ZMA NEWS TRIBUNE
June, 18, 2011
Ziran Martial Arts Guest Instructor Seminar Series 2011: Sifu Scott Bendell - Taoist Bagua Qigong: Amazing Stuff!
We are thrilled to have hosted Sifu Scott Bendell for a five months intensive guest instructor seminar series 2011: Taoist Bagua Qigong. Starting Sat. Students completed 20 hours of instruction and learned the 8 palms of bagua with movement and meditation methods. 
Sifu Bendell began his martial arts and qigong training in 1994. Through various martial arts, countless hours of reading, research and daily practice he has continued to refine his understanding of energetic theory, tai chi/internal martial arts, and qigong. Sifu Bendell holds a Masters in Chinese and Japanese Acupuncture from the New England School of Acupuncture . He practices at a clinic in Oakhurst, NJ.
He was certified as a teacher and practitioner under the Daoist Qingcheng Mountain lineage of Medical qigong and the Immortal methods as passed down from Daoist Grandmaster Zhang Yuanming, based out of Sichuan and the palace of the heavenly dragon. Sifu Bendell has been publicly teaching since 2002 and thoroughly enjoys seeing his students grow and learn.
June 6, 2010, 
ZIRAN MARTIAL ARTS STUDENTS EUGENE GEIS AND THOMAS POSEY WIN PUSH HANDS EVENTS AT THE 2010 US OPEN MARTIAL ARTS CHAMPIONSHIP
Congratulations to Ziran Martial Arts students Eugene Geis and Thomas Posey for their successes in the US Open Martial Arts Championship on June 6th, 2010, held at Queens College, NY.
Eugene was awarded first place in the Open Weight Class Moving Pushhands Event.
He also won 3rd place for the light/middle-weight, age18-35 Fixed Step Pushhands Advanced Division. Thomas won 3rd place in the heavy-weight advanced division for Fixed Step Pushhands.
May 10, 2008, Bozeman Montana
ZIRAN MARTIAL ARTS STUDENT, BRIAN SZURA PLACES SECOND IN TRADITIONAL CHINESE SWORD LEAGUE INAUGURAL TOURNAMENT
Brian Szura, a long time student and assistant instructor at Ziran Martial arts placed second in the inaugural tournament of the Traditional Chinese Sword League. The event, modeled afrer traditional chinese tournaments, and described as "the first of its kind since 1929," brought paticipants from throughout the US and from Europe to the Emerson Culture Center in Boseman, Montana, to participate in the full contact chinese swordsmanship tournament. Competitors included instructors from several schools and upper level practitioners of Chinese swordsmanship on an invitational basis. Competetors first fought through a series of seed matches in which they had the opportunity to face off with each opponent in the tournament. Matches were conducted on an elevated platform in front of a full audience which filled the stadium. Armor consisted of traditional Chinese quilted gambisons, hockey gloves, full contact kali helmets and additional protection for the knees, shins, elbows, and forearms. To find out more about the Traditional Chinese Sword League go to http://www.swordleague.com.
July 9, 2007, Estonia
ZIRAN MARTIAL ARTS DIRECTOR TEACHES AT INTERNATIONAL SWORDSMANSHIP FESTIVAL
--Below, two students practice miao dao partnered drills
Ziran Martial Arts director, Seth Davis was one of four international teachers
featured at the International Swordsmanship Festival held near Tartu, Estonia
from July 1st-7th. Nearly fifty particpants were present representing, Holland,
the US, Autralia, Sweden, Russia, and Estonia. Brian Szura, a senior student
at Ziran Martial Arts also attended the seminar. Seth taught daily classes
in Miao Dao (long double handed saber). In prep-aration for the seminar,
Seth spent six months training intensively and refining his Miao Dao skills
under the guidance of his Chinese swordsmanship teacher Scott M. Rodell,
based in Washington D.C. Other weapons taught at the seminar included spear,
broadsword, broadsword and shield combination, and Jian (Chinese straight
sword). The purpose of the festival was to look at the broad range of Chinese
weapons historically used in melee on the battlefield and to put them into
the context of actual combat under a variety of conditions. This was the
second such festival held in Estonia. The first was held at Narva in 2002.
June 9th, 2007
CHINESE SWORDSMANSHIP AT THE NJ MEDIEVAL FANTASY FESTIVAL
The New Jersey Chinese Historical Swordsmanship Association, a
group based at Ziran Martial Arts of Highland Park participated in the Medieval
Fantasy Festival near Hacketstown, NJ. The Chinese Swordsmanship group was
invited to provide historical demonstrations and activies for visitors to
the festival.The group director, Seth Davis demonstrated classical Chinese
weapons forms including Jian (straight sword), and Miao Dao (double handed
saber) along with his students. Seth taught numerous short lessons for patrons
of festival, which consisted of basic techniques with the straight sword
and historical explanations. The Festival is held anually at Hacketstown
and draws visitors from all over New Jersey who seek to enjoy a brief escape
from the everyday.
March 31st, 2007
ZIRAN MARTIAL ARTS MEMBERS SHOW "WHAT TAIJIQUAN REALLY IS"AT
JAPANESE SPRING GATHERING IN PRICETON NEW JERSEY
Seven members of Ziran Taiji Gongfu of Highland Park, NJ
performed at the annual Princeton Haru no Kai (Spring Gathering) held by
the Nikeijinkai (Japanese-American Community Association). The performers
demonstrated basic and advanced taiji forms including taiji sword and showed
taijiquan is applied for self-defense. The director, Seth Davis, with the
assistance of his students revealed "the martial side of taiji,"presenting
how the practice of tuishou (pushhands) develops skills that may be applied
to qinna(joint-locking), imbalancing an attacker, striking, etc; and ultimately
transitions into sanshou (free-fighting). The finale of the performance
included a choregraphed battle in which all aspects of taijiquan previously
presented came into play. Members of the gathering credited the performance
as both "exciting and informative." Students at Ziran Martial
Arts spent approximately six weeks of hard preparation for the event. Seth
stated that he wanted to spread the understanding that "taijiquan is
a deep and powerful martial art, a full system of study that serves the
multiple purposes of cultivating health, practical self-defense skills,
and personal growth."
