OPENING THE DRAGON



Last month I talked about the Tiger Techniques (See 'opening the Tiger' article) and how they developed. If you read that article closely you probably have an inkling of what I am going to say this month.
To bring you up to speed let me open with this brief recap...
The Tiger deals with Force. To make his techniques work the Tiger must intially step backwards. This allows him the time to mount and deliver his Force.
But the Dragon is a sly fellow who is not interested in bashing forearms, breaking bones, or otherwise delivering destruction while placing himself in the path of destruction.
This is the crux of the matter.
The Tiger wishes to deliver a Force and isn't always careful about recieving a Force.
The Dragon, on the other hand, wishes to deliver a Force or Flow while not recieving a Force or Flow.
Do you see how much smarter he is?
Intelligence can come with age. Looking at politicians does tend to refiute this, but in the Martial Arts it tends ot be a truth.
Simply, experience, especially that experience tempered on the real world of the Dojo does breed wisdom.
What works.
So the Dragon, through bruises and contuses, learns to step aside while doing his punching and hitting and such.
But also, if the Art the person is studying has any depth, the person learns through the study of the correct technique how to become wise.
As I said last month, one learns to confront Force, and then moves into Flow.
Which brings us to the subject of the Dragon techniques in The Perfect Art.
The Dragon must grow out of the Tiger.
For this to happen the blocks must proceed from soft to hard. The collapsation of distance must occur and the student must be willing to move in and learn to make the hard block move towards him, instead of away from him.
The Inward Middle Block of the Tiger goes out from the Tan Tien.
The same block, done as a Dragon, involves the body moving towards the opponent while the hand moves back.
Thus, instead of Forcing, the emphasis is on Flowing.
Guide, instead of break.
And the Inward Middle Block has become a 'Brush Block.'
The Brush block is done with the palms or backs of the hands, and the intent is to apply mere ounces instead of hundreds of pounds.
But if you don't understand where it came from, and the geometric progression of the gradient techniques growin from the Inward Middle Block, chances are you won't understand how the Tiger becomes the Dragon,a nd how the Hard becomes the Soft.
So let's draw a few pictures to illustrate anbd help your understanding. Since we ended with Green Belt last month let's proceed with 3rd Brown Belt.


3RD BROWN BELT


Left Back Stance with a right Inward Middle Block. Pull the Attackin wrist with the left hand as you execute a right Elbow Spike to the armpit. Step forward with the left leg as you spiral the Attacker's arm up and around to a Vertical Wrist Pin.


You may recognize this as a variation on the Green Belt technique. The difference, really, is the the Green Belt technique goes over the arm, the 3rd Brown Technique goes under the arm. Other than that, it is the same technique.
1) The whole body is used against a single arm, introducing weight and leverage as a simple counter to Force.
2) The Defender has started moving from a fixed position. This concept will be elaborated on to great extreme.
3) As you encounter the potential for variations you should understand one important thing. The Tiger techniques open the door for variations. The Dragon steps through.
In The Perfect Art virtually all techniques are windows to secondary and tertiary techniques. In the beginning, up to Green Belt, the techniques are dry basics. But past Green Belt the windows open and suddenly a simple technique is examined for potential after potential. And this is only possible if you have examined a specific technique on all gradients (through all the belts).
And what this means is that while the first techniques can be taught one to a lesson, the advanced techniques must be examined for all sorts of potentials and variations. In fact, whole Arts are known to be opened up through a single technique.

To understand this next technique let me list the Blue Belt technique offered last month. Please remember that all attacks are from the right side.


BLUE BELT


Simultaneous right Inward Middle Block and right Front Snap Kick.
(The Attacker launches a secondary strike with the left fist to the head) Catch the Attacker's wrist with the right hand as you stomp the right foot in a Leaning Tiger (Front) Stance and execute a left Punch.


2ND BROWN BELT


So, simultaneous right Inward Middle Block and right Front Snap Kick.

But, when the Attacker offers the left punch, pull his left shoulder with your right hand and push his right shoulder with your left hand.


The result is an Axis Spin. You might have to step forward with the left leg to make this work. You may have to make adjustments for heighth and so on. You can find a variation by pulling the Attacker's wrist as you push on his shoulder. You can 'Shock and lock' by striking (Clawing) his face, and so on.
1) Timing is speeding up, as is necessity.
2) Soft is being offered as a simple gradient alternative to Force.
3) We are entering the world of Aikido and Pa Kua simply by adding footwork to the basic Karate Block. (Or Kung Fu Block, or whatever.)


1ST BROWN BELT


Step slightly forward with the right foot as you execute a Right Inward Middle Block, then spin and step to the rear with the left foot as you execute a hook, thus pulling the Attacker by virtue of his own punching direction, around and into a Wrist Lock.

This is an Aikido technique. Yet it is built from a Hard Block. Hard becomes Soft. And Tiger become Dragon.
1) The footwork at this level starts to explore the points of the compass, and the various concepts of the various Arts, but it does not leave the concept of the hand motion of the Inward Middle Block.
2) The geometric vectors of the defense change from disagreeing to agreeing. It's funny, the concept of harmony as a philosophy is not necessary, but is a contrivance of a man interested in religious implications.
Do you need to study Christianity to build a bridge? I think not. Physics are just not effected by today's religions.
Will a better bridge be built by a Christian? Maybe. If discipline and principle play a part in developing a better character, and better character is necessary to adhering to the physics of the Universe.
But religion is not necessary to the building of a Martial Art.
In fact, the person who can strip himself of philosophy, as man understands it today, actually stands a better chance of understanding the truths of the Universe.
Bear in mind, please, that though what I have said may appear contentious, it really only 'Opens the door,' much as the Tiger opens the door for the Dragon. It is really only contentious if you refuse to go through the door.
3) This level has revealed a truth of the Martial Arts and of the Universe. The only way out of chaos is to march right through it.
Yes, you could run, but eventually that chaos will catch you. Some other time, some other situation, same chaos.
Chaos is not order.
The solution to chaos is to go through it, understand it, and order it. Thus...there will be no chaos. This is a truth recognized only by the Dragons among us.

There are other techniques. The ones I have presented here are the base techniques, the simplest or the most enlightening, considering the context of the article.
The real trick is to understand how the doors open by studying the techniques revealed by the Flow Chart, and to apply yourself so that you know what to do no matter where you are, how you are standing, no matter the situation, and so on.
Please bear in mind that what I have shown you here, for one block, I have done for all blocks. Every Block has been analyzed for potential, explored for further potential through footwork, and then placed in the appropriate place on the Al Case Flow Chart. Further, these blocks are taught gradiently.
The end result is that because there is no mystery to the Martial Arts a student can be brought to Expertise within an astoundingly short time.
Consider. If I wrote 0-9 on ten pieces of paper and tossed them on the floor in front of you...could you count?
Nope.
Oh, maybe eventually. But think of the 'Thinking' you would have to do to accompish the simple fact of counting.
But with the Al Case Flow Chart the numbers are in order, no mystery what they mean, and the student just starts...counting.
It really is incredible.
And yet it is only knowledge...'Understanding' something.
I said it before and I'll say it again. If you understand something before you do your speed of learning will be increased ten times. Heck! A hundred times.
You think not?
Try doing what I have shown you in this article and then make up your mind.
You just might find your Tiger changing into a Dragon.


Monster Martial Arts