"The Authentic Wujing Archery" - Examination Method and Shooting Method

On the first part of the method of judging

You must make up your mind before shooting. The intention is in the heart and the arrow is sent out by the eyes, so judging comes first. The effort of judging goes straight to the end, which corresponds to the following note

, and both are based on the eyes. Therefore, if you want to shoot, you must judge with your eyes first, and then gather your strength with your shoulders and arms, and shoot accordingly.

However, the methods of judging are different. Some judge the arrowhead before shooting, and some judge on the left side of the bow. Both are wrong. Those who judge before shooting are already too hasty. Moreover, if you only judge the arrowhead, you may be afraid that the arrowhead is right but the arrow shaft is not, and the arrow will be shot at an angle. If you judge on the left side of the bow, the arrow is on the right side of the bow, and you can't see the arrowhead with your eyes, and you can't aim clearly. How can you tell the distance of the arrow? In short, you can judge it with your mind.

Therefore, the correct method of judging is to first look at the target with your eyes when you draw the bow, and then draw the bow. When you are about to move the bow, use your eyes to move from the arrow shaft to the arrowhead, and directly reach the target, and you can clearly see the size. This is called judging.

However, this method of judging is only for long-range shooting. If the target is within 50 steps, the target should be on the left side of the bow. It is the same as horseback archery. Horseback archery cannot be fired unless it is within 10 or 20 steps. If the target is close and the front judging method is used, the arrow will fly high and become larger. Therefore, for close-range shooting, the front hand must be lower than the back hand. How can the target be on the right side of the bow? This is also important to know.

On the method of aiming

The aim is to draw the arrowhead to the middle of the bow handle. It is the root of shooting and the source of skill. Only the aim can be used to rely on the effort of aiming in the front part, so that it can be used clearly. The effort of evenly injecting the arrow in the back part can be relied on to achieve the effect of hitting the target. If the bow is not drawn, the joints are not complete, and the shoulders and arms are loose, it is like a tree without roots. How can the vitality be fired? A person with a broken heart will not gather all the skills. Even if there are tricks, how can they be used? There are many people in the world who talk about shooting, but they do not talk about the method of aiming. This is to ignore the root and pursue the end, and become old but not proficient. Therefore, the fundamentals of archery must come before the bow.
However, the bow methods are different. There are reckless bows, weak bows, and deflated bows.

When a reckless bow is used, the arrowhead is exposed about half an inch outside the bow when the bow is drawn. When the bow is about to be shot, the arrowhead is quickly pulled out and it comes out from the middle of the bow handle. This is entirely based on temperament, and the eagerness to get the bow excited the arrowhead, so the arrow will not be accurate. This is called reckless bows. When a weak bow is used, the bow is drawn quickly, and the arrowhead is quickly pulled out, and it comes to the middle of the bow handle. There is no time to judge the target, and the power of the back hand is exhausted, and the courage and energy are all weak. There is no time to hold back, and the arrow is shot immediately. The arrow is also inaccurate, which is called weak bows. It is because the bow is in the shape and the energy is not sufficient.

These are not the correct bow methods. There is only one correct way, but people in the world do not know it, and they occasionally have one or two of them. However, if you don't know it's good, you may not be able to keep it. After practicing archery for a long time, the root of the disease gradually increases (the disease of crooked bones), and the initial coincidence (the occasional straight joints) gradually disappears (long-term shooting fatigues the muscles, and the slightly straight bones at the beginning gradually become crooked), and the final result is not enough.

What is the main way to shoot? The basic teaching method is to roll the front shoulder down. After the front shoulder is lowered, the front arm and the back shoulder arm are raised together, and they are straight with the front shoulder as a balance. The back elbow is bent to the extreme and the back is bent. The body is facing backwards, and the end of the joints is fixed. The arrowhead can still penetrate, and then it can be said to be shot. People are different in height, and each uses the end of their joints as the shot. Then those with greater strength cannot go too far. Those with less strength cannot go too far. This is the principle created by nature.

Nowadays, people don't know how to shoot. They rely solely on strength to draw the bow, and the arrowhead is shot when the bow is stretched. If the method of straightening the joints is ignored, then the strength of a person will also rise and fall during the day. A woman's energy is sharp in the morning, lazy in the day, and retreating in the evening. When the energy is sharp, the strength is strong and sufficient. When the energy is weak, it is insufficient. If the limit is not divided, the distance of the arrow will also depend on it, so how can there be a fixed balance? Only when the end of the joints is taken as the limit, then a tall person uses a long arrow, a short person uses a short arrow, a strong bow is used for a strong person, and a soft bow is used for a weak person, and the arrowheads are all drawn to the middle of the bow as the limit, then there is a fixed standard.

However, the skill of straightening the joints depends entirely on the front shoulder rolling down. The method of lowering the front shoulder is never discussed by people today. If someone talks about it, they all hear it out of their ears and don't know the secret. This is why the front shoulder cannot be lowered, and it is enough to want to be sufficient but cannot be. The method of lowering the shoulder is detailed in the chapter on drawing the bow in a sloppy manner in the chapter on distinguishing confusion. It is better to study it carefully. Then the shoulder will naturally go down without any intention, and the bow will naturally go up without any intention. This is the skill of entering the hub with the lower hand. (This section should be read together with the chapter of "Or Question Eight Strike" in the fourth volume of Zhimi Ji.)

The body posture is reversed and it is backward: Generally speaking, when drawing a bow, the front and back shoulders and arms have a tendency to follow each other. When the back hand draws the bow to the fullest, the body posture is reversed and it is the wonderful state of the hub bow. However, if the body posture is backward, the front shoulder must protrude forward, which will cause the problem of arm curling. Therefore, the front fist must be tilted sideways in front of the eyebrows, and it must be extended about two inches to the level of the eyebrows. However, if the front fist passes the beard, the front shoulder will inevitably shrink, so the front shoulder must be rolled forward and down as much as possible, so that the sacrum on the shoulder is forward, and the same arm is straight to the ground. Then, although the front fist is protruding, the shoulder will not shrink. However, the root of the shoulder is in the back. If you want the shoulder socket to move forward, you must also move the front shoulder spine (i.e. the shoulder bone) forward and downward. Push the front shoulder forward, and the shoulder socket will move forward. These are all interdependent forces, and neither can be missing. Otherwise, if the spine is not moved forward, the shoulder socket will not be able to move forward. If the shoulder socket is not moved forward, the front fist will not be able to move forward. And avoid the problem of curling the arms, can you close the body posture and move it backward to achieve the goal of the bow.