CMAA officially forms the Dragon Tiger Wushu Team and DT Fight Team!
According to the Shaolin tradition, the Dragon and Tiger are symbolic of the balancing of opposing forces.
The Green Dragon (Qing Long) and the White Tiger (Bai Hu)
The Chinese dragon symbolizes power and excellence, valiancy and boldness, heroism and perseverance, nobility and divinity. A dragon overcomes obstacles to achieve success. He is energetic, decisive, optimistic, intelligent and ambitious. In Chinese culture, dragons were described visually as a composite of parts from nine animals: the horns of a deer, head of a camel, eyes of the devil, neck of a snake, abdomen of a large cockle, scales of a carp, claws of an eagle, paws of a tiger and ears of an ox.
Throughout Chinese history, the tiger has incited a sense of both awe and admiration: its prowess, its ferocity, its beauty, and the harmony of the opposites. The tiger is full of life and embodies the spirit and drive to achieve and make progress.
The Meaning of the Dragon and the Tiger in Martial Arts
Both the tiger and dragon have great significance in traditional Chinese culture. When put side by side, they have come to be known as oppositional symbols. The tiger reflects the ‘hard’ style (attacking and unrelenting) form of martial arts. Oppositely, the ‘soft’ style is represented by the Dragon and is a form that embodies a defensive and more fluid ‘circular-attack’. Thus, these symbols have come to be interpreted to represent (in the same way Yin/Yang represent) duality and balance attained through the balance of opposing forces.
The tiger fights in a straightforward attack constantly pressuring. The dragon fights using circular flexible attacks. They embody the difference between direct linear force and indirect circular force.
CMAA Forms and Fighting
For the purpose of forms training broad sword and staff are often considered to be ferocious like the tiger, while straight sword and spear are often described to be much more fluid like the dragon.
Even in our Sanshou kickboxing we can see how both these symbols come into play. The tiger symbolizes the relentless and aggressive, pressure fighter. This style is contrasted by the dragon, symbolic of the elusive counter fighter constantly circling out, and striking his opponents exposed targets.
What do I get out of being on team?
As a member of the Dragon Tiger Wushu Team or DT Fight Team you will receive additional training and more individualized training attention.
Kids who are on the team will be allowed to train up a level. This means select 5-7 year olds may be allowed to train in the Young Tigers Program and 8-12 year olds may be allowed to train in the 13+/Advanced class.
The team will be given additional after class instruction and specially trained for performances and competition.
Do you have what it takes?
Who can be on the Dragon Tiger Wushu Team? Who can be on the DT Fight Team?
ANYONE can be on the team! All you have to do is put in the hard work. Anyone can be on the team, but there are requirements!
To be a member of the team it is required is that you train at least 3 times per week at CMAA. It is required that you be available to assist with performances, demo’s and/or competitions – annually!
Remember if being on the team is not possible now, do not fret. Keep up the hard work and maybe you’ll find yourself able to dedicate more time in the future. Hard working teammates are always welcome!