Sunday

Simplicity

At the root of finding balance in your life is a commitment to simplicity.
When things become ornate, over-complicated and embellished, they lose their essence.
Tai chi chuan is about getting in touch with the real: what is right in front of you.

The extraneous is removed, and the material is pared-down to only what you need.
To what matters.

When you have the essentials, there is economy. You are not burdened by the superfluous.

Saturday

An alternative

A lot of Western people start the day by smoking a cigarette, listening to the radio/watching TV, reading a newspaper and having a cup of coffee.

Tai chi chuan offers an alternative.
Instead of feeling groggy and tired in a morning, you feel invigorated, relaxed, alert, calm and clear-headed.
You start the day from a position of strength, rather than weakness.

Friday

Stuffy?

There can be something rather stuffy about tai chi chuan people gliding around a hall in slow motion.
The slow motion form is only one aspect of the curriculum yet it has become the most easily recognised symbol of tai chi chuan.

Beginners occasionally take themselves and their tai chi chuan far too seriously. It is important to have fun.
Master Waller does not allow any posing or showing off.

Thursday

Out of joint

Modern life is filled with distractions that distort your perception of reality and make you feel strung out and tired.
Television, computers, junk food, noisy neighbours, work, videogames, mobile phones, driving and family problems can all make you feel unhappy and agitated.

It is important to find ways to earth yourself. To be centred once again and complete.

To find stillness and quiet. To rest. To stop
. Exotic practices are not required.
You do not need to join some esoteric meditation group.
You can find tranquillity and balance without even leaving your house.

Wednesday

Improved nervous system

As the practitioner incorporates the quality of tai chi movement into his life, he finds that he stops banging into things. The result of not falling into each step provides the opportunity to instantaneously ease back from unexpected barriers.
 
  (Wolfe Lowenthal)

Monday

Beginner

Beginners must have knowledge of the basic 16 qigong exercises, along with the initial partnered drills.
There is limited martial training.

The emphasis is upon improved coordination, relaxation and a grasp of the rudimentary theoretical considerations.

Saturday

Weapons work in our curriculum

Master Waller is currently teaching:

· Knife drills
· Countering a knife
· Escapes/knife
· Chin na against a knife
· Improvised weaponry/knife
· Small stick drills
· Stick drills
· Broadsword drills
· 2 person cane form/drill
·
Sabre form
· Staff form
· 
Walking stick form
· Straight sword form

Some of this training is suitable for tai chi for health & fitness students.

Thursday

Training together

It can be great fun for a couple to attend tai chi chuan classes together.
Freed from the daily cares of your lives, you can spend time with one another whilst engaged in a productive activity.

As well as relaxing and having a laugh in class, there is always the possibility of practicing at home between lessons.

Tuesday

Theory and manifestation

When you learn anything, there are always two aspects to the learning. One is the internal theoretical understanding of the matter, and the other is the manifestation, verification and/or the application of the theory. From theory, you gain internal comprehension. From applications, you verify and validate the usefulness of the theory. Both of these aspects mutually support each other.

 (Yang Jwing-Ming)

Saturday

Grading

Students are corrected in class during the course of an ordinary lesson but this is not in-depth.
More detailed assessment is necessary.

In order to encourage progress, we grade our students every 12 weeks.
The instructor works one-to-one with each student; offering insights, corrections, tips & pointers.
Being assessed in this way is tremendously beneficial.
The student has many new considerations to work on and they can see what their owns strengths and weaknesses are.

Movement through the grades is quite slow in the internal arts.
The required quality is high.
Patience and practice will assure steady progress.

Monday

Programming

You have also been programmed not to suspect, not to doubt,
just to trust the assumptions that have been put into you by your tradition,
your culture, your society, your religion.
And if you are not happy, you have been trained to blame yourself,
not your programming, not your cultural, and inherited ideas and beliefs.
What makes it even worse is the fact that most people are so brainwashed
that they do not even realize how unhappy they are
- like the man in a dream who has no idea he is dreaming.

(Anthony De Mello)

Sunday

Inner demons

Whilst it is appropriate to be concerned about the emergence of aggression in your practice, be aware that we all possess 'good' and 'bad' aspects of our nature. It is part of what makes us human.

Do not let the unpleasant insight weigh too heavily upon you. Learn from the experience. Have awareness.

But do not be too hard on yourself. Just be careful. That's all.

Any martial art worth learning involves risks, dangers and opportunities to come face to face with our inner demons. What matters is not the demons themselves but how we choose to cope with them.

Saturday

Harmony

When you become one with your tai chi chuan and tao, things will happen that you cannot readily explain.
These are not supernatural events.
By removing the barriers between yourself and everything else, you move in rhythm with the universe and benefit from this harmony.

Thursday

Why bother learning an internal art?

Why bother learning an internal art?

There is more to life than buying goods, eating, sleeping, drinking alcohol and watching TV.
You are more than this.

Tai chi chuan and baguazhang train your body and mind to move in a graceful, natural, healthy, functional way.
Strength, flexibility, vitality and good humour typically emerge.
Greater harmony and balance is found.

You look at life a little differently.