wfs (03/29/83)
THE IRON PALM and IRON SAND FIST-A Clarification
"To select a number of senior students, chief instructor, (sifu)
Ron Rosen of Denver Colorado also provides instruction in the
development of the internal iron palm. He is, however, quick to
point out that there is a world of difference between internal and
external training for the iron palm, and that the iron sand fist
(which he no longer will teach) is a system in its own right,
separate from loong kuen pei.
"Persons who attempt to develop iron palm through the external
methods," states Rosen, often end up with a hand which looks more
like a foot! It is questionable whether the harm done to the hand
in such instances is worthwhile in the long run. Hitting objects
harder than the hand itself or doing knuckle push-ups can cause
both blood clotting and arthritis, not to mention a cracking of
the skin around the knuckles themselves. there is simply no muscle
surrounding the knuckles to cushion such abuse; an extreme loss of
dexterity almost always results from such training of the hand.
"The internal approach," he continues, is much more systematic
and long term. It develops a yielding, soft, supple strength.
Along with practice on the sandbags, meditation, breathing
exercises, and the application, of tieh tah jow(iron palm
medicine) to the hand are required. It is not a quick process.
"When asked to describe the sort of power generated by the iron
sand fist, sifu Rosen recalls the storie of practitioners chaining
the treated hand to their belts-to prevent them from injuring
others totally by accident. There was a time when he felt these
stories to be myths, but now he is not sure. This power, he
states, is the type that would allow one to accidentally rip
door-knobs off of doors (as happened to one of his female
students) or knock doors off of their hinges. One would not,
however, necessarily crush a coffee cup if it were handed to you.
After a recent incident, however, Rosen has considered
discontinuing instruction in the iron fist, and has even quit
practicing it himself. After the end of a tournament held in the
Denver area, Rosen and another instructor, Bob Czibok, became
engaged in a discussion regarding an aspect of pushing hands.
"During the course of the discussion, it became useful to
demonstrate the move in question, and, without being conscious of
it, Rosen tapped Czibok at a point he now refuses to specify,
inadvertantly releasing a small pulse of energy. It was, by his
own admission, a totally innocent and uncalculated response, and
nothing more was thought about it at the time. The effects of the
strike, however, did not manifest themselves immediately, Rosen
admits. The next day, the individual noticed a blistering in the
area of the strike.
"Since it had been made as a mere gesture and since no pain had
been noticed when it was inflicted, he did not immediately note a
connection. However, after several days of coughing up blood and
noticing blood in both the urine and feces, he sought help of
doctors.
"They diagnosed the problem as internal bleeding, but could find
no apparent cause, and could therefore not be of no help. Finally,
the individual came to me, Rosen continues, and it became apparent
to both of us that his was a result of an unintended application
of the iron sand fist, accidentally applied at both the time of
day and at the proper point to cause such an injury. By resorting
to a tiger bone-ginseng combination as well as some specific
pressure point manipulations, I was able to reverse the damage. In
two days. the individual was once again in good health. Needless
to say, he observes thoughtfully, I no longer smile when I am
reminded of the iron sand fist adept with his hand chained to his
belt. The power therein is all too real......
Walt Scott
...we13!wfs