Long Weapon Basics - JP Lau

7/30/2019 Long Weapon Basics - JP Lau

1/54

Notes on Long Weapons:Spear and Staff

:

______________________________________________________________

JosephP.Lau

1


2/54

This page is intentionally left blank.

2


3/54

Notes on Long Weapons (): Spear and StaffSpear and staff were formidable long cold weapons of war (Leng Bing Qi,). With the

invention of firearms, their importance as weapons is greatly diminished. Today, we study and

use these long weapons (Chang Bing Qi,) as supplemental training and conditioning

apparatuses for martial arts. This manuscript is our research notes. The maneuvers/techniques

are synthesized from various styles and organized into logical categories.

As researchers and practitioners of Yiquan (), we treat the spear and staff practices as

supplemental training and conditioning exercises. And our study, opinion, and discussion have

heavy Yiquan bias. We assume that the reader is grounded in the fundamentals of Yiquan basic

skills, has mastered proper body mechanics i.e., properconnected-ness (Zheng TiLian Tong

Yi Guan,) and optimal alignment(Gu Ge Zhi Cheng,), and has

achieved whole-body harmony unity (Zheng Ti Xie Tiao,) to take up power from the

ground using whole-body movement (Yi Dong Wu Bu Dong,). (For details, seeYIQUAN BEGINNERS GUIDE: BASIC SKILLS by J. P. Lau.)

:,

Oral Tradition: Human skill is more important than the weapon. It is easier to learn touse a (cold) weapon after you have mastered the basic skills of empty hand fighting.Do not train exclusively with swords and spears.

We use the spear (Qiang,) or the staff (Gan,; Gun,; Zhang,; Bang,) training and

conditioning:

1. To develop/nurture your balanced-force (Hun Yuan Li,), to cultivate your

whole-body harmony unity (Ji Rou Ru Yi,),

2. To observe/develop force propagation pathways (Xun Zhao Jing Lu,),

to merge all force components as one (Quan Shen Li Yi,), and

3. To train for self-defense/combat with a (cold) weapon.

Basically, self-defense with a (cold) weapon is the use of the weapon as an extension of your

arms/hands to discharge/release your balanced-force (Hun Yuan Li,) onto youropponent. Even though we do not place too much emphasis on the use of (cold) weapon for self-defense/fighting, you must not waste your time on flowery solo sequences or patterns (Tao Lu,

). You must never fall into the trap of developing sequential patterns (if this than that

patterns) as responses and solutions to the dynamic changing problem of fighting. Instead, you

should develop un-conscious decision-making references for your spontaneous instinctive

fighting reflexes through mental visualization (crises rehearsal; Jia Xiang Di,).

3


4/54

:

Oral Tradition: You must not waste your time on flowery solo sequences or patterns.

Compared to other cold weapons, the spear and staff have tremendous reach and leverage.Therefore, against all other cold weapons, the best defense for spear and staff is offense. Thus,

traditional studies of the spear and staff dealt mainly with spear-verses-spear or staff-verses-staffmaneuvers.

Since 70% of staff maneuvers/techniques are from the spear, we will start with a detailed

exploration of the spear in Section I: Spear(Ji Ben Qiang Fa,). Staffmaneuvers/techniques not from the spear are covered in Section II: Staff(Ji BenGun Fa,).

This is not intended to be an instruction manual. No effort is made to teach the use of the spear

and the staff. Use the information as you feel inclined.

J. P. LauJan. 22, 2009

4


5/54

Notes on Long Weapons: Spear and Staff

Section I: Spear (Ji Ben Qiang Fa,)

The spear is the king of all cold weapons (Leng Bing Qi Zhi Wang,). In this

section, methods and procedures for practicing spear basic skills are covered. We will use thetraditional terminology: With your left foot leading, the part of your body left of your central

line is called outside the circle (Quan Wai,); the part of your body right of your central

line is called inside the circle (Quan Li,). We will only describe spear training and

conditioning with the left-lead, you should train with both left-lead and right-lead; being

able to smoothly switching lead is a necessary primary skill.

1. PrinciplesIt is said that the spear is the king of all coldweapons (Leng Bing Qi Zhi Wang,)and this is clear when we consider its attributes.

A spear is a short sharp blade attached to the end of a 6-7 foot long staff ( QiangGan,).

The sharp end of the spear is the point (Qiang Tou,; Qiang Jian,), the other end of

the shaft is the butt (Qiang Ba,; Qiang Gen,), and the balance point of the staff is

the center of gravity (Qiang Xin,). Due to this construction, the spear has a tremendous

reach and leverage when compared to other cold weapons. Against all other weapons, the best

defense for a spearman is offense. Therefore, traditional studies of the spear are heavily

concentrated on spear-verses-spear maneuvers.

Spear practice should follow the training and conditioning theories and principles of Yiquan:Understand the theories and principles involved; use the interactions with the external/internal

isometric-opposing-force-pairs (Mao Dun Zheng Li,) to harmonize, synthesize,

and ingrain your maneuvers/techniques (in both fixed-step and free-step) into habit (e.g., Mo

Gan Shi Li,; Hua Gan Shi Li,; Hua Gan Fa Li,, etc.), and learn

distance, timing, angle, accuracy, and agility (the ability to adapt and change according to your

5


6/54

opponent) with real experience gained from sparring with real partners (e.g., Shuang Ren Dui

Hua Dui Za,).

:,,,,,

,,,,

A. Mindset and TacticsProperfootworkand body mechanics are essential. Mental conditioning (visualization and crisesrehearsal) and physical training are equally important; repetition is the mother of all skills. A

maneuver must be ingrained, it becomes useful only when it becomes habit, becomes form-

less, becomes un-conscious spontaneous reflex.

:,

:,,

Line and PointThe strongest attack with a spear is a straight, center(Zhong,), level(Ping,), underhand

forward stabbing slip thrust (Za,; Jie,; Ci,) with the point (Zhong Ping Qiang,

). It is the fastest and most direct stabbing attack, covering the shortest distance, and because

of the angle of attack, it is the hardest to see and parry.

:

:

The underhand and overhand stabbing slip thrusts are quintessential basic spear skills. There aremany other techniques for using the spear point and butt, such as: one-handed stab, two-handed

overhand thrust, slash, cut, chops, etc., (see section below on maneuvers/techniques) but the

spiritof the spear is the circle.

Circle, Cone, Helical Spiral (corkscrew)The motion of your spear point in space describes circular (spiral, helical, corkscrew) paths when

you parry.

:

Oral Tradition: The spirit of the spear is the circle.

6


7/54

:

Oral Tradition: The circle is the source (mother) of all (parry) techniques.

:,

Oral Tradition: Twisting helical (corkscrew) spiral motions are instinctive and natural.

Circle: However, fighting is never static; you must break up the circle (corkscrew movement)and use only segments of the arc at various times. The whole circle is almost never used.

Cone: Consider your left front hand as the fulcrum, the shaft of your spear moves on a conicalsurface. One cone has its base described by the spear point and its point ends in your left front

hand. The other cone has its base described by your right rear hand and its point ends in your

left front hand. When you use your right rear hand as the fulcrum, the spear shaft also moves ona conical surface; the point of the cone now ends in your right rear hand.

Keep your spear point within the following region: no higher than your head, no lower than your

knee, laterally not wider than your shoulders, the base of yourspear point cone (the spear point

circle) is approximately 2 feet in diameter.

Helical Spiral (corkscrew): The thrust (Za,) is linear and straight. If you try to combine the

circular parry and the linear thrust to unify defense and offense, the resulting movement of the

spear point will describe helical spiral (corkscrew) paths (Juan Qiang,). This is a very

difficult and advanced maneuver/technique. (See below: Slip Spear Drills, Example (g) Helical

Parry Thrust.)

Tactics: Against Other WeaponsWith its superior attributes, when fighting with a spear against other cold weapons, your best

defense is offense. In using the spear, you must have an aggressive combat mindset because thebest defense against other cold weapons is a stop hit, a vicious counter interrupting or

intercepting your opponents attack (Jie Da,) by stabbing, slashing, cutting, and/or

chopping him first. You must have the confidence, resolve, and willingness to win.

:,

The basic spear self-defensive tactics against other weapons are:

1. Have an aggressive mindset, seize the initiative and engagement opportunities; bethe aggressor, use attack as defense. Action beats reaction.

2. Protect and guard your central line; attack your opponents central line.

Concentrate on the vertical, always keep your spear point between you and your

7


8/54

opponent and threaten his throat/mouth area. Avoid lateral movement that brings

your spear point off the central line.

:

3. Hide the length of your reach by choking up on your spear to accustom youropponent to onefighting measure (distance), and then switch to use the full reach

to attack.

4. Change and adapt according to your opponent; use various combinations e.g.,

high/low, left/right, stab/slash, etc. Be agile; get inside your opponents OODAcycle, compress his time scale by switching maneuvers at a tempo that he cannot

follow.

:

:,,

5. Attack the nearest target; be in his face, use fast lightning slash and stab to handand face to weaken him to setup the final blow.

6. Use leverage and length; beat your opponents weapon out of the way to open aline instead of attacking an opening. Watch for the point of his weapon to move

past the central line; thrust into the opening as soon as this happens.

7. Use gravity, inertia, and momentum as your allies. Avoid using muscles against

momentum; this slows down your recovery to the on-guard posture. Continuous

curved motions require less effort than straight-line motions involving suddensharp changes in direction.

8. Have a secondary weapon (a short knife) ready to be used against an opponentgrabbing your spear or for fighting at extreme close range (e.g., an opponent who

slipped past your spear point).

The spear is superior to all other cold weapons for out-fighting; however, close proximity in-fighting negates your spear skills. When fighting other cold weapons, keep your opponent in

front of your spear point. Next, we will discuss spear offense/defense of spear-versus-spear.

Tactics: Spear-versus-SpearWhen using a spear, the most difficult weapon to defense against is the spear. And the spear

thrusts most difficult to parry are the mid-level thrusts (Ping Lai Qiang,) because of the

small weapons crossing angle. You must make optimal use of the intrinsic helical spiral(corkscrew) movement of your spear shaft toslip your opponents thrust off its line with the

inside the circle parry (Na,) or the outside the circle parry (Lan,) and/or usefootworkto

8


9/54

remove your body (target, Qiang Yan,) from the incoming line of force. Here, we shall

explore some useful concepts related to offense/defense of spear-versus-spear.

In use, initiate change, seize the initiative, and control the engagement opportunities. Before

your spear point reaches your opponent's front hand (Jin Guan,), use light relaxed

movement; after your spear point passed your opponent's front hand, thrust straight in with fullpower. Keep your spear close to your opponent's spear. This will minimize the angle between

the spears and increase the difficulty of parrying. By keeping the spears close together, your

opponent's spear will not gain much momentum to beat(Da,) orshake (Dou,) your spear

sideways off its line of attack.

:,

:

When parrying a spear thrust, parry late and fast using the difference in movement time to your

advantage. You must wait until your opponent's rear hand is close to his front hand, i.e., whenthe center of gravity (Qiang Xin,) of your opponent's spear has moved far forward of his

front hand and it is difficult for him to control. In general, use the middle section of your spear

to make initial contact with the front section of your opponent's spear, then slip (Hua,) your

spear along his spear to parry (circular lateral soft force; Rou Li,); ending with the front

section of your spear at the sweet spot (Pai Wei,) about a foot in front of his leading

front hand near the center of gravity of his spear (Qiang Xin,). You manipulate the point

(Qiang Tou,) of your own spear by controlling its butt (Qiang Gen,); you control

the butt of your opponent's spear with your spear point.

:

:,

Change target during an attack(Tiao Qiang,): Start your thrust towards your

opponents inside thecircle (Quan Li,) target, shift your target and end your thrust on his

outside the circle (Quan Wai,) target or vice versa is call changing target attack (Tiao

Qiang,). You must initiate this change long before your rear hand gets close to your front

hand to maintain absolute control.

a. (Shan Zhuan,): small disengagement from inside to outside or vice versa.

b. (Dian Ti,): large disengagement from inside to outside or vice versa.

9


10/54

B. Grip(Wo Fa,)To transmit your balanced-force (Hun Yuan Li,) to the point of the spear, the grip is of

vital importance. The grip must be relaxed and firm, not too tight and not too loose. It must be

firm otherwise your can not transmit your power/force to the spear. It must be relaxed so you

can actively maneuver your spear. Do not tense the muscles in your arms.

Grip A: The left front hand forms a tube with the thumb, index, and middle fingers, holding the

spear at or just behind its center of gravity (Qiang Xin,). When thrusting, you may grip the

spear with your left hand or allow the spear to slide in the left hand (but never open your left

hand). When parrying, your left hand should hold the spear firmly. The right rear hand firmly

holds the butt in its palm; this lines up your right forearm behind the shaft of the spear forthrusting. When not thrusting, place your right hand near your waist with the spear shaft (the

section between your hands) resting in front of your right hip; the section of the spear between

the hands must contact the waist or body at navel level (on your right hip) most of the time

(Qiang Shi Chan Yao Suo,).

Grip B: The half-grip (Ban Wo,) is used to remove your fingers from being hit by your

opponents spear sliding down the spear shaft (Shun Gan Hua Da,). Here, your left

front hand grips the spear shaft with the base of your thumb and your middle, ring, and little

fingers on opposite sides half way around the circumference of the shaft, with your thumb andindex finger lying along the length of the shaft pointing towards the point. Your right rear hand

grips the shaft with the base of the thumb opposite your four fingers halfway around the

circumference of the shaft with the butt in your palm. The right thumb may lie along the length

of the shaft pointing towards the point or wrap around the circumference. Again, the section ofthe spear between the hands must contact the waist or body at navel level most of the time.

Grip C: The reverse grip (Yin Ba,) is accomplished by reversing your left front hand,

with your left thumb facing towards the butt of the shaft. This is the natural grip for an overhand

thrust.C. On-Guard Stance: Four-Level Posture (Si Ping Qiang Shi,)This is the on-guard ready stance (Ding Ba Bu,). The posture and body mechanics are

similar to Hun Yuan Zhuang(); do not crouch or lean your torso forward (

); flex both arms and legs (Si Qu Fei Zhi,); bend both knees and do not have

much weight on your heels (Zu Gen Wei Xu,). With the weight bias towards theballs of your feet, your legs act as springs, improving agility and footwork maneuvers. Four-

level (Si Ping,) implies: Head, shoulder, spear, and feet must all be level (Ping,).

1. Keep your head level and neck erect; visualize a string pulling the top of your

head upwards (Tou Xu Ling,; Jiao Xia Cai,).

10


11/54

2. Keep your shoulders down, level, and relaxed; blade your body (torso) to the front

(3/4 stance) to reduce your target.

3. Keep the point and the butt of your spear level and the section of the spear

between your hands in contact with your torso (waist) above your hip. Keep the

point laterally centered on your central line, always threatening your opponentsmouth/nose area. When thrusting forward, maintaining this horizontal level

reduces the angle of interception between your spear and your opponents spear,

making the thrust harder to parry.

4. Keep both feet level on the ground so you can use the ground-path, take up

power from the ground, transmitting the ground force to the tip of your spear.Before the thrust, keep relaxed with more weight on your rear leg. When

thrusting, drillyour rear foot into the ground (Nei Luo Xuan,), shift your

weight forward, mildly opposing by drillingyour front foot (Nei Luo Xuan,

) compressing the imaginary spring between your knees (Jia Xi Fa Li,

), torque your torso, push your shoulder forward, shoot your arms out, and useyour whole-body balanced-force to deliver a powerful thrust.

Center Four-level Posture (Zhong Si Ping Qiang Shi,)This is the left-lead small step on-guard posture; holding the spear level in contact with yourwaist just above your hip. The rear hand is touching your waist. The front hand, slightly flexed

and bent, keeps the spear level with the point centered at the central line. The spear point, your

nose and your front foot are on the same vertical plane. Always threaten your opponent with thespear point; keep the spear between you and your opponent.

High Four-level Posture (Gao Si Ping Qiang Shi,)From the Center Four-level Posture (Zhong Si Ping Qiang Shi,), lift your spear to

chest level. Keep the spear level with the ground. The spear may or may not contact your torso.

This is mainly used as a faint to draw your opponent from his Center Four-level Posture so youcan return to yours.

Low Four-level Posture (Di Si Ping Qiang Shi,)From the Center Four-level Posture (Zhong Si Ping Qiang Shi,), use a large step

posture (Fu Hu Zhuang,) and lower your spear to just below your waist/hip level. Keep

the point and the butt of the spear level. This is mainly used as a faint to draw your opponent

from his Center Four-level Posture so you can return to yours.

11


12/54

Spear on-guard posture requires (Si Ping Liu Zhi,): Point, butt, front shoulder, rear

shoulder, front foot, and rear foot must be maintained in harmony (Qiang Fa Liu Zhi,

). The point and the butt of the spear must be level and on one vertical plane; the front

shoulder and rear shoulder must be level and on one vertical plane; and the front foot and rear

foot must be level and on one vertical plane. The point of the spear, the nose and lead foot must

be on one vertical plane (San Jian Dui,). The stance is the basic Hun Yuan Zhuang() posture with weight bias towards the balls of your feet for spring-like whole-body

harmony.

D. Different Styles (Ba Fa,)There are many action styles (Ba Fa,) in using the spear. The following three are

dominant; we will use the mid-level parry (Na,; Lan,) to illustrate their differences:

Style 1: Rear Hand Active Style (Huo Ba Qiang,)

The left front hand acts mainly as a fulcrum; the right rear hand directs the majority of the

movement.

Example: When executing the mid-level outside parry (Lan,), the rear hand moves from

palm facing backward inward towards your body at the waist level to palm facing forwardoutward from your body at the chest level. The front hand remains essentially as a stationaryfulcrum with palm facing downward (applying slight downward pressure). When doing the mid-

level inside parry (Na,), the rear hand moves from palm facing forward outward at the chest

level to palm facing backward inward at the waist level while the front hand remains as a

stationary fulcrum with palm facing downward.

Style 2: Both Hands ActiveStyle (LiangBa Qiang,)

Both hands move simultaneously to execute a parry. It is easier to coordinate waist/body/core

movement with this style.

Example: When doing the mid-level outside parry (Lan,), the right rear hand moves as in

Style 1. The left front hand turns palm facing upwards to augment the rear hand. When doing

the mid-level inside parry (Na,), the right rear hand moves as in Style 1. The left front hand

turns palm facing downwards to assist. The spear shaft may roll and slide forwards/backwardson your torso during the execution of each parry.

Style 3: Rear Hand ControlStyle (Hou Ba Qiang,)

The left front hand acts as fulcrum; the right rear hand rotates but remains essentially at waist

level. You must be able to use whole-body harmony of action in this style; otherwise you cannotdo any parry correctly.

12


13/54

Example: When doing the mid-level parry, the left front hand essentially remains stationary,

only the left palm rotates inwards (Nei Luo Xuan,) to facing downwards forinside parry

(Na,) and rotates outwards (Wai Luo Xuan,) to facing upwards foroutside parry

(Lan,). The right rear hand remains at waist level, rotating clockwise forinside parry (Na,)

and counter-clockwise foroutside parry (Lan,). The spear shaft may roll and slide

forward/backward on your waist/torso.

While Style 3 is the most elegant, with the smallest movement, there is no inherent advantage toeach style. Train with the style that works best for you, and you may mix and use the different

styles. Practice as you feel inclined.

E. Footwork(Zou Bu,)No one fights while standing and/or holding still. Footwork is used for attack, for defense, for

evasion, for deception, for proper positioning, and for conserving energy. The wading step (MoCa Bu,) is the foundation for all Yiquan footwork (see BASIC SKILLS on Footwork;

Zou Bu,). All footwork steps are included in stepping forward, backward, lateral left,

lateral right, diagonal forward, and diagonal backward.

Examples:

Forward/backward shuffle (Fencing steps): Push off your rear foot to shuffle forward; yourlead foot advance first, then your rear foot follows. Do not advance your lead foot and then drag

your rear foot forwards. Push off your front foot to shuffle backward; your rear foot retreat first,

and then your front foot follows. Do not retreat your rear foot and then drag your front footbackwards.

Lateral sidestep: Move first the foot closest to the direction you intend to move while pushing

off with the other leg. To move left, push off your right foot, move the left foot one step left,then the right foot follows a half step left to maintain a shoulders width in your stance. To move

right, push of your left foot, move the right foot one step to your right, then the left foot follows a

half step to your right.

Forward/backward Passover step: This should be as easy as walking forward or backward.

Forward diagonal (circle right; circle left): From a left-lead posture, to circle forward right,

move your right foot diagonally right and forward; pivot and wheel to your right bringing yourleft foot forward into a left-lead. Or, move your right foot diagonally right and forward; pivot

and wheel left to bring your left foot behind your right foot (swing step), changing into a right-

lead posture. To circle left from a left-lead, move your left foot diagonally left and forward;

13


14/54

pivot and wheel to your right to bring your right foot behind your left foot (Huan Rao Bu,

) into a left-lead posture.

Backward diagonal (back triangle): From a left-lead posture, to move diagonally right and

back, simply shuffle diagonally to your right rear. To move diagonally left and back, step leftfoot diagonally left and back first, then step right foot behind left foot into a left-lead posture or

in front of left foot into a right-lead posture.

No matter how your footwork carries you, always attempt to end up in your on-guard Center

Four-level posture (Zhong Si Ping Qiang Shi,), on balance, and keep the spear

between you and your opponent; threaten him with the point directed towards his mouth/nosearea.

F. Types of Power Discharges/ReleasesWe use the spear training primarily as a supplemental conditioning apparatus to develop crisp

clean power releases, to cultivate the balanced-force (Hun Yuan Li,) and/or as an

extension of your arms/hands to deliver the balanced-force through the spear onto your opponent

in combat. Optimal alignment(Gu Ge Zhi Cheng,), properconnected-ness (Shu

Zhan Lian Tong,), and harmony of whole-body action and force (Quan Shen Li Yi,

) are prerequisites. The typical categories of power discharge/release maneuvers in

spear training are:

1. Thrusting (Za,; Tui,; Jie,; Ci,): This is a forward linear powerdischarge/release. You thrust the spear forward as in the rear hand straight punchforward power release. For example, in an underhand slip thrust, you line up yourright rear forearm with the length of the spear; push it straight forward with your

natural inward/outward spiral movement (Nei/Wai Luo Xuan,/) to stab

forward and immediately withdraw/retract after releasing your balanced-force(power). The underhand slip thrust is an essential basic skill of the spear.

:

:,

:,,,

2. Circular Lateral Parrying: Keeping the spear shaft in contact with yourwaist/torso, you use your whole-body harmony action to move the point incircular or helical spiral (corkscrew) patterns to deliver power laterally. The spear

shaft may slide forward/backward and twist with inward/outward rotation

(Nei/Wai Luo Xuan,/) on your torso. You make use of the difference

in movement time to your advantage in these lateral parry techniques.

14


15/54

:

:

:,,

:,,,

3. Shaking (lateral/vertical): These are short, sharp, snappy, clean, and fastpowerful releases to the lateral (left/right sides) or the vertical (up/down)

directions (Tan Dou Li,). They are used to shake or beat your

opponents weapon off its line of attack to create an opening or to slash (withthe first half of the blade edge) and cut (with the whole blade edge) with circular

pulling back motions of the spearhead.

:,,

4. Striking (Sweeping): In striking, the shaft of the spear sweep out a large "fan"like pattern (Shan Mian,) in a plane (vertical, horizontal, or inclined

diagonal chop; Pi,) to strike at your target. These are used mostly in the staff

techniques (Gan,; Gun,; Bang,; Zhang,) and are used only very

sparingly in the spear e.g., striking chop with the shaft or cut with the whole edge

of the spearhead.

:,,,,,

5. Pushing/pulling: Keep the spear in a vertical plane while pushing forward (tostab or parry), or pulling backward to defend (to cut or parry), or to slash your

opponent with the leading half of the blade edge of your spearhead. Push/pull

power release is combined with the other type of power releases in normal use.

Example: push (Tui,) and chop (Pi,) combination or pull (Dai,) and lift

(Beng,) combination.

:,

While we identify these as separate categories, in practical use they are often combined and

inseparable. Example: parrying and simultaneously thrusting, etc. You must use trial-and-

feel (Hua Gan Shi Li,) exercises to sense, explore, experiment, and experience theconcurrent sequential overlapping body movement; observe the sensation of the propagation of

force through the elements of your whole-body to cultivate pathways of force propagation (Xun

Zhao Jing Lu,), to ingrain the maneuver into muscle memory.

15


16/54

2. Basic Spear Skills (Qiang Fa,)Next, we will briefly describe some important basic spear maneuvers/techniques. The main

targets for spear attack (Qiang Yan,) are: head, throat, heart, ribs, navel, arms, hands,

knees, shins and feet.

A. Thrust (Za,;Jie,;Ci,;Tui,)We shall include most forward/backward maneuvers here. All linear attacks are included in the

following six thrusts (Shang Zhong XiaLiu Lu Chu Qiang,): high inside,

high outside, middle inside, middle outside, low inside and low outside.

Center Mid-level Thrust (Zhong Ping Qiang,)The most difficult thrust to parry is the center mid-level thrust (Zhong Ping Qiang,)

because the angle between the crossing spears are smaller than in the high or low thrusts.

:

:

You must use your whole-body balanced-force and neuromuscular coordination to deliver your

thrust; the whole-body must move as one (Yi Dong Wu Bu Dong,). The front

hand is mainly used to control the spear's angle and direction. When thrusting from a left-lead

posture, start by drilling(Zuan,) your right rear leg to take up power from the ground (Nei

Luo Xuan,), push your whole-body forward, pivot your torso to your left, and drive your

right shoulder, arms, and hands forward. With relaxed initiation, this concurrent sequential

overlapping action thrusts your right hand forward towards your left hand, shooting the spear

forward; the shaft sliding in the tube formed by your left thumb, index and middle fingers

(underhand slip thrust, Za,). Thrust your spear forward with your relaxed whole-body

(tension will slow you down); only tense and focus at the very last instance of your powerrelease, i.e., when your right hand smash into your left hand. Shoot the spear out straight,

centered, and level while twisting your right forearm inwards (Nei Luo Xuan,). After

your power release, immediately withdraw/retract your spear to your waist; return to your Center

Four-level Posture (Zhong Si Ping Qiang Shi,). Forward thrust must be fast andmust have acceleration (). Withdraw/retract must be fast and straight (). Remain

relaxed except at the focus of the power release. Visualize thrusting your spear through a wall.

Remember: the torso/core drives the shoulders; the shoulders drive the elbows; the elbows drivethe hands; make full use of the intrinsic helical spiral nature of your musculature with

appropriate twisting of your torso and limbs (Yi Dong Quan Shen Zhuan,).

:,

16


17/54

Oral Tradition: Thrust your spear forward like an arrow; withdraw it immediately just asfast and straight.

One Handed Underhand Slip Thrust: In special situations, you may increase your reach byreleasing your left hand hold. This results in the single hand forward thrust (one-handedunderhand slip thrust; Dan Shou Za,). It is a dangerous move because you do not have

much control; with the center of gravity of the spear far forward, it is easy to parry.

Underhand Thrust: By not allowing the spear to slip in your left hand, you may execute anunderhand forward thrust using both hands (Ci,; Tui,). You may increase stability by

twisting both hands in synch (Fan Wan,) to rotate the spear on an axis coaxial with its

shaft in its forward and backward movement (Nei WaiLuo Xuan,).

Overhand Thrust: By reversing your left hand hold so your thumbs face each other (Yin Ba,) on the spear shaft, you may execute a powerful forward, downward overhand thrust (Jie,

; Cha,). Similar overhand thrust with the butt does not require changing your grip (Jie Ba,

).

One Handed Overhand Thrust: By holding the spear in a reverse grip (ice pick grip) at itscenter of gravity (balance point; Qiang Xin,), you can execute fast one handed overhand

stabbing motions thrusting forward and downward (Cha,).

B. Circle(Quan Qiang,)The circle movement maneuver of the point (Quan Qiang,) is the mother of all parryingtechniques (mainly for spear-versus-spear; Fang Liu Lu Qiang,). It makes use of the

difference in movement time: a linear thrust attack from your opponent must travel over a longer

distance than your circular lateral parry movement; you need only parry his point a couple of feet

laterally from your central line to defeat it. In general, you want to push your shaft forward intothe path of your opponents spear, intercept the end section of your opponents spear shaft with

the mid section of your spear shaft and stick to his weapon. Then slip your opponents spear

aside (Hua Qiang,) with a circular movement while sliding your spear forward and

downward along your opponents spear shaft toward his leading front hand (Shun Gan Hua

Da,).

:

The square movement is within the circle movement; explore the up/down (vertical), left/right

(lateral), and forward/backward principal directional forces as you do the circles clockwise andcounter-clockwise. Keep the spear shaft touching your torso; direct the point to move in a circle

(square) in a vertical plane with an approximate 2-foot diameter. Make sure you are using

whole-body harmony action (Zheng Ti Xie Tiao,) and not just moving your arms

17


18/54

locally (Ju Bu,). For more advance practice, the spear shaft may slide forward/backward

and rotate on your torso to provide natural helical spiral (corkscrew) three-dimensional motionsas necessary. We will now describe how to use different sections of the circle movementof the

point to parry the spear thrust.

Examples: Parries for the six standard thrusts(Fang Liu Lu Qiang,):,,Coordinate your whole-body harmony movement (Zheng Ti Xie Tiao,) to take up

power from the ground to execute these six standard parries.

Parrying Mid-level Thrusts ():Inside (Na,) and Outside (Lan,)Parry thrust to mid-level inside(Na,): From the left lead on-guard posture, lower your righthand slightly to increase the angle between the spears. Drillyour left foot inwards (Nei Luo

Xuan,), take up power from the ground, torque your torso to your right, using your

whole-body (torso), make the point of your spear describe a semi-circle with the open side facing

down by simultaneously rotating your front hand to palm facing down and your rear hand to

palm facing up; the spear rotates on an axis coaxial with the shaft. The spear point moves from

left up, then down right (clockwise from 9 o'clock through 12 o'clock to 3 o'clock) to interceptyour opponents spear. Withdraw both hands slightly rearward and shift your weight rearwards

(Tun,), your spear shaft may slide slightly backwards on your torso.

Alternate: Downward press parry (Ya,

) use smaller circular motion, push hands forward anddownward.

Parry thrust to mid-level outside(Lan,): From the left lead on-guard posture, lower your

right hand slightly to increase the angle between the spears. Drillyour right foot inwards (Nei

Luo Xuan,), take up power from the ground, torque your torso to your left, using your

whole-body make the point of your spear describe a semi-circle with open side facing down by

simultaneously rotate your front hand to palm facing up and bring your rear hand (from yourwaist to your chest) with palm facing front. The spear point moves from right up, then down left

(counter-clockwise from 3 o'clock through 12 o'clock to 9 o'clock) to intercept your opponents

spear. Alternatively, you may rotate your front hand to palm facing up and rear hand to palm

facing down while withdrawing both hands rearward, shifting your weight rearward slightly,slide your spear shaft backwards on your torso with the right hand remaining on the spear butt

behind your right hip.

Alternate: Downward press parry (Ya,) use smaller circular motion, push hands forward and

downward.

18


19/54

Parrying High-levelThrusts ():Inside (Zhuo,) and Outside (Gou,)High-level inside parry (Zhuo,) is the same as mid-level inside parry (Na,). The rear

hand is lowered slightly to raise the point to increase the angle between the spears to intercept

your opponents spear.

High-level outside parry (Gou,) is the same as mid-level outside parry (Lan,). The left

hand is brought up high to in front of the left shoulder with the back of the hand facing upwards.The rear hand is lowered slightly to increase the angle between the spears to intercept your

opponents spear.

Parrying Low-levelThrusts ():Inside (Ti,) and Outside (Lu,)Low-level inside parry (Ti,): Drillyour leading left foot inwards (Nei Luo Xuan,),

take up power from the ground, torque your torso to your right, lift your right hand up to chest

level rotating your right palm to face the right front. Simultaneously, lower your left handslightly and push it to the front and right, palm facing upwards. The point of your spear

describes a semi-circle with the open side facing your right (counter-clockwise from 12 o'clockthrough 9 o'clock to 6 o'clock) to intercept your opponents spear thrust.

Low-level outside parry (Lu,): Similar to low-level inside parry. Drillyour rear foot

inwards (Nei Luo Xuan,), take up power from the ground, torque torso left; twist (pivot)

your body to drive your left shoulder back and your right shoulder forward. Simultaneously,lower and withdraw your left hand to the rear and left while rotating left hand to left palm facing

down and right palm facing up. The spear point describes a semi-circle with the open side facing

your left (clockwise from 12 o'clock through 3 o'clock to 6 o'clock) to intercept your opponentsspear.

C. Downward Strike Chop(Pi,; Dian,; Dai,)Downward Strike (Chop; Pi,) may be used to parry high-level and mid-level thrusts. Keep

your right rear hand on your waist; lift your left front hand about 5 inches (left hand may slide

towards the point). Using whole-body balanced-force, drilllegs inwards (Nei Luo Xuan,

) to take up power from the ground, shift your weight either backward or forward slightly;

chop down with the spear (left hand should slide back towards the butt while the right hand may

lift upwards slightly during the downward chop). The spear should be centered and level afterthe chop, ending in the Center Four-level posture.

Practical technique: Extend your hands forward as you chop downward; use your opponent's

spear as a guide and follow it down to strike his lead hand (Sui Gun Da Shou,), slash

or cut his hand or forearm. Or strike at the sweet spot (Pai Wei,; about a foot in front of

your opponent's lead hand), of your opponent's spear to knock it off his hand.

19


20/54

Dian(): Use the left front hand as fulcrum; lift your right rear hand palm upwards to a point

higher than the front hand causing the spear point tosnapdownwards sharply to strikedownward on your opponents lead forearm or hand.

Note: Lightning fast downward slashing with the first half of the blade is usually accompanied

with slightly circular pulling back (Dai,) of your spear while cutting with the full blade mayrequire moving the spear forward or backward.

Note: Chopping (Pi,) uses large motion to drive the full blade through your target. In order

to guard your central line, you should minimize the departure of the spear point from the central

line by chopping straight down using the full edge with minimal pull back. When using diagonal

chops, do not slide your hands together because that will slow your recovery to your on-guardposture.

Caution: Large sweeping fan like (Shan Mian,) chops (vertical, Pi,; diagonal, Da,

; horizontal, Sao,) should never be used against spear thrusts because of the slow recovery

time. Spear thrusts are much too fast for these staff techniques (Gun Fa,).

D. Upward Strike- Lift (Beng,; Tiao,; Liao,; Yao,; Dai,)Upward Lift can be used to parry high-level thrusts (Tiao,; Dai,) or as an attack (Beng,

; Tiao,; Liao,; Yao,).

Soft Upward Strike or Lift Parry (Rou,):Drillyour legs to take up power from the

ground; shift your weight slightly backwards (Tun,; do not lean backwards); push down with

your right rear hand; lift up your left front hand; use your whole-body coordination to guide yourspear point upwards and backwards (Tiao,; Dai,). Move the shaft slightly to your right to

parry an inside (Quan Li,) thrust or slightly to your left to parry an outside (Quan Wai,

) thrust.

Practical technique: After using lift to parry, immediately follow through with a chop attack

(Tiao Da Qiang,).

Hard Upward Strikeor Lift Parry (Gang,): When your spear is below your opponent's

spear shaft, extending your arms forward, with a forceful upward strike (lift), knock your

opponents spear upwards to create an opening or cut your opponents forearm. Visualizethrowing a shovel of sand backwards over your left shoulder. Your front hand moves upwards

while your rear hand moves downwards. In small motion, this is the upward shake (Beng,);

in large motion, it is the upward strikes (Tiao,; Liao,).

Practical technique: Use the upward lift (Tiao,) as a direct attack or riposte after a low-level

parry (Ti,; Lu,); follow your opponents spear shaft towards your target. Or remove your

body from the line of attack (thrust) by side stepping or diagonal stepping and use the upward

20


21/54

strike lift (Beng,; Tiao,; Liao,; Yao,) to attack your opponents leading arm

(Shan Bu Yi Tiao,). Pull backward slightly (Dai,) in a circular motion when

slashing or cutting with the upper edge of the blade.

E. Shake (Dou,; Da,; Dian,; Beng,)When your thrust is parried from your central line and your opponent is counter thrusting while

sticking to your spear shaft (Tie Gan Shen Ru,), you may useshake (Dou,) to

bounce or beat his spear laterally or vertically off his line of attack. Thus, create an opening

for your counter attack. In order to succeed, you must be able to rapidly deploy a crisp spring-

like force (Tan Dou Li,) cultivated from nurturing the isometric-opposite-force-pairs

(Mao Dun Zheng Li,) and the helical spiral (corkscrew) twisting forces (Luo Xuan

Li Wu Xing,).

Also, your may execute forehand and backhand lateral/vertical shakes with circular pull back to

slash or with forward/backward motions to cutyour opponent with the blade of your spear. For

lightning fast slashes, use only the leading half of the blade edge with circular pull back motion.Use the whole blade with either forward or backward motions to cut.

Left Shake (ZuoDou,): From the left lead Center Four-level posture, push off your right

foot, torque your torso to your left while shifting your weight slightly backwards; simultaneously

rotate your left hands to palm facing upward (Wai Luo Xuan,) while pulling outwards

and backwards, twisting your right hand to palm facing downward (Nei Luo Xuan,)

while pushing outwards and forwards, toshake (Dou,) laterally towards your left and rear.

This is a short snappy fast lateral move to bounce (orbeat) your opponent's spear to youroutside

or to slash and cut backhand. It works better if you can end up with your spear shaft on top ofyour opponent's spear shaft during the defensive shake. Riposte immediately.

Right Shake (YouDou,): From the left lead Center Four-level posture, push off your left

foot, torque your torso to your right while shifting your weight slightly backwards;

simultaneously rotate your left hands to palm facing downward (Nei Luo Xuan,) while

pulling inwards and backwards, twisting your right hand to palm facing upward (Wai Luo Xuan,

) while pulling inwards and backwards, toshake (Dou,) laterally towards your right

rear. This is a short snappy fast lateral move to bounce (orbeat) your opponent's spear to your

inside or to slash and cut backhand. Move your spear shaft on top of your opponent's spear shaft

during the defensive shake. Riposte immediately.

Upward Shake (Beng,): This is similar to the upward lift strike. Keep your spear in contact

with your waist. Lower the spear point and extend it slightly forward. Drillyour legs to take uppower from the ground; shift your weight backwards simultaneously lift your front hand upwards

while pushing your rear hand downwards to snap the point sharply upwards ending in Center

Four-level on-guard posture. This will help you to learn to use your whole-body; do not lean

backwards; shift your weight backwards at the hip (Tun,). Use this as riposte to slash or cut

21


22/54

your opponents lead arm orbeatat thesweet spoton your opponents spear shaft about a foot in

front of your opponents front grip (Pai Wei,) to open a line.

Downward Shake(Dian,): This is similar to the downward chop strike. Keep your spear in

contact with your waist. Drillyour legs to take up power from the ground; simultaneously push

your left front hand downwards while lifting your right rear hand upwards to snap the pointsharply downwards ending in Center Four-level on-guard posture. Do this short sharp snappy

downward chop using your whole-body; pull backwards to slash; extend arms forward to cut; or

beat at the sweet spot (Pai Wei,) to knock you opponents spear off his line of attack.

As riposte for a pushing parry (Tui,), follow your opponents spear shaft (Shun Gan Hua Da,

) forwards and downwards to execute Dian () on his leading forearm/hand.

F. OthersSome secondary parrying techniques such as Wrapping (Chan,), Press Down (Ya,), Push

Chop (Tui Pi,) etc., are just variations of the basic skills already described. The following

maneuvers/techniques contain large physical movements:

Da,; Sao,; Cha,; Gou,; Jia,; Ge,

They are too dangerous to use when engaged in a spear-versus-spear confrontation because oftheir slow recovery time. However, they can be used quite effectively against other weapons and

will be included in the Section II: Staff (Ji BenGun Fa,).

Spear Throwing: While throwing your spear increase your effective reach enormously, you

do throw away your weapon. To Throw, hold your spear at the balance point (Qiang Xin,)with a reverse half grip i.e., thumb along the shaft pointing towards the butt, the other four

fingers half way around on the opposite side of the shaft. Face your target squarely, feetshoulder width apart, hold your spear over your throwing arm shoulder, thumb almost touching

your chin, keep the shaft and point in a straight line pointing at your target. Drillinwards (Nei

Luo Xuan,) and push off with your rear foot, step forward with your front foot, open all

your joints in a concurrent sequential overlapping motion, pivot and rotate your torso forward,using your back, shoulder, and arm throw your spear at your target. Extend your throwing arm

as far forward as possible before releasing. Practice and learn the trajectory of your throw; to

increase range, raise your throwing arm.

3. Methods and ProceduresWe will explore/discuss basic spear training in five overlapping categories: resistance drills (Mo

Gan Shi Li,), trial-and-feel (Hua Gan Shi Li,), power release (Hua Gan

Fa Li,), two-man slip spears drills (Shuang Ren Dui Hua Dui Za, ),

and free sparring (Shi Zuo,).

22


23/54

A. Resistance Drills (Mo Gan Shi Li,)Objective: Seek, sense, be aware of, explore, and experience the interaction of frictional

resistance forces (Zheng Li,) in the six principal directions: forward/backward;

upward/downward; lateral left/right (Liu Mian Mo Li,).

Forward/backward: Start with the left lead Center Four-level posture (Zhong Si Ping Qiang

Shi,), with the front section of the spear shaft resting on a tree branch at throat level

to provide friction/resistance. With whole-body harmony effort, drillyour right rear leg inwards

(Nei Luo Xuan,), take up power from the ground, mildly opposing with the front leg by

drillinginwards, compressing the imaginary spring between your knees (Jia Xi Fa Li,

), push your spear forward and downward while rotating your lead left hand clockwise to palm

facing down (Nei Luo Xuan,); then push off your left front leg (drilloutwards; Wai

Luo Xuan,), mildly opposing with the rear leg, stretching the imaginary spring

connecting your knees (Xiang Zheng Xiang Lian,), pull your spear backward and

downward while rotating your lead hand counter-clockwise to palm facing up (Wai Luo Xuan,). Sense, perceive, explore, and experience the dominant forward/backward friction

forces as if trying to saw off the tree branch. Feel for the dominant forward/backward force

against the light frictional resistance as the spear shaft is rubbed on the tree branch.

Upward/downward: Repeat this exercise using different angled tree branches to explore and

experience the dominant downward and forward force (or upward and forward) force while

pushing forward, rotating your left leading hand clockwise inwards (Nei Luo Xuan,),

and the dominant upward and backward force (or downward and backward) force while pulling

backward rotating your left leading hand counter-clockwise outwards (Wai Luo Xuan,).

This exercise trains the use of forces in your upward lift and downward chop maneuvers.

Lateral left/right: Repeat this exercise using different angled tree branches to explore and

experience the dominant lateral leftward forward (or leftward backward) forces with rotating

your left leading hand counter-clockwise outwards (Wai Luo Xuan,), and the dominant

rightward forward (or rightward backward) forces with rotating your left leading hand clockwise

inwards (Nei Luo Xuan,). This exercise trains lateral left/right spring-like shaking

forces (Heng Dou Tan Li,).

When you have master whole-body harmony of action with these, mix up the sequence for

sensing and exploring the resistance forces in all the six principal directions (Liu Mian Mo Li,

). In these exercises, you may also reverse the rotational direction along the axis of thespear as you feel inclined.

B. Trial-and-feel (Hua Gan Shi Li,)Use solo trial-and-feel exercise (Hua Gan Shi Li,) with any of the spear

maneuvers/techniques described to ingrain whole-body harmony of action of each of the

23


24/54

techniques. Do forward thrust and backward pull, upward lift and downward chop, lateral

left/right parry, etc. Sense, perceive, explore, and experience the internal/external isometric-

opposite-forces (Nei WaiZheng Li,); harmonize and interact with the surrounding.

Change, adapt, and refine to achieve whole-body harmony of action and force; ingrain each

maneuver/technique into habit. Initially train in fixed-step (Ding Bu,), then

incorporating footwork and use free-step (Huo Bu,). Repetition is the mother of all skills.

C. Power (Hua Gan Fa Li,)Use any of the maneuver/technique as solo power discharge/release exercise (Hua Gan Fa Li,

) to practice power discharge/release (Fa Li,) in the six principal directions:

forward thrust (Za,; Tui,; Jie,; Ci,), backward pull (Dai,), upward lift (Beng,;

Tiao,), downward chop (Pi,; Dian,; Ya,), lateral right (Na,; Heng Dou,),

and lateral left (Lan,; Heng Dou,). Use the spear with whole-body harmony of action

and balanced-force (Hun Yuan Li,); initially train in fixed-step (Ding Bu,), thenincorporating footwork and use free-step (Huo Bu,).

Practicesoftpower discharge/release (Song De Fa Li,) intersperse with a few hard

focus ones (Jin De Fa Li,). Do not practice hardFa Liexclusively; that will lead to

rigidity (Jiang,).

D. Two-man Slip Spears Drills (Shuang Ren Dui Hua Dui Za, )Repetition is the mother of all skills. These exercises are similar to push-hands repetitive drills.For safety, remove the spear point or blade; use only the blunt spear shaft. And wear appropriate

protective equipment.

:,,,,,

,,,,

Timing, distance, angle, and accuracy can only be learned from experience with basic two-man

slip spear sparring practice (Shuang Ren Dui Hua Dui Za, ). Let your mind-

body experience your intellectual learning by doing these slow motion two persons trial-and-feelexercises. Slow is smooth; smooth is fast. Cooperate with your slip spear training/sparring

partner; learn the timing, angle, and distance. Do it correctly every time will reinforce yourautomatic response and un-conscious competence. Repetition is the mother of all skills.Remember that Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) consists of modeling and imaging. In

modeling the student mimics the movement of the teacher and in imaging the student think

through the movement to "ingrain" the skill. Both mental and physical exercises are necessary;

you must practice both mental and physical training and conditioning. Skills must becomespontaneous reflexes to be useful.

24


25/54

We will only list some important examples of two-man slip spear exercises below; use your

imagination to refine and invent new ones. For continue development, you must modify, adapt,change, and add to what is given to you.

Initial distance: For safety reasons, stand apart so that when you thrust, your spear point will

only reach your opponent's front foot. To begin these exercises, face your opponent in the leftlead Center Four-level Posture (Zhong Si Ping Qiang Shi,), your left leading foot

stepping on the centerline (Zhong Xian,) joining your center gates (Zhong Men,),

with your spear pointing at your opponents throat. In these exercises, for training purpose, theattacker/trainer/teacher should angle his spear upwards so that it is easier for his partner, the

defender/trainee/student, to parry.

In the following examples: Ais the teacher/trainer; Bis the student/trainee. Inside indicates

inside the circle (Quan Nei,); outside indicates outside the circle (Quan Wai,).

A must nurse B, cooperating and allowing B to execute each technique correctly and

completely. Do not practice parry without a riposte.

Examples:

a) Mid-Level Outside Parry I (Lan,)

1. A thrusts towards B's front hand from the outside.

2. B executes mid-level outside parry (Lan,) and slips A's spear to B's outside.

3. B thrusts towards A's front hand from the outside (riposte).

4. A executes mid-level outside parry (Lan,) and slips B's spear to A's outside.

The defender should use the middle section of his spear shaft to make initial contact with the

front section of the attacker's spear shaft. Thenslip (Hua,) the spears so that the front section

of the defender's spear shaft parries towards the middle section of the attacker's spear shaft (Pai

Wei,). Use the elastic spring-like property (Tan Xing,) of the spears to slip your

opponent's spear to the side. Do not bash or knock the spears together. The parry should be

executed late and fast (), as the attackers hands come together shortening the

controlling moment arm between his hands and become fully committing to his thrust (,

).

b) Mid-Level Outside Parry II - wrap-around parry (Chan,; Lan,)

1. A thrusts to B's front hand from the outside.2. B executes mid-level outside parry and slips A's spear to B's inside.

3. B thrusts towards A's front hand from the outside (riposte).

4. A executes mid-level outside parry and slips B's spear to A's inside.

25


26/54

The wrap-around parry (Guo Qiang,) uses a 270 degrees arc instead of the usual 180

degrees arc; the spear point moves in a counter-clockwise circular arc from 3 oclock through 12

oclock, through 9 oclock to 6 oclock. The open side of the arc faces to the defender's lower

right.

c) Mid-LevelInside Parry (Na,)

1. A thrusts to B's front hand from the inside.

2. B executes mid-level inside parry (Na,) and slips A's spear to B's inside.

3. B thrusts towards A's front hand from the inside (riposte).

4. A executes mid-level inside parry (Na,) and slips B's spear to A's inside.

The defender makes initial contact with middle section of his spear shaft then slips the contact

point towards the front section of his spear shaft to slip his opponent's spear to the side.

d) High-Level Parry - Downward Chop (Pi,)

1. A thrusts towardsB's face from the inside (outside).

2. B lifts his spear with his front hand; contacts the front section ofA's spear on the inside

(outside) with the middle section; then chops down (Pi,) along A's spear slightly

toward Bs inside (outside); ends with the front section of the spear shaft at the middle

section ofA's spear shaft (in a four-level posture).3. B thrusts towards A's face from the inside (outside).

4. A lifts his spear with his front hand; contacts the front section ofB's spear on the inside

(outside) with the middle section; then chops down (Pi,) along B's spear slightly

towards As inside (outside); ends with the front section of the spear shaft at the middle

section ofB's spear shaft (in a four-level posture).

When chopping, the right hand must hold the butt firmly at the waist; slip your spear along your

opponent's spear; do not bash or knock the spears apart. If you move both hands forward when

you are chopping, you will be able to strike (slash or cut) your opponent's front hand. After a

chopping parry, you may riposte with a forward thrust or an upward blow (Tiao,).

e) High-Level Parry - Upward Lift (Tiao

,

;Dai

,

)

1. A thrusts towards B's face from the outside (inside).

2. B lifts left hand (Tiao,); uses the front section of the spear to make initial contact with

the middle section ofA's spear; continue to lift the spear upwards and backwards (Dai,

) to slip A's spear to B's outside (inside).

3. B thrusts towards A's face from the outside (inside).

26


27/54

4. A lifts left hand (Tiao,); uses the front section of the spear to make initial contact with

the middle section ofB's spear; continue to lift the spear upwards and backwards (Dai,)to slip B's spear to A's outside (inside).

Upward lift (Tiao,; Dai,) should be light andsoft; stick (Nian,) and follow your

opponent's spear; the main force is from front arm. You may combine upward lift and thenriposte with downward chop to strike your opponent's front hand.

There are other upward lifting techniques. Some move both hands simultaneously while keeping

the spear level (Tuo Qiang,). Another: place your spear below your opponent's spear and

forcefully snap upwards to release power to throw your opponent's spear upwards (see (h)below).

f) Low-Level Parry (Ti,; Lu,)

Badopts the left lead High Four-level posture (Gao Si Ping Shi,) leaving the lowerlines open to begin this exercise.

1. A thrusts towards B's front knee from the outside (inside).

2. B shifts front left leg back slightly to avoid the attack; lifts his right hand, pushingslightly forward (pull backward) and lowers his left hand; uses the middle section of his

spear to make contact with the middle section ofA's spear; then slips the spear towards

the front section and twists torso left (right) to slip A's attack to the outside (inside).

3. B thrusts towards A's front knee from the outside (inside).4. A shifts front left leg back slightly to avoid the attack; lifts right hand, pushing slightly

forward (pull backward) and lowers his left hand; uses the middle section of his spear to

make contact with the middle section ofB's spear; then slips the spear towards the frontsection and twist torso left (right) to slip B's attack to the outside (inside).

It is important to slip (Hua,) the spears instead of knocking them. In the latter case, when

knocked, you can quickly withdraw, change, and thrust in a new line or directions. Whereas in

slipping, the spears are "glued" (Nian Sui,) together for better manipulation.

After this low-level parry, you may riposte by slide your spear upward along your opponent's

spear (Shun Gan Hua Da,), combining it with an upward lift to strike your

opponent's front hand.

g) Low-LevelInside Parry - Helical Parry/Thrust (Juan Qiang,)

B adopts the left lead High Four-level posture to begin this exercise.

1. A thrusts towards B's knee from the inside.

27


28/54

2. B lifts left leg to avoid the attack; lifts right hand to chest level and lowers left hand

slightly to make contact with spears; while pushing forward (to the right) slightly with theleft hand (palm facing left), use an overhand slip thrust to shoot the spear towards A's

front knee with the right hand (palm facing right).

This is an exercise for the downward forward overhand slip thrust. By adding the inside parryduring the thrust, your spear point traces out a helical spiral (corkscrew) pattern.

h) Basic Two Thrusts Drill (Tiao Qiang,)

1. A thrusts (Za,) towards B's front hand from the inside.

2. B executes mid-level inside parry (Na,).

3. A changes attack target; moves the spear and thrusts towards B's shin from the outside

(Za,; Dian Ti,).

3. B follows A's move; places the spear below A's spear; uses the middle section to contact

the middle section ofA's spear; withdraws right hand and lifts up (Beng,) forcefullywith left hand; ends in Center Four-level posture.

4. B thrusts towards A's front hand from the inside.5. A executes mid-level inside parry.

6. B changes attack target; moves the spear and thrusts towards A's shin from the outside.

7. A follows B's move; places his spear below B's spear; uses the middle section to contactthe middle section ofB's spear; withdraws right hand and lifts up forcefully with left

hand; ends in Center Four-level posture.

In this exercise, the up lift (Beng,) is an upwardshake power release (Tan Dou Li,).

It must be clean and crisp so your opponent's spear "bounces" upwards.

i) Basic Multiple Thrust Drill: Thrusts to heart, shoulder, knee and face.

1. A thrusts to B's heart; Bexecutes inside parry.

2. A thrusts to B's shoulder (Shan Zhuan,); B executes outside parry.

3. A thrusts to B's knee; Bexecutes low outside parry.4. A thrusts to B's face; B executes high inside parry.

The training partners may then reverse the offensive/defensive roles. Be sure to use whole-body

movement and balanced-force (Hun Yuan Li,) to back-up every move. Slip the spears;

do not bash or knock the shafts.

j) Basic Sticking Spear Drill (Nian Gan,)

1. A thrusts to B's heart from the outside (inside).2. B slips A's spear aside with outside (inside) parry while sticking onto As spear.

28


29/54

3. A changes target and thrusts to Bs knee from inside (outside).

4. B sticking to A's spear; follows A's move and executes low inside (outside) parry.

This drill can be initiated with A thrusting high to Bs face or at mid-level to Bs heart from

eitherinside oroutside.

k) Four Power Release Drills

1. A thrusts to B's heart from the outside (inside).

Buses the mid section of his spear to push (Tui,) A's spear to his left (right); then

chops down (downward shake, Dian,) at thesweet spotabout a foot in front ofA's

hand (Xia Fa Li,) to knock it downwards.

2. A thrusts to B's knee from the outside (inside).

B uses low outside (inside) parry; then with whole-body balanced-force torque torso

to his left (right) to shakeA's spear to the outside (inside).

3. A thrusts to B's heart from the inside.

B uses inside parry; then keeping the spears in contact uses forward push (Tui,) power

release to throw A backwards.

4. A thrusts to B's knee from the outside (inside).

B uses low outside (inside) parry; then with whole-body force lift upwards (Tiao,),

like throwing a shovel of sand over his shoulder, at thesweet spotin front ofA's leadhand to throw his spear upwards. (See section on Slip Spear Exercise.)

Practice as you feel inclined. Explore, experiment, and refine; create exercises to train forspecific goals (You Yi Er Lian,). A maneuver/technique becomes useful only after it

has become habit and form-less.

:,

E. Controlled Free Form SparringUse appropriate protective equipment. Set up safety rules of engagement. Free form touch

sparring seem to be the appropriate place to start. Full contact sparring with even modifiedweapons is definitely still dangerous.

4. Summary - Training GuidelinesThe majority of your training and conditioning effort should be on the primary exercises:

29


30/54

1. Mid-level thrust (Za,)

2. Mid-level inside parry (Na,)

3. Mid-level outside parry (Lan,)

When you have mastered the primary exercises, practice the secondary exercises:

1. Down Chop (Dian,; Pi,)

2. Upward Lift (Beng,; Tiao,)

3. Low level parry (Ti,; Lu,)

4. Shake (Dou,)

Students should use a buddy system to practice the basic slip spear (Hua Gan,)

exercises. Help each other learn.

The above are the fundamentals of the spear. Students interested in spear techniques should seek

qualified instructions; nothing can replace competent firsthand instructions. However, solosequential forms and patterns (Tao Lu,) only practice/training is absolutely useless. All

flowery techniques are a waste of time. Always ask: What is the purpose of this move?Eliminate all extraneous motions.

Training to use the Staff (Gun Fa,) is more practical than training to use the Spear and will

be covered in Section II: Staff (Ji Ben Gun Fa,).

_____________________________________________________________________________________________Copyright 2009-01-24 J. P. Lau, All rights reserved.

30


31/54

Notes on Long Weapons: Spear and Staff

Section II: Staff (Ji BenGun Fa,)

Staff practice (Gun Fa,) is a supplemental training for Yiquan. Foundation in Yiquan

basic skills (Yiquan Ji Ben Gong,) is prerequisite. While the staff can be used as aweapon, our emphasis is using this training to further develop the balanced-force (Hun Yuan Li,

) and whole-body explosive power release (Zheng Ti Bao Fa Li,).

Here, the term staff (Gun,) is used to cover pole, staff or any stick weapon between 4 foot to

7 foot in length and about an inch in diameter (Gan,; Zhang,; Bang,). In

learning/practicing the staff, a firm foundation in the spear training (Qiang Fa,) is

extremely valuable because a long staff (Chang Gun,) is a blunt spear; 70% of staff

maneuvers/techniques are spear maneuvers/techniques. In this exploration, we assume the

reader is familiar with using the spear.

:,

Without the sharp point and blade of the spear, the staff must rely on impact to be effective.

Thus, proper whole-body power discharge/release through the staff onto your opponent is

absolutely vital; merge all force components of your torso/core and limbs as one (Quan Shen Li

Yi,).

:,

Staff practice should follow the training and conditioning theories and principles of Yiquan:

Understand the theories and principles involved; use the interactions with the external/internalisometric-opposing-force-pairs (Mao Dun Zheng Li,) to harmonize, synthesize, and

ingrain your maneuvers/techniques (in fixed-step and free-step) into habit (Mo Gan Shi Li,

), and learn distance, timing, angle, accuracy, and agility (the ability to adapt and change

according to your opponent) with real experience gained from sparring with real partners

(Shuang Ren Dui Hua Dui Za,).

31


32/54

1. PrinciplesThe staff is the shaft of a spear; it is an impact weapon. It depends on blunt trauma to damage

your opponent. You can thrust with the point or the butt. Also, you can strikes with the front,

rear, and middle sections of the shaft.

A. Mindset and TacticsYou must have an aggressive attitude, seize the initiative and engagement opportunities; be the

aggressor, use attack as defense. Action beats reaction. Protect and guard your central line;

attack your opponents central line (Shou Zhong Yung Zhong,). Concentrate on the

vertical, always keep your staff pointed at your opponent and threaten his throat/mouth area.

Avoid lateral movement that brings your staff point off the central line.

:,

You must maintain your mental confrontation state; take advantage of any opening to attack. In

a confrontation, subconsciously you would go through the OODA cycle (feedback loop):

Observation: Allow your opponent to initiate his move; observe and find

his weakness.

Orientation: Place yourself at advantageous distance and angle.

Decision: Subconsciously decide your reaction.

Action: Let your automatic spontaneous reflexes take the appropriate action.

You must train to automatically initiate your action on any opening; start after your opponent'sinitial move but land your strike before he can complete his.

:,

When your opponent's force is on your skin, your force would have penetrated his bones. And

your actions must be spontaneous reflexes. If your opponent adopts the above confrontationstate and allows you to make the initial move, you must disturb his OODA loop. Feint to induce

your opponent to react to the attack. Switch between false and real thrusts to different targets.

Time your counter attack in between your opponent's old and new maneuvers (power/forces);compress his time scale by switching to a tempo that he cannot follow.

Next, we will introduce the concepts ofrange andzone.

Range

You may consider a confrontation/fight occurring in three ranges:

32


33/54

Long Range (far interval): This is the range where you and your opponent can not strike each

other with your weapons. From this out-of-contact range your may briefly evaluate youropponent. You may adopt one of thepostures (see Postures) and do yourObservation andOrientation.

Medium Range (medium interval): This is the striking distance where most of your techniquescan be effectively executed. You must make yourDecision and subconsciously takeAction,

relying on your spontaneous reflexes to evade and/or attack.

Short Range (close interval): In this range, you are too close to use the point. You can still

fight using the butt and the mid section of your staff.

You must train to fight effectively in all these ranges.

Zone

You may divide your opponent's strike into three zones:

Accelerating Zone: This is the zone where your opponent's staff/weapon is accelerating into thestrike zone. There is little or no power. You should jam or block the strike in this zone.

Strike Zone: This is the zone where your opponent's staff/weapon has reach critical velocity tobe effective and damaging; where maximum force can be delivered. Avoid or pass his staff in

this zone.

Decelerating Zone: This is the zone where your opponents staff/weapon is decelerating. He is

preparing to switch to another maneuver/technique. He attempts to stop or slow down themotion of his staff/weapon. This is your chance to attack before he can start another

attack/strike. This interface gap (in time and space) between techniques is "between his old and

new forces" (,). You must take advantage of it.

Usezoningin your attack and defense tactics.

Tactics and CharacteristicsThese are the basic staff fighting tactics and characteristics:

1. Use whole-body balanced-force; pay attention to properbody mechanics(alignmentand connected-ness ) and take up power from the ground; torque your

torso and coordinate your arms to deliver/transmit power to the end of the staff.

2. Use circular lateral parrying force for defense against thrusting attacks. Use

linear thrusts to attack. Retract to on-guard immediately after thrusting.

33


34/54

3. Use sweeping/swinging strikes with large "fan" sweeps (Shan Mian,) on

various planes; vertical, horizontal, and inclined at any angle. Be sure to swingand strike through your target; use inertia and momentum as allies. Do not do

"stop-and-go" swings; you have to overcome your weapon's inertia every time

you do "stop-and-go".

4. Guard your central line; attacks need only be parried a few inches laterally to your

side.

:

5. Use simple direct moves with no extraneous motions; initiate change, initiate

attacks; explode into action on contact (Yi Chu Ji Fa,). Use whole-

body coordination.

:,

6. Use multiple thrusts: switch from inside the circle (Quan Li,) to outside the

circle (Quan Wai,); switch from high level to low level etc.

7. Keep your staff close to your opponent's staff when you attack. This minimizethe angle between the staffs making it harder to parry. By minimizing the

distance between the staffs, your opponent cannot gain speed/momentum in his

movement to parry.

8. When parrying allow your opponent's staff to come in close (Jian Rou Fen

Qiang,). Waiting until your opponent's hands are close together,

decreasing his moment arm and control, before you parry.

9. When thrusting or shaking, bounce back to your Center Four-level on-guard

posture immediately. Do not remain in the extended posture for your opponent to

exploit.

10. Remove your body from your opponent's line of force by using side steps, swing

steps etc.

11. On contact, stick (Nian Gan,) onto your opponent's staff and initiate

change; follow along his staff to strike his hands (Sui Gun Da Shou

,

).

12. Usesoft(Rou,) forces to overcome your opponent's hard(Gang,) forces.

Skills can only be acquired with practice. Maneuvers/techniques are useful only when theybecome spontaneous reflexes.

34


35/54

B. GripIn staff training, it is traditional to use a right hand lead. Start with your right leg forward small

step posture (Hun Yuan Zhuang,). Hold the staff with both hands with palms facing

towards each other; your left hand is about a foot from the butt and your right hand is

comfortably near the center of gravity of your staff. You must grip the staff firmly in bothhands; do not tense your forearm muscles. There are two grip variations:

Full grip: Wrap your fingers, as if forming a fist, fully around the staff. Place your thumb on

your index finger or along the staff.

Half grip: Place your fingers opposite to your thumb half way around the staff; squeezing thestaff between your fingers and your thumb.

Hold the staff firmly but do not tense your forearm muscle. Your grip must not be too tight ortoo loose. It must be firm to transmit your whole-body power to the end of the staff. It must be

relaxed to maneuver.

C. PosturesFighting is dynamic; there are no fixed postures or fixed feet positions.

:,

However, these six basic pre-contact (far interval) postures are important. You may adopt anyone of these to Observe and evaluate your opponent, to position and Orientyourself, and to draw

an initial move from your opponent. Some are used to induce your opponent to attack purposelyexposed targets by deliberately creating openings to draw a reaction.

On-guard: Center-Level Posture (Zhong Ping Shi,)

This is similar to the Center Four-Level Posture ()for the spear. The main

difference is that the rear hand holds the staff about a foot from the butt end. Assume the small

step posture (Hun Yuan Zhuang,). The rear hand holds the staff about a foot from the

butt end; the front hand holds the staff comfortably near its balance point (Qiang Xin,).

Keep both arms slightly bend; keep the staff level, with the section between your hands touchingyour waist just above your hip; keep the point at your central line; your front foot, head, and the

point of the staff are on the central line vertical plane (Zhong,). Keep your head, shoulders,

staff and feet level (Si Ping,). This is the most important posture. From this on-guard

posture, it is convenient to execute all defensive and offensive maneuvers/techniques.

35


36/54

High-Lift Posture (Gao Ti Shi,)

From the center-level posture (Zhong Ping Shi,), bend your front arm and lift the point

of the staff to eyebrow level; simultaneously lower your rear hand to in front of your hip. Keep

the staff touching your waist. In this posture, your upper level is protected but it exposes your

low and middle level targets. Be prepared to defend your lower level targets from youropponents attacks.

Pointing-to-the-Ground Posture (Zhi Di Shi,)

From the center-level posture, lower your front hand; allowing the point of the staff to almosttouch the ground. Bend and raise your rear hand slightly. Keep the section of your staff between

your hands touching your waist. This posture exposes your high and middle level targets to

induce your opponent to attack high.

Block-Road Posture(Lan Lu Shi, )Stand erect with your weight evenly distributed between your feet in the parallel step posture

(Ping Bu Zhuang,). Face squarely to the front, place your feet shoulder width apart,

knees slightly bend (Si Qu Fei Zhi,). Hold your staff horizontally with equal length

on each side, with the middle section which is between your hands touching your waist. Your

right hand is on your right hip, palm facing up; your left hand is on your left hip, palm facing

down. This will allow you to deliver hard strikes from both ends of the staff (Da,) by

rotating your waist and stepping. This posture exposes all your openings/targets.

Hide-Staff Posture(Cang Gun Shi,)Left Lead: From the right lead center-level posture, advance your left foot into a left lead smallstep posture. Simultaneously turn your torso 180 degrees to your right; holding the staff level,

with your left arm in front, left elbow forward, palm facing down, right hand points backwards,

palm facing up. Hold the staff with the section between your hands touching your waist, buttend facing forward. You are "hiding" your staff on your right side.

Right Lead: From the right lead center-level posture, slide your staff backwards with only afoot remaining in front of your right hand. Move your right hand slightly to your left in front of

your left hip; "hiding" your staff on your left side.

These two hiding staff postures expose all targets. You must rely on footwork (stepping) to

avoid an attack and then orient/position yourself to counter with downward chop (Pi,),

horizontal sweep (Sao,), or upward lift (Liao,).

36


37/54

Pointing-to-the-Sky Posture (Zhi Tian Shi,)

Assume a left lead small step posture, torso bladed, left shoulder forward. Hold your right hand

high, to the right of your head; keep your right elbow bend. Hold your left hand low, in front of

your right hip directly below your right hand. Your staff is vertical, pointing to the sky.

This posture exposes all targets. You must rely on footwork (stepping) to avoid an attack and

then position yourself to counter attack with downward chop (Pi,) etc.

D. Types of Power DischargeThe type of power discharges/releases delivered with the staff are:

Thrusting (Za,; Ci,): This is initiated by drillingyour rear leg into the ground (Nei Luo

Xuan,) while mildly opposing it with drillingthe front leg (Nei Luo Xuan,);

compressing the imaginary spring between your knees (Jia Xi Fa Li,); driving your

whole-body forward and simultaneously thrusting your arms straight forward to deliver linear

stabbing power with the point or the butt of the staff. This is similar to the spear thrust if you useone hand to thrust and allow the staff to slide through your lead front hand,.

Lateral Circular (inside/outside) Parrying (Xian,; Jian,): Coordinate the whole-body to

torque your torso and rotate your forearms/palms clockwise or counterclockwise (Yi Dong

Quan Shen Zhuan,) to generate lateral force (Heng Tan Dou Li,);

used in lateral inside/outside (Quan Nei/Quan Wai,/) parrying techniques to deflect

linear thrusts.

Striking (Da,, Pi,, Yao,, Liao,, Sao,): Sweeping/swinging strikes or chopping

power comes from the torque of your torso to drive your shoulders and arms in a large circular

action. The staff shaft sweeps out a large "fan" like surface to strike (ShanMian,). The

plane of the "fan" can be vertical (downward chop, Pi,; upward lift, Liao,), horizontal

(HengSao,) or inclined (Da,, Yao,) at any angle.

Pull/push Parrying (Tui,, Dai,): Use whole-body coordinating with arm action to pull,

push or hook your opponent's staff. These can besoft(Rou,), to stick onto your opponent's

staff toslip (Hua,) your opponents staff off its line of attack or it can be hard(Gang,) to

push/bounce him off.

Shaking (Dou,): Use whole-body effort combined with forearms rotation to induce short

distance snapping motion to the staff to bounce your opponent's weapon off its line of attack; as

in small upward lift (Beng,), small downward chop (Dian,) or lateral shake (Heng Dou,

). This type of spring-like (Tan Dou Li,) power release is also used in blocks (Jia,

; Ge,) to bounce off your opponents staff.

37


38/54

Planting (Cha,): Plant/stab one end of your staff onto the ground; use the ground support to

defense against low sweeping/swinging strikes (Sao,).

All power discharges/releases are included when you have mastered power discharges in the six

principle directions (Liu Mian Fa Li,): forward/backward, upward/downward, and

lateral left/right. A firm and proper grip (Wo Yao Gu,) is necessary to transmit thepower from the ground through your hand to the end of the staff. These are the preferredstriking

qualities:

1. Strike your target and retract/reset immediately, or

2. Strike through your target with maximum momentum, or

3. Strike at your target with a change of direction or target during your strike.

Caution: Never strike your target and leave your arms and staff extended on your target allowing

your opponent to counter attack.

2. Basic TechniquesThe following is a list of selected techniques. We have classified them into six categories based

on the dominant type of power discharge/release involved.

From the right leg lead center-level posture (Zhong Ping Shi,), the side to the right of

your central line is outside the circle (Quan Wai,); the side to the left of your central line is

inside the circle (Quan Li,).

A. Thrusting Techniques:

Point Thrust

Two Hand Thrust (Ci,): From the right lead center-level posture (Zhong Ping Shi,

), drillyour left leg inwards (Nei Luo Xuan,) to push your whole-body forward while

mildly opposing with drillingthe right leg inwards (Nei Luo Xuan,) to take up power

from the ground. Or you may take a small forward step with your right foot. Compress the

imaginary spring between your knees (Jia XiFa Li,), simultaneously, thrust the point

of the staff forward with both hands, rotating your right forearm clockwise (Wai Luo Xuan,

) to thrust slightly to your right (opponents inside;) or counter-clockwise (Nei Luo

Xuan,) to thrust slightly to your left (opponents outside;). Your left forearm

should touch the butt section of your staff and rotate with it in sync; the butt section must touch

your waist.

38


39/54

One Hand Thrust (spear thrust; Za,): From the right lead center-level posture, drillyour left

leg to push your whole-body forward (you may take a small forward step). Simultaneouslythrust the point of the staff forward with your left hand; your right thumb, index and middle

fingers form a tube allowing the staff to slide through. Your left forearm should touch the butt

section of your staff. This increases your reach but decreases your control of the staff.

Note: Thrust and withdraw must be fast to minimize exposure. Retract to your center-level

posture immediately after thrusting.

Butt Thrust

Butt Thrust (Jie Ba,): From the right lead center-level posture, shift your weight onto

your right leg; step forward with your left foot; slide your right hand towards the point of the

staff. Drillyour right leg inwards (Nei Luo Xuan,) to push your whole-body forward.

Simultaneously, lift your right hand and pull it back in front of your right shoulder; push and liftyour left hand upward then thrust the butt forward. Coordinate yourdrillingof your right leg

and arms motion to d

Long Weapon Basics - JP Lau

Documents

Transcript of Long Weapon Basics - JP Lau