Here is the scene, a young man becomes bullied by the ever present local riff-raff or made to sweat and toil in a workplace for peanuts plus an eveready dished-out bonus of abuse from his colleagues. Along comes a mysterious old man who rescues him from a scrape or two with the said elements, teaches the youth a practical set of skills, then following obligatory stages of refusal, he learns a martial arts style from the old man - usually employing everyday practical skills. This in turn becomes the next path of exacting the appropriate revenge upon his perpetrators.
Yes, It sounds like the plot to The Karate Kid or Kickboxer, well this prime winning formula goes back in film history courtesy of those old kung fu movies from the mid-to-late 1970s, all credit due to a character named Beggar So Can or Su Qi'Er. In the film True Legend, Can is an army general who retires, joins the beggar sect of the local society and then ends up taking on his corrupted goverment official half-brother, in an impressive match of wit and fighting styles that rescues a young boy from evil clutches. Throughout the film we see the wonderous style of Kung Fu called Drunken Fist. We also see this character in an older variant in the Jackie Chan movies Drunken Master and Snake In Eagle's Shadow. He also appears in quite a few others too numerous to list, this established him as staple addition to a rapidly growing cinematic culture.
The heroic mix of ingredients which have indeed become tried and tested, appear to include bags of belief with the hardwork of an individual, resplendently soaked in endearing hope, to ensure this will produce results which they may not have expected, within such a seemingly hopeless environment. The success drawn from Beggar So's boot camp veined training is as unorthodox as it is entertaining.
There are the usual labourious manual learning methods in addition to the Drunken Fist style which involves obtaining inebriation to relax and heighten one's peripheral vision. There are odd medicinal discoveries such as drinking urine to heal some eagle claw inflicted finger wounds. While the inducted student eventually hones all their skills needed for the upcoming battles they eventually take part in a boss fight against a tyrannical figure, at this point there already an unparalleled process unfolding within the student.
In short, we can gage the following as an overlooked path to personal acheivement: Our teachers may have an unorthodox lifestyle, their teaching methods have multiple applications. Additionally, the path to success can be rough and staggered, leading you always to prepare your strategy for the terrain and the various strength opponents you will meet. Overall, I can vouch personally that my hidden unsung teachers, have been the most selfless struggling souls who lovingly steer me on. I love them dearly and am totally thankful for these champions in my life. If we dare to seek such individuals in society we may well just get rewarded in ways we never expected.
