Asian Fortune News

Philosophy

“As a professional ballet dancer, I practice Tai Chi and find that this holistic art form brings balance, harmony and inner peace in me,” proclaimed Tatiana Robinson.   “Ballet and Tai Chi both need stamina and perseverance through years of intense discipline to achieve personal freedom.  Ballet portrays all sorts of human desire -- love, betrayal, high aspirations with romantic or passionate  music -- and teaches us about the human condition.  Tai Chi, on the other hand, leans towards a simpler and purer internal rhythm where forms and shapes are being chiseled in time and space.  It teaches us internal strength, the release of energies, the expressions of let go, and a pure extension of ourselves.” 
When Tatiana came to Spirit Mountain Martial Arts to watch a class in 2002, she thought she had come home after a long journey.  “I had finally found what I had been looking for.  I wanted more than just a place to exercise.  As I watched the class unfold, I discovered that the school was a legitimate place where not only bodies but minds and spirits were being molded, transformed and enriched.  The quest for truth had brought me there.”  
The mission of Spirit Mountain Martial Arts (SMMA), a discipline rooted on Buddhism, is to train and develop the right frame of mind and the technique and skills for self-protection and self-perfection.  It stems from a firm foundation based on five virtues - appreciation, confidence, perseverance, humility and respect.  Diverse martial arts forms were intertwined across borders among Asian countries.  Training classes at SMMA include meditation, Kung Fu, Kick Boxing, Aikido, Tai Chi and Lion Dance.

Self-Protection and Self-Perfection   

Martial Arts training programs strengthen reflexes, refine sensibilities, cultivate the internal energy flow, develop wisdom and compassion, and promote peace of mind.  Three hundred years ago, Nga Mi Son Phat Gia Quyen religious sect members learned from Indian Buddhist monks, who travelled to Vietnam, the artful skills of surviving in mountains and forests and resisting attacks from ferocious animals.  Subsequently, they also learned the art of internal self-healing and ultimately the art of attaining universal enlightment and happiness with meditation.  The aim was to complete the two opposite worlds of the yin and the yang, uniting the physical, mental and spiritual cycles in the universe.  
After the religious sect had kept its martial arts secret for generations, Zen Master Tung, successor of Nga Mi, wanted to propagate these traditional disciplines and teach other disciples.  Lately, Grand Master My Le, following in the path of his teachers, dedicated his life to guiding and coaching students, especially in the United States where he had migrated to.  He also expanded his martial arts instruction to include spiritual meditation classes and community services.
To make the classes more accessible, training is taking place on week-ends in Virginia at the Willston Multicultural Center and also at the Long Branch Community Center in Silver Spring, Maryland.  So far, nearly 500 students have trained in different martial arts forms at these two centers.  Two styles of martial arts can be taught – the internal short form and the external long form.
First of all, the body itself is considered an internal weapon, using vital points of the fingers, knuckles, hand-edges, elbows, knees, hips, head and feet as tools to defend oneself or attack others, though only as a last resort.  This internal, or short form emphasizes on strengthening the bones and muscles to make them as hard as metal and wood, as hot as fire, as fluid as water, and as maleable as earth.  They symbolize the five elements found in the universe
On the other hand, the regulation of breath, the ability to advance and retreat, and the dexterity of the long-form hands imitate the external positions of different animals, such as the tiger, dragon, monkey, snake, cat, eagle or the elephant.  This is to improve free-fighting ability.  To defeat the enemy, a broad spectrum of fighting weapons – swords, long staff, dagger, spear, whip, knife, saber, double axe, hammers, rake, fan, shiled, and double hook, can also be employed as an extension of the body. 
“When I first came to watch the classes, I never thought that the Chinese Kung Fu movies I watched could exist in real life, but they did at the training center,” said Thao, a 17-year old student.  “I am now a red-belt Kung Fu student.  I have been practicing every Sunday for three hours and learn how to fight with my body first, then with the sword, the metal fan and the nunchucku – two short bars connected with chains.  Kung Fu keeps me calm and in good shape, and away from “bad stuff” -- alcohol, drugs,  violence.”  I feel physically and mentally stronger than when I started at the age of 12.  Martial arts build up my muscles as well as my confidence, and I intend to graduate with a black belt.  I am more disciplined and more focused in my studies at school than before.  I help instruct younger kids, and will continue to practice Kung Fu even when I go away to college in a couple of years.”
Hung Nguyen, the Executive director of SMMA, describes the different classes.   Teachers train students in Aikido, a Japanese style of grappling techniques, of throwing and locking the joints in order to hold and subdue counterparts, using spare hands but also Katana – the two-handed long sword.  Kick Boxing, derived from Thailand, utilizes mostly feet to kick opponents up to their chest and face.  Teachers want also to preserve the Lion Dance, a vibrant art form celebrating ceremonies at festivities.  But the most popular classes are Tai Chi and meditation, which teach the free flow of breathing and regulating the Ch’i or energy inside the body for physical and mental self-healing.
Tatiana summarizes her learning with a sublime thought, “Meditation is like a vast ocean.  Meditation is silence and silence is golden.  It is to discipline your mind to be empty, devoid of ego and sinful senses.  It is to reach emptiness to purify onself.  Yet it is not empty, since there is compassion and understanding of the mystery of existence, eventually reaching forgiveness and salvation.  It is a personal work of art and spiritual growth to be able to liberate oneself from suffering and find internal peace and eternal spring.  What I believe and have faith in depends on what I know and understand.”  

Community Service 

At the swearing-in ceremony of newly elected Governor Tim  Kaine, Hung Nguyen arranged for a group of ten dedicated SMMA members to drive from Maryland and Northern Virginia to Williamsburg.  They had to get up at five in the morning to be ready to reach the capital, where Patrick Henry and Thomas Jefferson were among the first governors.  Police closed the main streets early that morning to prepare for the parade.  Organized by Jay Chen, the Publisher of Asian Fortune News, they marched in the parade along with over a hundred other participants from five Asian Pacific American (APA) groups.  They brought their colorful attire, their big drums, and their cymbals, and  performed the Lion Dance.  Behind the Asian Fortune’s big banner, one SMMA member wore a big Panda look-alike costume.
By noon, a heavy rain was showering the thousands of marchers and spectators along the streets.  Although drenched to the bones, Hung Nguyen said that all of them, including some teenagers, were proud and honored to be able to show APA solidarity and strength and to participate in the inauguration.  Asked why he joined SMMA, Hung said that he was fascinated by the martial arts techniques. “It’s more engaging than lifting weight or doing repetitive aerobics movements.”  
“I saw the happy faces of parents and children practicing together in a safe, healthy and fun environment.  In the process of learning Tai Chi for the past five years, I have become more tolerant and I get more involved with the community.  I also help instructors guide new students, and I volunteer to perform demonstrations with other members to promote SMMA.  As executive director of SMMA, I have more responsibility and want to work more with my members as well as interact with other people outside my group.  I want to share our blessings with others,” Hung concluded.
Throughout the years, SMMA practitioners have volunteered their services by performing at schools, community centers and organizations that request them to do special martial arts demonstrations.  In 2003, with generous donations from friends and members, they purchased a 33-acre farm in Maryland with a barn, a lake, a stream in a picturesque fauna.  To survive, they organize their own annual fund-raising dinner and plan to build a training and meditation center where alternative medicine will be included, and finally, want to build  a temple of their own.  
Tatiana, chair of the Eternal Spring Association, a non-profit organization that sponsors SMMA’s activities, has a vision - a ten-year plan to reach self-sufficiency.  Her short-term objective is to call on the public to come and celebrate the organization’s ninth anniversary with cultural show at the New Fortune restaurant in Gaithersburg, Maryland, on Saturday, March 4.  For more information, visit info@spiritmountain.org