今年Systema Taipei 再次邀請到Vladimir Zaikovsky 來舉辦seminar。
This year, the annual seminar of Systema Taipei was held on 21-22nd Apr. and we were very happy that Vladimir Zaikovsky was invited to share his experiences and give us some instructions.
首先，還是要感謝老婆的體諒，可以讓我
First, I want to thank my wife, with her support, I can keep on Systema training.
And I also want to thank Shen Chang, the chief instructor of Systema Taipei, and Sandra Huang, the CEO of Systema Taipei. With their passion and a lot of effort on promoting Systema, we can learn the most advanced Systema concept from the senior instructor of Moscow headquarter, in Taiwan, every year.
延續去年Zaikovsky 的研習內容，今年的主題依舊是internal work ，這也是Systema與其他武術最大的不同點。
This year, the topic of seminar was still “internal work”, which makes Systema so unique compared with other martial arts.
從正式seminar前一晚的extra lesson開始，一直到最後一天，Zaikovsky 帶著大家做了許多看似訓練核心肌群，實際上卻是在練習呼吸的動作，例如單腳棒式、坐在地上雙腳不碰地用屁股走路等等...
From the beginning to the end of the seminar, Zaikovsky asked us to do some drills that looks like training the core muscles.
But they are not. Actually, they are breathing training.
在這樣的練習中，如果只是專注在要把動作完成，那就真的變成體能訓練了，但是一旦把注意力放在呼吸、利用呼吸來幫助自己放鬆、利用呼吸帶來力量、察覺自己當下的感覺、跟累到想要放棄的自己對抗，整個練習就會變得很不一樣，由一個看似肌肉鍛鍊的體操，變成一個面對自己內心的過程。
If we pay attention only on finishing these drills physically, it will become muscle training.
However, if we try to focus on our breath, use breathing to make us relaxed, bringing the power, and try to feel the moment, fight with the voice deep inside our mind that told as to quit, that will be totally different.
It will become no longer a muscle training but a journey of facing and knowing ourselves.
練習期間，Zaikovsky 有提醒，有些動作會造成比較大的tension ，這時候你需要更強的呼吸來達到這些部位，我個人覺得，所謂更強的呼吸，不單單只是更用力吸吐氣，而是在用力吸吐氣的同時，伴隨著更強的意念，更用心將呼吸帶來的力量帶到需要的部位，並且用心將tension 呼出來。
During the training, Zaikovsky remind us that some drills will bring more tension in our body, so we need more powerful breathing to reach these area and release them.
I think the “more powerful breathing “ is not only breathing with more effort physically, you also have to do it more mentally.
Inhale, bring the power in. Exhale, bring the tension out. Do it physically and mentally.
另外，Zaikovsky也強調了動作的quality，這是我自己以前沒注意到的，每一個動作，不論是快是慢，都要包含覺知、放鬆、呼吸。
At the same time, Zaikovsky also emphasized the importance of the quality of the movement.
No matter quick or slow motion, we should do it with awareness, relaxation and breathing.
而在雙人或是多人練習的部分，強調的也是感覺，感覺對方這個人，其中Zaikovsky講了一段話，確切的原文有點記不清楚了，但大意是：“要記住，你的對手是個人，要愛他，他的罪跟他這個人是兩個不同的東西，你要幫他拿掉不好的念頭，把他帶回來...”
如果不是在Systema練習的場子，光是聽到以上這一番話，我一定會以為自己正坐在教堂做禮拜吧！
In training with partners, “feel the person” is also important.
Zaikovsky once said “Remember, your opponent is a person, you should love him, his sin and he are different things. You have to help him and bring him back...
If I heard these words and didn’t realize that I am in Systema seminar, I will definitely think am sitting in a church.
愛對手、感受對手、拿掉對手攻擊的念頭，就一般武術的觀點來看，是一件互相衝突且極為矛盾的事情，但是實際跟Zaikovsky 對練時，卻真的可以在他的一舉一動感受到練習武術跟愛對手這兩種看似衝突的事，是可以和諧並存的，那種平靜、輕鬆、專注與友善，讓人的心境在不知不覺中就跟著平靜下來，然後我就被自己放倒了...
Love your opponent, feel your opponent, remove the intention of attacking.
It sounds contradictory in the viewpoint of most kinds of martial arts.
However, when I practiced with Zaikovsky, I felt his every moment was so calm, relaxed, and filled with concentration and kindness.
With his movement, I became more calm and than ... I was took down by myself.
At the moment, I realized that love and martial art can be put together harmoniously.
去年第一次見到Zaikovsky 時，我只覺得Zaikovsky 的厲害是因為他的身體素質跟sensitivity鍛鍊得比我們好，今年再次跟他練習，我才發覺，Zaikovsky 的強大，其實是來自於內心，有點像是童話故事“北風與太陽”裡面的太陽的感覺。
Last year when I meet Zaikovsky for the first time, I thought he was so good just because he trained his body and sensitivity much better than us.
This year, when I practiced with him again, I knew I was totally wrong.
The
power of Zaikovsky was coming from his peaceful heart, not from the
physical training, just like the sun in the Aesop's Fable "The North
Wind and The Sun".
或許現場也有學員有意識到這點，所以在練習後的circle討論有問Zaikovsky，他所信仰的東正教，對於他練習Systema是否有什麼幫助？不過Zaikovsky 的回答依舊很哲學，他舉了4月初江老師去莫斯科時，與Mikhail 會談之後，Mikhail 所說的話當作回答“感謝上帝我是基督徒，感謝上帝你是佛教徒”。
Maybe there were some students also realized that, at the circle discussion after training, one student asked Zaikovsky "Does the Orthodox have any impact on his Systema training?"
As usual, like a philosopher, Zaikovsky quoted the words of Mikhail Ryabko told to Shen Chiang few weeks ago as the answer, “Thank God I am Christian. Thank God you are Buddhist.”
或許他想表達的是，如果只是為了快一點讓功力提升，而去信仰某個特定的宗教，或是去做某些特別的訓練，這並不是Systema訓練的本意，Systema訓練的目的是讓練習者成為一個更好的人，如果我們已經在正確的道路上了，我們需要的不是刻意強化某些特定的東西，而是需要一些耐心與時間讓它成長，至於那些肉眼所看見的各種不可思議的技巧，只是伴隨著強大善良的內心而來的副產品，正如Mikhail 一直說的“做一個好人，其他的好事都會跟著來”。
Some people thought that answer was not an answer.
I
think he is trying to tell us : if someone try to get involved in
certain religion or focus on certain training in order to have more
progress in learning Systema, that is not the meaning of Systema.
The goal of Systema training is to make us more human. If we are training on the right way, all we need is more patience and let it grow up.
The goal of Systema training is to make us more human. If we are training on the right way, all we need is more patience and let it grow up.
As
for the amazing techniques that Masters show us, they are just
by-products coming with the strong and kind heart. Just like Mikhail Ryabko
said:”Be a good person and everything else will come to you.”
再次感謝Zaikovsky帶給我們的啟發，另外也要特別感謝從日本遠道而來的大西老師，在這幾天的練習期間也給了我很多的指導與鼓勵，讓練習總是卡卡的我也有了一些不同的練習方向。
Again, I want to thank Vladimir Zaikovsky, thanks for your inspiring teaching. And I also want to thank Ryo Onishi, the chief instructor of Systema Osaka. Thanks for your advice and encouragement during these days. That helped me a lot!
