Archetypes of Female Martial Artists

This semester, I took a class called "Everyone was Kung-Fu Fighting: East Asian Martial Arts Films."  Yes, I'm getting college credit for this.  I thought I'd share my group's final project -- a short video investigating the roles of women in martial arts films.  Enjoy!

Dit Da Jow: Part I

My boyfriend and I been doing "Iron Palm" training for the past few months (although I must admit he's been more diligent about practicing.) This is a Kung Fu technique based on Wolff's Law, where repeated impact is used to help increase bone density in the hands.  Traditionally, a practitioner will start by hitting a bag of lentils, then upgrade to buck shot or gravel.  All the striking is controlled and gradual -- you're not improving if you break your hand.  Here is my teacher's teacher Sifu Sam Ng demonstrating Choy Lay Fut fist toughening exercises:

Integral to this training is an herbal liniment called "Dit Da Jow," (say "dee daw jow") sometimes translated as "Iron Bruise Wine."  Its purpose is to improve circulation, relieve pain, and increase bone density.

Now there are many formulas sold in various Chinatown apothecaries or websites, most being some closely-guarded secret formula of a minimum 20-something herbs.  However, being a good scientist and the daughter of two medical professionals, this mystery potion does not sit well with me.  I want to do my homework before I'm putting something on my hands every day.  Conveniently, my Kung Fu teacher had recently acquired a few Jow recipes from another instructor, so I started a small research project to find out which ingredients are safest and most effective, then brew up my own batch.

Two popular Kung Fu liniment formulas I've seen are Zheng Gu Shui, and Blue Poppy Dee Dat Jow.  I've used the Blue Poppy stuff, and it works well.  I appreciate that all their ingredients are clearly labeled, and they all check out safe based on my research.  Also, it has a distinctive curry smell.  I know very little about the Zheng Gu Shui; I've just seen my classmates use it.

I started looking online, and came across a couple of interesting papers.  The first, Toxicological Risks of Chinese Herbs, informed me of a few ingredients to avoid, such as Aconite.  Another is a Master's Thesis on the effects of Dit Da Jow coupled with Accupressure.

Next, I checked out Half-Price Books, but it felt pretty weird to try and pull the scientific books from a shelf right next to the sections on "Crystal Healing" and "Homeopathy."  My goal was to find sound scientific evidence on the safety of these ingredients, not some new-age pseudoscience.

My college's library had a couple of nice textbooks on the subject:  The Pharmacology of Chinese Herbs, 2nd. Ed., by Chang Huang, and Chinese Herbs: Their Botany, Chemistry, and Pharmacodynamics, by John D. Keys.  I also picked up Herbs Dymystified: A Scientist Explains How the Most Common Herbal Remedies Really Work by Holly Phaneuf, PhD, from amazon.com.  Of the three, the pharmacology book was the most useful.  It contained translations from the Chinese names to the scientific names, detailed descriptions of each herb, its chemical properties, effects, and indications.  However, I am no chemist or pharmacist, so much of the details of this book were lost on me.  Phaneuf's book was easy for the layperson to read.  The only downside is it mostly covers western herbs.  The book by Keys was less helpful, I just wanted to use multiple sources to investigate my claims.

Once I'd found a safe recipe, I went to get it checked out by the experts at the Academy of Oriental Medicine Austin (AOMA).  For just $45, I got to visit an herbal specialist who had earned an MD in China.  He took a look at my recipe and helped me scale it to the right ratio to brew one gallon.  Next, I filled my new prescription from the adjacent herbal store.

Now I have a bag full of herbs, but how do you turn it into a liniment?  Most recipes soak these herbs in an alcohol solution for a minimum of 6 weeks.  Traditionally, the container was buried in some clay vessel; supposedly the longer it brewed, the better.  Since this solution is light sensitive, I opted to use amber glass for the brewing.  I found an affordable amber jug on amazon.  (Don't use plastic, because the alcohol solution tends to leech bad things out of the plastic.)  For alcohol, I picked up two bottles of King's Square Vodka, some bottom-shelf brand that's good enough to put on my hands.  Then it was just a matter of bottling it up and tucking it under the shelf for a couple of weeks!

I'll update soon with the results!  If I get permission, I'll try to post the recipe that was shared with me.


* Disclaimer:  I am not, nor do I claim to be any sort of medical or herbal expert.  Take this advice at your own risk, and remember, Dit Da Jow is for external use only.

Chinese Sword Gripwraps

A friend gave me a nice pair of DaDao (broadswords) for Kung Fu training.  After a lot of practice, the fabric grip wraps wore off, and I scoured the web for information on how to add traditional wraps to my swords.  I came across some excellent examples here, created by Peter Dekker, an expert in Chinese Arms.    Now this guy does professional restorations on antiques, so clearly I'm not looking to spend more on the grip wrap than the original cost of the blades.  However, it was a source of inspiration for me.  It was interesting to learn that many grip wraps incorporated sting-ray leather under the lacing!  If you've never seen sting-ray leather, it is very durable, with a smooth, pebbly surface.  Also, I loved Dekker's attitude toward his craft.  On an old price list, he states:

"I am open for special requests, but I will not do anything without historical precedent, or at least historical plausibility.  This is because with the abundance of fantasy out there, I feel the need to place an emphasis on Qing regulations and aesthetics if it is Qing arms we are into.

Customer may be king, but Qianlong was emperor."

Wow, take that cosplayers!  Lots of web forums cite an old document he wrote as being a great intro to making your own gripwraps.  Now his current website has been under construction for awhile, and that document is nowhere to be found.  In the meantime, I need to practice my broadsword forms, so I used a nice online guide found here.  The pictures are a bit blurry, but the instructions were pretty clear.

Actually one of the most difficult parts of the process was finding the right cord.  I spent more time searching the internet for 4-6mm unwaxed cotton or silk cord in a non-white color (to prevent yellowing from sweat).  It seemed that nowhere on the internet had the right thing, from craft stores to martial arts shops.  Now I did see many grip wraps for Katana, but Japanese grip wraps are very different than Chinese.  They use a wide ribbon and the wrapping patterns are quite different.  Many people on the web suggest using paracord, but I didn't like the idea of using a slippery synthetic cord for a grip.  I could buy cotton cord wholesale from alibaba.com, but lord knows how much cord I'd end up with.

Then one day, I got an idea.  I could just buy white cord and dye it any color I want!  A local hardware store had just the right thing.  100% cotton cord in 3/8" thickness.  I ended up using under 25 feet per grip, so this clothesline will last me awhile.

I used Rit dye and a five gallon bucket to color the cord.  They have a wonderful color guide here.

Then, I just followed ineffibleone's guide, using Gorilla glue to adhere the ends.

Also note that if you have a cat, they will find the string irresistible, and may claw it up a bit.

Here is the final result!  It feels great when I'm training, though it's added a little thickness to the handle.