THE DOKKODO OR WAY OF WALKING ALONE – MIYAMOTO MUSHASHI

THE DOKKODO OR WAY OF WALKING ALONE-MIYAMOTO MUSHASHI

Written by the greatest swordsman in Japanese history, it is a short work written a week before he died in 1645 and has 21 precepts. This is very valuable today: (highlights are my own)

The 21 principles of Dokkodo:

  1. Accept everything just the way it is.
  2. Do not seek pleasure for its own sake.
  3. Do not, under any circumstances, depend on a partial feeling.
  4. Think lightly of yourself and deeply of the world.
  5. Be detached from desire your whole life long.
  6. Do not regret what you have done.
  7. Never be jealous.
  8. Never let yourself be saddened by a separation.
  9. Resentment and complaint are appropriate neither for oneself nor others.
  10. Do not let yourself be guided by the feeling of lust or love.
  11. In all things, have no preferences.
  12. Be indifferent to where you live.
  13. Do not pursue the taste of good food.
  14. Do not hold on to possessions you no longer need.
  15. Do not act following customary beliefs.
  16. Do not collect weapons or practice with weapons beyond what is useful.
  17. Do not fear death.
  18. Do not seek to possess either goods or fiefs for your old age.
  19. Respect Buddha and the gods without counting on their help.
  20. You may abandon your own body, but you must preserve your honor.
  21. Never stray from the Way.

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Ensuring Health the Old-Fashioned Way

Ensuring Health the Old-Fashioned Way:

  • Plenty of Sleep
  • Plenty of fluids including water, juices, the right kinds of tea
  • Eat Right and Eat the Correct Portions
  • A calm attitude (very hard in this day and age, always spar/do forms/practice, with a calm expression, intent, correct breathing, and focus)
  • Respect for all
  • Honor Always, to everyone
  • Make sure to work out regularly and train (training is repetition, practice is understanding)
  • Give yourself 1-2 hours a day, for you. This is not selfish, it is invigorating, for if you do not help yourself, you cannot help others

  • Practice your movements, keep moving, do the 5 ways of breathing, the 8 brocades, the 18 Lohan methods, and the Qigong meditation and movements

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The Five Methods and 1-2-3 Fighting Concept of Eagle Claw Kung Fu and Good Fighting

The Five Methods and 1-2-3 Fighting Concept of Eagle Claw Kung Fu and Good Fighting:

The Five Methods:

  • The Eyes-the eyes should be sharp and piercing
  • The Mind- the mind should be calm and alert
  • The Hands-the hands should be supple and fast changing
  • The Footwork-the footwork should be agile and quick
  • The Bodywork-the bodywork should be flexible and coordinated

The 1-2-3 Fighting Concept: (This combative strategy sounds simple but requires expertise, practice, and boldness/courage to execute)

  • Take the opponent’s skill-study what the opponent is doing, and use it against him
  • Set up the opponent-use false doors, feints, angles, deception, footwork, to deceive the opponent into thinking they understand what is happening
  • Quickly win the fight-three techniques or ten seconds, longer or more complex, will lose the fight, especially if it is multiple opponents
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PRACTICING – LEARNING CHIN NA – 108 LOCKS

PRACTICING/LEARNING CHIN NA (108 LOCKS), ONE OF FOUR PARTS OF FIGHTING (STRIKING, KICKING, GRAPPLING/WRESTLING, CHIN NA OR GRABBING/CONTROLLING):

To all, when practicing or learning chin na (108 locks of eagle claw for instance), a couple of points to keep in mind:

  • Be totally relaxed, sparkling eyes, rooted feet, be nimble, and stay coordinated.
  • Use your footwork to eat the space, create the bridge, instigate the attack.
  • Use your waist to create the power of the technique as well as the direction.
  • The chin na or lock movement should be relaxed and fast to the technique, then the first principle of Ying Jow locking is implemented: Jow Da Cum Na, or Grab, Seize, Lock. Once locked, the movement should either be controlling the opponent or finishing the opponent’s ability to resist.
  • The concept of soft to hard to soft must be understood and executed.
  • The six unities when attacking or defending are: unity of heart and mind, mind and chi, chi and power, hand and foot, knee and elbow, shoulder and hips. All of these must move together and be executed at the same time.
  • There are seven principles in Ying Jow Pai, the first of which has already been mentioned. The other Six principles, which we will teach as you become more advanced are: Fan bug chun cow/ tumbling, elbowing, absorbing, Yah ho, yih na, sam cow, se sau or yield/catch/take down/protect, fun gun chaw gwat or tear muscle muscle/break bone, dim yut bye hei or hit pressure point/stop the breath/seal the blood, and nim yih moot mak or read the pulse/meaning see the opponent and understand his skill/intent.
  • Employ the eagle claw walk (one of the four “pillars” of Ying Jow) i.e. the eagle claw footwork, to set up the techniques, the attacks, etc.
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