Oct 21 Dennis Jones – A Doorman’s Chi…

REALITY CHECK

This interview was conducted in July 2003…

Steve Rowe talks with Nightclub Doorman and Shi Kon Martial Artist Dennis Jones…

SR  To carry on with the theme of intimidation and how it affects a person on the inside, I think we need to talk a little on the subject of Chi, Qi or Ki…

DJ  I think you’re right!

SR  The best English word I’ve found to describe it is “animation”, it’s the way we “animate” our mind, spirit and body.  A person without animation is a corpse, the more powerfully we can animate and focus it – the more skilfully we are using our chi. 

Our animation is our armour, both mentally and physically.  When we are physically and mentally aware and focussed, we are difficult to disarm, catch unawares, hit or hurt.  Our ability to project that animation to others can influence them and if they aren’t skilful at using their own, it can intimidate them.

DJ  That’s right Steve!  When you look at the translation from Chinese, it translates as “breath”  and God gave life to mankind by breathing life (and thus animation) into him.  A lot of the so called “mystical” attributes given to chi is due to this subliminal control. 

You get a situation where a Master just looks at his student and gets him to fall on the floor without touching him; you might think that this is a load of rubbish, but if he’s got into his head first…. In the street I’ve seen people virtually crumple to the floor when intimidated by a stronger person without being touched.

SR  Okay – for a change, let me tell you a story!  I was travelling to London not so long ago on a train with my wife and we were in a reasonably busy carriage, when a group of yobs got on.  They were all in their teens with one much bigger obviously older lad.  They were swearing, throwing things about, fighting each other and generally being a pain in the backside.  Then they started being abusive toward other people in the carriage.  As it got louder and more violent, a man sitting next to his wife leapt up and ran out of the carriage leaving his wife there!  I guess I could understand his terror, but leaving his wife….

Anyway an old gentleman who must have been well over seventy, got up and asked them to stop misbehaving and swearing, the older lad started to verbally abuse him and got out of his seat to make it physical.  At that point I had to do something, so I got out my seat, walked down the carriage and stood behind the old man, he didn’t know I was there.  My intention was that as soon as the older lad made a movement of violence toward the old guy I was going to hit him.  He took one look at the intention in my face and sat down with his hands up looking totally submissive.  The old guy (still unaware that I was there) carried on lecturing them for about 2 – 3 minutes whilst they patiently listened, I slipped back to my seat and he never knew I had been there!

The 2 points to note are the husband who ran away terrified was influenced by the loud noise and abuse and the yob who sat back down was intimidated by me.

DJ  Because of the way people try to get into your head to intimidate you, it’s important to be able to read their body language to understand what they are really trying to say.  I found that one the best ways to do this is to be able to relax, soften and sink your energy to the Dantien.

SR  Toru Takamizawa would use the words “not tense” instead of “relax” because he would say that “relax” intimated a drop in awareness.

DJ  That’s a good point!  Your awareness has to remain sharp, even though you have to lose the desire to win or lose, the only desire that’s good to have (and only before the event!) is to give a good account of yourself. 

SR  I would say that the brightness of your “animation” or chi is important and the ability to focus it.  Your intention will send it and the more powerful your intention, the more powerfully it will gather where it’s sent.  Then your ability to “colour” it will help you to influence others.  This is how people are intimidated and indeed how you can calm excited people down and blend your energy with them.  When I was a child my energy was bright and “fizzy” , nowadays I would probably be diagnosed with an attention deficit, this got me into a bit of trouble!  It was only when I started training in the Martial Arts that I was taught how to focus it.

When giving healing I blend with the other persons energy and use my intention to guide it.

DJ  These are all strategies we use on the door, I’ve seen people wilt at long distance just because the chi energy from another is so strong.  A good friend of mine, Paul is able to do this, just his presence can be enough.  He’s not a Martial Artist but he is a warrior, he’s very gentle but has the caged power to explode when necessary.  Often he will only use a few words, like “say what you mean” but the way he says them projects power.  When we are working, just those words supported by his aura are often enough.

On one occasion, we had a problem with a number of guys high on coke outside the club.  It’s “gone off’ in the sense that they are baying at us, shouting abuse and drawing us in to fight. The guys out of their head on coke, raring to fight and producing a mass of violent raw energy and just two of us; it would be enough to destroy a lot of people.  But in that moment, I had no fear, no doubt, things were just as they were, and Paul was just standing to the right of me, we looked at each other and he had this “boyish” grin on his face.  His energy was just welling up and was just so powerful…..

Looking back at that moment, whatever happened, life, death, injury didn’t matter, there was no other place I wanted to be.  It was as if the energy between us just grew to be so powerful that we knew everything was right. 

The strange thing is, those guys just lost it and ran… and yet hardly a word was said!  All my friend said as he waved his hand was “come in”…..  These guys went off and beat up some other poor victim elsewhere.

On another occasion we had five doorman each controlling a person and each waiting for the right moment to have a go.  Nicky, one of the doorman had a hand on his guys chest and the guy was leaning forward, pressing hard, against it.  We were on a knife’s edge of violence and it seemed as if nothing was going to stop it.  I was facing a guy, the catalyst, who had a bottle, suffice to say that…. erm… in a split second he was no longer a threat, but as a result of what I did, the guys leaning forward ready to fight were now leaning away and stuck to the wall!  It was as if their communal energy had upped and walked out the door!  They had lost their intention and therefore their chi and as Nicky said after “all his resistance had gone!”…..

SR  That’s why it’s important to be taught by people that have been there, who can create that kind of energy in the Dojo and with reasonable safety, give students the “feel” of realism.

DJ  Yeah, in summary I think from experience I’d say that the first “friend of chi” is the ability to relax and send the mind to your abdomen, the second to be able to sink your body, the third is determination without desire, the fourth righteous objective.  Train with role play and re-enacting again and again until this pathway is forged with your intention and the manifestation of chi.

We’ve both been in the Martial Arts for many years and yet this is the first time that I’ve ever talked publicly about chi or even discussed it with anyone else!  And I would like to add thanks for your help Steve, in getting “it out” and on paper.

SR  Lets hope it helps the readers…

Steve Rowe

Steve Rowe is a highly successful Martial Arts instructor - an International Neigong, Qigong and Tai Chi Teacher and an 8th Dan Karate with many other senior dan grades in other martial disciplines.

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