A training method to get started could be baby steps. That is the intent behind the Siu Nim Tau form. It is to create the little child mind. Some call it the beginner’s mindset. You start with no idea, attitude or preconceptions. As an adult, you must start by clearing the mind before you do the Siu Nim Tau. Do just the first section very slowly. If you can manage the discipline, do it as slowly as the hands on a clock.

The ancient monks and many today, stare at a spot on a wall or an object hanging from the ceiling. Bodhidharma supposedly sat starring at a wall for nine years at the Siu Lam Monastery.

The photo is a memorial tablet with the inscription: Abode where Bodhidharma did his Wall-facing Meditation.

…from the book Wing Tsun Kuen by Leung Ting, 10th Level M.O.C.

You can practice a little at a time, a little each day…

A small change in the Chinese characters in the words Siu Nim Tau change its meaning to “A Little Bit in the Beginning.”

-Sifu Keith Sonnenberg