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