Show me

Baguazhang is not easy to learn.  
A student must show aptitude as well as enthusiasm.

If you can demonstrate that you have been training hard and are making progress, then you can study the art.

No one

Sifu Waller does not have any lineage students yet.
Nobody has demonstrated the integrity necessary to perpetuate the art.

The Tai Chi Book by Robert Chuckrow

Gentle

The trick with taijiquan is to keep your training mild.
It is not a gym workout.
You are not meant to be sweating and straining.

Go easy on yourself.

Little and often is the key.
If the training is gentle but works your muscles nicely, then it is easy to sustain and your energy levels will stay high.
Overdo-it and you will suffer from fatigue, aching joints and sore muscles.

Indications of the external

People often think that they are using internal power but are still tensing their muscles or just moving their arms.

These are the telltale signs:

1. Pushing when delivering force
    
2. Their arms tremble when you push them
    
3. There is no 'give' (folding) in the joints
    
4. They push back into you rather than employing inherent peng to absorb and channel the force (yielding)
    
5. Wardoff/peng is seen as a stiff barrier rather than a springy 'feeler'

Optimism

Hope is a desire for change combined with a certain expectancy.
It is often considered to be a dreamy quality - a little naive and unrealistic.
Yet, hope has given comfort to many people in despair.
At the heart of hope lies the possibility of improvement, the belief in change.

Is it so naive to be hopeful? To be optimistic? Things do change in the world.

Negative thoughts

Loss of temper is a psychological reaction.

This means that you have a choice concerning your own behaviour.
It is not necessary to lose your temper.

Try meditation, contemplation or reading book about your problem. Find constructive ways to avoid conflict.

Leave no footprints

Taoism is unique in that it is probably the only major religion in the world whose practitioners as a rule have not sought great secular power. In the past, taoists took on such power only out of necessity to correct specific abuses. After these excesses had been corrected, they were always ready to relinquish the power and fade away, or "leave no footprints" as they put it.

(Bruce Frantzis)

Struggling

If a beginner is struggling to come to terms with baguazhang palm changes (form), then they should focus on learning the tai chi chuan form instead.
It is far easier to learn and requires a lesser degree of balance and coordination. 

We will not allow a beginner to struggle for too long.
You will have a chance to see for yourself that your ambitions exceed your ability.
If you fail to see this, we will ask you to focus on the tai chi chuan instead.

Paring away

Sifu has practiced and then dropped more forms, exercises and drills than I've even learned. He's got no problem casting aside many years of work, never to pick it up again.

I don't get it personally, but he's unsentimental. He just walks away from things and never returns. His training is constantly being re-evaluated. Sifu changes his personal routine frequently; depending upon his current emphasis. His only interests are martial pragmatism and health.

(Shaun Ullah)

Feedback

What you are doing is very special - nothing like it in this area!

(Steve Pardue)

Weapons work in our curriculum

Tai chi chuan practice involves training with weapons:

· Knife drills
· Countering a knife
· Escapes/knife
· Chin na against a knife
· Broadsword drills
· Broadsword form
· Staff drills 
· Staff form
· 2 person staff form/drill
· Small stick drills
· Improvised weaponry/knife

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

Val