You Are the Weapon

Knife as weapon.

“Everyone talks about it, that the weapons of WingChun would improve the system, but why did no one do it?”
Sifu Klaus Brand

In popular conception, “wing chun” invokes several mental images. Besides the so-called wooden dummy, it is the iconic weapons. Nearly all lineages of wing chun impart them as the most advanced forms in their teachings.

Form Chinese Transliteration Translation
Fourth 木人樁 Mok Yan Jang Wooden Person Post
Fifth 六點半棍 Lok Dim Buen Gwun Six Point Half Pole
Sixth 八斬刀 Bat Zam Dou Eight Chopping Knives

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Music of the Bones

The following post is a personal essay my student Mariano Wechsler. He shares his sensory experience of “becoming WingChun”:

Root down, branch out.

I drive my legs to the ground rooting myself down in the Earth. Like an old Oak sucking water from deep among the soil, I draw the energy from my feet into my legs and up to my torso to deliver power through my arms.

This pulse of energy passes through my body again and again like waves crashing ashore, one after the next.

I exhale sharply at the end of each movement as every muscle locks in clock-like synchrony. Continue reading

IAW Headquarters Trip – Day Eight

It was a free Friday morning. So I took off to Karlsruhe for a tasty lunch at my usual eatery there and a sunny stroll through the pedestrian-friendly streets.

This time, while crossing a long arcing bridge on the way downtown, I even managed to happen upon several dust-bathing elephants. I’ll have to assume they were just local zoo denizens. Taking advantage of the extremely convenient public transport system, I made it back in time to Bruchsal for a Special Class at the Headquarters.

The current summer event schedule has been perfect for an indefatigable WingChun journeyman like myself, since many days have featured multiple trainings. Today is no exception as we subsequently geared up for a Master Class, my second one this visit.

Tonight integrated a wide-ranging mix of representative excerpts from our Forms, Sections and Applications. Sifu was deliberately preparing us for our important Sunday endeavor. In an earlier post, I briefly referred to this occassion. I’d like to elaborate. Continue reading