The Forgotten Arts

Welcome back to Path of the Mantis, Sihings. From where I’m sitting it looks like one heck of a first month has just passed me by. I’ve survived my first official training session almost entirely without humiliating myself, been afforded the honour of meeting some prominent members of the Tong Long community, and been dazzled by all kinds of visual and mental stimuli that I will illustrate later.

But first… a cooking tip: Don’t drop mince into a pan of hot oil from a height. Hot oil cooks everything it touches, and it doesn’t discriminate between your dinner and your left hand. Had I known earlier, I wouldn’t have arrived at Beenleigh Community Hall at 6:30pm ready, excited, nervous and sporting a heavily wrapped hand smelling of disinfectant.

It was a mild discredit to an otherwise tremendous night, however. I arrived early, determined to reap as much from this first experience as was possible. I met my first several Sihings (‘brothers’) at the front steps, and the man I would come to know as Di Sihing Duanne, the head instructor under Sifu himself. An imposing man, Di Sihing; with a forthright manner, a veiled sense of humour and a fantastic beard, I took an instant liking and respect toward him.

It wasn’t long before we were assembling inside the hall, where I took note of the spacious layout; hardwood and carpet divided by a half dozen concrete pillars that I knew – I just knew – I would collide with later on. Sure enough, I did. Not so sure enough, I did it twice. No further comment.

So they got me set up, registered and standing in line with my other Sihings. Allow me to take a moment to describe this congregation, as they were something to behold. Besides the sheer number of people, there was a variation at work here that would have made two Cadbury Picnics look identical. All ages, all strengths and sizes… all with the exact same poise, sharing one respectful equanimity. All of them, disciplined, resolute and in concert. I remember thinking that even the most unruly teenager would be intimidated by this. Were that not enough, Sifu himself took his place before the class, flanked by his Di Sihing and a handful of instructors. Having learnt that Sifu appearances are traditionally a seasonal event, I knew I was in for a treat.

Finer details aside, let’s get down to business. Each session (of which there are two per week at Beenleigh) consists of a basic chartering of exercises from stretches to melee training. 15 minutes is dedicated at the beginning of every night to a vigorous full body warm up and stretch, conducted by a ranking member of the school. From neck to ankle, no tendon is left unwound and no muscle is safe. Once our bodies are ready, the real techniques begin.

The exercises vary, obviously dependant on your knowledge level. I’ve discovered that every ranking, or ‘belt’, consists of a curriculum of techniques that must be mastered to confidence before you may opt to ‘grade’ to a more advanced belt. The actual process of grading can only be performed with Sifu present, and as such the opportunity to grade will only come round three or four times a year without you taking the initiative to go to where Sifu is. In so far as beginners are considered, you earn your first belt once you’ve learnt the basics. In short, I have approximately four months to perfect beginner technique before Sifu returns and I may take a crack at grading to white belt. Simple. Yet not so.

For a beginner, there is a basic form to learn, as well as four single hand techniques and their corresponding jongs. Over the course of beginner training, you will be prompted to practice each technique first by yourself and then with a jong partner. The first few times I practiced alone, stepping haphazardly across the hardwood with every strike, I felt wonky. Unnatural, even. Having never experienced anything remotely similar I can only relate it to process of learning how to tie your shoes. Lots of ‘woah’ and ‘oops’ and suddenly… hey! That works! I feel like a big kid now!

Moving on to partnered jongs will pretty much take you back to square one on the jong-front but believe me when I say… This is the coolest part, even if it is like tying someone’s shoes while they tie yours. Twenty minutes and few stepped-on toes later though, and you’ll be Fung Sou-ing like a natural… albeit a natural in serious need of some direction. But heck, it wouldn’t be training if you weren’t driven to improve, would it?

As I mentioned earlier our school was honoured by the presence of Sifu, and as I also mentioned earlier the grading process can only go ahead under his watchful eye. At the conclusion of training we gathered together as a school to watch and support a handful of beginner’s grade from beginner to white, and white to green. Full congratulations to all those who put their abilities on the line and came out on top. A great effort I hope to emulate in the coming months.

So that was my first training session in a nutshell. Take note that it was not a full account of proceedings, as there are so many other aspects of this style of Kung Fu that I’ve skipped over if only to keep this chapter to a comfortable size. But time is on my side, Sihings. In the coming months, as I delve deeper into the Tong Long cosmos, so shall I lead you deeper into its rich history and promising present. You need only stay tuned, next month on Path of the Mantis.