can begin to blossom within
us.
A scene from the Seven Samurai sets up the
comedic character of Heihachi Hayashida for
the viewer, subtly hinting at deeper modes of
training than simple sword forms.
Gorobei Katayama sits and watches Heihachi
Hayashida chopping firewood.
Heihachi Hayashida: Havent you ever seen
anyone cut firewood before?
Gorobei Katayama:You seem to enjoy it.
Heihachi Hayashida:Thats just the way I am.
Yah! [he chops another log]
Gorobei Katayama:Youre good!
Heihachi Hayashida: Not really. Its a lot
harder than killing enemies. Yah! [he splits
another log]
Gorobei Katayama: Have you killed many?
Heihachi Hayashida: Since its impossible to
24
Spring 2014
kill them all - yah! [he splits another log] - I

usually run away.
Gorobei Katayama: A splendid principle!
Heihachi Hayashida: Thank you!
To chop wood is a profound task; much
more so than is given credit by the common
axe swingers one encounters on the street.
How then can the serious student of the
Sword ignore the lifetime of Lessons found
within a task that they must necessarily pursue
anyway? To enjoy warmth in winter, and to
prepare ones food, it is unavoidable to have
to provide wood for the fire, and few that
seriously follow the martial path can afford
to buy firewood rather than chop and gather
it. The gathering, chopping, and stacking of
wood is a seasonal task that takes place during
the appropriate season without fail, and in
this way is unceasing in its demand upon
the chopper. Much like our other forms of
training, there is no point at which we can stop
and say were done forever. We may survey the
Much like our other forms of training,

there is no point at which we can stop
and say were done forever.
results of our labors and say to ourselves, It is
accomplished! but we know that the process
starts again when the year comes back around.
By taking part in this ever-turning wheel of
the seasons in such an intimate way, we learn
to see Change and begin to understand our
inseparability from what is all around us. We
see the way the forest changes over time, we
see the transformation of wood to heat and
light, we see the transformation of ourselves
as we participate in these cycles.
With an axe in our hand, and the wood on

the chopping block, we return to the now and
leave the lofty philosophy behind. We grasp
such airy thoughts only lightly in the mind,
if at all, and observe more immediate and
physical things. The axe in our hand, and all
its attributes: its weight, the position of the
25
edge, the handle. The wood in front of us to

be chopped: the knots, the cracks, the density
and direction of the grain, its level of moisture,
what tree did it come from? Our body: our
stance, our grip, our range, our gaze. Our
mind: too narrow or wide, too tight or too
loose, here or there, now or then?
When we swing, are we swinging the axe or
are we putting into a position where we can let
it go, gently nudging it to just the right spot,
rather than forcing it through the wood. This
is important, because while one can split with
muscle power, one can split better and longer
without it. It is wasteful to show off when one
can quietly chop a whole pile without a single
wasted breath. Fierce chopping is inefficient
and sloppy. When we grasp each chop lightly
in the mind, we find the axe falling unerringly
through the wood at just the right spot. The
problems of knot and grain solve themselves
when they are lightly considered and allowed
to guide our axe.
In woodcutting, there is much that
accompanies proper understanding of how
to chop. One is preparing fuel for the fire
that warms the body and cooks ones food.
Consequently, one must develop a penetrating
understanding of the nature of nurturing fire
itself.
Fire is commonly seen as fuel, air and heat.
To most, a basic understanding of fuel is already
in place: dry, seasoned wood, preferably hard
and dense as well. Anyone who heats with
wood or spends much time out of doors will
know the skills and principles of kindling and
how various sizes of wood contribute to the
construction and cultivation of a good fire.
These are the basic principles of fuel. We must
likewise dry and season ourselves with time
and training to be best prepared to be kindled
into a life giving flame.
Air is also generally understood, as a
difficult fire is often blown on to make it flare
and grow. But there is more to air, because air
requires a space to fill. A solid pile of wood
26
Spring 2014
is difficult to light, as is a single large piece of

wood. As a serious student of fire will discover,
careful attention to space is a deep principle of
fire. Fire burns best between two pieces of
wood (and more than 2 of course, but we are
discussing principles here). If the spacing is
correct, fire becomes self-sustaining between
two pieces of wood. One can light a fire with
a minimum of kindling if one utilizes space
properly between two larger pieces of wood.
In this way, we must look to what is not there
in order to make proper use of what is there.
The martial arts are sterile if done alone; they
can only be truly kindled between two people.
The space between them gives meaning to
the totality that they are a part of. The space
between two swordsmen is critical to ones
understanding of the situation. Only by being
sensitive to space can ones perceptions begin
to penetrate more deeply.
Heat is the last element of the three, though
none can exist without the other and still
provide flame. A careful investment of the
heat in a spark can yield a fire of any size. With
good fuel and proper spacing, one can harness
the sparks tiny heat and magnify it using the
properties of the wood and the relationship
of its pieces to one another. Wet fuel carries
the heat away as the moisture evaporates, and
the fire suffers accordingly. Too much or too
little space doesnt allow room for the heat to
draw air, and thus it starves, or burns slowly,
obscuring the clear air with smoke. Likewise,
we must forge ourselves in the heat of training,
working to kindle the fire of Understanding
in the spaces weve cultivated with our wellseasoned bodies and minds.
Back to the chopping block; there is work
to be done.
...we must forge ourselves in the

heat of training, working to kindle
the fire of Understanding...
NO
W
A compilation of writings bringing together decades

of training advice, knowledge of traditions passed
down through the arts, and discussion into some of the
more misunderstood aspects of training like Internal
Alchemy, Qigong, Drunken Style and Nei Gong. This
is a practical guide for those who want to access the
inside perspective on martial arts.
Now Available Online at www.Lulu.com
Direct Link:
http://tinyurl.com/standingonironmountain
AV
AIL
AB
LE
27
ANIMAL INSTINCTS
Seven Star Praying Mantis

An Interview with Shifu Jon Funk
: Thank you so much for agreeing to this

interview. Could we start with a little
background about yourself and your training
(lineage)?
My grand master is Wong Hon Fun (as
student of Yu Kwong Yuk). My Sifu is Master
Al Cheng.
Q.What is your martial arts experience?
Began learning martial arts at age 11
Began learning Seven Star Praying Mantis
Kung Fu in 1979
31 years of teaching Seven Star Praying
Mantis Kung Fu
Forms champion and rated in the top ten
in Canada by Karate Illustrated in the early
1980s
Published columnist for Black Belt
Magazine for 4 years.
Published author in Inside Kung Fu
Magazine
Full contact kung fu fighter in the early
1980s
28
Spring 2014
Trained in Hong Kong and southern China

in 1986 and 1989
Has grand students in Winnipeg
Producer of 14 Seven Star Praying Mantis
Kung Fu instructional videos
Promoter of the martial arts tournament,
The Tiger Balm Internationals (27 years)
Elected President of Wushu BC in 2013
Fight chorographer for the film industry
Received a 8th Master Degree level
from the Confederation of Wushu
Organizations
Has just received a 9th degree from the
World Organization of Wushu Kung Fu
Masters
Q: Praying Mantis is known for its rigid and
flexible methods. Does Seven Stars Mantis Prefer
one side or the other? From an overall perspective,
what would you say are the most important methods
praying mantis uses in combat?
Seven Star Praying Mantis Kung Fu does
strive to train both side of the body to be
The most important aspect to Seven Star Praying

Mantis Kung Fu is the seamless use of trapping and
dissolving skills.
29
ambidextrous. However, there is a tendency

to be right side dominant.
The most important aspect to Seven Star
Praying Mantis Kung Fu is the seamless use of
trapping and dissolving skills. Along with this
approach is the ability to be both supple and
not react with tension or revert to using overt
strength.
Q: Mantis, as we have understood it through our
family system, operates on deceptive use of angles
and certain master energies.What concepts do Seven
Stars Mantis primarily operate on? Is there a specific
master energy that you consider Seven Stars Mantis
to express?
I teach students to have a strong rooting
ability through proper body structure and at
the same time keep their bodies supple and
make use of breath control. This creates an
environment for more stamina and reduced
reliance on overt strength in the execution of
technique.
In addition, I teach strategic tactics with
include an understanding of the 4 ranges
of fighting, the 4 types of opponents (taller
stronger, taller weaker, shorter stronger,
shorter weaker), the reaction distance barrier,
the science of broken rhythm.
Q: From my research Seven Stars Mantis relies a
great deal on Short Power (Cun Jin ) how
do you define short power?What particular training
methods (Fu Zhu Gong Fa) does Seven Stars Mantis
use to create Cun Jin?
30
Spring 2014
All power is kinetic energy, which for us,

is developed in the legs and amplified by the
waist. Having said that, there can be little
effective power without the ability to create
an environment of effective energy exchange.
The body must remain linked and supple in
order to make this type of power (whether it
is short or not) effective. It does not rely on
upper body strength. This is good news for my
100 lb women students. Since they have very
limited upper body strength, they will be, out
of necessity, being required to utilize the kind

of power we seek to develop.
Q: Fu Zhu Gong Fa (Supplementary skills training)
have in the past been kept secret as guarded special
methods for creating real skill.Will you share your
Fu Zhu Gong Fa for Seven Stars Praying Mantis?
I teach students to have skill in the four
ranges of fighting: kicking range, hand
technique range, trapping range, and the
grappling range. In fact, I begin their journey
to acquire skill in these four ranges right away
in the beginning classes. In the beginning they
may not appreciate the foundation (for the
more advance level of skills training) I try
to share with them. However, their ability
to understand it later on in their training is
quite accelerated and thereby improving their
mastery of it.
I teach students to have

a strong rooting ability
through proper body
structure...
Q: Most Chinese Martial Arts have a meditative
practice in their training. Do you have any specific
meditative practice or mind cultivation training?
We concentrate on developing breath control
skills and occasionally use it in a meditative
environment. We also do a chi gong set, called
Law Hon Gong, for the same purpose.
Q:The concepts of Kou, Luo and Tsai are prevalent
in all styles of Mantis. Do you train specific drills or
exercises (solo or two person) to gain skill in these
three skills? (Hook, Grapple, Strike)
We train Kou, Luo and Tsai in solo drills that
attempt to develop an ambidextrous ability on
both side of the body. We employ Kou, Luo
and Tsai in the sticky hands practice with both
prearranged two person drills as well as in free
style.
31
The Seven Star Praying Mantis Kung Fu style I teach is

a combination of Seven Star, Plum Flower, Shiny Board,
and the Long Fist styles.
32
Spring 2014
Q:What are you personally training now?What is

the current direction of your training?
I still teach classes three days a week. I still
do forms, push hands, sticky hands, grappling,
and light sparring with my students regularly.
I feel fortunate at the ripe old age of 62 to still
be so active.
Q:What do you feel is missing, if anything, from
Seven Stars Mantis?
Seven Star Praying Mantis Kung Fu (like
other styles of Chinese martial arts) does
not have much in the way of ground fighting.
Since I have a 12 year Judo background I have
added to my syllabus certain aspects of ground
training so as to teach my students how to
defend themselves in a prone situation. This
is different than the sport grappling that is
popular today. We employ dissolving and
trapping skills along with pressure point/
pressure strikes, similar to our stand up game,
only on the ground. All in an effort to give
the student some self defense tools if they are
taken to the ground.
In the interests of full disclosure, from my Tai
Chi background trained in 1970s and 1980, I
have added push hands training to my syllabus.
I fell it is a great exercise to help improve
Seven Star Praying Mantis Kung Fu skills.
Q: What other arts have you trained? What

perspectives have they given your Mantis? Do you
feel training in other arts is valuable?
I feel the cross training is a valuable tool. On
the other hand, relying on a little from a variety
of different styles will lead to a watering down
of the knowledge acquired with little or no
real mastery.
The Chinese martial arts have a rich history
of cross pollination from a variety of martial
disciplines. Many current styles today are
combinations of more than one style. The
difference is that the person combining these
kung fu styles had mastery of each of them
before combining them.
My own main style, Seven Star Praying
Mantis Kung Fu, is a mixture of the styles of
the day when the system was first created.
The Seven Star Praying Mantis Kung Fu style
I teach is a combination of Seven Star, Plum
Flower, Shiny Board, and the Long Fist styles.
These were the styles taught in the Shaolin
temple when the Taoist, Sheng Xiao Dao Ren
(Mandarin spelling), came to the temple to
learn.The system he mastered from the monks
was the mix of the five mantis systems there at
the time.
33
THE WOODCUT SCHOOL
The Sword As Distraction

Arrow Mountain Tengu
nevitably, as we inquire into the deepest

aspects of swordsmanship, we encounter
those who are shamefully enchanted with
the sword and all that it represents. One can
smell this sort of attachment from a great
distance, and can feel it in every thought and
action when swords are crossed. Swordsmen
of this sort are so besotted with what theyve
learned from their venerable teachers and
ancient lineages that they can barely see the
opponent in front of them, and certainly have
no hope of seeing themselves. They collect
techniques and fancy weapons as if somehow
these things matter one whit when one is faced
with emergent circumstance; but, as we know,
these things are in fact distractions from the
true work that swordsmanship demands.
What does it mean to be enchanted with
the sword? It means that the mind is focused
entirely on the sword in their hand, but not
in a way that promotes analysis and learning;
rather they are focused on the shiny blade,
on the shiny ideas of swordsmanship, and on
the shiny feelings of self-satisfaction they have
34
Spring 2014
dreamed up in their quest for importance

and mystical meaning. To one such as this, no
amount of practice can help them pull out of
the trap. They are mired in their own desires
and projections, searching for more and more,
never realizing that the path of the Sword
is one of less and less. The great Masters of
Old knew that only by dropping, releasing,
accepting, absorbing, opening, and letting go
could one begin to accord oneself properly
to life and therefore the sword. When faced
with mortal threat, the Ancients didnt puff
up and fight, rather they relaxed and opened
their Hand, letting the sword fall where it may,
without concern for gain or loss. By treating
all circumstances as if they were life and death,
they began to apply these deep principles to
every aspect of their lives, to the betterment
of all beings.
In these shallow days of misunderstanding
and profit, the pursuit of the deepest aspects
of the sword is almost entirely absent, and
those that consider themselves to be inquiring
deeply are splashing in a puddle in the road.
Why cant their vision penetrate the clouds
of self-delusion? Their sword is in the way
just as if they held it over their eyes. They
see the sword as a transcendent tool of self-
cultivation, but refuse to look into the stark

face of the sword as tool of killing. Conversely,
others see the sword as a tool of recreational
violence and prestige, never seeing the light
it shines on all that surrounds them, never
seeing the paths it opens to the mind. They
shrink from critical analysis of what they
are being taught by their teachers, never
daring to test and analyze their own skills.
Their own perceptions and judgments of the
sword limit their understanding. They refuse
to see the essential nature of Yin and Yang at
play; without one, there is not the other. By
attempting to only understand the cultivating
aspects of sword without truly understanding
how it kills, one cultivates a false dream of
heaven, ignoring the truth shining on our face.
By learning only the mechanics of fighting
and killing without tirelessly inquiring into
the true Communication that these practices
illuminate, one rages alone against a hostile
universe in futility. Under these conditions,
even hard practice and training can be entirely
misdirected and leave one worse off than they
began.
All things Change,

and all things are let go
without exception.
All things Change, and all things are let go
without exception. Why, then, should we
wishfully dream that swordsmanship is any
different? The sword is there in our hand,
yes, but if our mind is constantly focused on
the sword, it is not truly free to act. Because
of the dangerous nature of the sword, the
temptation is to control circumstance with
rules and forms. As beginners, we require this
structure in order build a working vocabulary
for later creative expression. As we find things
that work in reality or in our imaginations, we
are tempted to solidify our expressions with
the sword into set techniques. Unfortunately,
real circumstance is infinite Change, not
choreography.
35
With rigidly codified techniques, we

attempt to force our techniques onto every
circumstance uncreatively, speaking over the
situation rather than listening to it. We change
our perceptions of reality to fit what we
understand of our techniques. Our memory
of what worked before and what weve been
taught invents a false reality for us instead of
teaching us to effectively accord ourselves
to what is actually there in front of us. If we
aspire to true freedom of action, we must
change our techniques to fit the circumstances
that actually confront us. We cant truly act
appropriately in a circumstance without
being responsive and sensitive to what the
circumstance demands. Our desperate desire
to look tough and dangerous makes the idea
of reacting to circumstance into some sort of
weakness, but we are never doing anything
but reacting to circumstance, whether real
or imagined. Even those that have excellent
predictive abilities will eventually reach their
limit; everyone loses at dice after enough rolls.
They are only guessing at what might happen,
not truly seeing what IS happening.
We cant truly act appropriately in a

circumstance without being responsive
and sensitive to what the circumstance
demands.
We are all floating down the river, but
some chose to resist the current, while some
work powerfully with it. Swordsmanship is
nothing other than flowing with the current
of circumstance. In order to do this, one must
first let go of their ideas and desires and let the
current take them. Only by listening to the
current and feeling it can we understand the
direction and strength of its flow. In order to
listen in this way we must quiet ourselves and
wait for circumstance to speak.
If an opponent is cutting at us, we can guess
and predict what they intend, and maybe well
be right, but if were wrong we are likely to be
36
Spring 2014
catastrophically educated. To operate in this

way is speaking rather than listening, and we
are not being truly sensitive to anything except
our egotistical hopes and fears. We should
rather Wait for the opponents intentions to
become clear, so that we can deal directly
with their true attack. Only by Waiting can
we have the time to see what theyre actually
doing. Once we can see their true intent, we
can do exactly what is necessary to resolve
the situation, and paradoxically, we have more
time in which to do so. By letting our minds
be distracted by the minutiae of the sword and
its techniques and style, we cant see into the
truth of whats before us and our mind ends up
fluttering around like a panicked bird that flies
into the temple and cant find its way out.
In the extremity of a contest of swords, the
time for all of the fripperies is past, and only
the calm mind can have true freedom of action.
Sadly, few understand this Calmness to be the
true Sword with which one can cut through
any illusion. The common swordsmans styles,
their techniques and tricks, their famous
teachers and their close held secrets are
merely jewelry for the ego and obstruct the
mind rather than assist it. Only by letting go
can we grasp the sword.
Piercing
Living, combat effective sword

instruction is vanishingly rare in these
days of YouTube Masters and rule-bound
tournaments. Most Chinese straight sword
instruction is now derived from Taiji forms
or recently created traditional styles that
are more anthropological than combatively
expedient. Their forms are traditional and
very beautiful, but their fighting looks like
formless hack and slash, devoid of the
techniques they work so hard to cultivate.
For the first time, the Piercing

Cloud Method is available to
motivated students of the Chinese Straight
Sword in the form of an ongoing fulltime program, running in up to 3
month blocks throughout the year.
Dont miss this opportunity to intensively
train in a truly complete sword
system that has deep relevance to other
sword traditions and provides the student
with a firm basis from which to learn the use
of any weapon.
Cloud
Chinese Swordsmanship
When pierced, we are

untouchable like clouds;
when clouded, we pierce
to the center without
hesitation.
Piercing Cloud Spear training is
also available to select students who
meet the necessary requirements.
Accommodations are available on a firstcome-first-served basis.
F O R MO RE I NF O RMATI O N CO NTACT:
PI E RCI NG CLO U DS WO RD@G MAI L .COM
WWW.PI E RCI NG CLO U D.CO M
Youtube: Piercing Cloud Sword
37
EAST MEETS WEST
What is a Gun Fighter,

Without a Gun?
Peter Burlingame
ve been studying gunfighting since the

1960s, as a child in my late single digits.
I was self taught for the first half of my life,
studying the works of the Masters and applying
those lessons as I could. I would listen carefully
to my guns, as they taught me their best usage.
I lived the Gun. I read everything I that I could
lay my hands on, I always had a gun close by.
I spent hour upon countless hour handling
them, and sometimes just simply sitting with
one in my hand so we could converse quietly.
Living in a small community of 2500 in rural
New York, I didnt have any direct exposure to
the traditional Eastern Martial arts. But even
back then I thought it strange that guns and
gunfighting were left out. You dont get much
more martial than firearms, after all.
I came to understand the political history that
kept firearms out of the hands of the majority
of Asian people, and thus realized why only a
couple of poorly known and poorly developed
arts involved guns.
I also came up against the attitude of many
who practiced the Eastern Arts, that guns were
somehow bad, contemptible, and not worthy
of study. That guns had no place in their Art.
Guns in many ways level the playing field and
negate the countless hours of dedicated, life
changing practice that the MA practitioner has
invested in his Art.
I wasnt alone though. Several other people
also felt this lack. They too, thought that the
Eastern Mind could benefit the Western
Gunfighter. The first that I became aware of
was a video series back in the 1980s called
38
Spring 2014
Weaponcraft Kata, which demonstrated a

number of katas using firearms. This only
explored the realm of Body and so was of
limited use.
Kurt Wimmer developed a gun kata that was
then fleshed out by fight choreographer Jim
Vickers for the 2002 movie Equilibrium, and
while it sure looked sexy, it wasnt serious.
A lifelong martial artist, Jeff Hall breathed
new life into Hojutsu-Ryu, the Art of
Gunnery,to the point of being recognized by
a couple of MA governing bodies. Soke Hall
has upgraded Hojutsu-Ryu with the inclusion
of the Modern Technique that Colonel Jeff
Cooper promulgated at his school, The
American Pistol Institute.
Halls school has ten kyu ranging from novice
to black belt ranks. While students start with
pistols, further studies incorporate all types of
firearms, empty hands, and other weapons.
My own studies took a great leap when I
was introduced to Shane Steinkamp. A mutual
mentor put us in touch with each other so I
could learn the knife, and he, gunfighting.
Guns in many ways level the playing

field and negate the countless hours of
dedicated, life changing practice that
the MA practitioner has invested in
his Art.
Shane has been studying the Eastern Arts in
all three realms for four decades. And that was
one of my first lessons from him; that there
ARE three realms that must be considered
in all of our endeavors. He challenged me
with questions, so both of us would better
understand what we after.
One of the first was: What is the First Rule
of a Gunfight? The generally accepted and
39
oft spouted answer is Have a gun. Others

will reply Dont get shot. Both of which
are unbalanced answers. The first shows an
unnatural dependence on a tool and the second
demonstrates that fear rules their life. Neither
of these are the answers a Gunfighter would
give.
To try to come to an understanding of the
previous question, we must pose some others:
What is a gunfighter, without a gun? Does a
gunfighter cease to be a gunfighter when his
gun is taken out of the equation? Does the gun
define him? Does the lack of a firearm negate
all of the lessons that he has learned and skill
that he possess?
The obvious answer is no. While the
gunfighter uses the gun to learn about himself,
he is not dependant on it, and if he achieves
40
Spring 2014
the pinnacle of understanding, he no longer

needs the gun. Like the sword, the gun can be
a simple weapon used to save life, or it can be
a complex tool used to learn life. As with the
sword, wielding the gun, the artist hones his
body, mind, and spirit. He knows that he has
the power to give life or to take it. The lessons
of the life giving sword translate directly to the
gun.
And thus, I encourage you to start your
own investigations into gunfighting. How can
YOUR art inform the use of a gun in a fight?
What can the gun teach you about yourself,
your life, and your place in the world?
A gunfighter will probably start the fight
with his pistol holstered at his belt. The draw
stroke is one of the most critical things he can
develop. In one time frame he must move,
he must draw, and he must communicate.

Efficiency of motion and projection of
intention will determine the outcome. Would
an art like Iaido have anything to contribute to
The Draw?
Imagine. A quick, deep intake of breath, as
the feet smoothly side step whilst the hands
grasp the pistols grip, as it moves forward
sharply, the inheld breath is exhaled forcefully,
coming from the belly and past the vocal cords
to emerge as DOWN! in the same way any
martial artist would focus his chi.
Never mistake shooting for gunfighting.
While a gunfight might involve the discharge
of a projectile, it is done so in the context of a
dynamic contest. I know good shooters by the
score that would do poorly in a fight. In the
same fashion, I know martial artists that have
flowery form that is pleasing to the eye, which

would fall apart the second things got serious.
Not to denigrate shooting as a pursuit,
as there are few things as Zen as precision
shooting. The body positioning of the natural
point of aim, the calming of the body, the
mind, the spirit. The concentration and
focusing of intention.The being in the Now. All
culminating in that ultimate release. Shooting,
while not fighting, does offer the martial artist
many useful lessons.
So I lay down this challenge to all of
you artists, pick up that most martial of
instruments, the gun, and begin a journey of
discovery. Help me to blend the eastern arts and
philosophy and bring shooting and gunfighting
into a more perfect understanding.
41
MARTIAL VIRTUE
Rank Lust
Sensei Daniel Kempling
he word sincere derives from a

Latin term meaning without wax.
This refers to a practice among some ancient
Roman grain merchants who would hollow
out the lead weights used on their scales, fill
them partially with wax, and then re-seal them
with molten lead. These merchants could thus
make a few extra sisterti on every transaction
and perpetually cheat their customers. So
common did this become, that the few honest
brokers who resisted this temptation came to
be known as the sin cere.
When I came upon this derivation, I was
struck by how the words meaning changed
for me: there was a shift from an amorphous
do-good ethic to a call for a certain radical selfhonesty. I begin this piece with this background
information because if I have matured at all as
a martial artist and a man, it is due to a sincere
examination of my motives, and, one would
hope, choosing to behave decently despite an
acknowledged egomania.
It has been my experience that

true power comes with the release of
tension.
This egomania, or self-cherishing as it is
referred to in the Buddhist tradition, I take as
a given in our characters, and nowhere does it
reveal itself so vividly upon the Way as in ones
hunger for rank and acknowledgment. Before
I even began martial arts training, I knew
I would have arrived when I attained my
black belt. Clearly, that didnt quite fulfill me
because the yearning for 2nd, 3rd, and 4th dan
were just as compelling. Now, at 5th dan, the
42
Spring 2014
siren call of satisfaction that 6th dan will surely

bring seems remarkably familiar. This is where
Jungs axiom What you resist, persists. has
shown itself to be both accurate and damnably
difficult to act upon. For, surely, we must
resist the seduction of such mind-candy and
carry ourselves with the ego-less dignity that
our station calls for.Yeah, right.
This is where sincerity becomes somewhat
of an arduous discipline, and, at the same time,
an opportunity for liberation. To admit to
yourself and to others that you care desperately
what others think of you, or that you fear you
will never measure up if truly put to the test,
would seem an almost impossible feat. Yet, in
avoiding this truth, we live counter to whats
so and thereby cultivate a certain low-grade
tension in our souls. To acknowledge the
truth of certain hard-wired impulses does
not necessarily lead to acting upon them,
but it certainly frees us up from the tension
of denial. It has been my experience that true
power comes with the release of tension.
Speaking of hard-wired impulses, how can we
ignore the heroic grand-daddy of them all: lust.
Youd have to have been living in a cave these
last few years to have missed the revelations
of sexual abuse and impropriety exposed in
our hallowed institutions these past few years.
Anyone in a position of authority has a strategic
advantage in scoring sexually, and, certainly,
martial arts instructors fall into this alpha-dog
category. Now, dont get me wrong, I wholeheartedly endorse folks having enjoyable sex,
and, its quite likely that your dojo life and
your social life are one and the same. (Full
disclosure- my wife is a former student). Yet,
here, too, we can apply a sincere approach
to our ethics. Part of this authentic path is
to acknowledge those negative impulseslust, greed, vanity, laziness, cowardice, et al,
without being lost to them. Its like being in
a storm at sea: the safest vessel we could be
in would be a submarine- we dont deny the
tempest, we but sink to safety underneath the
waves. Somewhat to my surprise, I have found
that facing my lust squarely has actually turned
the inevitable dance of attraction into just

that- a dance. I am honor-bound by my vow
of monogamy, yet within that, there is room
for a certain playful flirtation. How a single
person deals with these challenges is perhaps
best guided by the Hippocratic Oath: First,
do no harm.
Overcoming ones fear is certainly a
common marketing point of many martial
arts schools. Well, let me be straight on this
point: after over 30 years of training, combat,
real or stylized, still scares the shit out of me.
The point is this: I am quite confident that I
can function appropriately while terrified,
because a great deal of my training has been

terror-laden. I happen to work in the field of
industrial safety and rescue, and have been
called upon to act as a first-responder on many
scenes. In most cases, I can recall the psychochemical storm that accompanies such events,
yet my familiarity with this state has helped
me recognize that there is no need to get
over it. I but need to act based upon principle,
protocol, and training. This is an important
distinction to embody and pass on to our
students, as many feel a certain moral failing
for not having overcome their fears. These
fears are, to my mind, a genetic gift, woven in
to our being, to help ensure our survival.
43
Theres a fine line between confidence and arrogance,

between a highly-skilled expert and a pompous ass.
Perhaps as equally daunting a foe as fear, in

our development, is laziness. There seem to
be a few among us who are natural masters
of self-discipline, who enthusiastically seek
out opportunities to sweat and strain. Well,
despite what my press releases may suggest,
that aint me. I have come face-to-face with my
inner housecat, and I wholly acknowledge my
preference of comfort over hard work. Having
said that, I also recognize that habitually
indulging my laziness leads to a certain toxic
lethargy that sucks any true joy from life. One
44
Spring 2014
of my strategies to address this is to vividly

remember the sense of vitality and pride that
follows strong training, and to call upon these
memories when I am at the cusp of a decision
on whether or not to train.
Finally, lets take a look at vanity. Theres a
fine line between confidence and arrogance,
between a highly-skilled expert and a pompous
ass.This is perhaps best distinguished, again, by
a sincere look at our impulses. As we continue
to come to grips with our lust for recognition
and praise, we can gradually free ourselves

from its compulsive hold on our actions, and
so allow ourselves the natural pleasure that
admiration brings. To deny this is, again, to
repress a natural instinct, through some weird
mental gymnastics that feigns contempt and
disdain for the opinions of others. News flash:
most people can smell this on you like bad
cologne.
think, and in all things keep ourselves loyal to

Truth and the sacred professions of friendship.
This quotation speaks to me because it so
succinctly addresses our need for honesty and
forthrightness, while holding to the virtues
of service and compassion. Through an ongoing practice of sincere self-reflection and
courageous action, may we all become honest
brokers.
The English poet, Longfellow, once wrote

Let us be who we are and speak what we
45
WISDOM OF THE CRANE
Shifu Ron Goninan
46
Spring 2014
What happened to spirit, to etiquette, to wanting to do the Art

above all this fighting for fighting sake?
ometimes I look out into the Martial Arts

world and it leaves me shaking my head.
I just dont get it! What happened to spirit, to
etiquette, to wanting to do the Art above all
this fighting for fighting sake?
If I could take you if only for an hour and
show you something, something that is by
far light years ahead of what you currently
do. If I could show you a better way forward
why wouldnt you throw off the slippers and
dressing gown of your comfort and give it a
go???
Another thing I dont get is those who are so
comfortable in their arts that they have stopped
looking and blindly swallow the same old tired
crap and line of spin that they have been fed
for years. They prefer comfort, to sticking
with what they know and not what they could

know. They have an almost pathological fear
of looking outside what they do ... fearful
that it may somehow cause them to (God
forbid!) change their views and therefore their
training!
Or is it simply that their own egos (I am
this or that rank, I may have to start again)
that makes them dwell ... running on the same
spot eternally!
If I could take you if only for an hour and
show you something, something that is by
far light years ahead of what you currently
do. If I could show you a better way forward
why wouldnt you throw off the slippers and
dressing gown of your comfort and give it a
go???
47
If the event doesnt have a trophy along with

it they dont want to be involved. Crazy stuff.
As if a trophy is a benchmark of their martial
arts!
be that champion, that belt, have that sense

of recognition. They dont care if a way works
or cares about how to use it. They just want to
be comfortable.
The Dichotomy between the Seeker and

the Comfortable exists in all disciplines but
why should it???
The Seeker is not interested in the end

game. they are always looking at ways to
further themselves and their art. Not happy
with or concerned about the trappings, they
constantly move forward!
It is easy to see why;

The Comfortable is not interested in the
means, they are only interested in the end
game. The belt, sash, trophy ... that pat on the
back, that sense of belonging, of not having to
truly think and strive forward for themselves!
They will follow it with faith! They wants to
If they learn a way that works work they

are not satisfied that it works, they wants to
know WHY it works. They constantly search,
seeking out that intangible way of wisdom that
weaves through all things and is in all arts.
48
Spring 2014
In The Next Issue Of

M a rt i a l A rt s M a s t e r s I n The ir O w n W or d s
The legendary George Xu

leaves a lasting impression
at the 2014 Deep Water
Martial Arts Convention
& Tournament.
Convention & tournament highlights,

stories, photos and more.
Summer 2014 Edition

49
HEAVY HANDS
Iron Egg
Iron Egg or Iron Groin skill is a famous demonstration
performed by Shaolin Monks in public demonstrations.
It is often used for its wow factor to normal people
who are unaware of the trick involved. These sorts
of dramatic skills were commonly used by traveling
martial artists (vagabonds) as they busked and
performed tricks for money. Skills such s Iron Egg are
referred to as tricks in certain martial arts circles
because they are usually relatively simple techniques
that convey the illusion of incredible feats of skill
or endurance. Fine control and understanding is
required to perform these tricks well, so they are
often performed by skilled martial artists, but they
can be quickly taught to anyone with the courage
to look beyond the illusion. Martially, Iron Egg is
an excellent skill to master so that one gains some
measure of protection from an actual kick to the
groin, which is common in street fights.
In order to properly perform this technique, the
kicker performs a front upwards kick with the flat
of the instep to the receivers groin. At the same
time, the person receiving the kick tilts his pelvis
(tailbone) forward towards the kick, redirecting it to
the buttocks which are flexed to avoid damage. If
timed correctly, the pelvic tilt appears to be a result
of being struck rather than the means of absorbing
the kick without damage. As you can see here in the
photos as the kick lands, Jason subtly tilts his pelvis
so the power is redirected into his buttocks. Handy,
since getting kicked in the junk is no fun....
*Please practice responsibly with all due care and attention
and with appropriate training partners.
Ba Ying Quan (Eight Shadows Fist Style)

Online Distance Drunken Boxing Course
Drunken Boxing Full Time Programs
International Workshop Tours
Tai Ji Quan (Tai Chi Chuan)
Qigong (Chi Kung)
Meditation
1.
2.
Photos by Warren Bruns
3.
www.redjademartialarts.com
50
Summer 2013
Creston, BC Canada
LEGENDS - Masters That Matter
Lau Fat Mang

Lau Fat Mang (1902-1964) was the 7th
generation Grandmaster and Standard Bearer
of Eagle Claw Gong Fu. Master Laus
specialty was that of a unique style called Joy
Lhok Tong (Six Drunken Falling Form) a form
of Traditional Drunken Boxing. In his early
20s he was requested to travel to the faous
Shanghai Chin Woo Association and become
the head teacher of Eagle Claw there.
Into his later years he was famous for his
extreme flexibilty and his iron grip which he
used for Eagle Claws specialty Qin Na
(Grab and Sieze/ joint locking). He was the
holder of the original 108 qin na methods form
from the famous generalYueh Fei (11031142 AD). His daughter Lily Lau became the
first female Grandmaster of a Traditional style
in recent memory after his passing in 1964 at
age 19.
Grandmaster Lily Lau,

daughter of Lau Fat Mang
Living, combat-effective Chinese Swordsmanship
Email: piercingcloudsword@gmail.com
Twitter: @PiercingCloud

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M a rt i a l A rt s M a s t e r s I n The ir O w n W or d s

Time Changes All Things

East Meets West

Mantis Master Jon Funk

Internal Vs. External

To order a high-quality printed copy, please visit us online at:

Now you dont have to go

For more information visit www.redjademartialarts.com

Internal Vs. External

Interview With Dr. Yang Jwing Ming

Letters To The Editor

The Woodcut School

East Meets West

Wisdom Of The Crane

Masters That Matter

IN THIS ISSUE: OUR CONTRIBUTORS

Professor Kevin Wallbridge

Sifu Neil Ripski

Shifu Jon Funk

Sensei Daniel Kempling

Shifu Ron Goninan

elcome to the Spring Issue of Deep

Photo by Kevin Wallbridge

four issues of Deep Water. Also notable in the

We welcome your letters to the editor, comments

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

comes into play here and it can be found in

Real Fight Testing

itself a Martial (War) Art should have been

it is the practitioners and their understandings

...in my opinion to be truly

Some people do only practice the Martial

Traditional Asian Masters

THE CRANKY TAOIST

It is best to evaluate the

Illustration by Lorna Foot

o it has come to this. I woke up one day

into the water. I was pretty happy to not have

Photo by Kevin Wallbridge

Ten thousand flowers in spring, the moon in autumn, a cool breeze

Photo by Kevin Wallbridge

over the years. I have trained with teachers

One big problem is that you cannot

Photo by Kevin Wallbridge

Photo by Warren Bruns

Shifu Neil Ripski

oneliness. I never thought that the

Take the typical dinner party or social event

people off. Suddenly youre the one person

enough) to write a letter to the editor. Now

Photo by Kevin Wallbridge

has some answers, it does not (and should

The state of your own martial arts is

students arrive, working on those things that

these people, it will be extremely difficult to

training sessions with one another then there

Some of the highest level people I have ever

Photo by Kevin Wallbridge

FLOW LIKE DEEP WATER

Internal & External:

eil: Hello, Dr.Yang, how are you?

Dr.Yang: Very good Neil, thank you!

such style called internal martial arts. And

used the theory and used the practice to