In the traditional martial arts world, especially in Tai Chi, it is expected to use Laozi's Tao Te Ching phrase "The highest good is like water" to describe the inclusive and transformative nature of martial arts power. In fact, if we apply the philosophy of water to any form of Chinese martial arts, it makes sense. For example:
• Baji Quan is like a thunderstorm,
• Pigua Zhang is like a windstorm,
• Praying Mantis Quan is like a sudden rainstorm,
• So, what about Bagua Zhang? It is like a dense fog!
My experience with Bagua Zhang comes from my grandmaster, Liu Yunqiao. Before that, I had also learned about the 64 palms of Bagua Zhang elsewhere. At that time, I did not understand it, and after learning it, I forgot almost everything. I still remember the first time I learned Bagua Zhang, from the initial excitement and joy before learning it to the later disappointment and frustration. This significant psychological shift made me resent "Bagua" for many years. I thought Bagua Zhang was just about spinning in circles to confuse the enemy (actually, it was me who got confused), a fancy, complicated, and impractical martial art. One day after I joined Wutan, the martial arts center in Taipei, Grandmaster Liu saw me practicing Baji Quan and suddenly said, "You should learn Bagua Zhang; it will absolutely help you." My first reaction was, "Oh no, not this again!" But I dared not disobey my master. I thought, "It's okay. It's just spinning in circles again." However, when I encountered this unusual Bagua Zhang passed down from our grandmaster Gong Baotian, I was utterly convinced and finally understood what Bagua Zhang truly is. This feeling reminded me of when I first came to the United States to study in 1974. My Italian American roommate asked if I had ever eaten pizza. I replied that I had, but it wasn't delicious. He said he would show me authentic Italian pizza. True to his word, after I tried the pizza he introduced, I completely changed my view and fell in love with traditional Italian pizza. My passion for Bagua Zhang grew in the same way.
Bagua Zhang seems shrouded in a mysterious veil or like a dense fog to outsiders. Compared to some ancient martial arts with hundreds or thousands of years of history, Bagua Zhang is merely a baby in traditional martial arts. However, it should not be underestimated; it inherits the core philosophy of Chinese martial arts culture. It possesses the finest martial arts DNA, absorbing the essence of various martial arts styles. Years of practicing, teaching, and researching Bagua Zhang have made me deeply respect the experience and wisdom of the Bagua Zhang predecessors.
Next time, I will begin to write about the principles and techniques of our school’s Bagua Zhang.
Justin Chien ✨ was born in Taipei and grew up in Hong Kong. He came back to Taiwan to study in high school at the age of 12, and then went to the United States to study at university and develop his career at the age of 18. You may have seen him in a TV commercial a few years ago, and he starred in it many years later. A Hollywood-produced #NETFLIX work has been introduced to the global audience. He is the male protagonist of "# Sun Jia Brothers" (The Brothers Sun)── #Justin Chien. In this gangster action series set in Taiwan, Justin plays Michelle Yeoh's son. As the eldest son of the family, when family members become targets, he is ordered to fly to Los Angeles to protect his mother who has been separated since childhood, and in the process he thinks about gangs. future and the meaning of life, and also established an unprecedented family bond with his mother and younger brother. The whole drama of "Brothers of the Sun" is run through with the four words "protect family". When it comes to the similarity between myself and the characters, family is definitely an element that cannot be ignored. "My parents always set an example and taught me how to be a hard-working and kind-hearted person." , upright people, and we all value family. I love my family very much. I am very close to my parents, brothers and sisters, and we are very protective, so whether it is the people we care about, or I want to support and protect the team around me." As the eldest brother of four brothers and sisters in the family Justin is a good son and a good brother. He hopes to be a role model and can provide timely assistance to his younger siblings when they need guidance and help, because this family is his strongest support and the main reason for shaping him. "I I once saw someone say, "You raise me and I will grow old with you." This sentence really touched me, and because of this I really couldn't imagine a life without my family, so I assumed I should move back to Taiwan within ten years." There is no hesitation in his eyes, just like the perseverance of his character in the play. In the future, he promises that he can return to his hometown to develop, stay with his family, and do his best to take care of his parents. Justin Chien ♡ Unusual trajectory 🔗Full-text interview
🔗全文專訪 ➠ https:\mctw.io 5kdzusTalent/錢裕揚 @justin_chien Chief Feature Editor/JuJu Chen @you.hapigText/JunYen Ke @junyen_ke\Photographer/Hazel chiu @hazel_chiu \Photographer Assistant/Vita liu @miliumimm 、ZO @zooohu Digital Content Director/Ren Chen @pojuichen Film Editor/Milky Lin @milky_the_poop Styling Director/Kris Lin @beloveapril Makeup&Hair/Sunny Hsu @sunnyhsu734 追蹤 @marieclairetw 時髦好玩的都在這\#marieclairetw #juju #豬編 #JustinChien #Justin #TheBrothersSun @netflixtw @brotherssunnetflix
Justin Chien ✨ Justin Chien has loved acting since he was a child. He started to stand on the stage in elementary school. In high school, he made up his mind to pursue his dream of being an actor, and applied to two acting universities in the United States. From then on, he started to interact with many Taiwanese actors. Actors have completely different acting paths. "I continued to live in Los Angeles after graduating from college. I worked hard for about five years before I got the opportunity to perform in "#孙家哥". It was a long process." He has been working hard as an actor for many years. He had also encountered a low point and spoke so calmly and frankly. In this way, Justin, who stands out in Hollywood, not only puts his own life experience and family experience into this role that coincides with him, but also challenges the martial arts and comedy themes at the same time, giving full play to his martial arts skills. I am 100% devoted to the plot and story as before, "I prepare for scenes every day and practice hard on my fighting scenes, and there will be at least 11 times a week before filming starts."
Stunts and weight training. ” He learned Muay Thai in Taiwan at the age of 17, and recently won a blue belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. He further shared, “I can speak Chinese, English, and Cantonese. I also hope to challenge my language skills in the future, and I look forward to the future.” I can film a locally produced drama in Taiwan." In addition, he showed off his good figure in the drama, and he also intends to challenge roles in the future that require him to change his body shape to be closer to the plot. "I really want to take on roles where I can change my body shape. I think this is a life role that an actor needs to challenge." He then laughed and said, "I actually wanted to be a singer before. If I had the opportunity to perform music, Relevant theater experience, whether it's playing guitar or singing, should be very interesting." With the discussion caused by the release of "The Brothers" series, Justin did not predict the future, "I just Don’t overthink and appreciate what happens every day. ”Embrace all possibilities and cherish all experiences. Only in this way can you calmly deal with opportunities when they come. "Privately, I love eating and playing. It's just that unlike the character in the drama who likes to bake desserts, I love cooking and my best dishes are sea urchin pasta and steak." He said generously. The seemingly indifferent attitude is the result of years of practice. In this industry where strength is only the basic and luck and time are the key factors for success. When asked why you still want to be an actor? Justin seems to have gone back to the time when he first stood on the stage to perform as a child. "I just like to read stories, understand why I read a story that moves me, and then try to create a character to move the audience." In his sincere and determined words In his expression, he always has a pure original intention and enthusiasm for acting. This belief and motivation seem to be injected into his blood. "Brothers of the Sun" is just the starting point, and he is ready to embrace more possibilities. ♡ Justin Chien ♡ An unusual trajectory
Justin Chien ✨\n#Justin Chien has stepped onto the world's biggest stage, starring in the #NETFLIX series "#SunBrothers" (The Brothers Sun) opposite Michelle Yeoh. After many years of pursuing a dream in the United States, it finally came to fruition. When talking about setbacks, I still believe in myself. What seems easy is actually the accumulation of many years of life. Talking about his acting career, Justin participated in a lot of stage performances when he was in college. "My dream is of course to perform in TV series and movies, and I hope to perform in high-quality works; I know that if I want to achieve these If there is a chance, you need to develop your own skills and strength first, so I feel that starting with a stage play is the best opportunity to hone your acting skills." After years of honing the foundation of stage plays, he recalled that whether it lasts long, An actor's career, which is not short at all, can meet the right role. It takes the accumulation of life. There were six or seven roles that were not selected in the final round, but Justin chose not to blame others but to believe in himself, "Because I knew I was capable. I remember that I actually had two choices at that time. One was to challenge the universe. Angry, or decided to believe that there will be better opportunities in the future." He maintained his self-confidence and persevered, and perhaps it was destiny. Justin received an audition invitation for "The Brothers" a month later. The audition process lasted for nearly two months, from online to physical meetings with the team. After three or four rounds of selection, he tried his best. When he got the role, he had mixed feelings and couldn't help but cry, "Not to mention as an actor. For an actor, if he auditions for three to four scripts a year, it is considered too much if he can basically resonate with the character. This time, the role of Charles in "The Brothers" is the first time I have participated in acting in the United States for so long. Among hundreds of role auditions, this one moved me the most."♡ Justin Chien ♡ Unusual trajectory🔗Full-text interview
As an overseas born Chinese with Cantonese background, living in a country that currently still only recognises Mandarin as the official Chinese language, I also share the same sentiments. I too am very afraid in the near future, if (and emphasis on the if) people with Cantonese background don't watch it, the possibility that Cantonese may go extinct can become a reality real soon!
I'm not sure how Mr Rivers came about his thoughts and conclusions, but as for me, having witnessed and experienced personally my own government's way of banning, but not quite banning outright, the insidious ways of discouraging people from learning and using a Chinese language that is not Mandarin, my worry (for the future of Cantonese) is not totally unfounded.
At this point, some people are probably going to have a knee-jerk reaction and are quick to retort that “there are currently more than 80 million people in the world that still speak Cantonese! Cantonese is still thriving! What nonsense are you spouting‽” …
Yes that's right, it's still currently thriving. But I think lots of people who retort this point often fail to remember to consider too the flow of time. It's not just the here and now they should be thinking about, but rather the future. (Unless we're saying the world's end is fast approaching tomorrow, then we won't have to worry about anything anymore! Hahaha…)
So please envision this scenario: If the places that were originally strongholds for Cantonese are gradually and insidiously using Mandarin more and more, in time, what do you think the future for Cantonese will be like then?
And we don't actually need to see “in time”, looking at things currently, there are increasingly more 3rd, 4th generation and later, people of Cantonese background (that includes myself) who can speak Mandarin. The problem is not knowing how to speak Mandarin, nor is it Mandarin itself but rather, what should have been the more familiar and comfortable Cantonese to them, is now being superseded by Mandarin. Some of these people even think Cantonese is no longer worth learning.
Not sure about other areas, so I can't really say if this is getting to be a real common situation elsewhere, but I can definitely say that within my own country, the majority of younger people's relationship with speaking and learning the so-called dialects (i.e. Cantonese, Teochew, Hainanese, etc., i.e. any other Chinese that is not Mandarin) is definitely very shaky.
So Rivers's worry for Hong Kong, that “Cantonese will be lost within 3 generations” is not exactly an exaggeration nor a kind of fearmongering. My country's the perfect example of this happening, “dialects being lost within 3 generations” is almost a reality here now!
(Above screenshots were taken from a video clip that's roughly from 2015. Video mentioned that Rivers was 50 years of age at that time.)
或許你已經刪掉了,看不見我打的字了,那也好,當作我的樹洞。如果你看到了,我相信你一定會哭,但不要哭太久,我知道你很堅強,明明是你哭得稀裡嘩啦的,結果最後居然是你來安慰我,你比你想像的還要厲害,無論是才藝心境還有談戀愛的方式,都遠遠勝過於我,所以不我��那麼多,我的理性��一直和我說,談戀愛只是一個加分題,這個加分題是建立在你自己身上,你自己原有的分數越高,你談戀愛的質量也會越高,這也就是我的座右銘了。所以,這句話也送給你,You are awesome !