Improve your grace and agility, uplift your internal power (chi), intensify your intentionality (yi) & create an exponential increase of momentum (shi) with the Xing Yi 12 Animal FormsThe FIVE ELEMENT forms are the essential building blocks of the Xing Yi Chuan art, without which none of the other treasures are imbued with true foundation once youve inculcated those into your neuro-circuitry, the next stage before being able to learn the long form, in which all the information of Xing Yi is carried, is learning the twelve animal forms. Dragon, Tiger, Monkey, Horse, Rooster, Dove, Turtle, Swallow, Snake, Hawk, Bear, EagleEach of these contains a multitude of practical martial applications, and between them provide an effective way to exercise the body and increase psycho-physical power and develop and harness intention. But the deeper benefit still is acquiring the skill of embodying the nature or spirit of each of the twelve animals in a totemic sense, whether in an actual fight or engaged in the challenging throes of the day to day. Learn to embody the twelve animals or even just one of them and you acquire a power in daily life that is too strong to underestimateMatt Furyonce won the annual Chinese inter-disciplinary contest against all odds (his opponent was far more skilled and able), in fact was the first non-Chinese to claim this award, on account of his ability to become a tiger. He didnt just imagine he was a tiger, he spent a moment before the contest breathing in and out visualizing his breath as blinding white light, which eventually obliterated all sense of Matt Furyness, and once achieved managed to replace all Matt Furyness with tiger instead in his own words, I literally became a tiger, and because tigers are fairly invincible, he won the fight straight out in seconds. Imagine having that sort of power when say dealing with a negotiation or difficult discussion in which its imperative you prevail. Thats what the twelve animal forms gives you. The 12 AnimalsParadoxically, on the surface of things, for people as eminently pragmatic as the Taoists, the first animal in the sequence is a mythical one: the dragon. Now why would such pragmatic people have a bullshit animal as their primary form in the sequence?The clue lies in the very great probability that the entire Taoist pantheon of knowledge has its roots in a civilization predating the last ice age by many millions of years. While this may seem and possibly is fantastical, its less so than the legend of them having received their knowledge from a visiting band of advanced-species aliens from somewhere in the Sirius star system. Because the dragon is actually none other than the prehistoric terrydactyl imagine one of those f*ckers (as they were traditionally described in ancient China) landing on you out of the sky. Well thats the powerthe dragonform lends you the ability to land on your opponent from a great height. Then comesthe tiger, with its sudden claw swipe no one could withstand. The monkeyis tricky and unpredictable. The horses hooves are impossible to stand up to when they kick out. The roosters uppercut palm-strike would wake up the sleepiest of souls. The wild sweep ofthe doves wings followed by a double claw strike would fell the hardiest opponent. The unexpected sideswipe ofthe turtles little turtle feet could knock you right over at ten paces. The elegant sweep ofthe swallows wingtips would slice your opponent in twain. The insistent undulating strike ofthe snakewould mangle the best fighter. The elegant precision ofthe hawks wing striking would fell an opponent from on high. The irresistible whack in the throat ofthe bears paw would finish an opponent off. And the majestic swoop ofthe eagles stab would ensure no one ever started on you again.I wax poetic and hyperbolic of course but merely to illustrate a point. Learn to embody these twelve or even just one of the twelve animals and you acquire a power in daily life that is too strong to underestimate. The levels of grace and agility afforded you by learning these forms is remarkable and the uplift of internal power (chi), combined with the intensification of intentionality (yi), causes an exponential increase of momentum (shi) in all your affairs, the benefits of which cannot be overstated, even though I have had a good go. But theres something extra which cant be put in words, a synergy arising from practice that amounts to far more than the sum of the twelve animal forms themselves, which only practice can reveal. And these are just a few of the reasons I so strongly recommend this training to you. But what exactly is Xing Yi Chuan’taoist internal martial arts lie at the heart of all Taoist practice moving mediations to focus the mind within the body along optimal lines. Xing Yi (pronounced Shing Yee) like Tai Chi & Pa Kua is one of those internal martial arts. Tai Chiteaches you how to roll this way or that, yielding to lifes pressure without being pressed uponPa Kuateaches you the power of circles and the ability to constantly get behind a sit
