After 5000 years, an ocean of rumor and a mountain range of myth still proscribe the land of Kung Fu. And the stories that most attach themselves are often related to the origins of weapons. Not every weapon has a backstory and a legend. But the folk stories that accompany weapons—believable or not—range from the […]
Dec
14
2018
14
2018
Nov
27
2018
27
2018
The Sophistication of Simplicity
Earlier today, I had the opportunity to work with a group of beginning Tai Chi students. A few hours later, I met with another group of students in my advanced Tai Chi class. Now, relaxing at the dusty end of the day, I realize that what I had taught to these two classes was essentially […]
Oct
24
2018
24
2018
Oct
21
2018
21
2018
Bak Sil Lum Sash Event
Today there are nine new Black sashes in the martial art of Bak Sil Lum (Northern Shaolin) style. At an event hosted by Sifu Scott Jensen a contingent of his senior students were awarded black sashes, a solid rank requiring years of training. Each candidate demonstrated skills, starting with a set from the empty-handed division […]
Aug
28
2018
28
2018
Listening to the Wind: On Internal Practice
About a week ago I asked my Tai Chi class if they ever get bored doing the form. They unanimously answered “No,” their explanation being that the form always provides new material to concentrate on, things to master. This suggests that the act of repetition can be either boring or freeing, and leads me to […]
Jul
20
2018
20
2018
Tai Chi’s Long Bow
Addressing its reputed character, we get the impression that every earnest instructor tries a different approach to proclaim Tai Chi as a martial art. Considering those instructors who do try and make the point feasible, the spectrum of possible arguments is endless. For instance, one common example has the instructor picking a bystander on whom […]
May
13
2018
13
2018
Coming Events
Plum will be travelling in May and June to a couple of kung fu tournaments: 10th Annual Tiger Claw Elite Kung Fu Magazine Championship, May 19-20, 2018, San Jose, California This year’s 2 day event will feature a NEW EXTERNAL DIVISION dedicated exclusively to Songshan Shaolin – the Kung Fu directly from Shaolin Temple alongside […]
Apr
5
2018
5
2018
Four Things Hard to Believe
At the start of your training, if you’d asked: “What do I need to be a good martial artist?†you might have gotten a list which included strength, endurance, patience, humility, Ben-Gay, and a good pair of shoes. What would probably have been missing is the word “faith.†But anyone who’s done any kind of long-term […]
Mar
27
2018
27
2018
Tutorial: Tai Chi Tips, Stepping
If you’ve spent more than 5 minutes at Plum, you know how highly we prize basics as the foundation of good movement. ‘Stepping’ in Tai Chi, is one of those fundamentals that you might learn on the first day of class, and which you might be refining well into your advanced practice. We prepared a […]
Jan
7
2018
7
2018
Gary Shapiro: Looking Back
In the past, I’ve written some articles for Plum detailing my Tai Chi adventures on cruise vacations. After nearly 40 years of work as a physical therapist, I decided that it was the right time to take a permanent vacation. On Aug 4, 2017, I made my last patient visit, went to the “big†office, […]
Dec
22
2017
22
2017
Come To The Party
Right before the end of the year, we welcome back a few old friends, Chinese Kung Fu books that are always welcome at Plum. We’ve got a lot of new material coming, too, in the next little while, so keep an eye on this spot. (Click each book to get more info, and to purchase). […]
Dec
18
2017
18
2017
Allen Ginsberg on Tai Chi
In my kitchen in New York by Allen Ginsberg (for Bataan Faigao) Bend knees, shift weight Picasso’s blue deathhead self portrait tacked on refrigerator door This is the only space in the apartment big enough to do t’ai chi Straighten right foot & rise–I wonder if I should have set aside that […]
Sep
16
2017
16
2017
Why Relaxation is Not Easy
The problem posed in the title is a constant concern in all CMA (Chinese Martial Arts) training. Of course, one immediate answer recognizes that relaxation and exercise are just plain difficult to coordinate. This is especially true when you add thinking to the mix. But the true approach, like all martial training, is both more […]
Aug
20
2017
20
2017
Instructor’s Notebook: Revelations
Sometimes, words that once held deeper meanings are now expressed in shallow terms. It’s just “aaawesssomme.†For instance, when people use the word, “revelation†they are probably pumping up some slight thing, like office gossip, or promoting the discovery of the correct word in a crossword puzzle. But the core meaning of revelation has more […]
Jun
14
2017
14
2017
Daniel Mroz on Tao Lu: Formal Movements from the Martial Arts
 Here is something wonderful. Daniel Mroz, an associate professor in the Theater Department of the University of Ottawa and also a longtime friend, correspondent and Plum customer presented a lecture at last year’s Martial Arts Studies Conference in Wales. The subject of his engaging talk is Tao Lu, the martial art routine we call set […]
May
31
2017
31
2017
Mina at the Kung Fu Tournament
The noise in the Kung Fu tournament hall never lets up. The waves of brass and drumming rolled along the ceiling fabric only to crash against an opposing wave of raucous sound from the opposite direction. To me, it vibrated like someone in leather and beard revving a Harley directly between my ears, but I […]
Jan
10
2017
10
2017
Stillness & Movement: Part Three
Dynamic Balance There’s a very old martial arts saying that we should “find stillness in movement, and movement in stillness.†It’s not just an old saw. For instance, say someone punches at you. You move out of the way extremely rapidly, but not so hurried that you resemble a bad example of the startle response; […]
Mar
6
2016
6
2016
Another Modest Proposal
Through my entire martial career I have been listening to everyone’s questions and problems with traditional forms. For most people, it all centers on practicality. For some people, the answer lies in detailed analysis of the forms and what self defense and fighting treasures are hidden therein. For still others, it’s a lost cause and […]
Feb
12
2016
12
2016
Just a Handful of Books
We have SO many new texts in Chinese to offer that we are just picking some at random. Some are on rare material like Shi style Bagua, others are those classic collectibles taken at the beginning of the last century with dodgy photos and famous masters still young men. We picked a few subjects at […]
Jan
22
2016
22
2016
The Basics
Jack Yan has emerged as one of our more favored writer/translators. His exhaustive series on the teacher Chen Zheng Lei has brought a lot of attention to this branch of the art, and his own series on Tong Bei is a welcome addition to what is otherwise a very under-represented field of texts and DVDs. […]
