Upcoming Seminars

Occasionally Tao Institute hosts seminars going into depth on topics or methods beyond the class curriculum. This is the page where these event offerings are listed. These events are open to the public as well as to active students.

4 Major Traditional Weapons of Chinese Kung Fu:  Lecture

Thursday, June 30, 2022 - 5:30-7:00PM - $100/person

Sifu Paolillo will be presenting a lecture on the practical and spiritual aspects of the 4 major traditional weapons of Chinese martial arts:  the staff, the broadsword, the straight sword, and the spear.  These four weapons are considered the cornerstones of Kung Fu weapon training.  This lecture will serve as an introduction to weapon training for any who are interested.

After the talk, any students who would like to learn certain weapons can add their names to a list for potential small group training in upcoming months.  We will gauge eligibility for this training based off of student experience.

This lecture is open to all levels, and will contain a talk and demonstration of the weapons by Sifu Paolillo and his assistant, Mela Carreira, to introduce the basic concepts of different weapons to the students, and the function of weapon training from an internal martial art and energy work perspective.

This talk will be informative to any student who wishes to deepen their understanding of internal martial arts theory and training.  Sifu will discuss topics such as the spirit of the weapon, learning to extend & expand the energy past the body, as well as the practicalities of the weapons themselves.  Sifu will also talk about how the empty hand training and weapon training are interrelated, and how the usage of the weapon evolves from a strong empty hand foundation.

This is a sit down lecture, and we will not be doing any group movement practice. We have meditation cushions for sitting on the floor — feel free to bring your own since we have a limited quantity.

This lecture will be recorded as a part of a future online course series.

Please sign up online or come a few minutes early to the lecture to enroll.  The front door locks at 6PM.

This is an educational lecture and is most suitable to adults 18 and over.

If you have any further questions, please contact us here.

Four Major Weapons: Spear, Staff, Straight Sword, Broadsword

Videos where Sifu performs the various weapons

Different Classifications of Chinese Weapons

(Image excerpts from “The Spring and Autumn of Chinese Martial Arts - 5000 Years” by Kang Gewu)