Tom
You wrote:
>> These are the same things that I saw in a t'ai chi workshop along with some power stuff that was pretty interestingly different from anything I ever saw in Aikido or karate. The power you have to see (the whole room shook) but you can find a lot of the mind-body tests in some books by Koichi Tohei Sensei.
I reply:
I have seen some pretty amazing displays of power in my day. The first two individuals who I every saw "make the room shake" were: 1) a Nippon Shorin Ken karate master, and 2) a Shotokan sandan and his brown belt student. By every description from any perspective, the styles they studied were.....HARD (whatever that means).
In the literature, they say that Miyagi Chojun, a practitioner of the Goju version of sanchin - had "thunder in the belly." Goju translates as....HARD SOFT.
My personal opinion (and everyone has one) is that there are a set of skills "out there" that anyone of any style can learn. Some get better at them than others. As a scientist, I am skeptical of any claim where a person with any skill attributes it to any particular style of martial art. As the Chinese say, do not confuse the moon for the finger pointing at it. As we scientists say, do not assume causality until you have done the randomized controlled trial.
A caveat we need to mention here about the "power" demonstration is "to what end?" If the person is using good technique, good strategy, and properly targeting, then "overengineering" the power can be a waste of time. The reason why not everyone gets obsessed with mega power is that it is not needed when you know how to fight.
Any reasonably intelligent person will certainly make connections between methods and results without a need for rigorous analysis. When people try to tell you that a trick they do in a demo shows that they have something special that their method alone can teach you, well you'd better check your back pocket or look for an ego in need of worship. There's a good article this month in Black Belt (I believe) that uncovers "tricks" that people use in martial arts demos. One of them (the line of people that fall over) is very revealing given a demo I've heard done lately by a person who claims to be able to project chi. Usually claims of majic or an unusual power or of special knowledge are connected to an angle or even self dillusion.
The real stuff doesn't need the Madison Avenue schmaltz. The real secret....is a good method and good instruction and god-given potential and years of hard work. Those that want an easy path to greatness or are looking for something for nothing do not want to listen to that truth.
I can't count how many times I've seen something done in an aikido or t'ai chi demo that seemed magical at one time and much, much later on in my training I was suddenly able to do. Good training gets you there. Good teachers de-mystify the knowledge and produce good students in lieu of a "legendary" reputation.
[This message has been edited by Bill Glasheen (edited 03-26-99).]