This year there turned out to be an empty spot for me in La Honda. I've been there only once before, but that time we practiced sword unusually for those years. During those times grandmaster taught sword also in Helsinki, and the sword is actually the only form I've learned directly from him, from the beginning to the finish. This time he continued teaching sword, and I learned many new details I wasn't aware of before, but let's get to those later.
First of all, everything is preparation, yu bei, that I practiced also while listening to grandmaster teaching. Always practice, like grandmaster said. Stand steady. Build your foundation first. After your legs are strong, you can focus more on your upper body and hands. Think from above, to help even your face relax. Be round. A circle is strong, like grandmaster demonstrated with an egg. Peng should be a circle, not too straight or angular. Circles are everywhere, in arms and legs, even in chest and back. A circle does not resist but yields to take control.
Grandmaster wanted us to focus especially on the Chinese saying: Yǒu rén ruò wú rén. Wú rén ruò yǒu rén. Somebody seems like nobody. Nobody seems like somebody. Chinese is read from right to left, so the clauses are read in a reverse order, but after all those are only two sides of the same coin.
Grandmaster asked many students how they would translate or interpret this, and personally I would maybe say something like: I don't know who you are. You don't know who I am. Therefore you can think I'm nobody, but I should also think you are nobody. And because you don't know me, I can be whoever I want to be.
But in general the idea is all about shadow boxing, how Western people used to know Tai Chi before they knew the Chinese name for the art. In an extra class in San Francisco after the camp we tried to apply the same in push hands. The first has the initiative. Nǐ bù dòng, wǒ bù dòng. Nǐ yù dòng, wǒ xiān dòng. If you don't move, I won't move. If you move, I'll move first, like a revolver duel in Western movies.
As I had a little hunch last June, I was finally taught the fishing posture. Usually we just skip the whole movement, but instead of keeping the right toes in front in phoenix spreading her left wing, you can step the toes of the right foot after the little dipper behind the heel of the left foot and twist the heel of the right foot a little to the right while keeping the right knee down. And then comes the new movement by flipping the sword in front of your body. Keep eyes on your sword while turning it up, back, down and forward. From there step directly into dragon walking.
We had a little tightness in the practice hall, so grandmaster also showed us how to practice without needing all the space the form usually takes. You can take two big steps back between three rings around the moon and the big dipper. And in cat chasing the mouse instead of jumping forward, you can jump backward right before the left foot would touch the ground in front of you.
The three very similar jumps are actually different. Cat chasing the mouse could be thought of as normal, but in wild horse leaping over the creek the jump is longer, and in carp jumping over the dragon gate the jump is higher.
Also in reining the horse there's no need to raise the sword, expect of course, if there's no room on the side to keep it flat. The focus should be in the last little pull.
And finally I started to adopt the names of the movements in sword, so I list them here as a reference. Grandmaster also said he would give us these names in Chinese next year.
- Starting Movement
- Three Rings Around The Moon
- The Big Dipper
- Swallow Touching The Water
- Side Sweeping, Right And Left
- The Little Dipper
- Swallow Returning To The Nest
- Cat Chasing The Mouse
- Phoenix Raising Her Head
- Wasp Flying IntoThe Cave
- Phoenix Spreading Her Right Wing
- The Little Dipper
- Phoenix Spreading Her Left Wing
- Fishing Posture
- Dragon Walking
- Birds Returning To The Trees
- Dark Dragon Waving His Tail
- Dragon Coming Out Of The Sea
- Wind Sweeping Lotus Leaves
- Lion Shaking His Head
- Holding The Tiger's Head
- Wild Horse Leaping Over The Creek
- Reining The Horse
- The Compass
- Dusting Against The Wind
- Current Pushing The Boat
- Meteor Chasing The Moon
- Fairy Horse Galloping In The Sky
- Lifting The Curtain
- Wagon Wheeling, Left And Right
- Swallow Carrying Dirt
- Eagle Spreading His Wings
- Scooping The Moon From The Sea
- Embracing The Moon
- Na Ja Venturing Into The Sea
- Rhinoceros Gazing At The Moon
- Shooting The Wild Goose
- Dragon Stretching His Claws
- Phoenix Spreading Her Wings
- Crossing The Fence, Left And Right
- Shooting The Wild Goose
- White Ape Offering Fruits
- Falling Flowers, Left And Right
- Fair Lady At The Shuttle
- White Tiger Raising His Tail
- Carp Jumping Over The Dragon Gate
- Dark Dragon Wreathing Around The Pole
- Fairy Pointing The Direction
- Single Incense Pointing To The Sky
- Wind Sweeping Plum Blossoms
- Holding The Tablet
- Ending Movement