Tan Tow (Shaolin Knife) Form History, Cutting, Squats and Jumps

I am currently spending a lot of time working on my Tan Tow (Da Dao, Dan Dao) weapon form as I need to perform this well for my next grading in October.

The Tan Tow is perhaps the most widely used cutting weapon in Shaolin martial arts.  It is also apparently one of the simplest to use, for which reason it has often been the weapon of choice for soldiers.  In the Nam Yang syllabus, the Tan Tow is the second weapon to be learnt, after the Kun (staff).  Learning the Tan Tow involves learning to slice with a bladed weapon.  I learnt this many years ago, however haven't really practised it for some time as there wasn't really the space where I was living in the UK. It's good to have the outside training area  at the MTC so I can go down and really get to grips with the weapons forms.

Tan Kew Leong was head of the medicine peddlers in the Chuan Chew district of Fukien province. (Chuan Chew is a coastal district named after its principal city.  It is some way south of Putien, the district of Fukien, where the Shaolin Temple was situated, but still contains a temple where Shaolin martial arts are practised). He was a master of the Shaolin weapon system as well as of the Tai Chor (Tiger) style. He was commissioned by the family of Nam Yang’s founding master, Ang Lian Huat, to tutor their son. This is the origin of Nam Yang’s weapon skills. My lineage is therefore:

Great Grand Master: Tan Kew Liong

Grand Master: Ang Lian Huat

Master: Tan Soh Tin

Chief Instructor:  Iain Armstrong

I've learnt all the moves in the form but am finding certain things quite tricky.  One of the most important things with the Tan Tow is ensuring that each move would actually work in real combat and is not simply a flash move to look pretty. Getting every cut to actually work as a cut or slice and every block to be effective is harder than it sounds.

The  Tan Tow blade's weight is concentrated towards the end, maximising it’s cutting power.  It has a curved cutting edge, again for maximum cutting efficiency.  Only the half of the blade furthest from the handle is usually used to cut; it should be very sharp in order to do this.  The closer half is thicker and stronger and best used for blocking and pushing.  The sharp point is ideal to stab with.  The back of the blade is blunt so that the left had can be used to hold / push it or it can be braced against the body, however often the last part of the back (towards the tip) is also sharpened.  Blades usually have one or two grooves or blood channels along their rear side.  These are intended to prevent a vacuum forming when the blade enters a body which would prevent it being pulled out: a big problem in the thick of a battle. This also alleviates weight issues, making the blade lighter without comprising the integrity of the blade's structure or strength.

I have seen many practitioners and forms that do not concentrate on the practical cutting aspect of the form. The good thing about the Nam Yang form, as with all their weapons is that it does.  I am finding it quite difficult to ensure that each cut is indeed a cut. Perhaps we shall get the cutting mats out and have a go actually cutting. Often it is tempting to flick the wrist in order to get a more whip like action out of the blade, however I am told that if you actually cut like this, you will break or damage your wrist and probably break the knife. 

Getting control out of the blade is also quite hard. Being quite light, I often find I am being thrown forward by the momentum of the blade, particularly after jumps. Sometimes the blade is not as controlled as I would like and over reaches the cut I am performing. We are spending a lot of time learning to control and handle the blade so that the form can be performed correctly with full intent and springy strength coming through the blade.

The other area I am working on, is going into the squat after the side step and keeping this a nice flowing movement. I then need to learn to whip the blade back as I come out to perform a strong stab down. 

Finally the penultimate jump is causing me some grief, as I keep getting my feet the wrong way round after unwinding the sword from the behind my back position, after the forward cuts. I need to work on fluidity as well.

With daily training and a lot of help from Chris who has a wealth of knowledge regarding the use of bladed weapons and cutting, hopefully the form will be up to scratch in time for October. Despite all the difficulties, it is great fun to work with the knife and as with all weapons it really adds an additional dimension to the art.

 

Visa Run - Part Two - Over the Border, Mae Sai, Golden Triangle, Big C

Well we  were now in Chaing Rai and relaxing comfortably by the pool with a Pina Colada or Mai Tai respectively as planned. However we still needed to get that all important stamp in our little red books.

We looked at a variety of tours that run out of Chaing Rai and go place to place, including Mai Sai so we could dart over the border, get our stamp and do a little bit of shopping. However for just 2 people these were really expensive and we had paid out a lot to stay where we were staying already. In the end Chris came up with a cunning plan of hiring a driver for the day. This turned out to be much cheaper and we still got to see all the places we were interested in seeing (except the White Temple but we need to leave something for next time).

This also meant we still got the VIP air con mini-bus and could very much set our own itinerary. Starting at 9am (not 7 or 8 am as some tours did) we drove up to the Queen Mothers Winter Palace which had some amazing views and a beautiful flower garden. What was quite strange was that a group of Thai Tourists insisted on having photos taken of them with us, as if we also were some amazing tourist attraction.  The Queen Mother worked really hard to try and improve the lot of the Hill Tribe People and here Winter Villa also full of really interesting architecture and art. 

After that we headed over to the Monkey Cave, sadly however there were no monkeys as they had all gone into the Jungle to feed.

We then went to Mae Sai and the border, a drive through some lush and verdant countryside. We literally nipped over the border, taking less than ten minutes to get in and out. We have been to Mae Sai before and although the bustling market Burma side is fun and cheap, it's very hectic and you need to be in the right mood. 

The contrast between Burma and Thailand is huge, as soon as you step over the Burmese border you are plagued by hustlers and beggars. The buildings are run down and the place somehow even smells poorer. The people are still friendly but pushy sales people desperate to make some money out of the Thai and Foreign tourists. Mae Sai on the Thai side in comparison has almost tried to make a point about how richer Thailand is to Burma, with well maintained buildings, plated in gold and silver. Large fancy hotels and wide streets. However the market although less intense is very similar mostly run by Lisu and other hill tribe women. Still we managed to get some good deals on Ginger Leaf Tea.

After Mae Sai we headed down to the Golden Triangle, the area where most of the Opium used to be produced. The Hill Tribes became quite dependent on this trade and now are struggling to find an alternative crop. There are many King's Projects addressing this showing his concern and compassion for the tribes people, however nothing is really going to have the same value as the illegal crop. 

The area is indeed beautiful though, from the amazing statues to the view over the river where you can see the coast lines of Burma and Laos (we are in Thailand) and further away parts of China.  We visited a number of temples and a really old ruined one that was fun to explore. We didn't visit the Hall of Opium or the Opium Museum as we felt we were running out of time and had learnt quite a lot about the Opium trade from the Hill Tribe Museum. On a side note I strongly recommend going to the Hill Tribe Museum before booking any tours involving Hill Tribes. They have some very good and not very obvious advice regarding responsible tourism and how to behave in the villages, which many other tour companies do not provide. 

Finally we finished off our tour at Big C in Chaing Mai. It sounds silly to say we got excited by a shopping centre, but we haven't seen one for 6 mths and it was a novel experience. Sadly nothing we wanted to see was on at the cinema as we are quite keen to see the new Harry Potter!

Next day we went on the VIP Green Bus to Chaing Mai, to spend two nights there before heading back on the Bus to Pai.  Only new thing to report is that we found an excellent Mexican fast food restaurant (a new concept to me) called Miguals which is just up the river from TaPae Gate. We also found somewhere that served a pint of bitter although it was Tetleys. We also while utterly drunk managed to build the highest Jenga tower we have ever seen. Just shows what Kung Fu can do for your co-ordination as I always used to be awful at that game!

We had a fantastic holiday and are now back in Pai and the MTC ready to get on with some hard core training!

Visa Run - Part One - Chiang Rai- Getting There!

Visa Runs - an integral part of being a "Farang" in Thailand. Since I am on an Education Visa I need to go out of Thailand once every three months to get the obligatory stamp in my passport and continue training out here.

This is actually a really good thing. It means you get the chance to do a bit of travelling and get a break away from the centre and training for a while. It means around 4 trips a year and if planned properly means we can take advantage of the opportunity to see more of South East Asia.

Only problem is that it can be expensive and although you can do it relatively quickly and cheaply if you do the Chiang Mai, Mae Sai run (you are over the Burmese border for less than 10 minutes). It seems a shame not to enjoy the opportunity to do something a bit different.

This time we went to stay in a resort in Chiang Rai. We decided we wanted a proper holiday, where we could relax by the pool and pamper ourselves a bit, so we plumped on a beautiful resort by the River Kok called The Legend.  

We set off for Chaing Rai via Mini Bus and Aya Services at 8pm on Monday and arrived after a rather bumpy and a little hairy ride in Chaing Rai at 4am.  We did feel for those poor souls who were going on to Laos and were dropped at a shared hostel in Chaing Kong with only 3 hours sleep until they had to go to catch the slow or fast boat to Luang Prabang in Laos. However Laos is such a beautiful country, I am sure they quickly got over the trauma and lack of breakfast!

4am is far from the ideal time to arrive anywhere, let alone Chaing Rai. Nothing except the good old 7 seemed to be open and the original hotel we were hoping to stay at the Starbright (considerably cheaper and in town) did not as promised have anything resembling a 24 hour reception.

We went for a wander and it is really strange and interesting being up and sober at this time in the morning. The little market was being set up and you could smell and see people preparing the food and wears they were going to sell. The area round the market was chaos and the concept of a pavement (or sidewalk for our American Cousins) seemed to be non existent. (In fact throughout the town pavements seemed to be used as glorified moped parks). 

We walked by some government offices and saw people doing the Thai equivalent to Chi Kung practice which was interesting to observe for a while. We made it down to the river just as the sun was rising and realised we were quite lost but in a really pleasant residential area. Gates seem to be key to self image here as we saw some really nice gates  attached to not so nice buildings. 

Through lucky guess work we arrived at the gates of The Legend and instantly fell in love with it. Beautifully laid out, with big airy rooms with two balconies, well landscaped grounds by the river, excellent restaurant (actual service for a change!) and a pool which had a cut away waterfall effect that made you feel that it extended into the river.  

We spent a few days relaxing by the pool, which is something we simply haven't had the opportunity to do in Pai and a few days exploring Chaing Rai itself. 

Two places of interest that you might not get in a tourist map (many temples and markets aside) are the restaurant Cabbages and Condoms (or C& C if you are feeling shy) which attached to the Hill Tribe Museum next door is a Not For Profit charity, selling high quality food (my curry was delicious) while raising money for Hill Tribe related causes. There is lots of amusing artwork including a Santa made entirely from condoms and promises that their food is guaranteed not to cause pregnancy!  You get a free ticket to visit the Hill Tribe Museum next door which is worth a look as well.

The second place is Teepee Bar. Really the Chaing Mai equivalent of DILLIGAF in Pai, but full of strange and interesting art pieces and fun and friendly staff. Beer is expensive in Chaing Rai for some unknown reason but spirits seem to work out quite cheap.  Definitely highly recommended.

Our next challenge was actually getting to Mae Sai and packing in as much sight seeing as we could on route. I will cover this in the next post.