Comparisons of Martial Artists:
In the LOCH/ROCH world, the level of martial arts is very evenly distributed. It worked kinda like the metric system really. Let's see if you agree.
7 Mongol/Jin Soldier = 1 Yang Tie Xin/Guo Xiao Tian
7 Yang Tie Xin/Guo Xiao Tian = 1 Jiang Nan Freak
7 Jiang Nan Freaks = 1 Quanzhen "Zhi" (e.g. Qiu Chuji) / 1 disciple of a Great (e.g. Mei Chaofeng)
7 Quanzhen "Zhi" = 1 Great (e.g. Huang Yaoshi)
In short, it'll take 49 Jiang Nan Freaks to battle 1 Great, and provided all 49 Freaks attack him at the same time. However, if the Great (e.g. HYS) were to kill off even 1 Freak, the equation will be disrupted and the rest of the 48 will be sure to lose, right?
In ROCH, it took hundreds of Quanzhen 3rd/4th level disciples to surround GJ and even so, he broke their formation.
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On GJ's Progress in Martial Arts:
As everyone knows, GJ is really not very bright. He learns everything by hardwork and persistence. From the way Jiang Nan 7 Freaks taught him, it was quite obvious that: [1] they were not teaching him correctly and [2] he wasn't quite adept at figuring out the proper theories of martial arts by himself. Therefore, when Ma Yu taught him correctly how to regulate his breathing (and thus his internal energy), he persistently "followed" this method and in time, his internal energy increased (even surpassing the Freaks).
LOCH is really the story of GJ's continuous learning of skills. The real turning-point in his life was when Hong 7 Gong taught him "Xiang Long 18 Palms". As an aside, if that did not happen, GJ would probably not be a significant human being at all. Granted, his patriotism would probably drive him to defend Xiang Yang against the Mongol invaders - but he'll probably be just another nameless soldier in the war. In short, if GJ did not meet up with HR and if HR did not have great culinary skills to entice Hong 7 Gong, and if Hong 7 Gong did not teach him "Xiang Long 18 Palms", GJ is nothing.
With "Xiang Long 18 Palms" as his real base-skill, he met Zhou Bo Tong, learned "9 Yin" and the "Two-Hands Skill". After that, he observed Ouyang Feng, Huang Yao Shi and Hong 7 Gong's duel. From then on, he started to understand the logic ("tao") behind martial arts more and more - which led to his achieving the level of a "Great" by ROCH era.
In short, I was establishing that Hong 7 Gong's "Xiang Long 18 Palms" is the single skill that "made" GJ.
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On GJ's Philosophy of Learning:
At the start of ROCH, GJ himself became a teacher. He had Guo Fu, Yang Guo, Wu Dunru and Wu Xiuwen pay respects to the tombs of the 6 Freaks and Ke Zhen-E, the only surviving Freak.
Then he explained his philosophy - "I learnt my skills from many different schools and teachers to arrive at where I am today. BUT (and this is the important point), ONE MUST NOT FORGET ONE'S ROOTS ("ren bu ke wang ben")! So I will start teaching you all the most basic skills first..."
In short, he started teaching them the most useless skills! By the end of ROCH, we see that Guo Fu's skills were still nowhere - probably just some Yue Nu Sword-skill and a mixture of this and that. Wu Dunru/Wu Xiuwen were also pretty lousy but they did learn "Yi Yang" Finger so they were slightly better. Guo Polu was a total zero - so much that he couldn't even protect the Dragon Sabre. Why did no one learn GJ's real skills like "Xiang Long 18 Palms" and "9 Yin"?
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Yang Guo's Philosophy of Learning (and why it works):
The main reason GJ's method of teaching failed was because he was trying to duplicate his "learning path" unto his disciples. What he forgot was that his disciples are not like him (they lack his persistence) and they also have different life-experiences. Note that GJ learned a lot of his skills in desperate times and/or by fluke (meeting "Greats"). Events in one's life cannot be duplicated. In short, GJ was unable to "cut-and-paste" his "learning path" unto his disciples - and they ended up amounting to very little. You cannot "simulate" your life-experiences for another person. His disciples probably took to his teaching very academically - like attending a particular class/subject that they're not even very interested in but taught by a well-known professor. Notice how they went out bragging about how they were in Professor Guo Jing's class (although they learnt nothing of his "real" skills) - isn't this true in real-life as well?
YG was different because he learned in his own "real-life" situations, rather than an academic/simulated environment. Also, he kept measuring his own level - in comparison with others (thus, the above mathematical comparisons). He wasn't thinking just which "professor" he studied under but where he himself is at realistically. He observed Wu brothers practising GJ's skills and compared himself to them - then choosing to learn Ouyang Feng's "Toad Skill" instead (to hell with "one must not forget one's roots" nonsense). Result? He nearly killed Wu Xiuwen! Then when he met the Quanzhen members, he saw how they were defeated by GJ badly. In his own words, "Why did Uncle Guo send me to learn from all these losers? Even if I'm hardworking and master everything I'm taught, I'll simply be another Zhao Zhijing!" Of course, in GJ's mind, he remembered that Wang Chongyang was the "numero uno" fighter and also how he himself benefitted from Ma Yu's teachings (again, "one must not forget one's roots").
While learning under XLN, YG continued to measure his own progress - "At my present level can I defeat Lu Qingdu?" and later "At my present level, can I defeat Guo Fu/Wu brothers?", still later "What about Qiu Chuji?" then finally "Am I finally a match for Uncle and Auntie Guo?" YG had this persistence and hunger to improve himself - to prove his own worthiness. He doesn't know the kind of comfortable "academic" nonchalance ("spoon-fed" learning) of the Wu brothers. See how excited he was when XLN taught him new skills, or when Ouyang Feng met him again and discussed martial arts (so much that he forgotten about XLN who was alone), or when he met Hong 7 Gong, Huang Yaoshi and even when Golden Wheel Monk asked him about his progress (he was lost in meditation for days and finally decided to take the best principles from each skill and then forge his own skill) - even later when he met the Giant Condor and saw Dugu Qiubai's last will and testament.
A lot of times, he had to think his own way through. He wasn't satisfied with just learning under reputable "professors". He wanted to become one himself. In his words again, "Every skill under the sky were invented by human beings - why can't I, Yang Guo, invent my own skill?" That was his motivation to finally become a Grand Master ("da zong shi") himself.
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Some thoughts:
What do you all think about GJ's "not forgetting one's roots" thinking? Think of the possibilities should he had taught his disciples "Xiang Long 18 Palms" instead of nonsense like Jiang Nan 7 Freaks' skills? YG had no time for mundane/mediocre skills - only the best.
From my personal experience studying ancient languages, theology, history, one of the most frustrating thing people say to me is "no, that book is too deep for me" or "I'm happy to even get the basics - the advanced stuff is for experts". Why? Why waste time with basic/root-level rote-learning when you can have the best? People are actually contented with waddling in ponds rather than brave the uncertainty and excitement of the oceans. Even teachers/pastors have told me stuff like "Edmund, don't get too ambitious - learn the roots first?" (of course, by that they really mean - don't try to be funny or a smart-aleck, stick only to the root-level stuff so that you are forever under our thumb! Authority-figures never like renegades and free-thinkers!) Then you have some people who say stuff like, "what happens if you learn the 'wrong' stuff?" or "isn't it safer to just follow a proper/orthodox/reputable teacher - and leave all the thinking to him?" Of course, I later learned that what they defined as "wrong-thinking" is really just "thinking" (something they are never ever guilty of).
I welcome your views on the above. Discuss freely - the only crime anyone should be guilty of is that of "free-thought".
~ Edmund Lau