THE WHIRLING SWORD SHOOTING TECHNIQUE by Mihai Cozmei

THE WHIRLING SWORD SHOOTING TECHNIQUE

It's a super fast archery form, shaped and adjusted for the optimal use of the Living Arrow Flying quiver.
Considering the basic model for fast shooting, "pulling the rope", we can get a higher rate of fire by shortening the motion of the right hand at loading.
Instead of swinging the drawing elbow forth and back along a circular trajectory (see The Circular Method), we choose for a shorter motion of the right elbow, almost on a straight line.

The drawing elbow, kept quite low and connected always with the right side of the upper body, become the center for the motions of the right forearm.
The inclinations in front (at loading), and back (at release), of the forearm (combined with the elastic motions of the right hand bending from the wrist), are accelerating considerable the rotation of the arrow at loading, like a whirling sword.
The release became more crispy and faster as well, giving the possibility to make a smooth connection between the shooting phase and the loading phase, without any kind of pause or delay.

This adjustments, made basically just for increasing the rate of fire, are coming along with an other important change of the archery form.
Shortening the range of action for the right hand, it means that the nocking is completed in front of the right side of the chest.
The bow hand remains slightly out from the middle line as well, obliging the archer to perform a side drawing technique as taught in some Kyudo schools.

This side position is making the job of the drawing hand a lot easier, but is very challenging for the bow hand.
The left arm, bended slightly to the right side in the beginning of the drawing, is stretching fast and gradually, reaching the straight form at release.
With other words, the forward punch is not straight anymore, but slightly oblique like punching sideways with the back part of the fist.

The feeling of shooting arrows in this way is very similar for me with the one I had in childhood playing a spinning flying disc.
The dynamic of the right hand is leading and determining directly the motions of the left hand.
The action of the bow arm is more "passive-aggressive" as the uncoiling of a suddenly unstringing bow.

More than a perfect technique and correct bow grasping this drawing method requires already a good control of the inner energy, associated with a proper breathing.
Well done, is causing also a powerful follow through (katrah), increasing considerable the velocity of the arrow.

Is not adviced for the beginners and before start practicing this technique is good to wait for the next tutorial (which is supposed to deal with the breathing and the exact technique of the bow arm).