129. 📕 (Chapter I) Baguazhang art of war - Beyond the battlefield (☰/☱)

In podcast number 127, the Art of Weiqi (Go/Baduk) War, I spoke generally about the differences between the Weiqi Art of War and Suntzu's classic by the same English name but what is known in Chinese as "Sun Tzu Bing Fa". By studying the two versions, it broadly allows the master of war to win from a strategic vantage point. In other words, you're learning to play like a boss as a boss would when having boss issues. Baguazhang on the other hand puts things in another realm, yet again. And it can get a little confusing, depending on who or whom you ask on the matter, if they even know what they're talking about. To cut through the confusion, is to decide on your niche speciality. And this is something only you can do! So let's begin: In the Baguazhang Art of War, the first and most important decision to make is "Do you play off-field or do you get tactical on-field?" To highlight better about what I mean, in the game of soccer/football, Bagua isn't hard or aggressive enough to be a striker. And when one reads up on the history of the masters, it seems most were either a goalie or more likely a defender; able to defend and do all those things required to NOT lose. So then, if playing the field does not lead to the money shot, what then, will? The answer again lies with masters and the deeper levels of understanding within their Bagua forms. Which is, that when a movement does not directly relate to defence or attack, then the master was imparting other knowledge. That deeper knowledge, once realised is like playing off-field: Your job is to be that ghost that goes beyond the battlefield – the player who's not bound by the rules but who gets shit done. He or she may look like the waterboy who brings on the halftime oranges. But that job only exists so that they can get paid like the rest of the players. The rest of the time is spent watching the players' backs against off-field attacks that have a way of destroying a good solid team just before footie season starts. Or doing the same in reverse.