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Through the Flames Emerges a Demon

by Robert Chu

The Chinese have a saying that pertains to martial artists that have struggled through the rigors of their training called, "Jo Fou Yup Mor". It means to "walk through flames and emerge a demon". In no sense is this a compliment if a Chinese martial artist labels you that. Perhaps you may have seen examples of this in your gwoon (training hall), you see that one student who seems to never get enough of training, but also something is not quite right with them. They're not quite balanced emotionally. We have a choice, we can walk through the flames of hell and emerge a demon, or a changed man.
Often, the struggle to really learn and master a martial art is filled with obstacles, teachers holding back information, students never quite understanding it, lack of correct practice and so on. This can lead to frustration in younger males and an all consuming desire to look more and more for information, and ceaselessly search for information that is lacking. This can also lead to what is called in Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) as Liver Qi stagnation. In Chinese medicine, the Liver function is to move the Qi freely in the body. Liver Qi stagnation, then, is when there is a pathogenic flow of the correct qi manifesting in some of the following signs and symptoms: feeling of distension in the chest and hypochondrium, sighing, hiccup, melancholy, depression, moodiness, unhappiness and feeling of a lump in the throat. Often the etiology of this syndrome includes emotional problems, a state of anger or frustration, or resentment. If this condition lasts, it can grow into what is called Liver Fire in TCM. The signs and symptoms associated with this include irritability, anger, shouting, ringing in the ears, temporal headache, bitter taste in the mouth, dream disturbed sleep, with a red face, red eyes, and full pulse. This is the result of long standing emotional state of anger, resentment, or repressed frustration and anger.
When I see most Chinese martial arts movies, let's take Bruce Lee's "Chinese Connection" as an example, I see the opposite of what good martial arts training is supposed to do for an individual. Bruce Lee's character is definitely filled with Liver Fire! Good martial arts training is supposed to calm an individual and balance them and have them work out their problems, not make them into a raving lunatic taking on a school of Japanese martial artists "one by one, or all together!" Perhaps Shaw Brothers and Golden Harvest have given people in this country a wrong impression of what good martial arts training should do. Revenge and violence may make for dramatic cinematic appeal, but really has little to do with how martial arts can be used as a tool to overcome obstacles and give one inner strength, perseverance, and patience.
In the martial arts, I personally have seen many examples of "Jou Fou Yup Mor". Arrogance, boastfulness, cockiness, "we're the best" attitude, and other shameful behavior abound by some of our juniors, and even seniors. As a martial artist, I do not think practitioners and teachers like these are good examples. Shouldn't all that training amount to something positive? Do we want to be an example for our students? The art itself is neutral, it can be used for developing one's mind, spirit and body. Wing Chun can temper us to look for our own true nature and find inner peace, or destroy us and antagonize us in trying to perfect our mastery of the art. As a younger man involved in the martial arts, I too, felt the frustrations and at times "emerged a demon" and succumbed to anger and violence. Fortunately, I eventually emerged a changed man. When we see symptoms of Liver Qi Stagnation and Liver Fire, we should try to make our art alive - putting the lessons in daily life, and truly understanding the root of it, before we get lost. All martial arts can be taken as a riddle, or a Zen koan. Is the art an "ultimate fighting system" only, or is it an art of improving self to end conflict - in self or with others?
When we balance ourselves mentally and spiritually, and make our bodies equally strong, we can fit in society. For those who are emerging as demons, I hope that you can learn to balance yourselves through the breathing through the dan tian and perhaps emphasize some of the softer, less yang aspects of your art, as well as look at yourselves in the way you conduct your lives. On the shoulders of our ancestors and as an example to our descendents, we should not become demons, but rather, men.

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