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Eastern Physical Culture Traditions
(Broadly speaking from Central Asia Eastward including what is now considered China and India and the out-lying islands around their
continent)
The Traditions of the East, whichever country, emphasize form repetition and the long term and gradual conditioning of the body to
specific ways of moving. Rhythm is an important part of the training as is the regular- preferably daily and at the same clock- time -
practice which then conditions the body to a biorhythmic routine. This aspect allows these arts to be practiced well into old-age.
Dailey practice of movement forms singly and in groups in the early morning and a communal snack or breakfast of a class together, is
traditional, particularly in the Chinese Arts. The schools are usually closely tied to the local community.
In the Eastern Martial Arts most schools have a conditioning regimen which is practiced as well as the movement forms which may include
weight training, breathing exercises and/or meditation. Some teachers emphasize application with a partner to learn timing while others
emphasize conditioning which is so Spartan it can out - weigh skill in a fight (as the Military has figured out). The details of these
methods, ideas and techniques are handed down as oral tradition though some texts do exist and many now are being written, both authentic
and "made up for commercial sale". As a rule the movements and techniques are organized according to whichever ancient cosmology or
"Shamans view of life" the given culture teaches and explanations of theory are given according to the cosmology i.e. the Chinese have an
ancient five element theory which organizes some of their martial arts and medicine and is used to classify the techniques according to
physical organ engaged or attacked or healed...
The Eastern schools tend to have an almost feudal hierarchical system of organization with the teacher at the top as a sort of Shepherd
figure and senior students below them and then newer students below them, etc. Technically this is unavoidable but it often becomes a
political machine - though in fighting of the students and teacher is often self destructive. A good teacher will work against the politics and maintain clear lines of communication with his/her students while an exploitative teacher will create a sort of "mini-kingdom" for themselves and can pit one student against another to maintain various power/authority games.
The major difficulty which often occurs with The Eastern Traditions is the practice of form for its own sake and the maintaining of traditions without an understanding of "whom" "why" or how the given idea/form/movement evolved. One explanation which is very useful is that these traditional forms of the East are a soup which has been handed down through time but the water of "not understanding" has been added until now much of it is "the soup of the soup".
In spite of this there are authentic traditions and authentic teachers and some are very candid about what is known and unknown about their "arts".
At PTT the intent is to teach some of the Eastern Traditions clearly and fully. The Arts taught here are listed to the left.
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