Repetition Repetition Repetition
There is only one way to learn something properly and that is to repeatedly do it until you get it right.
So how do you know when it is right ? Do you rely on your teacher to tell you or is there some explicit objective measure of correctness that you may use to assess whether what you are doing is correct ?
The problem with performance martial arts is that they need an external judge to inform you of the relative merit of your performance. A form is just a form, most people only know that theirs is correct because their teacher tells them. In Taijiquan there are a set of specific principles for the performance of the form that enables the practictioner to be able to judge by themselves the correctness of their form. Unfortunately most people are unable to gauge their abilities against these criteria and hence perform the form incorrectly whilst believing that they are 100% correct. Others perform the form in ways that are graceful and more aesthetically pleasing than is normal because they have no idea as to the function behind the form and think it is just some form of physical expression with no underlying meaning and hence they can do with it what they please. In one sense they are correct, it can be that if they want it to be but then it is not Taijiquan – it is just dancing.
To do the form properly requires constant practice and repetition to be able to internalise the posture, timing and intent. A lot of people find posture hard because they have a poor self-image of their own bodies and believe they are in the correct posture when everybody else can see that they are not. They miss the fine points because they focus on the wrong things – they see the arms move so move their arms when the arms remain still and the body moves. Intent can only come from understanding the applications of the form postures. Without practice of the applications the form cannot be performed properly.
Application practice is hard because there is no one right way. There is a correct method which is determined by the opponent and the art and not by a clearly defined movement pattern. The applications must be practiced in all ways, at all speeds, against all sizes of opponents. For only then can the essence of the application be understood so that it can then transcend the application.
So How do you know if you are doing the application correctly ? There is a simple empirical test – did it work ?
January 29, 2010 at 1:51 am | Training | No comment
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