Here are ideas I complied of MWC. They are based on the responses the instructors gave. Paraphrased – I cannot recall everything so correctly…
Seb:
- Doing only localized decreases effectiveness (versus focusing on rising and the spine instead).
- How much attention can you keep on the other arm – the arm not moving? There should be equal attention on both parts
Nima:
- Don’t worry about getting internal energy so quickly. It is dangerous to do so. The Yogis say its dangerous to awaken the kundalini so quickly. Go slowly.
- You want it. Your craving the Nim Tao. Don’t crave it. Let it go.
- Keep a balloon or bowl or ball.
- Focus on rising. Tai gong and rise. You had more than enough information from the first video.
- First the majority of the back will relax. Then the traps and then the two straps of the back.
- Sigung said slow SNT is good but do it fast too. That way you’ll say see how much attention you can keep on the spine
- Tai gong needs to be initiated. Rising does not happen either without or through relaxation ALONE. Relaxation is necessary but so is the initiation. Can a baby rise? No. Even though its relaxed, it doesn’t have the ability to rise. Maybe if you taught it, it could. But not automatically.
- The key to victory in chi sau is being more relaxed than the other person.
- You are trying to grab the other person’s spine [in chi sau]
Chris:
- Top of the head and tailbone should be aligned. In such a manner that if the top of the skull were to drop, it would fall perfectly into the tailbone
- There are two tai gongs – one that allows rising up and the other that relaxes everything in the centerline
- Ip man told Sigung to do three things: stand straight, use no effort and have forward intention
- See how much attention you can keep on the spine. Mind will run away. Bring it back.
- Try pointing. See the difference?
- Your not aligned [standing straight]. Moving joints is good but your only here for a month so I don’t want you to get the wrong habits.
- We are not doing a kicking and punching exercise. We are seeing how much attention can we keep in the spine even when moving alot
- Body has to get used to trusting centerline
- Try this drill: stand on one leg and see how balance changes. Configure your partner for a kick and push back with feedback.
Tom:
- Find your perfect centerline. Everything will then relax on that line.
- We keep telling you the stuff but not everyone gets it. They think they understand but they’re limited by their capacity to understand
- Fook sau is straight. As if it’s lying on the table. Same with bong sau.
Lawerence:
- Too much information tenses [paraphrased from a conversation]
- Pivot with your mass
- CST could visualize chi. A qigong master came to him, they could both see shapes and colors. Such was their level. The qigong master did one shape. Then CST said, “let me show you mine” and did biu jee. His biu jee had many shapes and angles.
- CST BJ – could move another person entirely using fingers. They would hold up their fists, together – next to one another. CST would use fingers to move them.
- CST used to do 9 hours of SNT.
- CST used to do zhan zhuang through double tan sau.
- He practiced fully extending his hand up and then coming down to imitate striking taller opponent.