Friday, April 24, 2009

Kewsal - Immortal Man Hand Position

In the bookset kata, we learn a hand position that we call kewsal. The thumb is bent, index finger extended but not entirely, and the other fingers bent at the first knuckle with the overall hand very tense. I've tried to find the kewsal term online including trying to figure out it's spelling: que sahl, cuesa, kewsokewsa, kewsal, queue sah etc. Finally, someone has responded to my postings. Thank you eighteenelbows. He says:

We call the hand position "immortal man." .... my teacher - Master Steve Shover (you can Google him) has told me that Immortal Man hand position has historical value. He related the position is a tiger claw with the index finger extended to symbolize "the one." This meant you were a member of the rebellion against the Chinese Government, which was very repressive at the time. I'm not certain if this is true or not, but it does make sense in a way. I hope that's helpful.


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