Inner Dharma [内法]

Inner Dharma is a writing project maintained by Mark Raugas that began in 2006 and is concerned with classical and traditional martial arts and culture. Some of its content has been revised, expanded, and is now available in print.

Below you will find a selection of essays and articles from Inner Dharma:¹

1. An Overview of Wú Tàijíquán Practice: Tàijíquán, along with Xíngyìquán and Bāguàzhǎng, forms the core of the internal martial arts, distinguished by their grounding in Daoist philosophy and Nèigōng practices. April 2026
2. Layers of Training: Stages of training and how that relates to internal martial arts principles and the organization of older martial traditions. May 2025
3. Comparing Patanjali’s 8 Limbs with Buddha’s Noble 8-fold path: Last year I began additional training in the union of Yoga and Buddhism offered through Tibet House. A short essay comparing the Astanga of Patanjali with the Buddhist Noble Eightfold path. April 2025
4. Divergence and Unification in Shinkage-ryū (opens in a new tab): An essay on kata, heihō and shugyō, comparing and contrasting different surviving lines of Shinkage-ryū, with reflections on my own practice. Kogen Budo, September 2024.
5. General Qi Jiguang’s Jixiao Xinshu and Reflections on Claims of Martial Virtue (opens in a new tab): A look at some older writings from Japanese koryū that reference classical Chinese military treatises, and how the practices described in those works may be represented in arts surviving today. Kogen Budo, February 2023.
6. YCGF Weapons Practices: The Tàijí, Bāguà and Xíngyì taught as part of Yin Cheng Gong Fa includes an extensive curriculum of jian (sword), dao (saber), and qiang (spear). October 2020
7. Pressure Testing in Classical Budō: On solo practice, free sparring, entering HEMA competition, and the waning intensity of classical martial arts. Reflections on what it means to keep kenjutsu practice alive. September 2020
8. Gogyō Exegesis: Lessons from Shintō-ryū: Reflections on a decade of practice in Tenshin Shōden Katori Shintō-ryū and an analysis of what may lie hidden beneath its surface. August 2019
9. Tàijí Classics: An important translation of the Tàijí Classics has been published. Highly recommended. June 2017
10. Aiki and Internal Training: Collected thoughts on the historical influence of Chinese martial arts on Japanese jujutsu and how they relate to the topic of aiki in Aikidō and Daitō-ryū. February 2017
11. NAMT Night of Budō 2013: Reflections on a demonstration of Araki-ryū and Tenshin Bukō-ryū at the NAMT 2013 Night of Budo by Ellis Amdur. June 2013
12. On the cultivation of skill: A brief discussion of power generation in internal martial arts. May 2011

End Notes