Why Practice Internal Boxing Arts (Neijiaquan)?

[WhiteTiger]

Please excuse me and I am sorry if posts like this have already been discussed. My hopes is to make this discussion a deep one.

 

Why does one practice Internal Martial Arts?

 

It doesn't matter whether you practice Taijiquan, Xingyi or Bagua. In fact their are many other internal martial arts other than that many many like Water boxing (Liuhebafa) or PiGuazhang

 

Here are some reasons I thought up many may practice Internal Martial Arts for.

Internal Cultivation?

how to fight?

getting healthier?

 

Although these qualities may come in a practitioner that practices an hour or two hours per week to every day. Many may have even practiced for 5 or 10+ years maybe even longer.

 

My question is simply why would you practice Internal Martial Arts?

[lifeforce]

Martial arts are in my blood man !

I've gone from the 'external' arts of judo, karate, wing chun, muay thai, ninjutsu etc when I was younger, to the 'internal' of xingyiquan and yiquan.

Basically, the first reason I switched as I got older, was for health. The externals take a lot out of you, and I've had a few injuries over the years which would have gotten worse had I continued.

Xingyi and yiquan have allowed me to build a strong healthy body from the inside out and taught me that I can deliver 'maximum power with minimum effort'. They have also given me a light, fluid feeling in all physical aspects of life such as walking and even when at work. I only wish I had discovered them at an earlier age.

I hope that through these excellent practices, that I can move gracefully into old age, and not stumble into it.

[Gerard]

My reasons:

 

1. Health

2. Spiritual

3. Fitness

4. Cultural (to keep alive Traditional Chinese culture)

5. Martial

 

 

We humans are designed to move, sitting the whole day meditating is definitively not the way to go.

[TzuJanLi]

Greetings..

 

Immersion in the practices of Awareness and Clarity.. a journey with no destination.. it's not about the competition, the winning or the ego.. it's a direct lesson in the nature of 'who/what you are'.. i know world class fighters that you would never guess are capable of such power, they are humble and respectable and compassionate beings..

 

The name of my former martial arts school was "Extreme Harmony Martial Arts", in fact.. i think i will change the name of my current school, "Three Harmony Tai Chi Club" (Body, Mind, Spirit), to Extreme Harmony Internal Arts Club".. Harmony is, currently, too narrowly defined/watered down.. there is stunning harmony even in extreme circumstances, that is, or should be, the task of an 'Internal Martial Arts system.. harmony even in extreme circumstances..

 

I study MA because it is among the the most pure and revealing tests of character and 'understanding'.. i am willing to be tested and to test myself.. MA is one of the few tests you really can't cheat at.. if there's no rules you can't cheat, and the results are, generally, clear..

 

Be well..

[steve]

I started training in Japanese martial arts at age 12. Mostly empty hand but then got into the sword arts.

I then got into Wing Chun. My teacher got thrown in jail after several years of training with him, so back to Japanese arts.

 

When I hit 40, I found I could no longer train hard with the young guys and manage to get up for work the next morning. Too many injuries, too much soreness and stiffness (I was in a very traditional school that emphasized full contact).

 

That's what stimulated me to seek out Taijiquan. For the first year or two it was just the form and QiGong and was very healing and healthy and built me up. Then I got into the more martial side of the training but there's a very different quality to the physical training that doesn't cause me to always be so sore and injured, even when we train very physically and very hard. Sure, my back is sore quite a bit from some of the pushing and pulling and throwing and I get bruised up quite a bit, but it's not like it used to be in the Japanese school. Plus, the QiGong and form continually rejuvenate me after the tough training.

 

At the recommendation of my teacher, I also took up Daoist meditation which brings a whole other aspect to the table.

 

So my reasons for practicing internal arts -

Health and fitness

Self defense training

Spiritual development

 

 

The name of my former martial arts school was "Extreme Harmony Martial Arts", in fact.. i think i will change the name of my current school, "Three Harmony Tai Chi Club" (Body, Mind, Spirit), to Extreme Harmony Internal Arts Club".. Harmony is, currently, too narrowly defined/watered down.. there is stunning harmony even in extreme circumstances, that is, or should be, the task of an 'Internal Martial Arts system.. harmony even in extreme circumstances..

 

 

 

I like 'extreme harmony' - that actually would be a pretty fair English translation of Tai Ji.

I dislike the usual tranlation - supreme ultimate, it totally misses the point. It's way too lopsided in English.

Extreme harmony or, better yet, harmony of extremes or unity of extremes, is a much better translation.

 

Do you know anyone teaching in the Sarasota area?

My family lives there and I'd love to find them a good program down there.

At least until I decide to move!

[fiveelementtao]

When I was young I tried a few external martial arts... Karate, Chung Moo Quan, Thai Boxing... But I always felt something was missing. I really wanted something that took care of spiritual, metaphysical and emotional...

I was drawn to Mao Shan Pai Spirit Fighting because primarily it was metaphysically very powerful. The forms are actually shamanic talismans that are traced with the hands and feet inside a Pa Kua which summon different dieties or cosmic forces. This power was used to change their energy bodies to enable them for OBE's and banishing negative energies... Physical Self defense is a wonderful by product but is not the primary motivation. Ironically, for myself, (just my experience) I have yet to find another art that is faster, deadlier or more effective in a self defense situation. Since the chi power is so intense, I find that winding down my workout with Tai Chi and/or primordial Tai Chi to be very helpful in absorbing the cosmic energies into my tendons and bones ... Otherwise, the energy is so intense that if it is not reabsorbed back into the body and energy channels, that it can make one a little loopy.

It is also my experience that the power of my meditations is increased exponentially after my spirit fighting workouts...

So for me the primary reasons are for

1: Cultivation

2: Health

3: Self-Defense

Edited November 28, 2009 by fiveelementtao

[Old Man Contradiction]

It makes me happy

[Non]

to fight off evil spirits...?

Edited November 29, 2009 by Non

[WhiteTiger]

Martial arts are in my blood man !

I've gone from the 'external' arts of judo, karate, wing chun, muay thai, ninjutsu etc when I was younger, to the 'internal' of xingyiquan and yiquan.

Basically, the first reason I switched as I got older, was for health. The externals take a lot out of you, and I've had a few injuries over the years which would have gotten worse had I continued.

Xingyi and yiquan have allowed me to build a strong healthy body from the inside out and taught me that I can deliver 'maximum power with minimum effort'. They have also given me a light, fluid feeling in all physical aspects of life such as walking and even when at work. I only wish I had discovered them at an earlier age.

I hope that through these excellent practices, that I can move gracefully into old age, and not stumble into it.

 

Interesting that you do Xingyiquan.

 

thank you for your contributing to the subject

 

btw nice picture of Kuo Lien Ying.

 

We humans are designed to move, sitting the whole day meditating is definitively not the way to go.

 

This is very true.

 

Greetings..

 

Immersion in the practices of Awareness and Clarity.. a journey with no destination.. it's not about the competition, the winning or the ego.. it's a direct lesson in the nature of 'who/what you are'.. i know world class fighters that you would never guess are capable of such power, they are humble and respectable and compassionate beings..

 

The name of my former martial arts school was "Extreme Harmony Martial Arts", in fact.. i think i will change the name of my current school, "Three Harmony Tai Chi Club" (Body, Mind, Spirit), to Extreme Harmony Internal Arts Club".. Harmony is, currently, too narrowly defined/watered down.. there is stunning harmony even in extreme circumstances, that is, or should be, the task of an 'Internal Martial Arts system.. harmony even in extreme circumstances..

 

I study MA because it is among the the most pure and revealing tests of character and 'understanding'.. i am willing to be tested and to test myself.. MA is one of the few tests you really can't cheat at.. if there's no rules you can't cheat, and the results are, generally, clear..

 

Be well..

 

Well said and thanks for sharing!

 

to fight off evil spirits...?

 

When you say evil spirits I'm not sure we are thinking the same thing.

How would you define an evil spirit?

 

peace,

wt

Edited December 1, 2009 by WhiteTiger

[Non]

when you say evil spirits I'm not sure we are thinking the same thing.

How would you define an evil spirit?

 

peace,

wt

 

Heh it was a bit of a joke and metaphor. I mean generally spirits, ghosts, negative energies, inner demons, etc. since sometimes it seems like people who practice internal martial arts (not so much chi kung tho) it seems like they're fighting something that "isn't there". If you practice it for health, you are in a way "fighting" negativity. And if you think about it practicing it gives it form, which may or may not be useful...

[WhiteTiger]

Heh it was a bit of a joke and metaphor. I mean generally spirits, ghosts, negative energies, inner demons, etc. since sometimes it seems like people who practice internal martial arts (not so much chi kung tho) it seems like they're fighting something that "isn't there". If you practice it for health, you are in a way "fighting" negativity. And if you think about it practicing it gives it form, which may or may not be useful...

 

Thank you very much for taking the time to explain the bit of the metaphor.

[Non]

Thank you very much for taking the time to explain the bit of the metaphor.

 

actually a bit deeper would be "the movement or transformation of energy"...