APPLYING SHAOLIN KUNGFU IN A MARVELOUS WAY
Question
The Essence of Shaolin is full of highly developed patterns. What unique benefits can participants expect from this to-be-legendary course? Will they get a chance to learn all the sophisticated applications and maybe also some combat sequences?
Thank you for offering Uncle Righteousness’ legacy to us! I will do my best to arrange my attendance.
Sifu Leonard Lackinger
Answer
The Essence of Shaolin course is once-in-a-lifetime as I am not going to offer this course again. It was Uncle Righteousness legendary set. Uncle Righteousness was his honorable nickname, his real name was Lai Chin Wah. He was called Uncle Righteouess for his sense of righteousness and his kungfu to uphold righteousness.
Uncle Righteousness was an excellent fighter -- at a time when the fist, not law, ruled the day. Certainly he was not called Uncle Righteousness for no reason. But I believe he did not need techniques from Essence of Shaolin to defeat his opponents. He was such a good fighter that even ordinary techniques could make him victorious.
But Uncle Righteousness had excellent fighting skills, and Essence of Shaolin certainly contributed much to his fighting skills. Essence of Shaolin was Uncle Righteousness’ legendary set, and I was very lucky to be the only student to be taught this legendary set.
After Uncle Righteousness had gone back to heaven, many masters asked me to teach them this legendary set, but at that time I wanted to reserve it for my chosen successor. Now I have decided to teach it to deserving students.
Many of the patterns in Essence of Shaolin are highly developed or sophisticated, but there are also many that are apparently simple, like Show Dragon Hide Tiger, Precious Duck Swims through Lotus, and Advance with Triple Punch. These patterns are found in most kungfu sets.
However, it is how they are used that make them highly developed or sophisticated. Most kungfu practitioners, even advanced ones, for example, would use Show Dragon Hide Tiger as a poise pattern, and Precious Duck Swims through Lotus and Advance with Triple Punch as ordinary attack patterns.
In Essence of Shaolin, these patterns are used in a very special way which make them very special. There are 108 patterns in Essence of Shaolin. They are specially selected for their marvelous application, including the apparently simple looking ones. That is why the set is called Essence of Shaolin. It contains the essence of Shaolin Kungfu, and by extension all martial arts.
Essence of Shaolin reminds me of the famous Chinese saying that if someone has studied the 300 poems of the Tang Dynasty, which is sometimes called the Golden Age of Chinese civilization, he can recite poetry like a poet even if he has no poetic talents. Of course, he must know some rudiments of Chinese poetry. If he does not even know what poetry is, he cannot recite the poems like a poet.
If someone has learnt the 108 combat applications of the 108 patterns of Essence of Shaolin, he can apply them in a marvelous way, even if he has no marvelous talents. Of course, he must know some rudiments of kungfu. If he is unable to perform a simple pattern well, he will be unable to perform any of the combat applications like a high-level master who has reached a marvelous level.
The patterns used in a marvelous way are taught in combat sequences. There are 108 patterns in the set, so there are 108 combat sequences. To attain a marvelous level, one does not need to use the 108 applications. If he can apply two or three patterns in a marvelous way, that is quite sufficient to make him attain the level of the marvelous.
On the other hand, if someone has learnt 108 sequences applied in a marvelous way, or even a quarter of them, he become so used to them that he becomes marvelous, not only in applying patterns form Essence of Shaolin, but also any kungfu patterns, and if he is smart in anything in his daily life.
Do you know the secret why our Shaolin Wahnam family members can use kungfu techniques for combat in just a few days in my intensive kungfu courses, whereas other people may not be able to do so after training for many years? I had the inspiration from Douglas, the most senior Shaolin Wahnam practitioner in Europe.
Douglas, who is American, speaks Spanish like a native. Once I asked him how he learned Spanish. He told me that he learned it in about two weeks when he first landed in Spain.
“About two weeks?” I asked.
“Yes,” he said. “I paid a lot of money to a company. The company sent a lady teacher who spoke only Spanish. So every day for two weeks, I spoke Spanish, ate Spanish, and slept Spanish.”
I forgot to ask him whether the lady teacher was young and pretty.
So, if a student practices 108 combat sequences in an ordinary way, he becomes ordinary. If he practices the combat sequences in a marvelous way, he becomes marvelous.
Course participants will also have a good opportunity to use different types of force when using combat application in a marvelous way. Although Essence of Shaolin focuses on techniques, because those who attend the course already have internal force, I shall also spend some time to use selected patterns from the set to develop various types of internal force. In the unlikelihood that I forget, can you or some kind soul please remind me?
Combat efficiency is the most basic of any kungfu training. Combat efficiency in a marvelous way is an once-in-a life-time opportunity.
But we are elite in Shaolin Wahnam. The Essence of Shaolin course will not only make us combat efficient in a marvelous way, but also contribute greatly to our health, vitality, longevity, peak performance, mental clarity and spiritual joys. Other arts in our school also bring us these wonderful benefits, but the Essence of Shaolin course will enable us to attain these benefits in a marvelous way.
This question and answer are reproduced from the thread 10 Questions on Essence of Shaolin in the Shaolin Wahnam Discussion Forum.
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