Mindfulness Tai Chi Practice

Understanding Internal Martial Arts

Introduction to Earth Dragon Canon

In the Earth Dragon Canon Method of Mindfulness Martial Art practice, you will learn practical methods for studying the internal martial arts of baguazhang (circle walking), taijiquan (meditative boxing), xingyiquan (five elements fist), and yiquan (standing meditation).

You will learn the history of these arts, and how to apply them for meditation, mindfulness, physical fitness, and self-evolution. Along the way, you will study the cosmological concepts that inspired the oldest of mindfulness practices.

Internal martial art practice is the study of physical movement. It is an exploration of the mind through the body, and conversely the body through the mind. The Earth Dragon Canon Method unifies modern and traditional practices into a pragmatic program.

Bare feet walking up a stack of old books.

The Earth Dragon Canon Method of Internal Martial Arts

Mindfulness practice is more than meditation, it is a commitment to being present in every moment of your life. The trend toward five-minute breaks guided by a smartphone application is profitable for the silicon-valley set but does little to create real mindfulness.

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Mindfulness Martial Arts Student Self-Evolution Blog

Knowing Yourself

I would read each posture in detail from the yellow book, then practice the entire sequence from the beginning to that posture. The book’s spine was beginning to break, and rain would soak the book even when I tried to shelter it under the pin-oak. I broke it apart entirely and put each page in a plastic sheet protector, then put the entire thing in a three-ring binder. This manner of practice allowed me to reconnect with myself. For t…

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The First Practice is Attention

Before you begin any physical exercise, stand in Wuji Posture, pay attention to yourself, and begin a process of discovery to the functioning of your body and mind.

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A page from the dictionary defining definition

Vocabulary

Vocabulary is the foundation to understanding a subject. Martial art practice is filled with words that have similar meaning or are used interchangeably. When forced to put my practice into writing I discovered that in a single paragraph I would skip between form and posture in the same description. Is the Taijiquan a sequence or a routine? Is a static position a posture or a form? The interchange of the words forms, posture, and stan…

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Pinyin

The Pinyin system is the accepted standard for the romanization of Chinese characters. Pinyin means spell sound and is used to teach the standard pronunciation of Mandarin Chinese. It is also the standard system for entering Chinese characters on computers. Because of this standardization, it is the method I use in my lessons. You can be confident that if you pronounce the words as I present them in these lessons, you are close to t…

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Martial Arts in Anger

The Martial Arts Parable is an exploration of the real meaning of the internal martial arts. Before you begin practice, you must know why you want to start.

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Earth (One Month)

Canon (Three Month)

Dragon (One Year)

Canon Method

Philosophical Foundations

Canon also means a literary or artistic work considered as permanently established as being of the highest quality.

The Canon components share the history and foundations of Daoism, Confucianism, and Buddhism. Individually, or in concert, these systems shaped modern mindfulness practice.

Daoist, Confucian, and Dharma principles are the moral character of mindfulness. I encourage you to look beyond the physical forms to develop a deeper understanding of the internal martial arts.

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Earth Method

Supplemental Exercises

In the traditional method of internal martial art teaching, a master chose a few individuals as indoor students to share the secret transmission of the martial art.

The Earth components of the Earth Dragon Canon Method are these inside the door practices. Here you will find a mixture of traditional and modern exercises done on the floor. These supplemental exercises reinforce important concepts from the internal martial art practice.

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Dragon Method

Martial Forms

The Dragon Component includes the traditional styles, and forms from the internal martial arts of Baguazhang, Taijiquan, Xingyiquan, and Yiquan. This instruction emphasizes health over martial function. The Earth Dragon Canon Method does not teach violence.

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