Ba Gua DVD

In the third volume of our Internal Combat Arts series we learn how to fight with Bagua.

More Striking Power

Everything about power generation from the first two videos applies. Now we add continuous walking with whole body integration. This strike should have no beginning or end.

If two people hold up thai pads a foot or two apart you should be able to strike both of them with one movement and have full power at each point of contact.

This type of striking should also have a very penetrating quality to it. One key element is keeping your mind intent ahead of where you are going.

There are of course many other expressions and energies in Bagua. However the qualtiy of power I have tried to describe here is one of the hallmarks of Bagua and you will want put good deal of work into this section.

Simple Arm Breaks and Throws

Next we worked on some simple applications. Basically if the opponent sticks an arm out (like when he throws a punch) you break it using the power and movement we’ve worked on.

Depending on how the opponent responds it can become a shoulder break or a throw the key is to keep walking and make sure the power is continuous.

Circle Walking

The application of circle walking is a topic that could easily take up an entire series and in our complete Bagua program we’ll have at least 1 full video just on how to fight with Circle Walking.

To get started we worked on being able to move quickly and fluidly. Turning quickly and using this movement to get out from in front of an attacker and ideally behind them.

Never Ever Stop.

Constant motion is absolutely critical. Bagua is an art designed for 6 – 8 attackers. If you stop moving they surround you and you die.

Make sure you never pause or stop walking.

Also, don’t just practice on a circle. Use figure eights, spirals and curlicues.

Never Back Up

Drop a couple inches and turn your waist. (not your hips) You should be able to turn your upper body about 90 degrees to either side without turning your hips. If you’re walking around the edge of a circle you should be able to comfortably walk forward while facing into the circle.

With a little practice you will be able to walk forwards in any direction and see where you are going while still keeping all your attackers in your field of vision.

Moving the Center

One key characteristic of Bagua is that it moves the center. (Xing Yi fortifies the center. Tai Chi dissolves the center.)

So we worked with several partner drills to begin developing the skill of dissipating incoming force by moving the center.

Single Palm

For single palm we worked with the beginning part of the movement which is a shielding or covering type of action. You are again using the bone shields principle we’ve talked about earlier in this series.

Then add in all the evasive movement we’ve already covered and you should be able to slip your opponents attack with a very light amount of contact.

Now add the power we worked on in the first section of this workshop and what feels like light contact to you should be devastating blows to the opponent.

This is absolutely critical

Your contact with the attackers should be light and incidental. Something that seems to happen almost by accident as you move past them and on to the next.

If you’ve worked the material up to this point this “light” contact will still be very powerfull fight ending strikes.

However if you try to add power or go after specific targets or get even a little to focused on any one person…

..You will die.

You will either slow down a little to much or move into a bad position or not see something you should have.

Multiple attacker positioning

This one you probably just need to watch when I get the DVDs done.

The basic idea is that you can use your attackers to segment the space around you in a way that allows you to focus on one specific area at a time. With practice this turns into using your attackers as weapons.

Let the attackers come to you

Bagua is an evasive art designed for 6 – 8 attackers that is always moving, slipping and evading.

You can’t go after any one person because the others will get you. Yet we want to end the situation as quickly as possible because the longer it lasts the worse it gets.

The key is that for an attacker to do damage to you they have to bring something. A punch, a kick or something. When they do this they expose themselves in some way.

So as a Bagua player I want to use my positioning skills and my evasion skills to lure the attackers into bad positions that I can take advantage of while still moving and evading.

The Barbed Wire Ball

You hear Bagua described this way because it spins and rolls out of your grasp while tangling you up and doing damage with every contact.

More Kun Tao Bagua Training

We are working on a complete Bagua series. However we have to get the Xing Yi program done first so it will be a little while before the Bagua series is ready.

Look for more info about Sifu Clear’s Bagua and Xing Yi programs in the coming months. There will be opportunities to come train these arts with Sifu Clear as we film these programs.

Until then look for this video coming in early March.