The main reason that most people won’t get true internal arts, neigong, qiqong, etc. is that we can’t or won’t accept that those things work in ways beyond our current experience and understanding. Most of us simply will not have the mental ability to accept something other than what we *think* we already know.
Some people are too caught up in a punch-kick paradigm so they expect things to be explained to them in that fashion. It never seems to occur to people that what is INTERNAL about a martial art may go far beyond just punching and kicking. So you get statements like “what is the difference between a long fist punch and a taiji punch” or “there’s no difference between a taiji kick and a taekwondo kick” or “xingyi and Western boxing are the same thing.” People that don’t have the capacity or curiosity to look beyond simple physical movements like these just won’t be able to do anything internal.
Others are caught up in overly scientific ways of thinking so they simply can’t think beyond the bounds of physics. If something isn’t explained in those terms, they just can’t even conceive of it. Seldom do people realize that the simple understanding of physics that they cling desperately to just doesn’t explain everything that goes on in internal martial arts. Instead they are too busy trying to stuff what they don’t understand into a comfortable scientific mold.
You hear that people don’t have access to “real” internal arts but those arts operate outside of the accepted bounds of Western society, so what would most people do with it anyway?. “That’s fake” most would say. In order to learn, preconceptions need to be dropped. Few are willing.
I think we need to accept the fact that the internal will always be rare, especially in the West.
10 responses so far ↓
1 taijiquestion // Mar 7, 2008 at 1:06 pm
Thanks Dave for following up on power vs. sensitivity. As someone who wants to “get it” even if it takes xxx years (which it surely will…).
I was realizing lately that my old book on Simplified Chen, by Madame Kan Gui Xiang, had plenty of points about Internal aspects as opposed to all the purely “martial” movements being shown. Talk about slowing down of the force, closing force, and a lot more that sounded interesting but basically went right over my head.
Years later, now trying to learn Yang instead of Chen, and having opened my mind a lot I’m starting to feel a little beginner’s bit of all that invisible, mysterious stuff that the masters can demonstrate to the nth degree, at will. Feeling is believing.
2 neijia // Mar 7, 2008 at 10:47 pm
Agree with Dave. To oversimplify, either one of these: 1) martial arts 2) qigong - is hard enough. Even if everyone opened their minds and wanted to understand “internal”, most of us couldn’t do it because trying to combine the two is much harder. Right now I’m not good at either one - ugh.
3 Jay Gischer // Mar 7, 2008 at 11:38 pm
In Akido, they talk about “turning the head”, that is, the akido player will deal with an attack by turning, including his head so he is facing the same direction as the attacker. The attackers mind is influenced in this way.
It’s so obvious that this works from everything I know about human minds. There’s nothing really mystical fufu about it. But I’ve seen many martial artists reject it utterly. I think it’s more that it just isn’t what they want out of martial arts. Or maybe they don’t think it works on them.
Making something like that work in combat isn’t easy, punching someone is a lot easier. Maybe that’s why.
4 Q // Mar 8, 2008 at 12:06 am
At least for me and the majority I see, the problem is different. I do see a few people that pay to not get instructions (I really wonder why these people show up to class if they don’t believe the teacher), but those rarely stay long enough to count. Normally those who seek IMA to begin w/ are already aware of the difference in paradigm or else they would’ve sought out karate or TKD to begin w/. I think the biggest hurdle is still to find the RIGHT environment for you. It consists of more than just a good teacher, because some of my classmates were able to get it from my old tai chi teacher whereas I could not. I worked just as hard and tried to follow my teacher’s instructions to no avail. After starting bagua w/ my current teacher my development is so significant. You have to find a teacher that teaches in a way suitable for you, and sometimes it involves doing stuff you don’t understand w/o wasting your time questioning it.
5 Joseph T. Oliva Arriola // Mar 8, 2008 at 12:51 am
It is and then it Isn’t
It is the style…it isn’t the stle. It is the teacher and then it isn’t. It is the student and then it isn’t.
It is the style. It is the teacher. It is the student.
Yes, I agree with most of you. If you don’t have the right style you probably won’t get it. If you don’t have the right teacher, you probably won’t get it.
Furthermore, if you don’t have the student with the right stuff…no style, no teacher will be able to get him to get it.
It is a hard reality but, the herd, with all its beliefs in equality will never get it. Everybody that is successful will be seen as a fake.
6 wayne hansen // Mar 8, 2008 at 4:36 am
go back to cheng man ching
three esentials
natural talent (the ability to accept what is taught)
right method(a teacher who is not on the con)
persaverance(eating bitter)
some people are not meant to get it.
it is speical.
before coming to ima there were many things i was no good at.
seeing the reality of the internal ,i was home.
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7 Chris Marshall | Martial Development // Mar 8, 2008 at 4:57 am
Until now, there has always been a lack of motive, means or opportunity. But circumstances are changing.
8 tom // Mar 8, 2008 at 10:58 am
Chris, what is there about “now” that is changing?
9 Chris Marshall | Martial Development // Mar 9, 2008 at 5:05 am
I use “now” in historical scale. Long story short, we couldn’t even have this conversation twenty years ago.
Anybody who wants to learn about “internal martial arts” can sit down at the desk and press a button, and download ten thousand pages of material. It isn’t all good stuff, but it isn’t all bad either.
10 Scott // Mar 11, 2008 at 3:32 am
Well, since you are talking about different ways of thinking. The traditional Chinese reason some people don’t learn is:
“They aren’t fated to learn.”
Most people have a rigid fate, even those few who can come unglued enough to be unpredictable for a moment are rigid most of the time.
Freedom comes from knowing and accepting your fate.
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