ZIRANMEN

Our philosophy for martial training is to develop a frame of mind that seeks to avoid confrontation, minimise stress and develop strategies for dealing with everyday life. This philosophy is built upon the so-called three foundations:

 

1. Taoism

Although the ‘Tao’ concept stems from ancient Chinese philosophy, it has been adopted by many great minds. As a great ideology and theory, it has been widely used and guided many different areas of study and culture, both east and west. Covering every conceivable area of human thought and action, Taoist philosophy provides guidance, through understanding the many different paths that constitute a way of life. Many of these paths seek to balance the needs of the individual with the demands of society, providing valuable advice on finding success and happiness in a changing world.

 

Many of the martial arts arose as a combination of spiritual practices, health practices and self defence techniques. The culture of Ziranmen is guided by Taoist philosophy and synchronized with Traditional Chinese Medicine, it is a practical application that reflects the use of these two as one.

 

• Life and spiritual developments
  营魄抱一, 性命双修

 

Carrying body and spirit and embracing the one, can you avoid separation?

Attending fully and becoming supple, can you be as a newborn babe? Washing and cleansing the primal vision, can you be without stain? Giving birth and nourishing, bearing yet not possessing, working yet not taking credit, leading yet not dominating, this is the primal virtue. Lao Zi

 

In Chinese, the word ‘life’ contains two characters, the first one is ‘Xing’ - the psychology, personal characteristics, spiritual aspect or the soul; the second word is ‘Ming’ - the life that we inherit from our parents, formed by the harmonious Qi of Heaven and Earth.

 

A basic way of understanding the natural conception of Xing and Ming - Spirit and Life, is to simply see ‘Ming’ as ‘room’ and ‘Xing’ as ‘you’ who live in the ‘room’. We cannot just develop our spirit without looking after the ‘room’ where the soul lives. If there is no ‘body’ then the spiritual life will have no place to live. On the other hand, if the spirit is wasting away, then what is the meaning of keeping this material body?

 

As we integrate the two principles of Xing and Ming in our lives, we can see that it is similar to our health. Our health comprises both physical and mental health, the loss of one will leave us incomplete. The main philosophy behind Ziranmen training is that it is first necessary for practitioners to gain an understanding of how mental or emotional stress (mind) is linked to the functions of physical well-being (Body) and vice versa. We strongly emphasize that to maintain our health and happiness levels, one should cultivate ones spirit through activities such as theosophical understanding or study, meditation or other personal development, as well as physical training to cleanse and release the body’s tensions, creating internal and external space and thus enabling one to reinforce Jing, Qi and Shen, the three treasures of our lives.

 

The path we follow to achieve our life’s journey is: strengthening body or Jing(essence) to convert into Qi(energy), cultivating Qi to convert into Shen (Spirit), enhancing the Spirit to transform into Xu (the great void, nothingness), and the final journey is uniting ‘Tian Di Ren 天地人’ (Heaven, Earth and Man) into one and returning to the Tao, the infinite. This is the inner alchemy (Neidan).

 

• Natural spontaneity
  自然而然

 

Ziran (Chinese: 自然; pinyin: ziran) is a key concept in Taoism that literally means 'It is so by virtue of its self', 'naturally; natural spontaneously'. In Taoist thought, they tend to believe that the myriad things exist because of the qualities that they possess, not because a being(creator) created them to fulfil a purpose or goal. The only thing that a being can be when it exists in accordance with ziran, is ultimately natural and unaffected by artificial influences. Thus Lao Zi describes this as “the human being follows the earth. Earth follows heaven. Heaven follows the Tao. Tao follows what is natural”.

 

According to the Taoist views of natural law, Ziranmen follows this principle as its own training guideline:

 

动静无始，变化无端；

虚虚实实，自然而然。

 

There is no beginning or end in movement,
There is no beginning or end in stillness, 
Change is instant,
Movement within stillness.

Both true and false, real and empty,

All actions are spontaneous,

Action without action.
 

The universe is in a state of perpetual movement and change - nothing remains the same. Within this constant change, there are patterns and cycles, which we can learn to observe and anticipate. This understanding makes it easier for us to harmonize with our environment and plan our actions. On a martial level we can use this theory to help plan our training strategy, for example, when you started your training, your flexibility, coordination, strength and the connection between your mind and body may have felt lacking, but after a few sessions, you started to be aware of change and improvement. Through long-term commitment, as time passes, we can finally reach the state of spontaneity. Therefore Grandmaster Wan Lai Shen always said, “the patterns in nature started with un-nature but then gradually changed into nature, this process also occurs in martial arts training. One who has his or her belief and passion, courage and perseverance, that one will be successful and reach the goal”.

 

This understanding of constant change can also be applied to fighting, if you feel your opponent is clearly stronger (yang), you can use evasive maneuvers (yin) to decrease (avoid) his force. If you can create an opportunity where he is unbalanced or in a weak position (yin), you have created a strong position (yang) to attack from. The key is in understanding the situation and adjusting yourself accordingly. To act in this way is to be naturally spontaneous, so that “defense is within attack, attack within defense, action without action.

 

• One & Zero Philosophy 一 0 哲学

 

Along with the Yin Yang theory and Taoist philosophy, the most important philosophy behind Ziran Qigong is called Yi & Lin (One and Zero) philosophy. ‘Yi’ in Chinese means ‘one’, the shape of the character is ‘-’; ‘Lin’ means zero, it’s written like a circle ‘0’. Importantly, zero in this context means many, unlimited. If you bend ‘-’ and make the two ends meet, it will form a circle ‘0’. Imagine if you continued to draw a straight line on the earth, the line will meet at the point where you started, so there is ‘one’ within ‘zero’, they are interchangeable. ‘Lin 0’ represents ‘Wu无’, nothingness, the energy of inactivity, but full of Qi(energy) it can be changed into any shape, direction or power. When you expand ‘Lin 0’ it can reach out through six dimensions and never stop, it can be as big as the universe or when it’s restrained, it would not fill your hand and can be as small as a dot. When it needs to appear, it can come from nowhere, but it can disappear with no notice. It’s because of its ‘nothingness’ that it has the potential for everything to be created and grow from it, including Yin and Yang, penetration and contraction, softness and hardness, all in the one characteristic.

 

‘Lin 0’ is the Qi, the nature. In the action of the mind ‘Lin 0’ represents ‘Wu Wei’; effortless, spontaneous response, the infinite nature of the Spirit. In a physical application, ‘Lin 0’ is reflected as six faceted forces, each force opposing the other, creating a center of nothingness which forms the unity of the movements. In fighting applications, when you attack, ‘Lin 0’ represents the internal force and infinity. Grand Master Wan always said, “Out hands with softness, up on body like iron”. When your in a defense position, you should transform your body like the shape of a dot, let your opponent not find you; like a bondable ball so that every part of your body is the defense weapon; like a circle that has no beginning or end, no clues of action”.

 

‘Yi 1’ is the unity, integrating the energy of movement, it represents ‘You有’ which is being and action, and is another manifestation of 'Wu 无' the nothingness. From a macrocosmic view that there are movements, shapes, different forms, different styles of Martial arts, Qigong, and life, it’s an external activity, nourishment, feelings and emotions, it’s all about an individuals appearance and characteristics. Appearance in action, ‘Yi 1’ represents attack and force, the unity that we practice in the forms.

 

Grand Master Wan Lai Sheng stated in his book “Wu Shu Hui Zhong“ (a compilation of martial arts) that “Zi Ra Men Kung Fu is an internal martial art based on the principle that You有(‘being’ or ‘action’) stems from Wu无( ‘nothingness’ or ‘emptiness’ or ‘infinity’).  He states that there should be no mind or tension during practice, no concern for matter, with all action arising spontaneously out of nothingness.  Qi is the root, the foundation for movement; and spontaneous natural action is the way that follows, the manifestation of Dao.”

 

 

2. Traditional Chinese Medicine  
 

Dating back some 3000 years, Traditional Chinese Medicine is largely based on the Philosophical concept that the human body is a small universe with a set of complete and sophisticated interconnected systems, and that those systems usually work in balance to maintain the healthy function of the human body. This is unlike the Western anatomical model, which divides the physical body into parts. TCM has a unique model of the body, notably concerned with the acupuncture and meridian system. There are 649 acupuncture points in our body that have been recognized in China and 20 meridians include the ‘twelve regular meridians’, with each meridian corresponding to each organ, nourishing it and extending to an extremity. Meridians are divided into Yin and Yang groups. Each Yang meridian is paired with a specific Yin meridian; there are 6 Yang and 6 Yin meridians in the body.

 

TCM belief that the flow of Qi governs the functions of the body, thus illness is caused by blocked, stagnant or erratic Qi flow, health is maintained and enhanced by regulating and harmonizing Qi. They view that the balance of Yin and Yang is considered with respect to Jing, qi, Shen, other bodily fluids, the Wu Xing, emotion, memory, thoughts and the soul. Diet, acupuncture, herbs, massage, Martial arts and Qi Gong practice can rebalance the body’s Qi. As your understanding of Qi increases, you can unify the spirit (Shen), body (Jing) and energy (Qi) to increase your wellbeing, strength and fighting skill.

 

Grand Master Wan Lai Sheng states that through the practice of Zi Ran Men one can enhance Qi (energy), Shen (spirit) and Yi (mind), developing body awareness and sensitivity.  Through training the mind and body as one unit, the Yi becomes nourished and the body becomes strengthened.  Enhancing Qi in turn reinforces the Jin (the original essence).  When Yi, Qi and Jin are in harmony, one’s movements will become nimble and agile.  This benefits the practitioner’s physical well-being, harmonizing internal and external power (Nei Wai Jin内外劲 ) by bringing the body and mind into harmony. The result is that one will enjoy a naturally happy, long and healthy life.

 

 

3. Martial Theory
 

The main aspects of martial theory in our school are derived from the teachings of the Grand Master Wan Lai Sheng. There are three components to the study of Zi Ran Men martial arts. 

Forms
A strong physical foundation is essential for martial arts. Practicing specific forms increases your strength, flexibility, coordination and mobility. Repetition of your forms allows you to closely observe the workings of the mind and body. As your knowledge and experience builds, you can concentrate on their integration. 

Fighting Techniques
Learning to defend yourself requires that you choose and practice several of your favourite techniques. Techniques include strategies for engagement and avoidance- defence and attack. Conditioning the body is also required to develop speed, power, endurance, coordination, reflexes and sensitivity.