Tag Archives: Wu Yi Hui

8 Methods, Liu He Ba Fa

Liu He Ba Fa 8 Methods — 8th Method: Conceal

GM Wu Yi Hui performing猛 蛟 入 海 Měng Jiāo Rù Hǎi – Fierce dragon enters the sea from the Liùhébāfǎ Xìliè Qīnglóng Jiàn (六合八法系列青龙剑 )

The last method is Conceal (fu 伏).  One must hide appearance, conceal moment (yin xian cang ji 隐现藏机).

It is one thing to guard your intention but truly another to conceal it.  Once you have mastered the movements, make them flow effortlessly/subconsciously, and connected the harmonies you must conceal.  You must be able to manifest at will, without hesitation, and without divulging it.  This will make your wushu special and Gong Fu strong!  You instantly react and ultimately control.  The opponent only sees a calm and relaxed person infront of them.  They cannot tell what you will do and how you will react.  This will make them nervous and will give you signals to their actions.  Energetically and physically they will telegraph their intentions and desires.  They will be frantically paddling in your calm waters, disturbing you and giving you clues to the commotion.

How a person chooses to practice this method is up to the teacher.  Many lineages tighten up their style, creating a small frame with lots of intricate yet precise movements.  Others send intention back inwards allowing only their shen to permeate through their eyes.  Others believe it a nature progression of the training where conceal occurs as you work your way through the six harmonies and naturalize with emptiness (void).   Whatever a person’s method this concept allows you to reach a level where your Gong Fu seems miraculous.  Like GM Wu Yi Hui you will be able to surround  your opponent, avoiding and countering at will; all while they are unable to grasp you or your intentions.

8 Methods, Liu He Ba Fa

Liu He Ba Fa 8 Methods — 7th Method: Withhold

GM Wu Yi Hui holding the first standing post posture (1 of 8) from the form: working on stillness and centeredness

The 7th Method is Withhold (le勒). “Still, settle, guard humbly (jing ding shou xu 静定守虚).”   Very cryptic yet very powerful to higher level martial artists.  The ability to read a persons intent is a powerful tool but even more powerful would be to hide your intent from the reader, making you a quagmire and someone very difficult to deal with.  You must learn relaxation, quieting the mind, returning to your center, guarding your intentions — ultimately working towards emptiness.  A fighter with bravado can be a great thing to watch, he or she is exciting and engaged.  Yet It is even better to watch someone truly calm through the whole experience.  Someone who cannot be hit or beaten.  Someone in control of themselves and the entire situation.  They do not lash out in anger or excitement, they are swift, fluid, adaptable — untouchable.  Its beautiful and rare to see.

How do you begin to find your center, settle, and withhold?  You learn to relax (song), quiet the mind, listen inward, and control yourself.  You must learn to temper the seven emotions (anger, fear, joy, grief, anxiety, pensiveness, fright) and fight off the six desires (touch, taste, see, smell, hear, passion) If you learn to control /limit them you learn to control yourself. You will be able to restrain and quiet the spirit. You will find peace and stillness.  From there you will settle and allow things to come to you.  Your emptiness will calm your mind, allowing it to accept ideas and energy and giving it the ability to react without hesitation.  You will be humble yet will have a sense about you.

Internally once you learn control, restraint, and stillness you will open up blood flow and energy ways.  Your mind will be at ease.  Your muscles will relax.  Your heart will calm (you only have so many heart beats and the ability to lengthen those out creates health and longevity).  Blood and energy will be able to penetrate organs and pathways with more ease.  You will have no stress; you will fight off disease; and ultimately you glow with a health beyond your years.

6 Harmonies, Liu He Ba Fa

Liu He Ba Fa 6 Harmonies: 1st Harmony – Body Combines with your Heart (mind)

Chen Tuan, Creator of Liu He Ba Fa

1st Harmony:  Combine your body with your heart (mind) –ti he yu xin体合于心

Your heart is wild–it can be courageous or scared; it can be scattered or focused.  It can be many things.  The heart (your wild thoughts) must be trained and honed.  This is accomplished through training and dedication.  With Liu He Ba Fa its accomplished by conducting the form and focusing this movement with your heart (mind).   Even though delayed, giving your mind action gives it purpose and training.  You train every muscle with the form and engrain it into you.  Every muscle, tendon, ligament works in alignment and in total unison in action.  The force of such a movement can be outstanding (Force =Mass X Acceleration).  By getting every fiber of your being behind your action it creates a tremendous amount of power.  But to do so requires an immense amount of training.  The old saying by Bruce Lee is I don’t fear a man you does 10,000 different kicks but I fear a man who has done one kick 10,000 times.  Michael Gladwell, in his book, Outliers, is quoted that studies show a similar number in a fact of hours, 10,000, is what is needed to perfect a technique.  Without concentrated dedication to your practice and constant effort, only average gains may be made.

Once engrained it will become subconscious and work towards the instantaneous.  These efforts can be hindered though if you do not train your mind to relax and be calm.  To accept things and understand them.  This, in turn, will relax your body and give its ability to react more quickly, more succinctly.  Fa Song is a great ability.   It is not lazy relaxation, where you become “noodly” and disconnected.  It’s a relaxation that creates harmony throughout your body that allows for your body to feel and adapt.  This starts with your ability for your mind to relax, to let go of the troubles of the day and have the ability to focus on the task at hand.   To feel inside and outside your body the event and work towards totality with it.  With harmony one: through focused movement , proper relaxed alignment, and continued effort, both on the inside and out,  great gains can be made to make the form apart of you.