Hopping Mad

Time to put this argument to bed permanently….

There is a community of martial artists, or at least keyboard warriors, who make it their mission to debunk video clips that they regard as too woo woo. The clips are generally of push hands type interactions where a small input from one of a pair training together results in a disproportionate response from their partner. The specific example that comes to mind in terms of online spaces where this occurs is The Fajin Project on Facebook, though no doubt there are many such examples. These clips are often mocked and revealed as “fake” given that there is no mechanism in physics that can justify what is going on, and they would be right in many cases. On this particular group (not that we spend much time there) there seems to be something of an obsession with kettlebells as if this is the missing ingredient to effective internal martial arts, they’re clearly feeling like something is lacking. Safe to say that most of the regulars favour a physical reductionist form of internal martial arts, with the internal bit justified by having more of a focus on biomechanics than external systems. There are some generalisations used here but it sets the scene reasonably. The intention here is not to call any individuals or groups out, we try not to spend too much time in this space and this is what we have come across.

In the internal martial arts world there is a spectrum of practice from highly physical to highly esoteric, all have a purpose but we believe that the physical approach to an internal art is a real wasted opportunity, like using a work of fine art to blow your nose for want of a more refined metaphor. If you want a martial art with no esoteric component there are plenty of fun choices out there.

To a degree these critics introduced above make a decent point in that any teachers or students making a leap from the type of exercises described here to declaring combat efficiency are a dangerous breed. Learning to fight requires fighting. And combat sports look like combat sports. Yes you could add a quirky move from your art in to the mix but there are plenty of examples of traditional martial artists stepping in to the cage trying to look like a certain style and getting KTFO. This point doesn’t need to be laboured any further.

So what is going on in these clips where the pusher barely moves and the receiver hops back several feet or some other disproportionate reaction, that just ain’t physics?! Well what is happening in this kind of subtle work is that a reaction is being triggered in the receiver. Nobody is blasting anybody across the room with a chi ball, but said chi ball could have an effect on the receiver’s energetic system such that they induce a physical response in themselves. To give the critics their due again, there are some examples where this is taken too far and it is highly likely to be theatre to attract students. And they may greatly exaggerate the usefulness of this stuff in the realm of fighting. It doesn’t have lots of applicability to fighting but it doesn’t have none either. This kind of practice really gives you an edge in clinch for example where you can feel which side the opponent is too full or empty when it is just an intention, they haven’t even moved yet. Definitely levels up your skills a bit but if your starting level is low then it’s not going to take you that much higher. Having an eye for this stuff and finding the real deal is a skill in itself.

The other important thing to note is that these exercises are semi-cooperative in the same way that external martial artists will spar at reduced intensity and go easier on beginners to give them a learning experience. Often the critics suggest if such a thing were tried on them there would be no chance they would move, they would make themselves strong as a brick wall. They’re quite right they wouldn’t move but again, missing the point. The receiver should provide some level of resistance to facilitate the exercise but then will ‘listen’ and respond honestly and proportionally to give feedback and progress the cultivation of both of them. It is worth noting that as with most of our stuff we are approaching this from an energetic angle. You can influence somebody physically in strange ways, like ‘wrong-footing’ them in a sporting context, badminton for example. You are simply using body language. There is also a mentalism approach to this kind of stuff, Derren Brown once did empty force knock downs on one of his television programs, can’t remember which.

Back to the matter in hand…let’s take a real life example that we were working with recently. It was a pair exercise where hands were held out in front naturally between waist and chest height. The pusher would get under the bridge of the receiver and provide upward force to open the guard or unbalance. So a small amount of resistance was provided, basically the weight of the arms plus a little bit, and the pusher would raise up their partners bridge. The pusher would then try this again but this time run the air element through the point of contact and see what difference it makes. The receiver will give an honest physical response i.e. +/- the physical only approach, and then they can both discuss to see how it felt from either side. Minimal martial applicability aside from an increase in sensitivity (which would have to be integrated with aggression to be of any use), but a real catalyst in terms of the cultivation of the individuals. And very fun too, to the degree magic exists in the world, this is it.

This can all be expressed in a single sentence; the pseudo martial exercises in Tai Chi are for the purpose of diagnosing functional relaxation and the resulting energy flow.

So that’s it, subject dealt with, no need to spend hours online bullying those nice spiritual folk.

If you would like to know more about our controversial take on martial arts for self-defence check out the August 15th 2023 blog post.