Sifu Wong Kiew Kit’s Home Page
Shaolin Wahnam Video Series
Review of Intensive Shaolin Kungfu Course in Toronto, Canada, May 2007
The Marvelous Traveling Dragon Sword – Part 2
THE MASTER’S WEAPON AGAINST THE MOTHER OF WEAPONS
Grandmaster Wong demonstrating the application of the sword against the staff with Sifu Michael Chow
The staff is considered as the mother of weapons because it contains the main techniques of almost all other weapons! This must come as a surprise to many people as the staff, devoid of sharp edges and fanciful appendixes, looks simple. It does not, however, have the reverse-slicing technique of a hook, and the trapping technique of a trident.
There is another unique and interesting feature of the staff not found in other weapons. Weapons may be classified into light and heavy, and into long and short. But a staff can fall into any one of these four categories. In other words, a staff has the advantage of being light and heavy, long and short at the same time! It is an interesting example of profundity in simplicity.
The Chinese sword, on the other hand, is a master’s weapon, because it needs great skills to use a sword well. An ordinary martial artist would not be competent enough to use it effectively even when he knows the necessary sword techniques.
Learning how to use a sword against a staff is very cost-effective. It is like learning how to use a sword against a variety of different weapons. If you can counter a downward attack of a staff, you can counter the typical smashing attack of a Big Trident, if you can counter a sweeping attack of the staff, you can counter the horizontal cutting technique of a Big Knife, as they use the same principles.
A picture series and a video series showing the Traveling Dragon Sword set can be found
here and here respectively
Please note that you can download the video clips onto your own computer and view them at your leisure. Place your computer pointer at the picture or one of the links, and right click. Choose “Save Target As”. Select the directory or sub-directory where you wish to keep the video clip. Click “Save”.
How Not to use a Sword
In this video clip and the next one Grandmaster Wong shows how not to use a sword. Such incorrect uses are sometimes shown in movies depicting swordsmen against opponents using other weapons. Clashing a dainty sword against a heavy weapon would break the sword into pieces.
The size of the video clip is 2.12 mb.
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Don’t Break your Swords into Pieces
Grandmaster Wong continues to show how a sword should not be used. Using it in the ways shown here would result in the sword being broken into pieces. Then, how would you defend against or counter an opponent chopping you on your head or sweeping your at your sides with a long, heavy staff?
The size of the video clip is 1.09 mb.
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A Clean Killing Move of the Heavenly Dragon
An effective counter against a chopping staff is “Jade Girl Carries Pot”, followed by “Heaven Dragon Drops Water” if, as in the past, it is absolutely necessary to kill an opponent. This thrusting attack, piercing the sword into the opponent body near his armpit and coming out on the other side near his kidney kills in one smooth move. This, of course, is only for academic curiosity. None of us would want to do that. Another effective counter against the chopping staff attack is “Separate Clouds to Look at Silence”, which is as exotic as it is poetic.
The size of the video clip is 1.09 mb.
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More Compassionate Techniques to Disarm an Opponent
Instead of killing an opponent, a less drastic counter is to cut off his arm or more compassionately just to slice it which will be sufficient to disarm him to discontinue combat. “Separate Clouds to Look at Silence” and “Breeze Sways Floating Greens” are some of these compassionate techniques.
The size of the video clip is 1.29 mb.
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Fatal Strike, Nasty Counter or just Disarming him
An effective way to disarm an opponent without hurting him much is cutting his hand or wrist using the pattern “Phoenix Dots Head” or “Green Dragon Dots Water”. If he abuses your kindness and attempts to kill you instead, you can finish him with one strike using “Assassinating the Emperor” pierce the sword into his liver or kidney, or just point your sword at one of these vital organs indicating that you could pierce in if you wish. To be nasty against someone who is really nasty, you may slice his groin with “Point at Star and Look at Moon”. But actually we would choose just to disarm him by slicing his hands with “Sweep Thousand Armies”.
The size of the video clip is 1.91 mb.
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Beautiful Patterns, Beautiful Functions
Sword patterns are beautiful. Many people think that they are merely decorative, not knowing that they are what they are because of their combat functions. “Carry Moon at Bossom”, shown in this video clip, is one such example. “Green Dragon Starts Dancing” is as poetic as it is functional; it disarms an opponent at a time when he thinks he has made a strike.
The size of the video clip is 1.09 mb.
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Jian-Zi or Sword-Finger
An important aspect of swordsmanship is the form of the other hand not holding the sword. It is held in a formation known as “jian-zi” or “sword-finger”. Why is the sword-finger held in this particular way? It is because this particular formation facilitates chi to be channeled to the sword while not tensing the arm which may affect agility. It may also be used to dot an opponent’s vital point, as shown in this video clip.
The size of the video clip is 2.63 mb.
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We wish to thank
Sifu Emiko Hsuen and Sifu Michael Chow for providing these video clips
The Amazing Traveling Dragon Sword
Intensive Courses and Regular Classes
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