Any martial artist can acquire techniques, tactics and applications but to understand the philosophy behind it requires a knowledge of martial arts that far surpasses mere tactics.
The word Esoma comes from the overlapping of the Latin words 'ESO', meaning within and 'SOMA', meaning body. Kung Fu must be embedded in the body to allow the mind to be free to think of strategies or evaluate unfamiliar situations.
The central aspect of Esoma philosophy is the separation of the mind from the body at a certain point in your training. When a person is learning something new, the mind & body must work as one. Once the mind has reinforced the body and the body has reinforced itself with repetition, it becomes a conscious effort on the part of the practitioner to actually separate the mind from the body. Then the body has to react to a situation based on what it has learned, not what it believes could happen; not what could be. The success of your kung fu is based on what you retain inside the body more than what the mind remembers.
There are two major considerations for adjusting attitudes in Esoma;
The Extremist and the Pessimist.
The degree of importance placed on a task sets the stage for determining
one's attitude. It is the attitude that controls how the body and mind
function. Even though a person may be very proficient at a given task,
it is the attitude while performing the task that determines the results.
Attitude can outweigh experience in martial arts.
Imagine walking across a two inch wide beam, suspended eight inches
above the ground between two concrete blocks. We keep score, adding one
point to each person's score if they fall, until every person has crossed
the beam twenty times without falling. Here the importance placed on not
falling and getting the best score sets the attitude for the game. The
value placed on winning the game will have a definite affect on performance.
Change the rules somewhat. This time, we say that anyone who falls
must pay the others in the game $10. Though no other parameters change,
some people will have problems crossing the board without falling because
the importance placed on the outcome has increased and affects the performance
of the players. To carry the point to extremes, change the rules again.
If the same beam were placed thirty feet above the ground, imagine what
would happen. Even though every player had previously crossed the same
board twenty times without falling, very few, if any, would be willing
to cross the board. The body will not function properly when the risk becomes
too great.
This is the attitude of the Extremist. Many students place themselves
in this situation every time they come to class by placing so much importance
on the outcome of what they are practicing. They place so much emphasis
on getting everything perfect that the body and mind can not function.
They try so hard that nothing seems to work, it becomes impossible to relax.
It's important to be aware that it is OK to make mistakes. Growth comes
from trial and ERROR. Analyzing applications in Esoma is great but
to be over analytical stagnates progress. Most of the techniques, blocks,
punches, kicks, require the student to experience the sensation and grow
accustomed to how things feel. No amount of reading, thinking, or analyzing
can prepare one to perfectly synchronize the gas and the clutch of a car
if you have never driven. It is something that must be felt and experienced.
Learning Esoma is also something that must be felt and experienced
by the mind and the body.
The mind can not analyze and do at the same time. One must give way
to the other. Do the technique, Do the kick, Do the form, without placing
undue importance and pressure on the outcome; then analyze what happened
and what can be done to improve upon it the next time.
The Pessimist wills himself to fail by constantly telling himself that
he "can't do it"; or, "why can't I do it". The mind is very proficient
at providing answers to all questions, regardless of how ridiculous they
may actually be. Ask questions that will stir the imagination toward a
positive mental attitude. Turn "I can't do it " into "I can't do it, YET"!
Esoma techniques cannot be mastered in one or two attempts.
Avoid the word try. Replace it with the word do. To try something is
to not do it! The moment you succeed, you have done it. The only time you
can say you tried something, is when you have failed. The more you use
the word try, the more failure is reinforced.
Get in the habit of asking positive questions about who you are, what
you want, and how you can get better. This will keep you focused on solutions,
not problems. Questions like: "What's not perfect about this kick yet?";
or "How can I make this stance better?"; or "What can I do to get this
form to look like the instructor's?".
Attitude is based on awareness. Awareness is the result of what we're
focused on. What we're focused on becomes our reality. If you want to be
down, depressed, spiritless; it's easy, keep your awareness focused on
everything bad in your life. But, if you want to be up, happy, and full
of spirit; that's easy too, focus on the good in your life.
You change your attitude by changing your reality. You change your
reality by changing what you're aware of. You change what you're aware
of by changing your focus. You change what your focus is by changing the
questions you ask yourself.
Consistently ask questions that force you to focus on things that make
your reality more pleasant. Do it in a way that becomes very natural and
normal.
Breathing should remain natural and relaxed, utilizing the diaphragm
to pull oxygen into the lungs. This frees the chest muscles and allows
them to be used for kung-fu. Breathing with the chest forces the practitioner
to hold their breath during strenuous activity. Proper breathing helps
relax you. It allows more oxygen intake. You do not tire as quick. It removes
more waste, allowing the muscles to work longer without fatigue. You can
deal with pain and cold better if you are relaxed.
Gently push the tip of the tongue against the roof of the mouth and
breath through the nose. When a strong exhalation is needed, open the mouth
and thrust the diaphragm upward to force the air out. This is similar to
the action of a cough. Use the diaphragm not the chest muscles. The diaphragm
contracts, (pulls down) and elongates the lungs, drawing in air. When it
relaxes, it goes up on it's own and allows the lungs to expel air.
In training the body, the Esoma practitioner speaks to the body
by relating the pulling action of the muscles as being more important,
in the beginning, than the actual block or strike being executed. Since
the muscles of the body can only pull, not push, it is believed that the
body understands the word "pull" more clearly and therefore reacts quicker
to harmonize the movements of the body opposite the striking hand. By concentrating
more on the hand that is not attacking ( "the hand not doing"). The attacking
side remains much more relaxed and natural. Later, after the fundamentals
have been acquired, attention is focused on the striking hand. The same
applies to blocks.
There are three basic types of pulls taught:
In our philosophy; we never hit anything, we never hit anyone, we never
block anything, we hit or block our focal point. Our focal point is always
going to be there, it allows us to be able to maximize our potential without
compromising our technique due to perceiving a resisting force. An excellent
opportunity to practice this is when you strike at a bag, mitten or break
a board. Board breaking gives you an opportunity to see how easy you can
punch with proper timing and still break the board.
In Esoma, we say there is no resisting force other than your
own. When you tighten the muscles at the end of a punch, that becomes the
resisting force. One of the hardest things to overcome is the body's natural
tendency to compensate for a resisting force. It is like punching at an
object and knowing that there is going to be a tremendous force sent back
at you equal to the force you are going to hit. You have a tendency to
punch harder, to lean into it more, to actually make contact sooner and
push through it in order to compensate for the resisting force. Whenever
you train the body in the beginning to deal with pulls, it is our hope
that you will be able to deal with these resisting forces with a little
more control because you have told your body over and over to pull.
Kung-fu began as an exercise, and grew to embrace self-defense; therefore, Esoma has no calisthenics as warm-ups to practicing. Warm-ups should be comprised of kung-fu routines.
Esoma teaches economical movement and relies on it's three "allies" to enhance speed, increase power, and reduce effort. They are:
When in a stance such as a horse stance, pick up one foot without shifting your weight. Gravity will pull you in the direction of the foot that you pick up. An important fundamental about using gravity as an ally is, when you are moving, the weight you have on the foot closest to the direction you are moving is proportional to your ability to use gravity as an ally. In a cat stance you cannot use gravity as an ally very well, but in a horse, forward or bow and arrow it becomes a tremendous ally, (mainly, this is for late orange sash and above).
How can we use momentum as an ally? Momentum is the ability to keep in motion once you start it in motion. This is why we use circular movements instead of short choppy ones. Momentum is what you use to keep the weapon going instead of forcing it. In spinning kicks it is important to generate enough centrifugal force to start the kick and finish the kick. Use centrifugal force on your spinning kicks as an ice skater does to spin. To go faster they bring their limbs closer to their center of axis. Pulling them in or lifting them higher achieves the same result -- you spin faster. Be aware of these things and stay focused on them. Ask yourself the right questions and you will come up with great ideas. You'll find these allies being used all the time.
Exaggerate movements for refinement - Minimize movements for application.
During the first year or so, the student learns exaggerated movements
for blocks, strikes, kicks, stances. This is similar to how first graders
learn to write the alphabet by printing their letters large and exaggerated.
It helps to refine the motor skills of the novice. Once the student has
reached Green sash level, work begins on shortening many of the circles
and arcs to be more effective in defense applications.
There are four levels of sparring in Esoma.
Visualization is very important. You have to "see" it in your mind's eye first or you will not be able to do it. Things that you cannot "see"; normally, you cannot accomplish. Many people do not try to visualize what they are doing because they are concentrating on the thing they are learning. Become accustomed to visualizing your actions. Most people learn to dance by visualizing.
Some simple tips:
Sounds are as important as visualization skills. In Esoma, we hear sounds and rhythms in our heads; not in our ears. Sound skills are to your hearing as visualization skills are to your sight. If you cannot hear something you cannot comprehend it.
Let's use a punch to gain a better understanding of how sounds are used
in Esoma.
When you punch, there is a rhythm that can be established that begins
when the muscles contract, pulling the fist toward the target, and ends
when the muscles contract again just prior to impact. The time this takes
can be measured with a device such as radar. For the brain to determine
the exact speed or amount of time it takes for the fist to start and stop
through the use of our sense of site would be extremely difficult. If there
were a sound corresponding to the speed or rhythm of the movement, this
would be much easier. The sound provides a reference that is easier to
relate to. We can tell from the rhythm produced by the sound whether the
punch is slower or faster than the previous punch.
This is a great training aid in solo practice. By creating a
sound of a pre-determined length, we can match the length of the sound
with the timing of our punch. As we shorten the length of the sound, we
increase the speed of our punch. Many students of martial arts maintain
the same speed for years, not understanding the importance of pushing themselves
past their comfort zone. Our objective should be to practice a punch at
a speed that is just past our accomplishment until that speed is obtained;
then we should increase the speed just past where we can comfortably execute
the strike. Relating a sound with the strike makes this much easier.
There are actually two sounds that correspond to most movements, the
body sound and the striking sound. The striking sound is explained
here in detail. The body sound is similar to the time signature in music
(4/4. 3/4, etc.). It is the rhythm established by the concert conductor.
The striking rhythm exists within the movement of the body. If the conductor
speeds up the song, all the notes of the song must speed up conductor's
rhythm. Therefore, as the body speeds up, so does the strike. Many practitioners
will maintain the same body movement speed and try to increase the striking
speed at the end of the movement. This will never work in a combat situation.
It is the body's movement that first signals the opponent of the impending
attack.
Working with a partner on sounds is similar. The person blocking
a strike must develop perfect timing. The best way to accomplish this would
be the same process explained in the section under sparring. By starting
off slowly and maintaining a consistent speed, we learn how to respond
to the speed of a strike. In Esoma we believe that this knowledge of timing
is then stored in our body, not in our brain; much the same way we store
the knowledge of a dance. It is much easier to match the movements of your
body to the sound of the music than it is to attempt to just follow another
person's movements without the music as a timing reference. One can not
think how to dance, it must be felt within the body. Imagine
the difficulty in dancing without, audible music. If there is no music,
we tend to create it within our heads.
As we work with a partner to develop timing, we create sounds in our
heads that correspond to the movements of our partner. By maintaining a
consistent speed, our body begins to absorb the rhythm produced by the
sound of the movements. This only happens through repetition of the same
speed. As we become more proficient at one speed, the speed is increased
until we have absorbed the new rhythm. Later, we become accustom to varying
speeds and recognize the changing rhythms without thinking; it is our body
that recognizes the speed, not our minds.
It must be understood that every movement has a corresponding sound.
A strike or kick has a sound that must be matched with a block that also
has a corresponding sound. In the beginning, learning this is much like
dancing with a partner. Each person is doing everything possible to help
the other learn to develop impeccable timing.
Every action in Esoma has a sound that corresponds to it. Without
sound it's very difficult to have good timing, and timing is everything
to the martial artist. One of the most important aspects in the development
of good timing is your ability to hear the sound of movement in your mind's
ear. Dribbling a basketball, for example, is based more on sound than sight.
Block based on the sound, or rhythm of an attack. Practice by first
hearing the sound; then match the sound with your movements.
Take the analogy of the rubber band. The timing of your release makes
all the difference in the amount of energy released by the rubber band.
If you let go of both ends at the same time, the rubber band absorbs all
the energy back into itself.
There are all kinds of timing, the upper body to the lower body, the
twist to the torque, from the lateral to the linear, etc. All these must
be taken into consideration. Timing the stance to an attack, some feel
you should be in the stance before the attack, some believe you should
attack just before getting in the stance. Some think they should both be
at the same time. All are true. Learning is an evolutionary process. So
you must evolve from one thing to another.
Many times in an evolutionary process the end result is nothing like
the beginning product, and that is true with kung fu. In solo techniques
we exaggerate the moves to develop finer skills, just as child learning
to print exaggerates to refine the motor skills. In application the movements
will be minimized. Many think that because we practice things a certain
way, that's the way they will always be done; that is rarely the case.
There is constant change from yellow sash to black sash; though there
are some constants such as the focal point for a block being in the same
place. Always block the same way when practicing, but in application, the
only thing that holds true is that the focal point must be at the point
where it intersects the attack in such a way that you're not going to get
hit.
If you look at blocking in transition while minimizing your movements you'll find that most of the time whenever you block you do not need a lot of force or energy. When you use timing properly in your attacks you do not need a lot of distance. However, it is always helpful to get as much distance out of it as possible. Remember when practicing, to make the punch as long as possible. This does not mean everything you do should be long range. Esoma contains, long range techniques, short range techniques, hard & soft. Develop your skills and then put them into application.
Be aware that you change as you progress. Sometimes you will be asked
to exaggerate something to the extreme so that you can be brought back
to where you need to be. It is easier to exaggerate something and then
minimize than to minimize and then push it out to where it should be. It's
easier to develop timing with things that are exaggerated.
For example, in slow sparring (levels 1 and 2), you are trying to match
your opponents timing, that's all your doing. Usually when students are
sparring for the first time one is attacking and one blocking. The one
blocking is trying to match the timing of the one attacking.
Sometimes the body gets in such a hurry to punch that the strike gets there before the lower body gets set, so you don't have the brace that you should have. Get the body into sync first. It's much easier to get it out of sync later. It's very easy to minimize once you maximize; it's very easy to get out of sync if you have learned how to be in sync.
In striking and kicking, timing is much more important than power. Power is important; but without proper timing all the power can be neutralized. What is the proper timing for a punch and a stance? What is the proper timing for torque? At what point do you make contact? Where is your focal point? How far do you go past it? These are questions that must be answered in order to put the maximum amount of power into the target with the minimum amount of effort. Work on getting the maximum speed timed with the maximum mass so that they both reach the point of impact at the same time. Then you will have your timing correct. Practice this slow to get the timing. Speed will come later.
Distance, timing, accuracy, application... Yellow sash techniques, with their exaggerated moves, work on distance and timing. Orange sash techniques work to refine distance, refine timing and concentrate on accuracy. Green sash techniques refine distance more, refine timing more, refine accuracy and concentrate on application. In application use the five modes of execution. Be aware of, concentrate on, and use those in the techniques and in the forms. After working on application, work on committing yourself to the attack. Generally it is better to work on only one of these levels at a time. We teach in the beginning to not throw the shoulders to learn how long the arms are. The natural tendency is to throw the shoulder and it is very hard to learn distance when you throw the shoulder out at varying distances.
Your movements should be like water. The body is constantly trying to pour out on the floor like water. When struck, you become like water and absorb the punishment instead of resisting. Resisting creates greater damage. Esoma is like water, not stone. Maintain the attitude of water. If you spar or do techniques like the oak you will eventually break; but, if you are like bamboo, you will spring back.
Acting like water can be part of your everyday life, as well as part as your martial arts life. This will show in the way you relate to people. It can be part of your relationship. Many people are hurt because they can not take on the attribute of water; emotionally hurt, physically hurt, or spiritually hurt. The more you become like water the less you can be hurt. The more opposite you become like water, the more you can be hurt. You might ask, "How does that work emotionally?". It's easy to see when someone punches you and you are not like water, something has got to give. The same applies in relationships, business ventures, whatever kind of attack it is; your resistance is directly proportional to the amount of pain that is going to be involved. Whenever the attack comes you don't have to avoid it , absorb it.
Yin - female, passive, moon, night; Yang - male, sun, aggressive, sunlight, positive. They cannot exist without each other and one is always evolving into the other. There is a little piece of one in the other. They are not total opposites, if so the yin and yang symbol would be a straight line with two half circles. They are smooth arcs that are constantly getting bigger and moving. Yet right inside the biggest part, there is a piece of the other. Study Yin and Yang and learn the philosophy of it.
There are some who feel that forms were invented by someone who wanted to keep the real stuff from their students and the outside world; therefore, he only showed a few the real meaning behind their art. And there are some who think forms teach you everything about the martial art and that forms can accomplish anything in and of themselves. Our philosophy is somewhat in between. Forms play a specific role. They give you an opportunity to use many of the skills and philosophies that make Esoma unique.
When doing forms you must use the concept of the body taking responsibility for it's actions and allowing the mind to stay ahead of the body. You must use the philosophy of sound. You have to use visualization skills and work on minimizing and maximizing techniques. You should work on tempo for defense, tempo for offense. You should concentrate on emptying the mind and emptying the eyes. In forms you have the opportunity to go over so many of the things that binds Esoma together. It is important to practice the forms in such a way that you get something out of them rather that trying to get through them. Too many students go through forms just so that they can say they have done them. Never practice for the sake of practice, never work on a form without a specific goal. For example when working on a form you can concentrate on nothing but good stances, concentrate on developing torque, getting twisted all the way around. Always have a goal.
The most prominent thought that stands very isolated from other martial
arts is the philosophy that the body, once trained by mental questioning
and physical repetition, must release itself from the control of the mind
and except responsibility for it's own action.
Keeping the mind and body together and then allowing them to separate
is a unique philosophy in Esoma that we use all the time but are
mostly unaware of.
Learn to allow the mind to stay ahead of action. When driving a car, you look down the road, not right over the hood. The faster you go, the farther down the road you look; but when the conditions are more precarious, then you bring your eyes back closer. That analogy holds true with Esoma Kung Fu. The more uncertain you are with a situation or your surroundings, the closer to the situation you require the mind to stay. The more comfortable you are with it the further you allow the mind to separate from the body's actions.
The beginning student must concentrate on one move at a time when learning
a new form. The mind stays glued to the task at hand; analyzing each move.
This is natural. However, after the student becomes familiar enough with
the individual moves of the form, it becomes necessary to allow the body
to accept responsibility to perform each move correctly and allow the mind
venture out ahead of the actions of the body. Then the mind is always sending
back images of the next few moves.
This is similar to reading one word at a time. When the mind stays
on one word until the person sounds the word, reading is slow and jerky.
Only by allowing the eyes to venture ahead does the speed and fluidity
of reading improve. Soon, the eyes and mind can capture entire sentences
in an instance.
In Esoma, forms allow you an opportunity to refine the manifold attributes that would be difficult to accomplish otherwise. Chief of those being that the body must accept responsibility for it's own actions. About the five modes of execution and specifically, for forms it's perfect. Practice your form by putting together individual moves you have previously learned. This is where a lot of problems arise in students. Have a good understanding of the individual moves before putting them together in a form. If you do that, learning accuracy is much easier.
1. Accuracy -
Accuracy denotes the ability to perform a specific movement exactly
as it was intended. The first step in dealing with the application of movement
is the acquisition of the skills to perform the movements correctly. The
movements should be learned individually and collectively until the movements
for the entire form can be executed from memory - with accuracy.
2. Fluidity -
The form should be performed with fluidity until all individual movements,
collectively, become as one continuous action. A slow constant tempo or
rhythm is advantageous for the acquisition of this mode.
3. Speed -
Neither speed nor power should be emphasized until reaching third and
fourth modes. Both speed and power enhance only controlled action. (The
slowness required in performing newly acquired movements in a fluid manner
greatly facilitates the ability to gain control of the movements and therefore,
must be learned prior to the addition of speed or power to the form). Gradually
increase the speed of both the individual movements and the collectively
movements, maintaining a constant tempo.
Neither accuracy nor fluidity should be sacrificed by the addition
of speed.
4. Power -
When a movement is performed accurately, augmented by speed and fluidity,
potential power is the result; potential, because it does not manifest
until it is transferred either to an object, by the collision of the movement
upon the object, or back into one's own body by the termination of movement.
The speed and fluidity of the movements collectively will be thwarted somewhat
by the abrupt termination of a movement or group of movements, but not
to the extent of appearing rigid. Speed and fluidity must still be maintained
during the movement or group of movements prior to each successive cessation.
5. Tempo -
After a moderate degree of proficiency is obtained in each mode, one
is prepared to perform the form using the qualitative actions of the four
preceding modes, so as to achieve an ever-changing combination of Accuracy,
Fluidity, Speed, and Power as the mood of the individual, at that moment,
perceives. Never will the movements of the form be performed exactly the
same; however, the accuracy and fluidity of the individual movements
must remain distinguishably the same, while the speed and power of
the movements fluctuate proportionately to the change in tempo. (VER1.2)