WUSHU Hello there, I am from Malaysia and this is the website I found of Wushu Malaysia: http://www.wushumalaysia.com.my/index2.html It is not very far from my area at all, at the moment I am practicing in the art of the Bujinkan Ninjutsu, which focuses on real life situations. But I would like to practice in an art that has the sport element in it also for fitness purpose. I do work out and all but I just wish to learn all the flips and spins and all that superb Wushu movements. I mean just check these videos: [ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QVDPoyVuZZg"]WUSHU MASTERS CHINA - YouTube[/ame] [ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iiCuGJD1u58&feature=related"]HK GUI WU STUDIO - YouTube[/ame] So any Wushu practitioners would like to say something to a newcomer?
I think there's a critical distinction. Wushu is open about what it is. There are two sides to wushu--the forms side and sanda. The forms side of wushi is an acrobatic performance art built out of the traditions of CMA, but is not purporting to be a "deadly fighting style" or anything about that. It is fun to watch and fun to perform, but has limited practical application. (I won't say "no practical application" because of the extraordinary physical conditioning involved, and because some of the body mechanics and movements would lend itself toward practical application). However, nearly every popular movie martial artist nowadays (particularly Jet Li) comes from a wushu background. The other side of wushu is sanda, aka sanshou, a full-contact fighting style focusing on punching, kicking, and stand-up grappling. Some "wushu" schools teach only the forms side of things (the performance art); some also teach sanshou. I'm a bit surprised that a Sanda practitioner is rolling his eyes at "wushu," considering that the International Wushu Federation is the governing body for many Sanda/Sanshou tournaments. I don't know much about ninjitsu, but from what I know, most practitioners and teachers assert it is extremely deadly. It's cloaked in secrecy, sometimes has emphasis on "death touch pressure points," etc. This is utterly unlike wushu.
You wants to learn flips and spins and stuff, so I don't really see the problem. Go learn some acrobatics. Sweet.
Alright, first off I'm completely aware to what Wushu is, my friend. As much as people like to blend Sanda into the Wushu curriculum, the fact of the matter is that most who do practice Sanda have very little relation to what we know as [contemporary] Wushu. Other than government sponsorship. Wushu is in no way, shape, or form related to actual live fighting. The only real benefits are flexibility, coordination and cardio improvement. For that someone mind as well just take up dance to achieve the same benefits, only without the delusion that it'll all somehow lead to effective fighting methods in the end. Lastly, "most" of these practitioners in support of Ninjitsu wouldn't know real if it were a direct shot to the face. Much like a ton of other "martial art" schools today, they're chock full of delusions thanks to fandom love of Asian language, culture and the mysticism behind it all. Even the teachers are aware of this and care for little else other than exploiting the tales associated within their culture to geeky, middle american white boys overly weaned on Anime and Otaku culture. Now swap Wushu for Ninjitsu, Chinese for Japanese and they're relatively the same mess. It's basically a big Asian love circle jerk most of the time and so little to do with actual fighting.
It just comes down to what you want to do. Wushu is at least a skill-set that people - mostly people with natural aptitude - can learn, i.e. you can learn to do really cool, stylish moves - which, if that's what you want to do, then all power to you. Not everyone wants to train for fighting. Problem is if you DID want to train for fighting, and mistakenly took up any martial art, or joined any club, that advertised that its stuff was for fighting when really it wasn't. That's just not fair - and people lose a lot of time and money finding out the truth. Or maybe worse - they found out by getting in to a fight and finding they have no relevant skills. All in all, wushu is fun - it's a laugh. It's a highly demanding art form, it's nice to train in, interesting, and good for people interested in movies and acting. But if you want fighting training, wushu, at best, would be a short term foundation - i.e. you might train it for a short time, benefit from some improved fitness, flexibility and strength and co-ordination training - but then you'd need to move on to something else. Is it worth having that foundation? Myself, I think yes for Chinese systems, but that's because I like that "flavour" to my training. For others - no. Although, I think wushu basic stretching and all the basic leg raising exercises - which comes from traditional training anyway, I think, is a really excellent training method, regardless of style.
I thought real Ninjutsu (or whatever it was called back in the day) revolved mostly around espionage and information gathering, and not so much fighting . . . .
He he, that's wonderful. I see many have their opinions about Ninjutsu being fake and never having existed and all but the practitioner always has something else to say. Ninja is just a name, if what I am learning is truly a self defence art, then it serves me and that is all I need. ---- So speaking of Wushu, what got my attention is the balance, the fitness and the ability of movements, especially the high jumps, flips and spinning in the middle of the air etc.. oh and not to forget the speed. I realize that when it comes to self defence Wushu is not what one should look at, my Ninjutsu Sensei told me it is useless and not to go for it, but then I told him actually I just want to learn it for the sake of learning to do the flips and all. And he said oh then I can go for it, for its culture, the fitness and what I said, I can go for it but self defence, no. ---- Now I ask this, if there is other art or practice that I can take to learn that, which would it be? Thank you so much for all the replies guys!
Well, if you combine wing chun with wushu, to make wing-wu, then add in ninjitsu to make nin-wing-wu, then, as it's your special "way", you can call it nin-wing-wu-do. Which pronounced in a Hebei accent is hillarious. Actually, I'm a ninth level black sash in nin-wing-wu-do. Don't laugh.
Lol that's funny. And are you serious? You are? You must be good. How is Wing Chun? I shall check it online now. And tell me about the wing-wu-do part if you would like to say something. Thanks!
Oh lord... he was JOKING. Can you prove that it is an effective self defence art? Don't you care what art it really is, since it's not a ninja art?
Yes I know he was JOKING, I was just messing it up. Can I prove that it is an effective self defence art? Can you prove that every art is an effective self defence art? Anything is possible in real life situation, if the art can open your awareness on what you can do, if it can prepare you to an extent, then it is something is what I mean. I may train my hand to become so strong that it will surely knock you out if you let me punch. But in real life, I may never get an opportunity to lay that punch, but I may get it at the same time, at least I have prepared such an hand. A martial art to me is like that. Better something than nothing. I know the Bujinkan Ninjutsu does serve me, and in that sense, is effective. Unless you're talking about perfection, then no, to render one perfect is to conclude, to conclude is to limit. The journey is endless, does it help me to grow is the question and yes it does and in that sense is effective. And don't I care what art it really is? Does a soul have a name? No, it is just what it is. Like Bruce Lee said, there is only one style of fighting, there is only to explore oneself. I am not going to seperate, anything I learn or explore is just me exploring myself in various ways in various situations.
