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Pa Kua Chang, Aikido, and Controlling a Mob!

Control a Mob Using Aikido, Pa Kua Chang, or Other Martial Art!

I was reading a martial arts journal several years ago, I think it was Black Belt, and I stumbled upon this anecdote involving Morihei Ueshiba. O Sensei would go to different towns and put on Aikido exhibitions. I have no doubt the exhibitions were spectacular, however the thing that inspired the heck out of me was the tale his uchideshi (inside student) provided regarding O Sensei’s crowd walking procedure.

pa kua chang aikido

Build Unlimited Chi!

 

When traveling across a train station (for example) O Sensei would just walk straight forward, emanating his chi, and the masses would part. Individuals might turn and stare at this imperious titan, then the masses would close up. The Uchi deshi, packed with trunks and bags, would struggle through the closing people.

The thing that inspired me about this relating of event was not that a man could easily emanate effective chi and sweep back a masses, but that it reminded me of my very own crowd walking experiences.

When I was in eleventh grade I used to love to run through groups. I might be late for class, or merely playing tag with someone, and all of a sudden something would come over me and I would be in complete sprint. The halls would certainly be jammed, and I would be turning on the penny, scrambling full tilt, not able to be tripped (and a few of the teenagers would certainly make an effort). Young women might gasp and also offer little shrieks as I ran full tilt towards them, then turned and spun around them. The ground resembled a magnet to my feet, I never ever slipped, it was like I was flash, yet with magic glue on my soles.

O Sensei’s crowd walking blew me away, however it was so different from mine.

Emanating chi like he was a walking heater. It was the start of my martial arts calling, and control of chi in such outstanding way was yet a dream. Still, I had my very own strategy.

As time went on I acquired the capacity to exhibit chi, though not to the degree of O Sensei, yet, remarkably, I started to hold my very own approach up as perhaps not so scruffy.

The key, of course, was in engaging in Pa Kua Chang, in walking the circle. Particularly, I would focus on walking INCREDIBLY slowly. I would feel the chi go up and down the legs, and I started to comprehend a few things.

One, there was even more finesse in my procedure than merely turning it on and blasting individuals back.

Two, Pa Kua Chang in fact didn’t instruct individuals to crowd walk like I was doing it. Classic Pa Kua Chang was more into tricky hands, and not into fine tuning the walk itself. Walking slowly, concentrating the mindset on the generation and control of chi in the legs, made lightening in the legs. And this lead to the next understanding.

Three, I could show individuals ways to walk through crowds ten times more effortlessly and successfully, and there was a WHOLE LOT more contentment in the teaching.

Chi blasting a group is enjoyable, however it is pretty much a bully method.

Understanding ways to worm through the people at high speeds inspires the resourcefulness, it is subtle, it needs more entire body strategy. And this last is fascinating, and actually crucial to the expanding martial artist.

Contrast it to a musical instrument. Chi blasting such as O Sensei did is comparable to the opening chords of’ 2001: A Space Odyssey.’ (Thus Spoke Zarathustra). Crowd walking such as I explain and instruct with my unique Pa Kua Chang resembles playing Flight of the bumblebee.

One is spectacular, the other is elaborate. One is remarkable, the other is subtle. One is overpowering, the other is shading subtleties of colour unto infinity.

And, of course, when it pertains to crowd walking martial arts procedures, one shoujld understand both. Have the ability to be subtle, and blast at a second’s notice.

You can easily check into my specific Pa Kua Chang at Monster Martial Arts.