Mind Over Body

 

Every civilization throughout history has produced its own culturally unique group of masters who, with powers gained through physical, mental and spiritual discipline are able to perform amazing demonstrations of mind over body.

Dai Andrews has travel the world learning these mind over body demonstrations from masters in every corner of the globe.

From the Iron Body techniques of China's great Kung Fu masters to the secrets of India's mysterious fakirs, Dai will amaze and delight audiences of all ages with this unusual performance.

 

 

Iron Body Chi Gung
Audiences will be thrilled as Dai Andrews demonstrates Chinese Chi Gung and Iron Body techniques put to the ultimate test.

This unique performance showcases amazing feats of physical endurance as he demonstrates his Iron Body Chi Gung by breaking arrows and bending iron bars and spears with his throat, having concrete blocks smashed on his body while lying on a bed of sharp machetes and painlessly places his hand into real animal traps.

Finally in the ultimate test of fortitude, Dai wraps twenty feet of rope around his neck and then lets  up to six audience members pull and tug on the rope as hard as they can! The audience members engage in a tug of war with the neck of Dai Andrews in the center, his throat taking many times the amount of pressure it would endure in an ordinary execution style hanging.

You will marvel however when, ultimately Dai Andrews emerges from this brutal punishment totally unharmed!

Currently Dai Andrews is the only person in the world to perform this dangerous feat, know as "The Man Who Cannot be Hanged".

 
About Chi Gung

Chi Gung or Qigong is a spiritual, slightly mystical branch of Chinese medicine and martial arts, the roots of which go back thousands of years. The name means literally means energy cultivation. Physical and mental health are improved by learning how to cultivate and manipulate Chi or vital energy, through controlled breathing, movement, and acts of will.

Chi gung is generally dived into two categories, hard and soft. Soft Chi Gung focuses on developing and preserving this vital force in order to ensure the good health and longevity of the practitioner.

Hard or Martial Chi Gung on the other hand is only taught to disciples and advanced students of Kung Fu. It concentrates on learning to focus the Chi to specific points in the body in order to strike with devastating power as with Iron Palm or to toughen the body and protect it from harm as with Iron Shirt.

 

 

"In the days before gunpowder, Iron Shirt Chi Gung was one of the principal martial arts, which built powerful bodies able to withstand hand-to-hand combat. Even then, however; martial use was only one aspect of Iron Shirt and today its other aspects remain vitally significant for anyone seeking better health, a sane mind and spiritual growth. "Iron Shirt" refers to the fact that its unique system of breathing exercises, which permanently pack concentrated air into the fasciae (connective tissues) surrounding the vital organs, make them well nigh impervious to injuries from accidents or blows. We also learn how to root ourselves in the earth's power and thus to direct the earth's gravitational and healing power through our own structure. Iron Shirt's strengthening of the organs is of special interest to athletes and performers, for it teaches them how to increase the performance of the organs during sports, speech, singing, dancing and playing music. For the Taoist masters, all this in turn lays the groundwork for higher; spiritual work. "

From "Iron Shirt Chi Kung" By Mantak Chia

 

Tang Dynasty illustration from Xin Gu Yue Tu depicting "Spouting Fire" and "Eating a Knife"

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Iron Palm Chi Gung

Known as Tameshiwari in Japan, or Iron Palm Chi Gung in China, this ancient martial skill involves conditioning the hands to deliver devastating blows. Without the ability to deliver strikes with tremendous force, no martial arts journey is complete. In order to authentically practice combative martial arts, one must develop the hands to withstand heavy impact as well as learn to hit with savage power. A broken hand is not a part of fighting.

Dai Andrews demonstrates this unusual skill in his performance by breaking solid steel bars with his bear hands.

 

 

 

 

 

Traditional Fakir Demonstrations
India's Fakirs or Sadhus are religious aesthetics who practice yoga and meditation. They also perform austerities in order to demonstrate that the mind or spirit is stronger then the flesh of the body. These austerities can be simple demonstrations of faith like vowing never to cut their hair and instead wearing it in long dreadlocks known as Jatta. At other times these austerities can be extreme like subjecting the body to fire, or vowing to keep an arm raised above the head at all times for twelve full years before finally bring it down.

Many acts that have come to be associated with the american sideshow have their origins in ancient India. These feats include:

  • Sword Swallowing
  • Fire Eating
  • Lying on a bed of nails
  • Walking on hot coals
  • Driving a nail into the nose
  • Walking barefoot on broken glass
  • Eating Glass
  • The Human Pincushion
  • Climbing a ladder of swords barefoot

A performance by Dai Andrews may include any of these.

X-ray of Dai Andrews with a ten penny nail in his nose.

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