Durham

Is san da fighting?

Close, but not quite.
The purpose of a fight is to defeat an opponent, win a bout, score points etc.
San da serves a different purpose...

Your aim is to attack and defend skilfully using aspects of the art that work for you.
There are two reasons for learning this:

1. To defend yourself against another martial artist
2. To assist family/friends who are being assaulted

With the pressure of unpredictability, you find out what you can pull off.

Answers

When asking a question, it is important to consider just how receptive you are to the answer.

People consider themselves receptive but are often far from it.

If you were to ask: “How old are you?” you might expect a numerical value in response. “Older than a bird but younger than a mountain” may not be the answer you had in mind. It tells you something but lacks the familiar specificity.

So when the answer is not what you want to hear, what does that tell you? Are you asking the wrong question? Do you have an expectation in mind?

Turtle

Questions

Have you ever considered what people intend by questioning?

Is the question a request for confirmation? Some sort of agreement? Proof of knowledge? Or a desire for approval? Is it simply rhetorical?

Or is the question something else? Surely a good question is pitched without expectation?

Parody

There is a serious danger in showing advanced material to a beginner.

At best, they will not see or understand what you are doing. At worst, they will parody your body mechanics, perhaps undermining their basic training completely.

A beginner lacks the necessary physical experience to replicate more advanced material and can only reasonably relate it to what they already know. Their attempt is apt to miss the detail and further hamper progress.

The outcome is the product of the means, the process. If you try to jump to the end without the means to accomplish the result, you can only have an external copy, lacking the real substance required.

All things come in time, and seeing slightly ahead is fine – it gives people something to think about. Too far ahead, and they loose sight of the immediate.

A class near me?

This e-mail is sent by somebody or other almost every week:

"Do you have any classes near where I live? I have looked on your website and can’t see one."

How are you supposed to reply?

Winter in Durham

Brain work

Tai chi is mentally demanding, rather than physical. Concentration is the hardest part.

There is nothing in the syllabus that requires gymnastic abilities. The work is 10% body, 90% mind.

Inherent peng

Inherent peng is a passive connection underpinned by groundpath. It makes your body feel rubbery – kind of firm, yet springy too. It is an allowing, not a doing.

How do you test for inherent peng?

Gently push the limbs or body of a tai chi student. They should maintain the posture without locking the joints or fixing (tensing) the muscles. There will be give, but the overall sense will be of resilience.

If you push too hard, they will yield further and allow your push to move them. They should not crumple or resist.

Nearly every tai chi person you work with tenses-up when you touch them. The ones who don't tense-up, but softly allow you to move them are yielding, and understand.

Is it necessary to stand for long periods of time?

Some qigong teachers expect students to hold static qigong postures for lengthy periods of time; even up to an hour.
This may be a challenge but the side-effect might easily be varicose veins, massive amounts of muscular tension and a decrease in higher level mobility.

Feedback

Great website/database by the way. I love the way it opens up organically as you explore and make progress...
 
 (Robin)

Differentiation

Teacher training offered a variety of focus areas to specialise in. 'Differentiation' was the obvious choice: helping all students to access the curriculum, irrespective of ability.

Differentiation is important in a tai class too. The skilled must be challenged, the strugglers must be assisted, and everyone must make progress at their own pace, and in their own time.

No pressure, no punishment, no flattery. The potential of each person must be drawn out and realised.

No consensus

Some people consider an advanced level of practice to indicate mastery, whilst others do not.

The Tai Chi Union for Great Britain call their basic tai chi chuan instructors 'advanced' and their master grade 'senior'.
The Chinese Wushu Association, National Sport Commission and the Chinese Wushu Research Institute consider 'advanced' to indicate grandmaster.
There is no consensus.

Feedback

Watching sifu with the higher grades it struck me how he uses minimal movement and effort, it makes other martial arts seem very clumsy and disjointed, the more I see the more I am starting to appreciate the beauty behind the tai chi art.

I have on my messenger "There are no ordinary moments! especially in tai chi" and each lesson with you two does not disappoint.

(Damian)

Aiming high?

Peter Southwood maintains that tai chi students often have very high aspirations but very low commitment in terms of training.

Most people make good progress through weekly lessons, and never train at home.

But if your aims are high, you must practice daily. You need an organised routine that covers all the fundamentals. Just don't over-do it.

Our top student attends 14 classes a month and trains an hour a day at home. His practice is not perfect but his understanding is far deeper and ingrained than anybody else's.

Peter Southwood's tips #12 Armed attackers and gangs

Progress onto multiple opponents and weaponry.
You remain unarmed.

Assume nothing.
Expect everything.

"He learned it me"

This statement is a common misconception amongst students.

It is the student that does the learning. They are the ones who must endeavour to learn. Teaching is the process of offering material and then approaching it from a wide variety of perspectives in order to encourage individual understanding, exploration and responsibility.

Responsibility is the main theme here. Until a student is willing to take responsibility for their own wellbeing and progress, they do not learn.

Feedback

I think the shredding of pre-conceived ideas of what 'tai chi' is was very important (and still is) in the early/beginner stages. My health has improved - not just physically - also an increase in general wellbeing. I have a lot of respect for the school and the instructor and the helpers/senior students. It's a joy training with people who have real passion (I don't use the word lightly) for the art and teach it with respect and integrity. As a student you feel privileged to learn. The value of the art is apparent in both the teaching and the learning. There are no illusions about how long the journey of the student will be but one can be confident it will be undertaken in a safe environment.

(Rachel)

Self defence or performance art?

Some people may train pretty forms that work well in combat, but self defence has little to do with looking nice. Self defence is based on pragmatism, whereas performance art is interested in aesthetic appearance.

If you want to develop self defence skills, make self defence your primary concern. Pare away anything that is improbable, exaggerated or flamboyant - train only what you need to. Fans, swords and spears are not viable self defence tools for the 21st Century.

Lose everything that eats up your training time.

The importance of neigong

In our school, the form is just a vehicle for neigong. The postures and shapes of tai chi are a learning tool that trains alignment for application.

What fuels those applications? Neigong.

What softens the shapes into fluid movement? Neigong.

Ego in self defence

Don’t invite a fight, but face it if you have to.

Better to retreat a foot than advance an inch.

(Lao Tzu)

The first line is obvious but the second is more subtle. Lao Tzu is talking about yielding, about letting go of your ego and aggression, of backing down and losing face.

You know that you can fight, so you can walk away in the knowledge that if the assailant forces you to defend yourself, you will. But you would never instigate conflict.

'Advance an inch' refers to the getting-ready process - the telegraphing of your intention. You should be still and silent within, with your body soft and open. Do not prepare to the left or to the right, or your opponent may see it.

S A D

Is there such a thing as Seasonal Affective Disorder?

It would be easy to cultivate January depression:

1. In September, start counting the number of working weeks until Christmas
2. When it is closer to Christmas, count the number of working days
3. Remind yourself daily how close Christmas is
4. In October, start thinking about what you would like for Christmas - perhaps even write a list?
5. Consider who you will buy presents for
6. Plan what you are going to do over Christmas and who you intend to visit
7. Shop for presents
8. Give no real consideration to cost - go into debt when you run out of money
9. Allow your excitement to build and build
10. In December, trim your house and put up a tree

When all the presents are unwrapped and all the food and drink consumed, Christmas is revealed in all its glory: coloured lights, tinsel and wrapping paper. It is a hollow celebration.

January is when the bills arrive.

The chocolate manufacturers are already advertising Easter.

Alternate beauty

Last year we had a student who offered alternate health and beauty treatments for a living.

When she arrived at the class, she looked careworn and tired.
When she left, she looked younger and more vital.
This vitality is part of ‘shen’. tai chi is not a beauty treatment but it does release the muscles and improve wellbeing.

Burn the sofa

If your sofa or armchair does not allow you to sit upright – burn it.

The ‘slouch’ is bad for your spine, collapses the front of the body and creates a condition of depression. With your body crumpled in on itself, the muscles responsible for supporting the spine becomes lazy and weak.

Do not force the spine upright. Simply lengthen from the pelvis to the chin and just relax the spine.

Give your back a chance to support itself.

Sifu & Rachel in Durham

Example instructor (level 1) questions

Question: Who in class will volunteer to help you out?

- how does this tie-in with the taoist insights regarding' te'?

- how does this tie-in with the taoist insights regarding 'being genuine'?

- can you teach a non-volunteer how to be an instructor?

Magic? No. Just physics

The MEA House receptionist (Susan) was amazed to see Brian pitch Eddie clean across the hall yesterday and stood gawping as Eddie picked himself up off the ground.

She had never seen anything like it.

Nature

Excuses

When a student leaves the class, they typically need to justify it to themselves.
Rather than be honest, the individual blames the teacher, the art, the syllabus, the atmosphere.

In most cases, the teacher sees the seeds of their discontent months ahead.

If the student is keen, they are likely to seek out tuition elsewhere.
But this seldom happens.

I love the sound of rain

Movie

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v2uV0_1C4UM

Comparison

Sometimes people have studied a similar system before and use this as a benchmark for comparison; rather than the tai chi classics.

Comparison has some potential flaws: the first is you and your ability to correctly interpret what you are seeing.
With tai chi, what you see is not usually what you get - the whole point of the system is to hide the substance.

If you base your comparison on what you were taught; was the tai chi taught correctly and did you understand what you were taught?

As a beginner you will be shown what you need to see and told what you need to hear.
This will not be the full measure of the syllabus.
You are taught in accordance with your ability to learn.

Syllabus

The student/apprentice must follow a very detailed syllabus that teaches forms, skills, drills, strength and flexibility exercises, along with many insights.

There is a layering of skills: each level furnishing the student with a degree of knowledge and ability.
Each new level assumes understanding and skill garnered from the preceding levels.
Without a strong grasp of each specific layer, the overall standard is weak, and the comprehension and application will be poor indeed.

The layers of the syllabus are interlocking, interconnected and incremental.

Modern tai chi?

The painters today mix their brushes and ink with dust and dirt,
and their colours with mud, and smear the silk in vain.

How can this be called painting?

(Zhang Yenyuan)

Walk like a cat

Have you ever really watched how a cat walks?

Watch a cat walk along a wall...

The cat is very stealthy. The whole body is coiled and ready to move in any direction. There is caution and reserve, but also forward movement.

The cat is never prey to inertia.

Reality

The tai chi system is built upon certain key precepts and these must exist if your class is teaching real tai chi.

If these qualities are missing, then you are not even learning tai chi - regardless of how much you like the class.
Tai chi is not about popularity. It is not about who taught who. It is a martial art and has very clear guidelines for practice.

Not everyone cares for the degree of work required of a martial artist.
When many people start tai chi they imagine that it is an easy option; no work required yet wonderful results.
Life is not like this.

Clean slate

The syllabus is about leaving everything behind.

White belt was like learning a new language. Now you must extend your range.
Your body and mind may resist the unknown but you slowly improve and get the hang of it.

People who reach the end of the beginners syllabus imagine that they have moved on from their bad habits and preconceptions, only to find them alive and well, and hampering their progress.

It is only possible to complete the beginners syllabus when you start to leave bad habits behind.
A person is simply incapable of performing higher level material until the past has been left behind.

For many people, it will be a tough internal trial involving a lot of unnecessary frustration.
Many people quit. In fact most people quit.

Those who make serious progress in our syllabus are not the same people who started it; they have undergone a deep internal change.
Nothing worthwhile is easy.

Consider self defence...

Very few tai chi classes offer a credible self defence syllabus.
Usually it is absolute nonsense that crumples in the face of an earnest attacker, or it is an external parody of tai chi - a ju jitsu/wing chun/karate hybrid.

A tai chi student who is confident in self defence should be able to apply the system in accordance with the nature of tai chi.
No aggression. No tension. No force.
They must be adaptive, sensitive, fluid and imaginative. Above all else, they must be effective.

To learn tai chi properly, you must set your ideas aside and embrace the system.
Until you stop listening to your opinions and your ego, you cannot understand the nature of tai chi.

Patience & faith

Martial arts classes require patience and faith.

If your teacher can perform the skills themselves and is willing to teach them to you, that is enough.
If you have doubts, look at what the more experienced students are doing.
Do they possess skill?

Not all traditional teachers are willing to share the secrets of the art.
If your teacher is sharing their knowledge, be grateful.

Not accountable

As much as you may not like this fact, your teacher is not accountable to you.
They are not answerable.
They do not have to explain their reasons, motives and deeper intentions.

And if they did reply, you may not understand the reply.
Without context, meaning cannot exist.

Modern classes often embrace coaching and mentoring methods rather than the traditional military-style tuition.
But this is not an invitation to treat the lessons casually.

Unlearning bad habits

We teach an 'internal' martial art and follows the teachings of the tai chi classics.
In order to start learning the system, a student must begin by letting-go of postural tension and the desire to use clenched muscles for strength.

For some people this is a gargantuan task because they rely on their arms for strength and do not really want to let-go.
The problem is attitude, as much as body. Being open-minded and receptive is not easy.

Tai chi is a 'soft' martial art.
It maintains a loose connection throughout the body at all times and the muscles never tense.

Question to Sifu Waller re strength

Question: How do I move with strength?

Answer: Start with standing qigong. Ensure that your alignment is accurate. If you can use stand correctly, try moving qigong. Make sure that no inaccuracy occurs. Correct any mistakes. Now, try form. Beyond form, take the structural parameters into gentle partner work and learn about sensitivity. Finally, work on combat.

Sore shoulders

If you get sore shoulders when training your tai chi, look to your elbows.
Drop them.
Let them sink.

Make sure that you are not reaching too far from the body.

Experiment with reach and range.
If you feel anything in the shoulders, you are doing the art incorrectly.

Question to Sifu Waller re designing a syllabus

Question: Your syllabus is so complex yet it all slots together like a jigsaw. How did you design it?

Answer: A martial art cannot be taught piecemeal; it needs a thorough, inter-locking curriculum that builds an increasingly integrated understanding of the art.
It is important to start with the fundamentals; what are you doing and why?
What purpose do the exercises serve?

It is essential to remember to introduce new things incrementally, not haphazardly.

Scientifically 'proving' the worth of each lesson/insight is good practice.
That way, the student has tried various options and recognises why they are being taught material in a particular way.

To design a syllabus you need the benefit of hindsight.
You can see how the apparently separate pieces are all part of a greater puzzle, and you can cultivate connections and associations in the student.
Finally, you must be willing to trim off any superfluity.
If any topic does not connect with everything else, discard it ruthlessly.
Functionality requires integrity.

Tai chi chuan instructors

A tai chi chuan instructor needs at least 10 years of experience and a serious commitment to home practice.
Martial instructors must show clear evidence of ability in all 8 areas of skill.

An expert has 20 years study and 10,000 hours of practice.

A master should have 30-40 years martial arts experience, with at least 30,000 hours of tai chi practice.
They are capable of teaching other instructors.

A grandmaster must have taught an extensive number of high-level instructors.
They would be in a position of significant responsibility within a school and have influence within the wider tai chi/martial arts community.

Cost

Learning a martial art typically involves a considerable financial commitment:

1. Uniform & equipment
2. Insurance
3. Annual membership
4. Monthly standing order for lessons
5. Workshops
6. Resources

Sound pricey?
Imagine if you liked cross-country cycling, scuba diving, golf or fishing?
Or if you wanted to learn a new language or how to play an instrument?
Would it cost less?

A martial artist is paying to learn a skill: self defence.
That skill typically involves getting fit and healthy, confident and happy.

Many martial art styles and systems can only be practiced safely until a certain age.
You can continue tai chi indefinitely; and it will keep on improving your health and wellbeing.
Tai chi is a lifelong investment.

Despite all these considerations, the real commitment is time and energy, not money.

Real curriculum

Many tai chi classes are tutored by people who have seen a fraction and believe it to be the whole.
Teaching people a fragmented view of tai chi is deceptive; it denies the student the richness of the complete art.

No matter what the style, tai chi practice must always contain the tai chi principles.

Any genuine tai chi teacher should be able to demonstrate the abilities mentioned on the principles list.

The teacher should also possess personal liability insurance and be following a coherent, methodical syllabus.

It is not enough for the teacher to understand tai chi. They must also be able to teach it to you.

Sifu with a staff

Black belt

By black belt, a tai chi student should have working self defence skills comparative to any other martial art.
Ideally, the body use will be subtle, effortless and internal (to some extent).

In tai chi, your black belt is the end of the basics and the beginning of the serious work.
The grades ahead of you require sophisticated body use and a refined degree of physical sensitivity.
The journey has only just begun.

Feedback

You are a rare teacher, I hope your students appreciate this.

 (Ron B)

Attire

Dress in bland, dull colours and outfits that do not draw any form of attention.
Avoid anything that catches the eye or makes you stand out.
Your aim is to be background, not foreground.

Wear loose, comfortable clothing that enables freedom of movement, and footwear that allows for rapid, nimble footwork.

Trying

Trying tires you out.

There is a significant difference between trying, doing and allowing. tai chi is a balance between doing and allowing, with more emphasis upon the latter. There is no trying in tai chi.

If you are trying, then it is not happening naturally - it doesn't want to happen. Trying is a kind of forcing, a resistance to what is.

Aging is inevitable

Life passes by so quickly and before you realise it, you are 40 years old.
So what?
Should we be concerned about getting older?
Is 40 a significant age?

What you think about aging is your own business. However, you cannot ignore your physical body.
You may feel like a 20 year old, but you are not 20 anymore.
It is important to accept your age.
Aging brings with it certain considerations, concerns and limitations.

Health

Ultimately, tai chi works on health first of all.
If your body is not strong, fit and balanced, what use is it in self defence?

You may take longer to gain combat skills, but how many other martial arts can be trained almost all of your life?
How many medical studies/journals cite the positive health benefits of tai chi?

Do you read any equivalent journals regarding judo?
Maybe, but it seems doubtful.
In some martial arts you are deemed 'a veteran' by the age of 40. You gracefully retire and become a judge/referee.

Work

Every martial art requires dedication and commitment. There are no shortcuts or exceptions.

Internal or external arts are the same in this regard.
Although the training itself may be markedly different, the need for sustained hard work is the same.

If you expect to use tai chi as a martial art, be prepared to put in the time and effort.

Topics

We cannot cover every topic every lesson. There is not enough time.

If you are unsure about a topic, then ask.
We can either look at it after 8:00 PM as part of the lesson.
Remember: you must practice and maintain the skill for yourself.

You will not remember a topic if you do not practice it.

Family first

It is very common for students to imagine that private lessons and long-term practice with an instructor guarantees receipt of the inner teachings.  
This is naive.
Traditionally, the secret workings of an art were passed on to family members first.
After family members, lineage students were the next consideration.

Everyone else was taught relative to their degree of commitment, and this seldom entailed the secret material.

No time?

Remember, it is up to you how much or how little you choose to train.

You may want to do a lot. You may not even want to train at home.

That is fine. It is your choice.

Awareness

Be gentle with your body. Treat it with care.

High repetitions and exotic stances are not tai chi training methods.
Train with mindfulness.
With attention.
Pay attention to what you are doing, and train it slowly, thoroughly and cautiously.
If anything feels unpleasant, something is wrong.

Lazy

It will not get easier.
If you are lazy now, expect difficulties ahead of you.

We are expecting your fitness level to improve as you move up the curriculum.
This should happen naturally.
You grow stronger, fitter and far more capable.

But it will not happen by itself.

Gentle

The trick with tai chi 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.

Form

This is the cornerstone of your tai chi training.

If you are neglecting to practice this daily at home, then you are missing out on a major training opportunity.
The form offers you a chance to train everything at the same time.

Western

In the Western world we have no conception of how hard Chinese and Japanese people traditionally train.
We are soft and lazy.

Our culture is idle and pampered. We want everything doing for us.

In the martial arts, the hardship and the work is the whole point of the training.
You are not working towards a goal. You are simply working.

Qigong

If you train the qigong exercises at home every day, your chest will open and you will start to develop greater strength.
You will breathe more deeply and your endurance will improve.

There will be a notable change in your physical appearance.

Dreamy

The less you try, the more will happen.

'Folding' and 'sung' will be introduced in the experienced syllabus.
These two qualities are passive; they are allowing rather than doing.
They teach you to 'step out of your own way' and let the tai chi do its work.

As a beginner you must learn to relax.
Do your moves in an almost dreamy manner; drifting rather than forcing.
Pause regularly and allow your weight to settle.

Power will grow imperceptibly.

More to life than money

The philosophical side of tai chi suits the older mind. You have lived a little, and you can look back and contemplate. What you explore in the tai chi has context, it can be applied to the fabric of your life.

There is more to life than money. Instead of having a mid-life crisis, learn tai chi. Do something practical.

Theatrical?

Tai chi is often seen as being a bit 'theatrical'.
It lacks the apparent brutality of boxing or karate.

The emphasis is upon gentle qualities: softness, yielding, receptivity and openness.
Ask yourself: do these indicate fear?
Which characteristics suggest fear: a tense, locked, hunched body or a friendly, relaxed, open one?

Yang

The standard Yang set today is Yang Cheng Fu's final revision of 85 postures, which he demonstrated in his book published in 1936. Most of the other books published since then, including many Western ones, are either variations or reflections of the author's own personal expression of the set.

One should note that right from its creation, Yang tai chi has always been combat-oriented. Yang Cheng Fu always emphasised that the set should be practiced with its martial applications in mind. These applications may be taught through the fast set, individual posture explanations, tui shou (push hands), san shou (fixed-step sparring) and san da (free sparring).

(Alex Yeo)

Staff form

Rachel/tae kwon do

Rachel in her tae kwon do costume. Half a lifetime ago.

Completed by 3rd form!

Today I finished learning the pattern of the sabre form. I'm really happy. It was hard work but seems quite short in hindsight. Learning the YCF and baguazhang palm changes was much harder!

Sabre form

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.

Experienced power

The experienced student finally learns how to use the art.
They have accumulated enough knowledge and practice for the power to have grown.
When the power reaches the necessary level, taijiquan skills emerge without effort or contrivance.

The student has changed: physically, mentally and energetically.
They are skilled enough to accord with the way, and can borrow power (te).

Feedback

I never get the chance to talk to you as we leave in a hurry after class but I would like to say in this email how much we admire and respect you, your clarity and common sense approach to many aspects of the martial arts cuts through so much crap taught by others; we are humbled and honoured for you allowing us to train with you, I do not think some of the other students understand the difference between other classes and yours, believe me we do; I guess because we involved with other stuff we can appreciate just how awesome the art is you teach.

I was talking to Jonothan going home tonight and we remarked on just how deep Tai chi penetrates into every aspect of our lives, moving, thinking, interaction with others, it really pervades everything you do when you allow it to.

It must be frustrating to have all this cool stuff and not be able to get it across to the general public.

(Damian)

Periods of absence/poor attendance

When a student misses a lot of lessons it is common for the quality of their tai chi to severely diminish.

We offer two opportunities:

1. Begin the syllabus from scratch
2. Re-assessment

Option 2 costs £25 and the student will be assessed by Sifu Waller and awarded the appropriate grade.

Flowers

Breathing hard?

If you are tired and out of breath after a few minutes of training, then you are simply not fit enough.
The training has barely started.

You must improve your fitness considerably if you want to complete the fundamentals.
This means training qigong and form regularly, along with perhaps walking, jogging, swimming or cycling between lessons.

Fantasy?

People like the idea of tai chi but not necessarily the reality.
They want a quick fix, instant fighting skills or the ability to perform beautifully choreographed routines after a couple of lessons. This is fantasy.

Some unscrupulous teachers promise tai chi skills overnight but they are deceiving their students.
As with any martial art, a tai chi student must commit to weekly lessons and daily practice.
There are no shortcuts.

Timeless

It is important to remember that a martial arts class is not modern in nature.
When you enter the training hall, you must leave modern culture at the door.
You are partaking in a tradition that has continued for centuries.

Fashion, politics and mass media are ephemeral things. They have no substance.
Tai chi has been practiced for centuries.

Form collecting

If all you learn is a lot of forms, you just become a good dancer.

(James Wing Woo)

Tao Te Ching

The title of Lao Tzu's book 'Tao Te Ching' is often translated to mean the way and its power.
This can be misleading, as many people assume that tao means way/road/route and suggests a path of some sort.
The book is an investigation of reality itself.
Lao Tzu studied nature and existence in order to better understand the way in which the world operated.
Modern physics does the same thing but works on the basis of hypothesis; which means starting from the known in order to understand the unknown.

Whilst both taoism and physics study the physical world, they differ quite radically in approach.

Taoism recognises that a person must lose knowledge - in the form of comparison, conditioning, education, measurement, opinions, preconceptions - in order to see reality without bias.

There is a folly in applying the characteristics of the known to the unknown.

Modern culture

Modern culture is filled with people who have 'attitude'.

Being cocky and macho is applauded. Showing off is encouraged.
People like to be sarcastic.
They enjoy being a 'smartass'.

Television is littered with talent shows and programmes that embrace the more unpleasant aspects of human nature.
Ugly traits are fostered.

Expectations

Students of tai chi often want to learn tai chi as a martial art.
Having read a few tai chi books, they expect to acquire skills that exceed those of wing chun, karate, aikido or ju jitsu.
This sounds like a reasonable ambition.

But the individual is seldom prepared to put in the time or effort necessary.

A student of judo may train 2-3 times a week in class.
How can a tai chi person expect comparative skills when they only attend 1 class each week?

Stop

We are constantly caught up in speculative activities that upset our sense of balance.
Driving is one of the worst culprits.
It involves countless variables, very real danger and a limited margin for error.
Careful driving requires your nervous system to be very alert.
You may be in a condition of 'fight or flight' without even realising it.

We encourage students to commit 15 minutes a day to a lie down.
They adopt the 'constructive rest' position on the floor and close their eyes.
Gentle music soothes the nerves. The sound of the birds outside and the feel of the breeze calms the mind.
The tension sinks into the floor.
The student stops.

For many people, this is the first real rest they've had all day.

People set time aside to watch television, but are not prepared to invest in rest.
The 15 minutes spent resting on the floor may well be the most important 15 minutes of the entire day.

Democracy

People are often reluctant to follow instructions. They get smart with the teacher or seek to debate the issue.
Martial arts classes are not democratic.
This is not politics.

A class is different: the teacher has the knowledge and the student does not.
The purpose of the class is the transmission of information.

If the teacher is not happy with the student, they will withhold information.
The student has no means at their disposal to coerce the teacher.
Democracy does not enter into it.

Meadow

Firm yet empty?

The centre must be 'empty' - meaning that no one can locate it.
To make the centre empty, you must move it in accordance with the incoming force.
Any form of bodily tension or bracing will ruin this.

At the same time the centre must be strong enough to allow the body to sink and have substance.

Emptiness and substance must balance in order to represent yin and yang.
How is this accomplished?

When you evade/yield, you empty the centre.
When you strike, you firm the centre at the moment of impact - adding power to the attack.

Do not stray

There will be a tremendous temptation to collect forms, accumulate drills and qigong exercises. Do not bother.
Pare your material down constantly.

The larger your curriculum, the less you understand it.
Specialise.

Foundation

If you want power in your tai chi, begin with your lower body.
Without a firm foundation, power cannot be expressed through the framework.
Your feet must have three points of contact and the weight balanced equally between front and rear of each foot.

Move up to the pelvis.
The pelvis must be stable, with most of the work happening in the hip joint.

Now focus upon the torso.
It must be comfortably upright, without strain; lengthening from the hip to the crown.

Without these basic skeletal requirements in place, your structure will crumple if you deliver through it.

Shen

Form without shen is simply a hollow pattern.
You may have the positioning, the movements and the timing right, but that is all.
Knowing the 13 postures will help to develop your sense of jing, but something is still missing.
Performing the applications is not enough either.

Intention is a start, but you need something more. You need spirit. Shen.

Relationship

Balance does not necessitate accord.
You do not need to be in agreement with others to find balance with them.
You may want to pursue a certain approach and your partner may not share this view.

Each may stand on their side of the line/issue and get along perfectly well.
Conflict (internal or external) occurs when one of you expects the other to step across that line.
Why should you? Why should the other person?

You are not the same person.
You are entitled to have a different perspective.
Trying always to please another is not balanced, it is merely submissive.

Sifu exploring

Show offs

Students of the martial arts in the West feel that they must use their art to fight, or at least to compete, to show people how good they are. In tai chi, this is unacceptable, because that is against the principle of tai chi.

(Gabriel Chin)

Force

The more ardently you force the tai chi to work, the slower your progress will be.
You must let-go.

People do not like the fact that tai chi does not embrace aggression and force, but this is not just a philosophy.
Tao stems from observing nature; seeing the physics of it.

Being in the moment

Lying on the floor and doing chores will help you to collect your thoughts, calm down and stop.
Hanging out laundry and cleaning are considered 'beneath' many people.

This is a foolish conceit.

No one is any better or worse than anyone else.
What standard could you possibly be applying if you feel that you are 'above' other people?

There is something truly wholesome about cooking a meal from scratch or planting your own vegetables.

Hanging out the washing or organising the drying is relaxing. Be slow. Be thorough.
Do it like it matters. As if there were nothing else in the world worth doing.

These so-called mundane tasks are opportunities to take a break from the bustle of driving or the flickering of the internet and television.

Flowers

Instructor

To teach tai chi as a complete martial art, you must be more than competent, more than expert.
In our school, instructor training takes place after you have passed 3rd dan.

Teaching the art requires you to transcend the norm, to exceed your expectations, to be mastered by the art itself.
In modern culture too many people adopt the mantle of instructor prematurely. Their combat skills are shoddy, and 4 ounces, softness, jing and neigong are not utilised in their practice.

If you want to be an instructor, you must have something to pass on. Something that adheres to the tradition, but also more than this... something that comes from you, from your own experience of the way.

Beyond instructor there are more grades. These are reserved for those who are scholarly and innovative. People who can comprehend, dismantle and re-build in original and surprising ways.

Obedience?

Following instructions has little to do with obedience and everything to do with self defence.
If you cannot act without preamble, you will be defeated in combat.

Thinking, worrying, planning and dithering will cause you to falter in action.
This deficiency will let you down.

When instructed to do something, just do it.
If the directions are unclear, ask for confirmation. But refrain from argument, discussion or debate.
Just act.

Voltaire wrote: Men argue. Nature acts.