Q1. Hello Mr. Peter Ziboce. Can you please tell me something about your martial arts background and your teachers? 

Ziboce: I have over 30 years learning and teaching experience in Martial Arts. I have interested in a wide spectrum across MA ranging from internal styles including Tai Chi, Xing Yi, Bagua, & Liu He Ba Fa, to external styles including Wing Chun, & Shaolin. Also Qi Gong styles include Yi Quan, Shaolin, & Emei.

Teachers who give me most inspirations are:

1.     Sifu Ho Ka Hing

(Linkage of Chan Wei Ming- Yang style Tai Chi, Leung Tsz Pang-Yi Quan/Liu He Ba Fa)

2.     Sifu Fong Pak Shing

(Student of Master Tung Ying Chieh of Yang style Tai Chi, & Master Leung Tsz Pang of Liu He Be Fa.

3.     Sifu Cheung Shao Lim

(Student of Master Sao Guo Zhang of Xing Yi, & Master Wu Kwei Wu of Chen style Tai Chi)

4.     Sifu Choi Cheung Hing

(Student of Master Chau Ming Yang of South Shaolin) 

Q2. I am very impressed by your Liu He Ba Fa Clip on Youtube. Where does you Liu He Ba Fa comes from. 

Ziboce: Some 20 years ago, I started learning Liu He Ba Fa from a private video of a Taoist Tsu Kwun Chau (Student of Guru Wu Yik Fai – Master Ho Yu Tin).

Until I met Sifu Ho Ka Hing, I was taught on the applications. I got the inspirations of ‘lightness’ and ‘rhythm’ from Sifu Fong Pak Shing.

During the years, I have collected videos of many old masters and other streams of Liu He Fa Ba, including the second and third generations.

Until now, I keep on tracing and studying on the thought of Guru Wu Yik Fai.

Q3. In your Liu He Ba Fa lineage, do you only the long form or are
there any additional exercises or special Qi Gongs. If yes, can you
describe them a little bit? I know as example about lineages where
they do some conditioning for the fingers, because there are a lot of
finger piercing movements in the form. Other lineages incorporate
standing, other split the form into small pieces or separate forms to
make it easier to learn.

Ziboce: I learnt long form only. I got the stance from Yi Quan. I got no special training on conditioning the body from Liu He Ba Fa.

In my understanding, Liu He Ba Fa bears the ‘water’ character in penetration, rather than piercing by fingers. 

Q4. When you do, the Liu He Ba Fa form you do something, my LHBF
teacher calls "broken intent", which means, that you "split" one
movement into small movements, still in perfect flow, but
with slight rhythm changes. We do this in our LHBF lineage also to hide
the real intent. What is the idea in your lineage about this.

Ziboce: I am glad that you have noticed that. We called it ‘wave’. Again it is another characteristics of LHBF, which enables instant power between two states of movements, or change of rhythms.

Q5. You created the "Ziboce Dance" from Chi Kung based on Tai Chi, Yi
Chuan, Xing Yi Chuan, six combinations & eight methods, and Bagua.
What was the reason for creating the "Ziboce Dance" and why you call
it dance?  

Ziboce: Wang Xiang Zhai of Yi Quan created his Yi Quan Dance based on Xing Yi. Referring to him, I got additions on top of his.

Dance, also in a sense of Art, is more appropriate to express myself along with my philosophy.

My philosophy refers to Creativity, Flexibility, and Personality.

Q6. - What's your opinion about sparring / free fighting in the neijia
styles and in which way you guide your students from the early
beginning of their training to become a more proficient fighter?
Are there special partner drills up to free sparring? And in your
teachings, do you put more stress on the self-defense/fighting aspects
of your styles, more on the health/physical aspects or even the
Taoistic/philosophic?

Ziboce: My interest of MA varies with different stages of my age, from power strength to health and rehabilitation.

I got the skills and training of building up body strength against attacks. And also penetration techniques giving severe internal injuries.

At present, my students are most interested in health and Qi. Sparring drills are limited to the appreciation of the theories and applications.

Q7. You mastered many different arts. When you teach applications, do
you separate the different ima´s you have learned or do you mix it?

Ziboce: I teach based on my understanding and knowledge.When dealing applications, I would explain and refer to various styles of similar aspects, make comparisons, and encourage creativity.

Q8. Many IMA teachers in the west say, that you have to train many
years to use the IMA´s for fighting and selfdefence. What do you think
about this?

Ziboce: I understand that it is the difference between MA and Neiga.

For MA, power and body strength mainly come from fitness. For Neiga, strength comes from mindedness. In comparison, Mindedness is not easy to learn. However, mindedness relates to understanding that does not deal with the TIME consumes.

Q9. Is conditioning part of your training program? If yes, which
exercises do you do? What i mean are things like "Pole Shaking" or
working with heavy "Balls". Can you describe some of your exercises? 

Ziboce: I develop a pole called ‘Tai Chi Ruler’, which relates with Guru Chen Tuan, the founder of LHBF 1000 years ago. The ruler is found to be a good catalyst of Qi. There are a few training exercises on the ruler including shaking, rolling, etc.

I understand that balls and rulers are the good tools to get Qi. The essence is on the change of momentum course, and not on exact dead weight.

Q10. I saw a video, where you use the Tai Chi Brush for Calligraphy. I
can clearly see, that you drive the brush with your center. Where
comes this practice from?

Ziboce: To me, Brush is another name for spear, or staff. With the brush, I experimented on recording the tracks of brush on the different time and space. From the experiment, I demonstrated Past, Present, and Future in Man in-Sphere, Man-outside-Sphere, Man-across-Sphere.

The idea is to find out the technique of mastering ‘penetration’ skill.

Q11. Do you use the term Qi during your teachings and if so, what's
your point of view of Qi? 

Ziboce: In simple terms, Qi refers to Internal substances that can be felt, and external substances that cannot be controlled.

A)    Internal

Qi are those substances that I consider their existence either subjectively or objectively, something that can be felt and controlled by human body. Examples are:

a. Visuals - i.e., turns, drowsy, stillness, motions, brightness, darkness, flashes.  

b. Sensations - i.e., heat, pressure, body temperature, moods, smooth, comfortable.

c. Internal organs - i.e., heart beats, pulses,

d. breathing - i.e., dantien, choking.

e. hearing - i.e., resonance, harmonics. 

f. taste - i.e., sweet, sour.

g. muscles - i.e., shaking, tension, relax, strength.

h. nerve system - i.e., pains, reflection, potentials, instincts, predictions, dangers, balance. 

B) External Qi, are substances that cannot be directly controlled, or sensed.

For example, pressure points, dim mak, meridians, light generated from human body, hair breathing, 4th dimension, cells, DNA, hormones, viruses, blood flow, supernatural power.

I refers to Qi when I talk about internal Qi in response to Mindedness. 

Q12. What are your plans for the future?

Ziboce: I would like to spare more time on making videos and writing articles of my style. In my understanding, contributions to mankind in the way of health rather than injuries look more constructive.

Q13. Most liuhebafa practitioners today can trace their lineage back to 
Mr. Wu Yi Hui (Wu Yik Fan).  Yet, it seems like even Mr. Wu Yi Hui's 
students (e.g., Chen Yik Yan, Liang Zi Pang, Li Dao Li, ...) differ 
greatly in their liuhebafa movements.  What are your thoughts on this? 

Ziboce: It is natural as the art develops according to time. Different people have different inputs and thoughts. There is no original, real, tradition. In fact, I keep on improving mine.

Q14. Some people have claimed that liuhebafa is nothing more than a 
"hybrid" of taiji, xing yi, and bagua styles.   Do you feel that 
liuhebafa is just a fusion of these three styles, or something more?
How do you feel it differs from, for example, Sun-style Taiji, which 
is also a combination of taiji, xing yi, and bagua?

Ziboce: I do not think hybrid a good name for LHBF. LHBF has its own specialties, and also commonality with other styles. For example, what LHBF distinct from others is the ‘water’ characteristics in terms of power forms, including penetration, resonance, diverse, condense, vortex, adhesive, melting etc. 

I would like to say that Guru Sun expressed the Sun philosophy in the forms of taiji, xing yi and bagua, other than just a combination. You may find that some of the Sun’s methodology happened in his Bagua sword, with his remarks that his skill was beyond Bagua theories.

Q15. Master Wu Yi Hui has learned "Sleeping Meditation" which comes from Chen Tuan. There is nearly no material about this. Do you have an idea what this is about?

Ziboce: I learnt that some materials were destroyed during the Red China Revolution, including the ‘Walking and Sitting Illustrations’ from Chen Tuan. These illustrations included the methods of standing and sleeping methods.

Referring to the remaining Walking Illustrations, I understand that it relates to Taoist Qi Gong practices. For example, count 8 breathes for each posture.

I have asked Mr. Ivan Fok, Chairman of Yi Quan Society of Hong Kong on the issue. Mr. Fok told me that he learnt sitting methods from Master Leung Tsz Pang. The idea of Yi Quan stance happens right for sitting, walking, living, sleeping.

I found also old sleeping illustrations, one in the name of Wah Shan Methodology, and one in the namely of Bo Ting (Xing Yi) Methodology.

I would guess that the sleeping style is actually a lying form of the Qi Gong. It does not have any relationship with sleeping.

To my knowledge, the seven words poem of LHBF very likely relates to Taoist Meditation Qi Gong. And this poem tells very little the details of the long form.

（Extracted 2007）

http://ziboce.com