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| The Essence of Crane-style Pushing-hands |
Giving and Receiving a Basic Push
Receiving and Giving Outside-pushes
Deflection of an Outside-push
Receiving an Inside-push and Giving an Outside-push
Deflection of an Inside-push and its Transference to an Outside-gate
Giving an Outside-push
Contact-arm Replacement
2. BASIC DRILLS
The Purpose of Drills
The Silk-walking Drill
The Six-six-six Drills
Contact-Contact-Change
Non-contact-Contact-Change
Non-contact-Non-contact-Change
Rokushu Grip-escape Drills
Rokushu - The Kata
Rokushu - Drill no.1
Rokushu - Drill no.2
Snake
Tiger's-Claw
Leopard's-Paw
Standing-Dragon
Lying-Dragon
Crane's-Wing
Rokushu - Drill no.3
Penultimate Technique
Final Technique
The Silk-walking Drill
The Six-six-six Drills
Contact-Contact-Change
Non-contact-Contact-Change
Non-contact-Non-contact-Change
Rokushu Grip-escape Drills
Rokushu - The Kata
Rokushu - Drill no.1
Rokushu - Drill no.2
Snake
Tiger's-Claw
Leopard's-Paw
Standing-Dragon
Lying-Dragon
Crane's-Wing
Rokushu - Drill no.3
Penultimate Technique
Final Technique
Each push is
horizontal, is toward a training-partner's mid-line, whether
against his arm (in one of his two outside-gates) or past his arm (in
his inside-gate), and with the pushing arm extended (but not straightened) horizontally, in alert-arm-attitude.
"Alternating training-partners attempt to severely
upset each
other’s balance/posture via a push, each attempt being averted and then
immediately responded to with a counter attempt" and so at
the core of Pushing-hands is the basic exchange of pushes and an
endlessly repeatable "I push, you push; I push, you push;...."
basic Pushing-hands sequence can be practiced. Such "averting" consists of the receiver either merely deflecting an outside-push or else deflecting and transferring an inside-push to the appropriate one of his outside-gates.
{Each of the two training-partners, who are here referred to (from the left in the photography) as Par-A and Par-B, is in "left foot foremost" Pushing-hands-stance and maintains leverage in his contact-arm(s).}
{Each of the two training-partners, who are here referred to (from the left in the photography) as Par-A and Par-B, is in "left foot foremost" Pushing-hands-stance and maintains leverage in his contact-arm(s).}
Receiving and Giving Outside-pushes
Exit.
The two training-partners are in Pushing-hands-orientation.
1) with his contact-arm shaped in a vertical/diagonal-unbendable-arm, resists Par-A's right-armed outside-push until it is of the "strength of silk" to which the training-partners have "agreed" (*), and then
a) rotates his hip-line (and therefore his shoulder-line) horizontally clockwise, thereby deflecting the pushing arm (leaving it in the same outside-gate) and
b) if desired, transforms his contact-arm into a differently angled unbendable-arm.
Exit.
Receiving an Inside-push and Giving an Outside-push
N.B.
Even the simplest basic push in the receiver’s inside-gate is intrusive
(and is therefore balance/posture-threatening) and so a simultaneous
forward Shuffle-step or ("stepping through") Step, by the pusher,
increases the push’s intrusiveness (and therefore its threat) a little
or a lot, respectively. Any such increase does not, however, require any
fundamentally different response, although of use to the receiver may
be an adding, by him, of a simultaneous Shuffle-step (sideways, toward his foremost
foot’s side) and/or a pivoting (on his foremost foot) away from the
push.
2) does Deflection of an Inside-push
(In the photography, the right outside-gate of Par-B.)
1) maintaining an approximate right angle between his receiving contact-arm (left) and his shoulder-line, simultaneously:
a) applies a constant pressure against Par-A's inside-pushing arm (right), and
2) and does Contact-arm Replacement. (i.e. moves the point-of-contact to his right arm's outside-gate)
Exit.
1) fully lowers his right arm's elbow, if it is not so already, and brings it close to the side of his torso and then
2) rotating
his hip-line horizontally anti-clockwise until it squarely faces Par-A,
uses his right arm to push toward
Par-A's mid-line (**).Exit.
* N.B. If this push is adequately strong, there should be no period of resistance.
** N.B. Any slight erring in the direction of this push should be toward the pusher's foremost foot’s side (left) of the receiver's mid-line.
CONTACT-ARM REPLACEMENT
The intended
new contact-arm's hand (palm facing forward/downward, fingers
pointing skyward/forward) is "threaded" (serpent-like)
underneath the old contact-arm, between its point-of-contact and its
shoulder, and then the intended new contact-arm is immediately
extended forward and upward until its lower-forearm makes contact
with the other person's contact-arm.
Simultaneously:
a)
transferring the pressure from the old contact-arm to the new
contact-arm, the latter's hand is rotated, making its palm face
backward/upward (i.e. a vertical-unbendable-arm) and
a)
transferring the pressure from the old contact-arm to the new
contact-arm, the latter's hand is rotated, making its palm face
backward/upward (i.e. a vertical-unbendable-arm) and
b) the old
contact-arm is withdrawn and positioned, bent and in
alert-arm-attitude, between the person's mid-line and that of the
other person. (Rule #2, "Keep your mid-line guarded.")
N.B. A person's Contact-arm Replacement actions are the
same whether the point-of-contact starts as cross-arm (and therefore
becomes non-cross-arm) (photo sequence 1) or starts as non-cross-arm (and
therefore becomes cross-arm) (photo sequence 2).
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| Seq.1 photo 1 |
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| Seq.2 photo 1 |
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| Seq.1 photo 2 |
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| Seq.2 photo 2 |
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| Seq.1 photo 3 |
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| Seq.2 photo 3 |
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| Seq.1 photo 4 |
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| Seq.2 photo 4 |
N.B. Similarly, a person's Contact-arm Replacement actions are also the same whether the involved arm of the other person starts as an inside-contact-arm (photo sequence 3) or starts as an outside-contact-arm (photo sequence 4). (The shapes of the transferrer's initial contact-arm (in the photography, the left arm of the person on the right) are not exactly the same in the two cases, not because of the ensuing replacement but, because in each case he is using the most appropriate, efficient arm-shape (i.e. a vertical- or a diagonal/horizontal- unbendable-arm, respectively) to maintain pre-transference contact with the other person's contact-arm.)
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| Seq.3 photo 1 |
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| Seq.4 photo 1 |
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| Seq.3 photo 2 |
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| Seq.4 photo 2 |
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| Seq.3 photo 3 |
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| Seq.4 photo 3 |
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| Seq.4 photo 4 |
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| Seq.3 photo 4 |
Return to top.
In
Crane Pushing-hands, knowing intellectually how to receive is not the same
as actually being able to receive. A practitioner's reaction time
(i.e. the elapsed time between the receipt of and the reaction to a
stimulus) would be too long if he were to wait for his mind to
recognise a stimulus, then recall what the appropriate reaction
should be and then eventually do it. It is the practitioner's body, not his
mind, that needs to be programmed with the correct reactions so that
thinking is eliminated. Practice-drills, which provide not only this
programming, when repeated, but also practice at driving, are:
a) the
Silk-walking Drill, for practicing maintaining meaningful contact
with a training-partner,
b) the
Six-six-six Drills, for practicing The-three-changes (to the
point-of-contact), in which pushes
cross centre-lines, and
c) the Rokushu
Grip-escapes Drills, for practicing only the basic arm movements of eight grip-escape-techniques, each one of which is for escaping from a different
single-hand-grip or pair of single-hand-grips. (Supplementary practice of responding to realistic, escape-demanding grips, with whole-body techniques, is required.)
The driver and the receiver begin the drill, each in a cat-leg-stance (with the right leg being the foremost, the virtually non-weight-bearing one), with their right feet pointing toward each other and with the outside of their right lower-forearms sharing a point-of-contact. The driver (using alternately a crossing-step to move to a "left foot foremost" crossed-leg-stance and an uncrossing-step to move to a cat-leg-stance) walks (sometimes away from and other times toward the receiver) along the extended notional straight line upon which their right feet are initially.
In order to "Walk the circle", the driver, in "right foot foremost" cat-leg-stance, first replaces his contact-arm. Then, the driver (using a crossing-step to move to a "left foot foremost" crossed-leg-stance and an uncrossing-step to move to a "right foot foremost" hourglass-stance) walks anti-clockwise around the circumference of a horizontal circle whose centre is the point-of-contact. In order to "Walk the circle" in the opposite direction, the driver, when in hourglass-stance, first simultaneously:
a) adjusts his stance, by pivoting on the balls of both feet simultaneously, such that his rearmost foot becomes his foremost and
b) replaces his contact-arm such that it continues to correspond with his rearmost foot.
The receiver, walking along the same (straight or circular) line and, using the same steps, stances and replacements of contact-arm as the driver whom he continues to face, "keeps silk" (i.e. sustains the pressure at the point-of-contact) even though it is the driver (by definition) who dictates the speed and direction of the walking.
These are "for practicing The-three-changes (to the point-of-contact)".
In order to encourage the complete execution of each of the six parts of each drill, the numbers "one" to "six" should each be called out loud, with the next number being called only when the previous move has been satisfactorily completed.
In order to encourage the complete execution of each of the six parts of each drill, the numbers "one" to "six" should each be called out loud, with the next number being called only when the previous move has been satisfactorily completed.
The training-partners should start each drill in Pushing-hands-orientation.
There should
be no Stepping or Shuffle-stepping by either training-partner. The receiver (on the right in the photography) should, of course, merely adhere to the Receiver's Program.
The driver
makes a second point-of-contact; this one is in his inside-gate, on his left arm, and in the
outside-gate of the receiver's right arm.
i) turns his right palm toward the receiver's touching left
forearm,
ii) uses this right palm to exert pressure upon the receiver's left forearm, downward and slightly to the driver's right,
such that the driver's right forearm passes above the receiver's left hand,
iii) and then pivots his right forearm, lowering its elbow
End
2) The receiver does Contact-arm Replacement (i.e. moves the point-of-contact to his left arm's outside-gate).
3) The driver does Contact-arm Replacement (i.e. moves the point-of-contact to his right arm's outside-gate).
4) The driver pushes his right arm toward the receiver's right armpit. The receiver maintains contact and leverage by doing Deflection of an Inside-push
5) and its Transference to an Outside-gate (i.e. moves the point-of-contact to his right arm's outside-gate).
6) The receiver uses his right arm to push the driver's right arm to a point that is half the way toward the driver's mid-line.
End
The receiver
deflects the force by rotating his hip-line horizontally clockwise.
2) The driver, replacing both his contact-arm and the receiver's contact-arm, simultaneously:
a) withdraws
his right arm and
b) uses his
left arm to reach underneath his right arm, to push the receiver's
left arm, toward the
receiver's right armpit, such that this new point-of-contact crosses
the receiver's centre-line.
3) The receiver does Contact-arm Replacement (i.e. moves the point-of-contact to his right arm's outside-gate).
The driver
makes a second point-of-contact; this one in his inside-gate, on his right arm, and
in the outside-gate of the receiver's left arm.
4) The
receiver pushes his right arm toward the driver's mid-line. The
driver maintains contact and leverage by doing
Deflection of an Inside-push5) and its Transference to an Outside-gate (i.e. moves the point-of-contact to his right arm's outside-gate).
End
Rokushu, a
kata which uses hourglass-stance and no other, contains within its first
section and its last two sections respectively, the basic arm
movements for escaping from
1) six
single-hand-grips of one wrist and
2) two
simultaneous single-hand, non-cross-arm grips of both wrists.
The first section's six techniques, in the order in which they are presented in the kata, are referred to as “Snake”, “Tiger's-Claw”, “Leopard's-Paw”, “Standing-Dragon”, “Lying-Dragon” and “Crane's-Wing”. Each technique's “colourful” name is derived from the gripped wrist's and hand's initial movements/contortions that strain and/or loosen the grip, prior to the final escape/release.
Each of the first section's aforementioned six single-hand-grips has a unique orientation with its object, and for this reason, these six different grip-escape-techniques exist.
None of the orders, in which these six techniques are practised in practice-drills, is the same as the order in which they are presented in the kata. This is because it is virtually impossible to drive these techniques contiguously and in the kata's order.
Each of the first section's aforementioned six single-hand-grips has a unique orientation with its object, and for this reason, these six different grip-escape-techniques exist.
None of the orders, in which these six techniques are practised in practice-drills, is the same as the order in which they are presented in the kata. This is because it is virtually impossible to drive these techniques contiguously and in the kata's order.
N.B. Each of the following six descriptions (with its set of photos) applies only to the one way of practicing a technique that is demonstrated in the Rokushu drills nos.1 & 2. Some of these six techniques are effective in more than one "grip scenario". (See "Rokushu - Drill no.3".)
The grip is
a cross-arm sword-grip. Both the gripping hand's palm and the gripped
wrist's palm are initially facing downward.
The escaper
keeps his elbow below stomach height throughout. He rotates his hand
upward to the outside of the gripping hand's lower-forearm and then
"cuts" outward and downward with the little finger edge of his hand, his palm facing forward and his wrist "bending" to its maximum.
Exit.
The grip is a non-cross-arm scabbard-grip. The gripping hand's
palm is initially facing downward.
The
escaper keeps his wrist at armpit height throughout.
Finally
(forming a "claw" by bending its wrist backward to its maximum
and by separately spreading and partly clenching its fingers and
thumb) he thrusts his "claw" forward.Exit.
Exit.
Exit.
"cuts"
forward, as if striking a facing, vertical surface with the little
finger edge of his hand, the palm of which is horizontal and facing
upward, with therefore his wrist "bend" going from one extreme to
the other.
Exit.
Exit.
Exit.
1)
simultaneously:
a) forms his
rearmost foot's corresponding arm into a vertical-unbendable-arm and
b) forms his
foremost foot's corresponding arm into a horizontal-unbendable-arm,
such that the back of its hand is touching the
vertical-unbendable-arm's elbow, and
a) does the Tiger's-Claw grip-escape with his vertical-unbendable-arm and
b) does the Leopard's-Paw grip-escape with his horizontal-unbendable-arm.
