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The Closed-Door Student
By Master Chris Peck
The Yin and Yang are ever present in our lives, our world and the
universe. Just as there is darkness and light, male and female,
positive and negative, there is also the "Student and Teacher".
One cannot do without the other. It's the equivalent of an ice
cream sundae without the whipped cream and cherry on top. From
this union a bond develops and the relationship of the "Student
and Teacher" flourishes. Throughout the history of the Chinese
Martial Arts the student/teacher relationship has been most
revered. If the student is, "Baptized by Time", he or she may
become a Closed-door student.
Closed-door students are indeed very rare and hard to find.
Obviously, they are the teacher's best students. My teacher,
Grandmaster Frank DeMaria (Chinese name, Ma Fo Ren), has been
studying and teaching the Chinese Martial Arts for about four and
a half decades. In 1978 while fighting and demonstrating Kung Fu
in Taipei, Taiwan, R.O.C., he caught the eye of the legendary
martial artist, Great Grandmaster Ch'ang Tung Sheng, (the King of
Shuai Chiao). Ch'ang saw true Kung Fu spirit (Jin Shen) and
fighting prowess in DeMaria. The following year Grandmaster
DeMaria became the adopted Godson of the Great Grandmaster. An
historic bond grew between the teacher and the student. De Maria
had become a part of the Ch'ang family and a closed-door (the
original Chinese means indoor, or in-house student) a very
prestigious position indeed.
Becoming a closed-door student is quite simple. All you have to
do is practice! Now, what kind of practice are we talking about?
We're talking about practicing perseverance and discipline in
training, honesty, dedication, trustworthiness, loyalty, courage,
selflessness, or what is called in Kung Fu, Wu - De (proper
etiquette and respect). It doesn't sound so simple now, does it?
All of these extremely high attributes are obtained through one
method: to follow the Way. Following the Way is simple if you so
desire it. How does one go about following the Way? ASK YOUR
TEACHER !!!
Ch'ang Tung Sheng, Grandmaster Frank DeMaria & Master Peck pose for pictures at a fight in
Taipei, Taiwan in 1978
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There is a developmental process in becoming a closed-door
student. Before a person joins a Kwoon (martial arts school or
training hall), he will first have the thought of doing Kung Fu.
At this point, if he or she acts on that thought, the prospective
student will have already met with his/her teacher. This is
because the wheels of his Karma were set into motion. The
potential student has now made the decision to train in the
martial arts and karma will dictate where and who his teacher
will be.
When a person walks into a Kwoon, he usually doesn't know what
brought him there. He might think that he wants to learn how to
defend himself, or he might want to become more physically fit,
or he might think he needs more discipline in his life. It really
doesn't matter what the reason is, if the student is destined to
become a master, nothing in the world is going to stop him/her.
It is all there for him/her.
"If you wish to succeed in your Kung Fu training, you
must build your life around your Kung Fu, and not build
your Kung Fu around your life."
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Once the student has started training, and if he is lucky, he
might be noticed by his teacher in the first or second year. I
remember it taking about three years of dedicated training and
perfect attendance before my teacher could remember my name. My
teacher didn't remember my name because, he was more interested
in how I developed. A student's name is not as important as the
character and development of the student. The true identity of
someone is not in his or her name anyway; it is in their soul,
their spirit. That is what a teacher wants to know. It's the
character and sincerity of the student that he is getting to
know.
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The teacher will always be on the lookout for a student who can
develop the above attributes. The teacher only desires that the
right student will show up. The teacher will have hundreds or
thousands of students before he finds his closed door pupil. Most
people will stay for about a year or two. That is usually enough
time to satisfy the beginner's needs and/or curiosity. And if the
student must leave his/her training for some reason and he is on
good terms with his teacher, he will always be welcomed back.
Then again, the student could go on training for four or five
years. By this time, he will have had thorough training in his
art and will begin to feel fairly comfortable with it.
If the student continues training, and the teacher decides the
student is ready to become a disciple, the teacher will then give
out more information and more responsibilities. The student will
then go into the intermediate phase of training. By now, the
student should be realizing that the Kung Fu is much more than he
thought it was when he started. He should be seeing that there is
more than just the physical and mental aspects of training, and
that he now needs to cultivate his spiritual essence. All along,
however, he has been told that the true essence of the martial
studies lies in the journey of spirit. Instead of looking outward
toward the body/mind and the control of them, he now has to turn
inward toward spirit as well. The student has no choice but to
turn inward, because that is the only place to find the true
self.
Regrettably, at this point, the student might become bored with
his studies; he may lose interest or there may be conflict in
religious beliefs. The daily study of spirit
(meditation/contemplation) seems like tedious work compared to
the dynamic nature of the external kung fu training. However, if
the student accepts it and makes the transition smoothly, and
realizes the unity of body, mind and spirit, he will be a step
closer to becoming a closed-door student.
"The true essence of the martial studies lies in the journey of spirit."
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The teacher, however, is still waiting and trying to wake the
student up. You see, while the student is learning the kung fu,
he will go through many changes, trials and tribulations in life.
He will be given tasks and duties to perform by the teacher. A
task could be anything from washing the Kwoon floors, windows and
toilets, to the writing of an article or a book. The student, on
the other hand, must also show personal incentive to do many
things. When Great Grandmaster Ch'ang was in his early training
years, a family member told him that his teacher, the famous
Ch'ang Fong-yen, loved the song of a particularly rare bird in
Southern China. Being a closed-door student of Ch'ang Fong-yen,
young Ch'ang went in search of the bird. He found it, brought it
back to Northern China and presented it to his teacher. The gift
of the bird to his master was just one way Ch'ang showed his
gratitude for all his master's efforts. This act brought Ch'ang
not only closer to his teacher but it brought him closer to
understanding true Kung Fu.
After about seven or eight years of training, the student should
be gaining more appreciation of what he is learning. He should be
recognizing and practicing the more subtle aspects and ways of Wu
De. Furthermore, the student should be immersed in thought and
deed. He should always be trying to improve upon what he has
learned and he should be ready and willing to learn and
experience anything that is put before him.
If you are training properly and listening to your teacher, you
will hear him say, "If you wish to succeed in your Kung Fu
training, you must build your life around your Kung Fu, and not
build your Kung Fu around your life." In other words, don't allow
the circumstances of your life to interfere or stop you from
training. You don't want to put the other things in your life
before your Kung Fu. If you do, your life will be dictated to you
by the whims of fate. You will not have control over it, someone
or something else will. You will be running to and fro with no
direction or solid foundation of your own. Remember, YOU have
control over your life. YOU are the one who shapes your destiny,
fixes your fate and takes responsibility for it. YOU make your
own world and can hold it in the palm of your hand, if you wish.
The student must put his Kung Fu in the forefront of his life,
and then it will become the glue that holds his life together.
This will enable him to raise himself into Heaven to soar with
the dragons.
"The teacher, on the other hand, is perpetually observing the
progress of his students, enabling him to notice the outcome of
his teachings."
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The teacher, on the other hand, is perpetually observing the
progress of his students, enabling him to notice the outcome of
his teachings. He will see how his students survive the rigors of
their lives and their training. He will patiently wait for the
student to come into his own. He will, in essence, be raising the
student as he would his own child. He will give advice, bequeath
knowledge and methods of training, and he will give
understanding and compassion. Then he will send the student out
into the world to experience the knowledge that has been given
and to see what the student has gained. He will watch and see how
well the student continues with training and where the priorities
lie.
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After about ten or eleven years of training, the teacher should
see the student truly living a martial lifestyle. Now, some
students will develop at different paces and on different levels
from their fellow students. For instance, one student might
understand that being able to fight and to have supreme physical
fitness is a more important aspect of training. Yet, another
student might believe that forms, techniques and Kung Fu
knowledge are the more important aspects.
Each student's beliefs will grow in proportion to his/her
experience. And then, there might be a student who believes his
expression of the Kung Fu is more evolved than his own teacher's.
In reality, all of these beliefs and conclusions are clouded with
illusion. The student's ego deludes him and prevents him from
seeing the real truth, because with many years of training the
student's self-confidence has gotten stronger and he has learned
to use will power. These attributes can be very powerful in the
wrong hands. If this type of student does not allow for growth,
and is content with this amount of knowledge, the teacher will
not permit this student to advance much further. However, when a
teacher sees a student who has spent so much time and is
developing correctly, he will be asking himself, "Is this the one
who will carry on the teachings of the Martial Arts to their
fullest?"
At this time, the student should be ready and eligible to become
a basic level instructor. This is, indeed, a very important
moment. It is usually a turning point in the life of a student,
because the teacher will give him a choice. He will ask the
student if he wants to become an instructor or not. The student
now has to make a decision. Will he continue to learn, experience
and teach the arts or will he leave his teacher to pursue other
interests? More often than not, the student, if he has made it
this far, will continue on with training. But he may decide to
discontinue training and find something else to fill his time.
This would make the teacher very distressed, because he has put a
lot of time and effort into making a lost person into a good
practitioner. But then again, there is always that special
student, the one who stands out from all the rest. The one who
follows his teacher everywhere, the one whom the teacher just
can't seem to get rid of.
Closed-door students are those who will carry on their teacher's
teachings without the slightest desire for self-gain. They will
continue the transmission of the Way, just as their teacher and
their teacher's teacher have done in the past. This is how the
lineage system survives. This why the Chinese Martial Arts have
been in existence for more than six thousand years. The true
meaning and purpose of the martial arts are passed on to the
closed-door student because the teacher trusts his student, as
the student trusts the teacher.
At this point, the teacher will consider the student very near to
him, and the student will be invited to share more time with his
master. The student and teacher may go to different places
together such as, demonstrations, tournaments or meetings with
other instructors. Or, the teacher may include his student in his
plans. All the while, they will be discussing the finer points
and higher aspects of Kung Fu. The teacher/student relationship
is like a father/son/daughter relationship. The teacher will do
anything he can to promote and sanction what his student does and
says. Let's face it; they are both of the same mind and spirit.
Look at any family and you will find that there are sons,
daughters, brothers and sisters, parents, grandparents and great
grandparents. There are also aunts, uncles, first and second
cousins. These titles and the positions they represent will also
be found in a true Kwoon. The Great Grandfather or mother is the
Great Grandmaster; the Grandfather or mother is the Grandmaster;
the Father or Mother is the Master; the eldest or first
son/daughter is the eldest student and so on. The closed-door
student is usually the eldest son or daughter of the master. They
are the inheritors of the legacy that has been passed down from
their predecessors.
"The closed-door
student is usually the eldest son or daughter of the master. They
are the inheritors of the legacy that has been passed down from
their predecessors."
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On the other hand, there is always the bad apple in the bunch,
the black sheep of the family. Imagine the trusted closed-door
student and how he practices honesty, loyalty and proper Wu De.
Now, imagine a student who is his opposite: a student who is
disloyal, dishonest and shows no respect for his teacher or for
what his teacher represents. Usually, such a student will be
thrown out of the Kwoon A.S.A.P. I have seen my teacher throw
out students who have shown no respect. I personally have thrown
bad students out of my own Kwoon. It is a teacher's
responsibility to get rid of the bad apple before it infects the
others.
Most iniquitous students will surface soon after they join a
Kwoon. Sometimes they will not show their true colors for a
couple of years. Then again, some others will take a while
longer, maybe five or ten years. And then there is the renegade
student. This is the student who has weaseled and connived his
way into the closed-door student status. He does this by lying
and telling half-truths to his teacher and to anyone else. In my
time, I have seen students who have gone bad after twenty years.
These students are very dangerous, because they are a threat to
the continuation of true martial arts training.
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Since this kind of student does not know how to respect and honor
his teacher, how can he expect his students to respect and honor
him? Before you know it, the true meaning of the martial arts
will be lost to the student. The integrity of future students
will disintegrate and turn into something that is not of a noble
and moral nature. When these students go out and teach they are,
in essence, creating and developing more nefarious students.
Innocent people who are looking for a good teacher will be duped
by this type of person. He will tell the perspective student half
-truths to get him to join his school. The renegade is always a
smooth talker and will do and say anything to promote himself.
These people have gone in the opposite direction from the
closed-door student. They will eventually be exposed for what
they truly are: liars and cowards.
Once you decide to join a Kwoon, do a little investigation and be
sure that you ask the teacher in charge some questions. For
example, ask who his teacher is. Ask if he is on good terms with
his teacher and if he can be contacted. Ask him about his
background and what his credentials are. Observe the class while
it's in progress and see how the teacher treats and teaches his
students. Ask how long he has been training. If he gives you
roundabout answers or sidesteps your questions, he is pretending
to be something he is not. This type of instructor is probably an
outcast and wants only to line his pockets with your money. Do
not join a school such as this.
The closed-door student has nothing to hide. He has no skeletons
in his closet. He has nothing to fear, because he is under his
teacher's roof. That means, he is under the auspices of his
teacher. He has nothing to prove, because he has proven himself
to his teacher and, more importantly, to himself. That is exactly
what the teacher wants. He wants his student to evolve from the
child he used to be, into the true man/woman he could be.
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The essence of why the martial arts leaders are so strict about
adhering to the ways of transmission is harmony and balance. The
attainment and perpetuation of harmony and balance will
eventually lead the student back to his original essence. This is
the primary goal of the martial artist and should be to all
others. Think about it, isn't everyone trying to get peace of
mind, or trying to find true everlasting love, or trying to
achieve an easy way of life? These are all subjects under the
heading of harmony and balance.
"Everyone wants harmony and balance whether they seek them
consciously or subconsciously. It is an innate desire in the
human being to be in harmony with everything."
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Everyone wants harmony and balance whether they seek them
consciously or subconsciously. It is an innate desire in the
human being to be in harmony with everything. It is the
closed-door student, who (with the help of his teacher) will
realize that harmony. The student will eventually come to be in
harmony with his teacher, his classmates, his relations, the
environment and the universal order of Heaven and Earth. Thus
will the closed-door student travel in his path. He will never
deviate from following the Way of the martial arts, or of life.
The passing on of this knowledge is the teacher's duty and the
student's good fortune. As any student of the martial arts knows,
it is the cultivation of the Three Pillars of Kung Fu that makes
a true martial artist. Training the body, mind and spirit is the
only way to become a complete warrior of life. The closed-door
student is dedicated to achieving a harmoniously balanced mastery
of these Three Pillars of Kung Fu. Gaining mastery of all the
aspects of the body, mind and spirit will set you free.
There is a great responsibility in becoming a closed-door
student. One day, if the Head Master of the Kwoon were to leave
for some reason, the closed-door student would be instructed to
assume the leadership of the Kwoon until the master returned.
That would be his duty. It would also be his responsibility to
develop more closed-door students, if his level permits it. He is
not afraid to commit himself, whether it's carrying on the
tradition, or fighting to the death. He is ready, willing and
able to uphold and carry out that responsibility, for he loves
what he is doing. He becomes a channel for the Way, allowing IT
to spread out through him, and to touch everyone with whom he
comes into contact.
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