13. The art of Weiqi (Go/Baduk) war (碁#0) - Drinking tea with Yi Weiqi 弈圍棋

☰/☳ Baguazhang 八卦掌 is a fighting system designed to take on multiple attackers while maintaining focus on the principle target. It does this by being circles within circles. ☷/☵ In the picture we have Yi Weiqi 弈圍棋 (not her real name) playing Go 碁. She sits pondering over the board as the stones of black and white are arranged in a roughly circular pattern. Off to one side there is a cup of tea and she could be having her daily Tea Time equals Me Time. But you aren't sure. And you are wondering what Weiqi 圍棋 and the game of Go 碁 have to do with Baguzhang 八卦掌? ☵/☶ For those who are unfamiliar with the game of Go, it is about isolating the head from the body and eliminating it from the game. Divide and Conquer. Which seems simple in theory until we realise that at its very simplest, it takes at least four stones to surround one opposing stone. Yes, I know. There are the corners and sides... ☲/☰ At the strategy level of the army general 將官 this makes sense. But what of the tactical foot soldier level? In Go, a player is not allowed to 'suicide' a stone. A good rule designed to stop mindless tit-for-tat stone-losing moves, which I will let others explain or comment on... But in real life it is done all the time with at its worst: Suicide bombers. And at its best: Employing SAS or Navy Seals. ☳/☷ If Go is a hurricane (cyclone/typhoon), then baguazhang would be a tornado. ☶/☱ As a high-end promoter of tea and the concept of Tea Time equals Me Time. I am sometimes confronted by multiple targets first thing in the morning as part of running my business. Making decisions before I have even truly woken up. Solving problems that need immediate solving. And there isn't a boss or higher up in sight to complain about or to, because I am upper management.  ☴/☲ Most people think tea is for old people and ladies... But the lion prefers to wait for the storm to break before striking at zebra, rather than just mindlessly going about hither and tither. Killing the zebra is easy. Isolating the zebra from the herd is not so easy. ☱/☴ Hence Tea Time equals Me Time: An effectively simple way to take back control of the game. Take back our space, our time. To stay focused on the long game while enjoying the immediate action. Liked what you heard & want to connect with me? Join me at… linkedin.com/in/peterhainzl/ ⚔️圍棋戰聖