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An open letter from Sihing Te Horipo Karatiana - Pou-faka-ako of Ue-kaha No Roto
Article for Man Sau Gwoon May 2010
For over a decade its have been an honour to be a part of the Ue Kaha Warrior system and a little later the Man Sau Gwoon Wing Chun system. My Bokega/ Sifu (‘Master’), friend and warrior brother Awatea Edwin who started me on these pathways has been both an inspiration and privilege to train with.
It is an affirmation of inter-generational brotherhood, as our ancestors Tarawhata and Karetai fought along side each other in days gone by. They lived in a period of turbulent change in the mid to late 1800’s. They knew and practiced the old (pre European) and new ways, they knew the taste of human flesh, they were warriors but most importantly leaders and looked after their hapu (extended family groupings).
Both these warrior arts, Ue Kaha No Roto and Man Sau Gwoon are a connection to our ancient past, our present and our future, they are about a way of life, the way of the warrior, the depth of which exists progressively as a physical, thought and spiritual level and over time through an integration of all three dimensions.
Reflecting on the private training I experienced with Awatea; training was intensive, we often trained from before sunrise to when it was time to go to work, then home from work and training to midnight. We also held many wanaga (seminars) and travelled throughout the many important sacred places within Te Waka a Aoraki (the South Island). At one point Awatea had 170 students in Dunedin alone practicing the warrior arts, this he gave up to focus on a handful of individuals of which only a mere few have completed the instructor level of Kai-whaka-ako.
The basics are so important, for the first 2 years of Ue Kaha we just focused on footwork and stance, in Wing Chun it was 90% Chi Sau for literally hours on end. This solid grounding has been invaluable and programs the body into unthinking action and intuitive reaction.
There was a time when Awatea travelled as his work took him around Aotearoa and Te Wai Pounemu (New Zealand) and during this time I joined the training at Earles Academy for often up to 6 days of the week.
My pathway was shattered for a while when my son was killed in a car accident in 2006, he was my Akoako (selected student) of both Ue Kaha and Man Sau Gwoon, I didn’t teach for some years after this, so it’s been a big step outward again to start teaching these sacred arts.
There is nothing more rewarding to see fellow practitioners advance, develop and grow, in most cases well beyond my own experience and ability. These arts of Ue Kaha and Man Sau Gwoon are about letting go and as often said making sure the ‘cup is half empty’.
My training and instructing is intermittent these days as my travels takes me throughout Aotearoa and more so around the world.
The journey of the warrior is a lifelong one with many destinations/achievements that dissipate and you travel towards the next destination/ goal. Finally, and again, my thanks, support, loyalty and acknowledgement to my teacher, friend and warrior brother - Awatea Edwin.
Mauriora
For over a decade its have been an honour to be a part of the Ue Kaha Warrior system and a little later the Man Sau Gwoon Wing Chun system. My Bokega/ Sifu (‘Master’), friend and warrior brother Awatea Edwin who started me on these pathways has been both an inspiration and privilege to train with.
It is an affirmation of inter-generational brotherhood, as our ancestors Tarawhata and Karetai fought along side each other in days gone by. They lived in a period of turbulent change in the mid to late 1800’s. They knew and practiced the old (pre European) and new ways, they knew the taste of human flesh, they were warriors but most importantly leaders and looked after their hapu (extended family groupings).
Both these warrior arts, Ue Kaha No Roto and Man Sau Gwoon are a connection to our ancient past, our present and our future, they are about a way of life, the way of the warrior, the depth of which exists progressively as a physical, thought and spiritual level and over time through an integration of all three dimensions.
Reflecting on the private training I experienced with Awatea; training was intensive, we often trained from before sunrise to when it was time to go to work, then home from work and training to midnight. We also held many wanaga (seminars) and travelled throughout the many important sacred places within Te Waka a Aoraki (the South Island). At one point Awatea had 170 students in Dunedin alone practicing the warrior arts, this he gave up to focus on a handful of individuals of which only a mere few have completed the instructor level of Kai-whaka-ako.
The basics are so important, for the first 2 years of Ue Kaha we just focused on footwork and stance, in Wing Chun it was 90% Chi Sau for literally hours on end. This solid grounding has been invaluable and programs the body into unthinking action and intuitive reaction.
There was a time when Awatea travelled as his work took him around Aotearoa and Te Wai Pounemu (New Zealand) and during this time I joined the training at Earles Academy for often up to 6 days of the week.
My pathway was shattered for a while when my son was killed in a car accident in 2006, he was my Akoako (selected student) of both Ue Kaha and Man Sau Gwoon, I didn’t teach for some years after this, so it’s been a big step outward again to start teaching these sacred arts.
There is nothing more rewarding to see fellow practitioners advance, develop and grow, in most cases well beyond my own experience and ability. These arts of Ue Kaha and Man Sau Gwoon are about letting go and as often said making sure the ‘cup is half empty’.
My training and instructing is intermittent these days as my travels takes me throughout Aotearoa and more so around the world.
The journey of the warrior is a lifelong one with many destinations/achievements that dissipate and you travel towards the next destination/ goal. Finally, and again, my thanks, support, loyalty and acknowledgement to my teacher, friend and warrior brother - Awatea Edwin.
Mauriora
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