Lesson 1 – The basics of 6 Dragons Kung Fu

The steps to become a 6 Dragons Kung Fu warrior

In this chapter we will discuss:

  • The fundamental training
  • The physical and technical workouts
  • The basic training tools

Note – This article has been asked by one of our Core Course practitioners on Patreon (see how to attend our home study classes here Learn Kung Fu online: a beginner-to-expert course).

After having mentioned how the inverted learning process of 6 Dragons Kung Fu works (read Lesson 0.4), we start explaining its 5 fundamental steps:

  1. Awaken of body and mind
  2. Body and mind expression
  3. Deep learning of techniques
  4. Martial skills development
  5. Synthesis

A note by Master Kongling – Naturally the fact that the technical aspects are mentioned in the third step, does not mean that you will not study techniques but simply that, in that phase, you will deepen them profoundly.

Before explaining the duration and focus of each phase it is important to stress that 2 things:

  • The times we are going to list are only indicative, they vary from person to person (due to determination, age, time, etc.)
  • Every serious martial art (modern or ancient), to be truly mastered, needs similar times of development

A note by Master Kongling – Do not be scared by the time. Anyone who will tell you they can fully teach you a martial art in a few days, weeks or months is most likely a scammer. To give you an idea: if you are extremely determined, the minimum time to acquire the first rudiments is 6 months (of hard work) but this leads you to be able to face ordinary people, neither more nor less; to learn to face a real adversary, it takes at least 3-5 years (always making the best effort).

1. Awaken of body and mind

Beginner level

First of all (as we have already begun to do in Lesson 1.2) you must adapt your mind and body to the idea that training is an integral part of your daily life.

To help us to accomplish this task, come to our rescue:

This part is the shortest (from 1 to 6 months).

2. Allow body and mind to express their attitudes

Intermediate level

As a second step, you begin, in relation to the martial exercises, to give space to your personal expression (read The difference between 6DKF and other martial arts):

  • With not too many interferences, limits or impositions
  • With small directives to avoid the biggest errors
  • To discover limits / potentials of your body and mind
  • Free of cages related to technique and style
  • To begin to shape your new physical and mental form

This part (during which we will literally learn to train the legs as arms and vice versa) is essential and it has a medium-low duration (1-2 years).

3. Add martial technique to personal attitudes

Advanced level

After having learned the bases of self-defense, developed an instinctive combat capability and explored yourself, the deepening phase of the most advanced techniques begins:

  • Only after having acquired a basic knowledge of the involved psychophysical dynamics
  • Only after a lot of errors / mistakes and wrong ways (read How to bridge our failings)
  • Only when defense and attack can count on basic reflexes and on a practical instinct
  • Only when the mind starts to understand what Kung Fu is really about

This part, in terms of martial life, has a middle duration (3-5 years).

4. Add to the technique high-level psychophysical martial skills

Expert level

After the technique follows the acquisition of real martial skills:

  • Based on long-term practice
  • Founded on solid technical principles
  • Protected from otherwise unavoidable safety risks
  • Far from those who did not have the determination to get here

This part has a middle-long duration in the economy of a martial life (6-15 years).

5. Improve training and connect personal attitudes, technique, and martial skills

Master level

Finally, the moment comes to find a personal synthesis between innate abilities, technique and acquired skills:

  • Through constant training
  • Through sharing
  • Through experimentation and self-criticism
  • Through continuous deepening

This part is the longest and will occupy the rest of your martial life (16-50 years).

Discover yourself

Errors are precious sources of understanding and innovation (read Measure ourselves with errors). The freshness, originality and creativity of the novices (especially the children’s one) are often stifled by the weight of the imposed “wisdom” of bad masters (read Recognize a good / bad master: 5 characteristics).

Although the 6 Dragons Kung Fu’s way of teaching is not free from contraindications, it is the only way to create a truly personal style.

The point is that, if you wait to lay the foundations of your personal style at the end of a complete martial path, very few people will have a mind open enough to break down the preconceived rules.

What is the best style of Kung Fu?

The best possible Kung Fu:

  • It is not the one that comes closest to you, it’s the one that springs from you
  • It is the one that comes from the fruit of incessant experimentation, adaptation and study
  • It is the one that springs from a lifetime process of discovery that ends only with your death

There is no style, technique or tactic that can make this kind of mastery vain.

In-depth articles

<< Lesson 1.4IndexLesson 2.2 >>

Author: Master Kongling

Founder of 6 Dragons Kung Fu.

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