9 Soft Explosions Philosophy from Zhang Seng Feng

In this post:

• Further Explanations for Martial Arts and Philosophy Students
• Comparison with Jin Hong’s English explanation in most famous Wuxia of all time – Legend of the Condor Heroes

Poem – Zhang Sanfeng

Freeze the emotion; sure the intention  

Abstract the body, recharge the energy 

Kill the heart, awaken the consciousness 

Sink power to spring point, explode 

Jin Hongs version

思定则情忘，

体虚则气运，

心死则神活，

阳盛则阴消。

“Clear heart, Emotions departed.

in an empty body, qi can spread

A dead mind, Yet the spirit lives

For Yin thrives, but the Yang is shed”

– Master Ma Yu, Scarlett Sun, Elder of the 7 Immortals of the Quanzhen Sect

Introduction

• This philosophy is to help you observe philosophy. It is a training system to follow. It covers the essence, function and goal.
• Firstly, my character, ambitious, wants to get to the end without going through all the steps beforehand, ambitious – so the first part of the poem helps me improve this character trait.
• This is a system to reach moving meditation.
• Way to awaken 8 Consciousness

Couplet One: Freeze the Emotion, Sure the Intention 

Freeze the Emotion

1. The emotion here refers to Tai Chi Martial Art emotion. But we live in personal, human, ego-style emotions to support us to get what we want.
2. Taiji Emotion is a harmony-free feeling to goes extreme to both sides
3. If you dont have it, you can’t freeze it
4. Freeze our emotions because our emotion is what stops us from reaching high-level martial arts.
5. How to freeze it means to continue in the present to freeze it by sure the intention continually.

Sure the intention

• • Two levels – low-level and high-level
    • Low level one
      • Remind yourself to talk to yourself power from foot, laser line up, shoulder relaxed, balloon. It still needs to be intuition level.
      • Mental power guides you to live in the present moment.
      • Do it then, feel you are not doing it, stop, practice again. The mental state of Sure, the Intention
      • This stage is precise and essential whenever we are learning to do something.
      • This includes MELODY – la la la, say it inside, or 123, say something to be aware, present and discipline
    • High-Level Intuition – Feeling
      • Stage, feel it without saying it. 
      • I was inspired by watching someone really good at something – copy style.
      • Goddess-style-Ah stretching on the floor, la la la nice feeling – to train that feeling requires stretching opening, relax, dancing – morph that feeling into can do that while functional cool martial art
      • Through training, it becomes steady
  • Tai Chi has two sides
    • One side is mathematical, angle, structure, foot position, knee over toes, 
    • Other side art side, flow, natural
    • Melody – Tai Chi is not mental mathematics – mainly art power. One is machine style, scientists, and the other is cloud hands art, abstract.
    • So perfect both powers go extreme, but both harmony together
    • On one side precise, mistakes we make
    • Leg twisting procedure
    • So pay a lot of attention to fixing mistakes carefully
    • Another side is the art power, feel feeling, learning from cloud, feeling free and light. See the waterfall and, feel the energy, and follow that feeling to express
    • Make sure intention is constantly aware of both at the same time
    • That way, personal emotions disappear
  • Using the map in a new place
    • The first time you go into nature, you take a map
    • Careful not to get lost or hurt yourself
    • Careful to observe the map in each place
    • Eventually, you go there often without a map – but still be careful to do everything correctly. Know it by heart
    • The map is precise to continually improve the correct way
    • Form a natural intuition memory power in the present – called intuition
  • Tai Chi
    • Two extreme powers – one mathematical, scientific, logical, and the other abstract nature being – become one power in every move and present. That is very difficult but a fantastic feeling.

Couplet Two: Abstract the body, recharge the energy 

Abstract the body

• Energy runs through abstract motion.
• We must do more than go empty as he says in the story. That is Wuji level. Tai Chi is a bridge to Wuji, so starting at the final level doesn’t make sense.
• It cannot empty the body because the body is physical.
• So abstract the body is to move in a way that makes it feel empty. 
  • For example, an ocean wave flowing vs a robot dance.
  • One is stiff, and one is fluid. One is less human, one is more human.
  • Robot is okay to play if you are free inside to enjoy playing

• • The abstract feeling is the direction on HOW to charge the energy
  • In Jin Hongs, he doesn’t know how to do it, so he can’t explain it.

Recharge the energy 

• • Drop first, then recharge
  • Recharge – vs Charge
  • Our first energy is regular average life energy, so you must charge it again to change it into Qi.
  • Our regular style is tense
  • Water form, charge up and then relax.
  • Let go first, then can move the Qi

Jing -> Qi -> Shen

• • • Free from Jing
    • Jing is more related to physical strength. Bone force, blood power. Stand there needs physical strength.
    • Charge from foot up and open start to support me to create Qi energy
    • Not transfer, create new energy.
    • The body naturally has Qi. No power but can still move like a hand, so light. But that is not much Qi. I cannot do martial arts with the Qi.

Couplet Three: 心死则神活: Kill the Heart, Awaken the Consciousness

Kill the Heart

• • Heart refers to all 8 consciousnesses – but we have only killed some up til now – kill all.
  • Most translators of Eastern philosophy translate the words heart, consciousness or spirit – all to the word mind. But the mind is only ⅛ of consciousness.
  • Shen means god, but in this context means awakened consciousness – the function of the philosophy is to help you develop towards a direction. 
  • Literal in order – heart dies, and then god is alive
  • Spirits is not a clear word – something deeper than consciousness.
  • This is different from the first couplet, which dealt with emotion and intention. 
  • Here now subconsciousness has to be aware of the philosophy and become it.
  • No space for personal – No-I moving meditation 
  • You cannot reach this point right away
  • Way to awaken 8 Consciousness
    • Follows as order: Emotion – Mental – Physical – Psychological (I)
    • Brain consciousness, subconsciousness, I consciousness and then finally 8 will awaken
  • You cannot kill the heart that easily because we have blindly acted for so long. Needs training to happen.
  • Here is where creative force appears.
    • You can create a natural feeling – art power – nature being
    • You can create mathematics/scientist / detailed side – aware of it as a discipline
    • Aware of both, then it becomes a joyful feeling called intuition
    • Joyful feeling

• Practice this:

• • • Ah, relax, drop everything
    • Less rough, beautiful feeling – princess
    • Inside – only you know – so vulnerable and beautiful – guide us to no tension
    • Use that feeling to create power – not do every move – like in Shrek!
    • Easier to learn the feeling from that one
    • First princess
      • Then water
      • Then steam
• 4 elements
  • Extreme 4 elements force in harmony –
  • Earth Power –Empty Heart Being
  • Water Flow – Diamond Force Awareness
  • Fire Power –Ice Cold Emotion
  • Wind Speed –Timeless Free Heart

Awaken the Consciousness

• Naturally happens once you follow the above

Sink power to spring point, explode 

• Notes from Sifu that you can substitute flow for explode – the procedure is still the same but functions differently.

Four Element Masters

To create stronger earth power, let your heart feel empty, then channel your entire energy force to a sharp point without tension. To be the force of water is to remove your personal intention and be like a cloud drifting in the sky or like a river rolling into the ocean. To explode firepower, keep your heart as cold as ice; raise your energy like boiling steam and explode like a volcano shooting lava. To be like the wind is to live in a timeless zone and move as lightly as a breeze, as quickly as a tornado. Thank you, masters, I will be disciplined and practise them daily.”

“Don’t forget the philosophies of Dragon Breathe and Dragon Temper, either,” exclaims Fire Master. “If you don’t practise them, you won’t be able to control the four element force.”