Along the martial path to mastery, the very meaning of martial arts changes at different stages of our development. Just like the same oak tree appears differently during the four seasons – green buds in spring, lush foliage in summer, colored leaves in autumn, barren branches in winter – our values, what is truly important to us as individuals, changes as we grow and mature. Not just our punches change to animal moves and then to internal palm strikes but our thinking changes.

The young warrior trains the body striving for six pack abs and kick ass prowess. Of course, this is the popular Bruce Lee image of martial art, becoming a total fighter in all fighting ranges: kicking, punching, trapping and grappling. The macho art phase.

But there is more. Chinese Shaolin and Daoist kung fu is mental. The martial scholar delves into the intellectual aspects of fighting history, philosophy and science behind the physical techniques. A this stage, the martial scholar explores theories like yin/yang, five elements, the principle of Dao as well as bio-mechanics, leverage, anatomy that underlies a well executed hip throw techniques and strategy. As the martial warrior strengthens the body, the martial scholar is simultaneously strengthening the intellect.

Yet the rarefied realms of the martial way is that of the martial monk, who seeks the spiritual liberation as Bodhidharma taught. The meaning expands beyond the ring, mat or street to life itself. At this stage, the goal of martial arts is a transformative process for liberation of the self. But it is terrifying to confront our inner demons, few enter this part of the path.

The challenge of Evolving Martial Artists (warrior/scholar/monk) is to bravely shatter through their existing understanding of martial arts and become inner warriors of the mind and spirit. Keep going.

The Dragon is a symbol of the ultimate power of nature. In kung fu, it symbolizes high level martial arts. The TanDao Dragon is coming!

But is this realistic?

At TanDao we apply practical self defense class training to different street contexts to explore the implications of our fighting skills. You would not use the same technique to deal with an obnoxious drunk, a violent mugger or a child who playful attacks you. The situation determines whether or not you use that snake strike to the eyes, a palm to the chest or a restraining joint lock.

True, an effective technique demands mushin the samurai or Shaolin monk’s zen notion of no-mindedness. While mushin is an ideal to develop unconscious mind/body reactions so we move like lightening, in the real world we must cultivate a higher awareness of controlled degrees of response. Aside from ambush or sudden assaults, which demands instinctive response, the choice whether or not to fight should not be instinctive . This is especially important, if you are trained in dangerous animal techniques like the tiger claw.

Controlled degrees of response is a characteristic of advanced martial arts that puts the martial warrior’s superior strength, kick ass prowess and ego under the control of the martial scholar’s discretion and the martial monk’s conscience.

For The Evolving Martial Artist – warrior/scholar/monk – options are power.

From a martial arts perspective, this satire expresses a modern fighter’s skepticism on the practicality of stylized techniques. Despite the supremacy of flowery kung fu moves in chop socky films, the realism is not evident in MMA competitions, the testing ground from the popular sporting view of martial arts. Are flowery techniques found in kung fu, karate, tae kwon do bullshit?
Yes, if one is not initiated to the secrets of form. The traditional purist method that teaches the literal expression of stylized movements for street fighting without adapting them for modern application is outdated. Besides being inefficient, it’s dangerous.

At TanDao we are proponents of real fighting and we also preserve forms. A contradiction? To the initiated, forms are physical books of knowledge that imparts martial science. All real fighting strategies, tactics and biomechanical efficiency are encoded in the stylized movement. Evolving Martial Artists seek the hidden language behind stylized moves to enhance real fighting.

Take your style beyond punching, with the TanDao Tiger System, an integration of Shaolin Animals and Bruce Lee’s JKD. You will find new strategic principles, hand/finger exercises, stances, diagrams, and photos to hone a powerful tiger claw for realistic self defense.