Fist and Palm Sets

[TomBrad]

Hi, I am interested in the Fist and Palm Sets that Dr Yang demostrated in the books Chi Kung for Health and Martial Arts, and The Secret of Youth. I am unsure how to practice them - should they be done with full tension, or relaxed? Are there any plans to put the techniques on a DVD in the future?

[Josh Young]

I do not believe full tension is ideal, relaxed or with an idea of tension, but not full tension, or even both can work I suppose.

I do not have my copy right here with me, (not at home) but I thought the book said to relax...?

[Dvivid]

You are referring to the Da Mo set, which is hard qigong. HARD qigong does use total muscular tension as part of of the technique. Dr. yang has never made a video of those.

You can find hard and soft qigong exercises, and learn about the theory, on White Crane Qigong DVD:http://ymaa.com/publishing/dvd/qigong_DVD/shaolin_white_crane_qigong_DVD

[robertov]

Mr. de YMAA if I keep to the letter supplied text of each form of Fist Form, it is assumed that between one form and follows no open hands, is it?

Also the text of the book Qigong, The Secret of Youth says that in every way the fist is mental stress but also can be tightened fist physically, is it? say because the answers forum confuse truth...

I found another version on youtube, so here between form and open hands
Fist form
Shaolin Damo's 12 postures Da Jin Fa
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Ig9f14h6SQ

thanks

[joeblast]

balance the hard with the soft

once you get a good feel for laogung breathing and can bring blood and qi to the palms,

get a stack of phone books and place it at a good height for a downward strike. when standing, ground/root/settle. raise palm 12-14 inches above the striking surface. make the palm heavy, take half a dozen breaths getting very still, settling, and making the palm heavy. then, "drop the heavy to the surface," as soon as "the heavy" leaves your palm, let go of it and let the palm fall with no muscular assistance whatsoever.

once the "thud" basically happens simultaneously ('the heavy' and your palm,) use a technique from yongquan breathing, ground and feel as if your entire body is the center, the laogung, and the contact of the palm coincides with the 'contact-strike' of the qi.

there's a ton of refinements one can do...

if you can feel potential at the lower dt, motivate it directed at the laogung and feel the wavecrest and analyze its analogue in the physical motion, the particulars of energyflow to the strike, but keep focus on the intent and not so much on the hard aspect of it...put your jin under a microscope.

there is also vibrating the palm before dropping...

one other important aspect is something master yang mentions in 8 brocades, the looking fiercely part - the niwan does this, a focusing of intent. the sharper and clearer the focus, the more focused the strike. every bit as important utilizing this aspect even when one is only doing the practice with intent.

once you feel you can express the qi well, a test you can try, get a large pail of water, place a soup bowl upside down at the bottom, place a square of tofu on top, and then have 4-5 inches of water over it....now work at it until you can shatter the tofu

[robertov]

so far I understand the following, in the forms of 2 to 11 is a vibration fist with minimal stress or moderate ...
In the first way the hand is raised a bit and down again in the last form is lowered and re-raise again ... Someone maybe the forum has the most accurate explanations of the exercises.

[joeblast]

I'm not entirely sure what you're asking...the methods in my previous post were a soft intent style exercise that differs from the hard way to do it. They cultivate different aspects.