Some of you have signed up for our RAD (Restrain, Arrest, & Detain) class this summer, and I am looking forward to the eight weeks. We spent the spring talking about Qigong and this is a good time to write a few Posts about one of the ways your qi development finds direct application. Our 21-Day Challenge was about taking control of your self. As was expressed before, Qigong practice is a good technique to use in supporting that effort. Now what we want to explore is the process of extending your control from yourself to the other. In the Me’je Oruka System and Yoruba language So-po ati Pamo (or So-po Pamo) translates to Lock and Hold. If every individual were to put effort into controlling his or her self, we would have no need to control the other. But sometimes, some individuals either lose self-control, or become of a mind that they desire to take control of others without the inherent right to do so. When these individuals appear and circumstances arise So-po Pamo may become necessary. In Me’je Oruka, So-po Pamo is a stage of tolerance where there is hope that the offending individual when confronted with the challenge that they face will regain their senses and choose to exercise self-control. As Omo Orisa (Children of Orisa) we do not wish to do harm to another and choose to live our lives in Peaceful Space. However, maintaining Peaceful Space also means being willing and able to restrain the misbehavior of others, to arrest harm where we are able, and to detain the progression of that which violates the freedom and well being of the community and its members.
In the Chinese language Chin Na roughly translates into two words, ‘seize’ (chin) and ‘control’ (na). Hence, the major purpose of Shaolin Chin Na as practiced in our 7 Circles System of Kung Fu is to quiet or stop an aggressive action without maiming or injuring to a serious extent. Consider Chin Na’s placement in our Nine Levels of Self-Defense.
The 9 Levels of Self-Defense
- Avoid
- Evade
- Redirect
- Lock & Hold
- Induce Pain
- Inflict Injury
- Maim
- Render Unconscious
- Terminate a Life
At levels 1 & 2 there is no physical contact between you and the offending party and this is our preferred way of being. At level 3 a minimal amount of contact will be necessary to redirect the aggressive action but that contact is soft and grazing. Level 3 represents and important threshold in the progression of an aggressive action. If that threshold is crossed the individual may have only one more opportunity to regain self-control before bringing greater pain and harm to themselves. Level 4 is a doorway to the remaining five levels, a doorway that each student and teacher of the 7 Circles Systems hopes and strives to avoid entering. That is the Spirit of Wu-Te! When contact is made at level 4 the offending party has failed to regain self-control and arrest their own behavior, they have become a threat and more direct action has to be taken.
Chin Na or So-po Pamo focuses on grabbing, pressing, and twisting techniques applied to the opponent’s joints, muscles, and nerves. These techniques can causes reactions ranging from mild discomfort to severe pain and unconsciousness. Level 4 extends its influence all the way through to Level 9 of the Nine Levels of Self-Defense. Although the primary purpose of Chin Na is to restrain, arrest, and detain the opponent, there are some Chin Na techniques that are used to maim or kill. From the standpoint of So-po Pamo, Chin Na, and the Nine Levels of Self-Defense, it is the offending parties choices as to how many levels you are compelled to go. Our words should complement our intention and repeatedly offer the opponent the opportunity to stop the progression.
Qigong and Chin Na: The Historical Connection
In 527 A.D. the Indian Buddhist Prince named Da Mo (we currently practice the Da Mo 12 Palm System of Qigong named after him) arrived at the Shao Lin Temple to preach. After years of meditation in a local cave he wrote two books, one of which is his thesis the Yi gin Ching that was written to increase the health and strength of the monks. This text laid the foundations of Qigong practice in the Shao Lin Temple. Seven hundred years after Da Mo, General Yeuh Fei (Sung Dynasty 1130 A.D.) founded the Eagle Claw Style after studying with a student of the Shao Lin Temple named Chou Ton. General Yeuh Fei used the external Shaolin foundation to create his style of Eagle Claw. And Eagle Claw lies at the root of Chin Na. The success of Eagle Claw troops during the Sung Dynasty period made it eminently clear that the style was worthy of respect. We will be tapping into this long and powerful lineage over the next eight weeks.
Classes at PVCC start this Friday, June 1st. Not too late to register for PED103KF Section 17748!
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Preview Wu-Te: A Guide To Parents - Why Train Your Children in
the Traditional Martial and Healing Arts?
Preview Wu-Te: A Guide To Parents - Why Train Your Children in
the Traditional Martial and Healing Arts?
A good Chin Na Reference Book: Shaolin Chin Na: The Seizing Art of Kung Fu, Yang Jwing-Ming, Unique Publications, 1982, ISBN: 0-86568-012-4
