1. WHAT

Fajing Exercise No. 4 links together the previous three exercises :-

i) Fajing Exercise No. 1

ii) Fajing Exercise No. 2

iii) Fajing Exercise No. 3

2. METHOD

a) Variation 1

Step 1 – Hold the imaginary ball in your right hand at your chest and carry out the arm to body integration as per Fajing Exercise No. 3.

Step 2 – Bring your right out and forward as you turn your right palm from facing your chest to facing down. When you have the right fingers facing forward see the + sign in your mind, aim and release the imaginary ball as per Fajing Exercise No. 1.

Step 3 – Repeat.

b) Variation 2

Step 1 to 2 – follow instructions above. However, instead of receiving the imaginary ball on its return with your right palm facing downwards you follow the method outlined in Fajing Exercise No. 2. This calls for you to receive the imaginary ball on its return with your right palm facing upwards.

Step 3 – Bring your right palm that is facing upwards back to your chest.

Step 4 – Repeat Step 1 to 3.

3. LEARNING OBJECTIVE

The core lesson in Fajing Exercise No. 4 variation (a) is how to load, target, release using the imaginary ball.

Variation (a) is a start-stop exercise in that you do the exercise, reset and do it again.

Variation (b) adds in an additional movement to allow you to keep repeating the movement in a loop.

By learning how to repeat the movement in a loop you are learning how to fajing consecutively using the same hand.

At a later level Step 3 in variation (b) can act as a defensive movement or an open-and-enter technique.

4. COMMENTARY

An example of the use of Fajing Exercise No. 4 occurs in Brush Knee, Twist Step technique in Grandmaster Wei Shuren’s 22-form.

In Fajing Exercise No. 4 we isolate and learn the movement of the arm and hand in controlling the imaginary ball.

5. CONCLUSION

The principle of moving the arm and doing fajing using the imaginary ball in Fajing Exercise No. 4 is part and parcel of the learning of how to use the arm bow which is part of the body’s five bows.

We learn how to use the arm bow first as this requires a lot more movement than when we use the spinal bow and leg bows.