Knowledge -vs- Wisdom

[SiGung Vincent A. Cabais]

It has been a while since I posted my thoughts on this Forum.  We now have so many other methods of communication available to us.  But I feel this is worth the public to hear.

I have been thinking a great deal about how the education of our current and past students have progressed.  Students tend to become spoiled by the first 9 chambers (Novice thru Beginner/Intermediate) of this system way too often.  There is a great deal of knowledge transferred to students of this system.  A "Pupil" learns over 368 techniques, a "Disciple" learns well over 464 techniques with more focused understanding and an "Apprentice" learns more than most other systems within the Martial Arts even have available.

Therefore, with this flood of knowledge and understanding; why do most students in this system become so spoiled?  Especially when they should take the time to perfect those techniques.  Why is this so difficult to understand?  Bruce Lee said it best "It is not how much you have learned but how much you have absorbed in what you have learned.".

I believe that more students in this system are not spending enough effort to improve their existing knowledge.  If this issue, becoming spoiled, is not resolved; it will truly hurt a student's growth and forever affect they way they learn anything in life.

You are all welcome to comment on this post.

[Ross Hyman]

Being a disciple in chamber 5 I realize that I have only dipped my toe in the ocean that is Shaolin Lohan Kung Fu. I can't say that I have any special insight as to why someone would become 'spoiled' in the system but I can share some troubles and realizations I have personally had in the short 9 months that I have been a member of this school.

A handful of months ago I was at a comfortable point in my training and felt that I was progressing at a reasonable rate. I was diving into Tiger for the first time and had just received Discipleship. Up to that point I was learning new material at a steady pace and it was relatively easy to focus. It was around this time that I was given the disciple techniques to work on and at the same time I was becoming a little more involved with our Lion Dance Troupe. I had more material on my plate then I was used to working with - it was also around this point when I realized that the next step (chamber 6) would mean I could learn my first weapon - Staff. All this new material I was learning and the prospect of what would come next all became very exciting.

A few weeks later I remember going into a regular Monday class. We worked on a variety of things that day including Tiger. The class started bad for me as my stance work went horribly. Then my kicks were off. When we worked on Tiger I noticed that my energy, balance, and overall attitude was awful. You know that 'look' that Sifu gets in his face when he is disappointed? I got that look a lot that night..... After class when I was on my way home I was really feeling disappointed in myself. Where had all the strength I was developing in Tiger go? After some reflection I realized that my overall performance as a student had stopped progressing and was even starting to decline.

After a lot more reflection I realized that it was because I had become to "comfortable". Instead of focusing on what was right in front of me I was always thinking of what was going to come next. It stopped being about what I had and became about what I was going to get... I take the privilege of being a disciple of this school very seriously and I never want to take this position for granted. Since then I have worked very hard to focus on what is important. I took a step back and realized that there is no reason to look towards new techniques if I can't even see the ones that have been given to me clearly.

Now I am still new to this school. In the long run I haven't learned much kung fu at all. Just thinking about my little experience I can imagine that once a student gets into intermediate chambers they could be, in a sense, overwhelmed with the amount of information they are receiving and lose sight of the ultimate goal. As students of this school we are all privileged to a great deal of knowledge - and if we do need keep our minds and spirits sharp this flood of knowledge can knock us off our feet.