Tuesday, September 6, 2011

The Old Way

When I started in the Martial arts is was far different the the schools you see today. So much has changed. Now it is a business, when I was training it was not, it was a fighting art form and nothing else. There were no schools like you see today. Most training was done in rather old worn out rooms, with wood floor and a few mirrors, if you were lucky.

The arts was rough and only those that had the guts to hit and be hit would dare join. Injuries were almost constant, most uniforms had some blood stains on them from split lips broken noses and missing teeth. Learning to take punishment was part of the training, if you could not take it how them could you dish it out?

There were no tournaments in those days, it was a street art for self protection and nothing else. The Teachers were hard to find, but when you did they were rough street fighters that had little mercy about hitting you often and hard, in fact being hit was part of the class training to learn how to take a blow and come back again for more.

More of the classes was about fighting, and little else, forms training was not the focus although you had to learn them, it was about basics blocks, kicks, punches and taking out an opponent quick as possible. You either learned how to fight or you would get beat up on a daily basis. In those days the people that joined the schools were tough street kids that were learning how to stay alive in the rough city streets.

It all changed now now, It all about money, fancy schools and useless moves, competition for trophies, and the worst part is the lose of the reality of the street condition, which can and is brutal. There are no rules in the streets, therefore there should be no rules in the training school either, but now schools use tons of padding to try avoid injury, this approach is the opposite in the streets. Your not padded in the streets and there are no rules other then to take out your attacker as fast and sure as possible..

It was much later when people saw money in teaching and running tournaments that the arts changed. Now schools have everything under the sun, from yoga, to dance and weight loss programs, parties and the list goes on. Well the only think I can think of is the next time someone comes at you with a knife or club to beat your brains in you can dance for them, maybe you will discover a partner for dancing with the stars.

Sorry, but this is the reality of the Arts as I was trained. I never in my whole training career ever deviated from the old ways, but the arts also never failed me either, because it was real training for the real thing! Just ask a Master like Chang Tung Sheng and he would show you what was real. When he fought for real only one person walked away, and it was Chang !!!!...

Wednesday, July 13, 2011

My Thank You

I wish to thank my Students, Grand Students and Great Grand Students for their remembrance of me on my birthday. The one great pleasure a Teacher enjoys is the love and respect he receives from those who he has effected in some way by the teachings.

A teachers greatest reward is knowing their are those who love the Arts as he does. I have been in this Art more years I care to count now but each year has brought me great gratification seeing our members grow in number. This is why our Art has survived for thousands of years. Still now the chain of knowledge is being spread from one generation to the next. My hope is you all will continue to learn and spread the teachings to future generations to come..

I may not see many of you, but you can see me through the teachings and traditions that are being taught to you by your Shifu and Master levels. I may never meet all of you but you are a part of me as I am a part of my Masters. The techniques you do and the forms you perform all come from your heritage. We are from the same gene and like DNA our makeup is the same.

Thank you all for you dedication and love, I can't tell you how much I appreciate all of you. My hope is the same as your Shifu, and that is, that you continue to train and follow the path to the end. I can promise you this, if you do, you will never regret the time you spent getting there.

May the Supreme Being Bless You All
Ma Shrya

Great Students

I had the good fortune to have a number of Great Masters in my life, but a Great Masters are only as good as the student he/she teaches. Anyone one Master you ever meet can be one of the best, but if he/she doesn't impart their knowledge to others it will fade away in time. This is why Great Masters are always on the lookout for those special students they can reveal their secrets to.

A poor student is nothing but a waste of precious life time. A good student is a Masters greatest gift to preserve his or her knowledge for future generations. This is why Great Masters only had a few who they imparted their knowledge to. The reason is simply, great students are hard to find but when they find one they give them all they have.

My Masters were special people, they loved their Art above all else. None were rich as far as money was concerned, in fact they lived rather meager lives. Money was never their goal for teaching, only the love for what they did motivated them.

Each Master I met was unique in their own way, but the thing they did have in common was the Love for for their chosen Art. If your looking for a good Master look at their character, that will reveal their quality. If money drives them, back away and find another teacher, If they have no compassion or no strong faith in the spiritual find another Master. If they hold back knowledge after a long periods of time they have nothing to offer. If they only teach you about fighting and nothing else find another. There is so much more a Great Master can offer other then mere fighting to live a beneficial life, such as Wu-De and Spiritual Kung Fu.

Each of my Masters had the qualities I speak of. They were men driven by their principles and love for sharing their knowledge to those who stood up to their standards. None of them are alive now but they live on through those few they taught, those are the few I call the Great Students........

Monday, July 11, 2011

We Don't Die

The more I study the more I am convinced we never die. Many religions have stated the same in their beliefs, Of course some of us will believe it, while others will not. So what has convinced me to believe more, rather then doubt this is true?

Science has convinced me, especially if you look into quantum physics. This new science is revealing more of what reality is each passing day. What is consciousness, what is the soul, what is God? All these timeless questions are examined using quantum physics and it does give rise to possible answers. This science is revealing startling discoveries that can rattle the human mind.

Understanding this new science is extremely difficult. Even the best minds in the world cant say they understand all the implications of this study. But one thing is for sure, they do know there is many discoveries that point to new found answers we never knew until now about life death and the universe. Of course answers only bring more questions, however, what we thought to be true until now is changing rapidly each day by this ongoing study.

Of course scientists may differ in what all this means, but they do agree what we originally thought about the soul, consciousness, and god has changed since they looked into this new science. There does seem to be a divine order to creation and existence as we know it.

By the study of the atom and proton and neutron science has found reality to be very much different then what they thought. What is true reality is yet to be discovered, if that is possible at all. However, we do know it is not what we originally thought it to be.

They have also discovered by this new science the brain is more of a receiver of thoughts then a creator of thoughts. Also this thing we call the soul may well be connected to the universe, in ways never dreamed of before. All this is stemming from the study of quantum physics.

For those who doubt what I say, I suggest you do some self study into these matters and draw your own conclusions. In the end, what we all thought as just living and dying and nothing more, may prove to be the biggest illusion yet.

Thursday, April 14, 2011

Religion

People often ask me what religion I follow, and my answer is, parts of all of them.

It is my belief Religions tend to divide more then join people together. Just look at the state of the world now, and you can see the division, and it has been this way since the beginning of recorded time.

Most people think their way is the only way to salvation, and there is no telling people any different. It would be futile to try.

My view is all Religions have some merit in some way, even for those who say, they believe in nothing but life and death and nothing more. I am not trying to give any answers to who is right and who is wrong. That answer can only come from your own heart.


I find good and bad in everything. However, this statement can only bring up the question, as to what is good and what is bad? Again, defining these terms can only come from your own way of thinking.

To arrive at the right answers let me ask you this question. If you were the only person alive or that ever lived in the whole world, with no history to fall back on and nobody else to tell you anything about life and death, good or bad, what conclusions would you come to about life? Chances are, the answers you came up with would be the right one.

Enough said.....