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Old 10-02-2012, 07:36 PM   #106
Gary David
 
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Location: Long Beach, CA
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Re: Sumo: light vs heavy and IS?

Quote:
Dan Harden wrote: View Post
Hello Eddy
No, not a typo.
Taken in steps - martial arts are typically taught as:
1. Lower level: taught as techniques
2. Mid level: discussed as principles of movement " behind" those techniques.
3. High level: Internal movement as a precursor to all movement

In reverse (and correct) order to learn high level budo-you start over and learn:
1. Motion, in stillness: control and management of forces within yourself to create a balance of ki within yourself ai-ki
then
2. Stillness in motion: how you carry that awareness and management into controlling forces that alight on you- from the outside and manage them in accord with your own control of forces within you, thus neutralizing and managing them again.
3. This, builds with a totally different means to manage your body with a new set of
"principles of movement" to further neutralize force enacted upon you yet again..aiki. But now in a different way that normal movement can only hope to mimic. this is the essense of real aiki that captured the attention of seasoned warriors. The aiki that controlled and impressed so many.

It is, simply put...a different way to move.

The "principles of movement" behind the waza we usually see are all based on external movement that every Tom, Dick and Harry does. This is beneficial for superior teachers, as it teaches virtually all of the participants in budo to move in a fashion that is easier to take apart. One small example is teaching people to move "one side weighted." This is the way humans move, budo can strengthen and deepen that movement in you in its teaching...thus you are primed...to be thrown or to have to fight back with muscle. Which is very good for the teachers isn't it? Teaching you to move from center and to have aiki in you...is to teach you to be extremely difficult to deal with-for that same teacher teaching you. Interestingly a significant source for this high level work in the Japanese arts said publicly "Only teach one or two people per generation."

Why principles don't work all the time and people cannot duplicate perceived movement:
You can see martial artists all over trying to duplicate the movement of more connected teachers they see-yet they cannot achieve the same results. The reason is that almost nobody in budo moves from or is connected to their center well. It only takes a few seconds to demonstrate that to them in person. Beyond all their hopes and statements to the contrary-they really don't know how to do something as simple as -move from their center. When you lack that connection, higher level principles (based on connected movement) fail to function. The foundational requirement is missing.

Beyond all of this, there is a totally new playground of moving and connecting with people; with different modes of moving and absorbing and redirecting forces previously not attainable by people who lacked centered movement. And this has it's own levels of movement. We can add significantly to that by an awakened dantian...moving.

These things continue to be debated on the internet...and then clearly demonstrated in person and all debate....ends.
In order to truly understand, you have to walk away from waza and many of the principles of movement we have all been taught- based on lower level external movement, and begin again...creating a bujutsu body.
Dan
Dan
I shared this entry with John Clodig and he commented that it was succinct and to the point.....a lot said in a few words.......that he better understands where you are coming from......and that he agrees.....
Gary
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