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Dan Bixler wrote:
IFirst of all, I would like to say that I enjoyed the articles by Mike Sigman. I've been a long-time admirer of Mike Sigman and his work.
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Don't be. I remember Abbie Hoffman and his book, "Steal this Book". Don't admire me at all... get what you can from me and then beat me at my own game. You're a Marine... so was I.
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When I once told him he was great, he told me. "I'm nothing. You should see my teacher." You know who his teacher was?"
Me: "No."
Wayne: "Tohei Sensei"
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Beat those guys, too. Once you accept the idea that so-and-so was some impossibly great because he was Japanese (or Asian or whatever) and White Guilt gives you an insurmountable disadvantage, you're done. You can beat everyone if you try hard enough and you're smart enough. That's the attitude that the old guys had.... have it yourself.
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Wayne was an awesome teacher. Not only could he do the stuff, he could teach it better than anyone I've ever met.
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I think I can kick his butt and I can teach better than he can.... but we don't know that until we put it on the line and try it out, do we? So let's accept that as the correct attitude to have because it moves us onward and upward. THAT'S the way do it!
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I e-mailed Andrew Nugent Head of Yin Style Bagua, and this was a part of his reply that really stuck with me:
"If you can lose the idea that there is some sort of power or force that comes from outside or through only meditation or via some secret given by a teacher, you are already far ahead of the game of most people interested in Chinese arts." I agree with him.
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I haven't met Andrew, but I saw him on video with the guy he studied with, Shi Ming. I think I know stuff that Andrew was never shown. But I could be wrong and be a buffoon to boot... you need to check it out and see, right?
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I've recently been studying by video from Master Stephen Hwa. He is far better at articulating how to move internally than any other teacher I've seen since my Aikido teacher. I can't wait to study with him in person. He was so generous as to go out of his way twice in an attempt to meet with me in my hometown, while he was travelling through PA. Unfortunately, I was too busy to meet with him at those times. Soon, I will finish school and make sure that I meet him. Here is the web site for Master Hwa and Classical Tai Chi. There are also several good videos on Youtube. However, I feel the videos I purchased from Master Hwa were much better, as they cover much more.
http://www.classicaltaichi.com/
I was curious what Mike Sigman thinks, and if he's heard of Master Hwa. I'm very impressed with Master Hwa's knowledge and his ability to convey it. No mystical chi mumbo jumbo from him. Just plain, easy to understand explanations of how you should move and why. Tai Chi is really tough if practiced this way. His videos are by far the best martial art instructional videos I've ever seen. There is many years worth of learning on 5 DVDs. Incredible stuff, IMHO.
I'm also wondering if Mike Sigman has found that the internal discipline is pretty much the same in Tai Chi, Bagua, XingYi, and Aikido? |
Fair enough. You're asking blunt, honest questions that show you're focused on what's real and what's not real. Certainly the common perception of guys kicking butt because they wear black culottes is not true... so keep looking. P.M. me and I'll give you some suggestions of what *I* think... but don't take anything I say as the final word in anything.
Best.
Mike