Tree

Meadow

Feeling good

Relaxing both mind and body will improve your health and make you feel better.
Your quality of life will change.
It takes time to re-balance, so you must be patient.

The commitment you make towards being relaxed will prove itself worthwhile when you start to feel fresh and energised.

Masterwork/masterpiece

Traditionally, mastery was confirmed by the production of some proof of skill.
In terms of tai chi this can be demonstrated in a wide variety of ways.

After a 20 year Master/disciple relationship, Peter Southwood awarded Sifu Waller advanced-level 'Master' status in the Year of the Tiger .
He said that Sifu Waller should start wearing the red sash instead of black.

Sifu Waller began as an apprentice, proceeded through the journeyman stage, culminating in the production of a masterwork/masterpiece.
Peter Southwood felt that Sifu Waller qualified as a Tai Chi Master on the basis of the following accomplishments:

1. The 1300 page website giving unparalleled insight into tai chi
2. Exceptionally good shuai jiao, chin na, jing and form applications
3. His grasp of whole-body strength, how to cultivate it, refine it and teach it
4. His study of taoism and the Tai Chi Classics and his skill in infusing the art with the requisite principles
5. The production of a professional-quality syllabus, complete with logical, comprehensive grades, belts and assessment

Prioritise

If you do not want to commit a lot of time to the training, you need to stagger the material.
Prioritise.

Address the main material as often as you can, and then stagger the rest over a few days.

Covent Garden tube station

Buckingham Palace

The Eye

Squirrel watching sifu train

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5WFLzGJeRFw

Covent Garden

Covent Garden tube station

At the top of the stairs. No one else climbed with us.

193 steps

Covent Garden tube station. The climb felt endless.

St Pancras

Pao chui, St James' Park

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=chT8sap9xpo

Tai chi in St James' Park

St Pancras

London trip

Busy London

I practiced my form and pao chui in St James's Park at around 6:30 AM.
Even then, the roads were busy with speeding cars.

Hobos were sleeping rough in the park.

There was a very inquisitive squirrel.
It had no shyness to it and came quite close to watch.
Rachel filmed it.

French pastry shop

London trip

Rachel and I visited the Malaysian embassy in order to register our marriage there. The Malaysian staff were lovely.

However, London is not a good place if you are a tai chi person...

1. Pollution
2. Cigarette smoke
3. Dirt in the air
4. Muggy heat
5. Ambient noise all day and night
6. People rushing
7. Tension
8. Aggression
9. Stress
10. Traffic
11. Population density

Maybe the outskirts are better, but there is no ease to be had in London city.
No relaxation.
No calm.
No composure.
No stopping.

Frenzy, bustle, agitation, restlessness.

We returned after 3 hot days to find the North East cold and wet.
The following morning we walked around Jesmond Dene and marvelled at how few people there were on the streets.

Carnaby Street

Carnaby Street map

Wellington Monument

National Geological Society

London trip

National Geological Society

Neal's Yard

Pall Mall

Neal's Yard

Carnaby Street

Rachel

Neal's Yard

Flowers

Neal's Yard

Massive Freemason building near Drury Lane

Preparation

There is a story about a king who wanted an artist to paint a bird.
The king asked the artist how long it would take him to produce the painting. The artist said "One year."
A year passed and the king called upon the artist.
The artist promptly proceeded to paint the bird whilst the king watched.

The king asked, "Why did you tell me that it would take you a year?"
The artist took him into a room. The room was littered with practice paintings, sketches of birds and research material.
The year of preparation enabled the artist to paint the bird spontaneously.

Living

Taoism is concerned with the art of living.

Taoism is not a religion or a belief system. It is only interested in observable reality. Not ideas and concepts.

Consider: if a person were to truly follow nature, they would need no form, no tuition, no words and no doubts.
A cat is not anxious or troubled. Nor is a tree.
They simply exist and they move in accordance with what they are. With their own natures.
We (humans) do not.

What we refer to as taoism is simply the act of working with nature, rather than against it.

Bogus claims

My friend told me of a tai chi student who took private lessons sporadically with a Chinese master for only 3 years and now is claiming to be an 'indoor student' despite teaching a different style of tai chi and in no way perpetuating the master's teachings.

This seems odd.

By contrast, Sifu enjoyed a 20 year master/student relationship with his teacher Peter Southwood. It ended with Peter's sad death in June 2010.

Shredded tai chi suit

I got a taijiquan suit from: http://www.oriental-fashion.co.uk/

It literally shredded when I tried to do my tai chi form in it. The jacket shoulder split at the seam and the crotch ripped wide open.

Appalling workmanship.

To date, the supplier is not communicating with me.

Tai chi in Tynemouth?

Rachel spotted a lady stood dead centre in the middle of the beach in Tynemouth. The lady was performing some unfathomable exercises. Our friends pointed out that this was 'tai chi'.

Isn't it scary how the general pubic lump any and all odd exercise into the box labelled 'tai chi'?

What the lady was doing looked bizarre, and after 20+ years of tai chi, I can honestly say that it bore no resemblance whatsoever to any tai chi I have ever encountered.

Imagine if tai chi practitioners were required to adhere to some kind of standard?

Water

Leaves

Sifu outdoors

What is the point of a corporate session?

Tai chi is an excellent way to encourage staff to relax and unwind during the busy day.
It reduces stress, improves health and generates a sense of well-being.
Corporate sessions are an ideal introduction to tai chi.

Schools, rest homes and other organisations are quite welcome to book a corporate session.

Georgina played with her food

So teddy took the initiative...

Rachel

Softness of mind

If the mind is rigid and inflexible, then the body will be too.
Mental tension is a kind of anticipation; a preparation for expected events.

We must learn not to anticipate and to go with the flow of what is happening instead.

Everyday mind

The state of mind should remain the same as normal...
let there be no change at all - with the mind open and direct,
neither tense nor relax,
centering the mind so that there is no imbalance,
calmly relax your mind,
and savour this moment of ease thoroughly,
so that the relaxation does not stop its relaxation for even an instant.

(Miyamoto Musashi)

What is yielding?

One of the most difficult aspects of learning tai chi is yielding or softness.
On a crude level, softness refers to the muscles being relaxed rather than tense, the joints being mobile rather than held.
This is really just the beginning.

Philosophy & religion

Our school does not subscribe to or promote any form of organised religion, philosophy or faith.

The study of taoism and zen can be likened to physics or chemistry; they are more about science than religion in the conventional sense.
Neither are 'philosophical' in nature - both are simply the observation of reality.

If you think of taoism as being an 'ism', as being some sort of religion or philosophy, study further.
You have perhaps misunderstood.

Riddick 3

http://riddick-3-movie-trailer.blogspot.com/

Mrs Waller in Newcastle

Commitment

Your aim is to use just enough power to pull off the application.

Make contact, feel the bite and then come off immediately.
Do not wait around to see what happens. Strike like a snake or a scorpion. Fast and penetrating.

The exact same mentality applies to performing a fall or a throw.

Ignore what you think is needed.
What you think is irrelevant. The effect is all that matters. Judge your skill relative to the effect.

Choose wisely

When training in the martial arts, you need to take your age into account. It is a major factor. If you are 40, it is unwise to undertake a system that relies upon strength, speed and fitness.

(i) External

The external arts (karate, ju jitsu, judo, kickboxing, Thai boxing...) favour the young person. Strength, speed and aggression will work to the young person's advantage. You may find it intimidating (and demoralising) to be fighting a younger, fitter adversary. No matter how hard you train, your age will remain a negative factor. The risk of injury cannot be ignored.

(ii) Internal

Tai chi favours the older student. The subtle skills of the art require a mature, disciplined, patient mind. You focus upon physics, the application of pressure, sensitivity, rhythm, timing, balance and intention. Instead of wearing yourself out, you feel energised, relaxed and confident. You have a low risk of injury in tai chi, although bumps and bruises will occur in a self defence class.

(iii) Fighting?

The word 'fighting' has the connotation of reciprocity: two people trading blows. Taking turns. It is legally perceived as being mutually agreed upon combat. Both parties are involved in the conflict. Fighting usually involves emotion, stubbornness, pride and the desire to get your point across/have your way.

(iv) Self defence

The internal arts are about self defence, not fighting. Self defence is not the same as fighting. You have only one aim in self defence: escape without injury .It is not about winning awards and trophies or gaining a belt. It is not about looking cool or impressing anyone. In self defence you do only what you have to do and you leave immediately.

In memory of a valued teacher

Dear Sifu,

Thank you for putting a message on your board regarding Peter. I have attended his classes since 2005. We were informed yesterday that he had passed away and it was a shock.

Best regards

(Veronique)

RIP Peter Southwood

I received an e-mail today telling me that my tai chi teacher Peter Southwood has died:

Dear Master Waller

I think you may be the guy I did tai chi with 15 years back in Girlington. I am afraid I learnt today that Peter Southwood died suddenly. Thought you might to to know. I don't know what has happened yet but it must have been very sudden. I still do tai chi and will miss Peter a lot, massive in fact . He was for me a great teacher.

(Clive Whittaker)

Peter was a student of Chu King Hung and many other teachers.
I had a Master/disciple relationship with Peter for 20 years, training as a private student, in his evening classes and as an indoor student. I taught self defence/applied tai chi in his evening class for a few years.
Peter was a dedicated tai chi practitioner.

Sifu

Ready for walking

Rushing

Rushing is another sign of fear.
You must come to terms with your fear, and relax. If you get hit, you get hit. Accept this.

When you flinch, anticipate or tense-up, you have lost control completely.
A more skilled opponent will defeat you instantly.

Yield, make space. Take your time.
Rushing is a timing fault. Your awareness is askew. You are not present in the moment.

How much do corporate sessions cost?

£40 for 60 minutes (excluding travel expenses)

- teaching up to 20 people

Mrs Waller

For strength or for combat?

Different schools teach tai chi in different ways, and the purpose of the form changes relative to each school's agenda.
Low stances and long stances are commonplace.
These postures indicate that the form is being used to develop strength, and that combat skills are trained separately (if at all).

The small frame, small circle form is practiced for combat.
The postures are exactly the same as the self defence movements.
Strength and combat are trained simultaneously.

Wabi sabi

Newton's Laws of Motion

Familiarity with Newton's Laws of Motion will aid your understanding of our approach to partner work:

1. An object in motion will remain in motion unless acted upon by a net force
2. Force equals mass multiplied by acceleration
3. For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction

Tynemouth

Meadow

Weight

Sinking and rooting provide an inherent use of gravity.
Dropped shoulders, elbows, sunk hips and relaxed spine, knees and ankles improve root.
Without root, you are 'floaty' and weak.

Additionally, you must weight shift with every striking movement except for kicks.
If your weight is not behind the movement, where is it?

When shifting weight, the alignment of the pelvis, hips and knees must be considered.

Coastal

Detox: end of week 2

Maintaining an improved food intake is challenging but rewarding.
Eating significantly less food each day becomes notably easier.
You actually begin to enjoy feeling genuinely hungry.

The meals are something to look forward to.

Hungry

Sifu

A fundamental structure

When you make any movement in tai chi, the framework must remain integrated.
Standing qigong is a training method that develops the underlying physical structure of tai chi.

It trains the body to relax whilst maintaining certain specific internal tensions.
No matter what you are doing in this system of tai chi there must be the unseen physical connection within the body.
We call this 'inherent peng'.

Common misconceptions

Beginners seldom express wardoff internally.
Most students manifest the physical shape of wardoff without the internal energetic quality that makes it a jing.

Common misconceptions:

stiff block
- fundamental error in perception


immovable
- yielding is paramount. Without it, there is no tai chi
- strength vs strength is not tai chi


tension used rather than connection/groundpath
- beginners-level error


rigid legs, only turning hips
- external attitude
- stance too low


not using bow stance
- posture lacks 5 bows


use of arms and shoulders
- unite upper & lower timing sequence lacking
- wardoff is not being produced by spiralling & rippling
- power must rise up from the ground

Rachel

Sifu exploring

Blocking

Most martial arts employ some form of blocking technique.
But what is a 'block'?
A block is an attempt to stop the path of incoming force.

The opponent punches to your face and you raise your arm to prevent the fist hitting your face.
Instead of hitting your face, the fist misses.
The impact of the blow passes through the arm.

Blocking may indeed stop you from being hit, but it has certain drawbacks.

Sifu Waller's home training

This has been Sifu Waller's daily routine since 1992:

1. Strength-building
   - balls & grips
   - self-massage (100+ exercises)
   - 3 circle qigong (15 minutes)
   - ba duan jin (8 exercises)
   - reeling silk (6 exercises)
   - 16 elbows
   - moving qigong (15 exercises)
   - leg stretches: day 1 or 2
    
2. Baguazhang
   - 8 palm changes (clockwise & anticlockwise)
   - 8 mother palms
   - 6 direction changes
    
3. Drills
   - small san sau
   - silk arms
   - 5 pre-emptive measures
   - pushing peng/double pushing hands/da lu/penetrating defences/reflex drills
   - 3-tier wallbag
    
4. Weapons
   - knife drills
   - small stick drills
   - stick drills (Monday - Saturday)
   - broadsword drills (Sunday)
   - sabre form (regular & mirrored)
   - 2 person cane form/drill (regular & mirrored)
   - staff form (regular & mirrored)
   - walking stick form (regular & mirrored)
   - straight sword form (regular & mirrored)
    
5. Tai chi chuan
   - pao chui
   - Yang Cheng Fu form (regular & mirrored)
6. Hard qigong
   - full circle qigong (2 postures)/qigong development (2 postures)/form posture qigong (2 postures)/high circle qigong/qigong on one leg
    
7. Cool down
   - stretches & joint work (10 exercises)/psoas exercises (5 exercises)
    
8. Meditation
   - constructive rest position
   - guided relaxation
9. Reading/study

Keeping going

Hard style martial arts have a time stamp attached. You can do them for a certain number of years and then you really start to pay. Adverse impact work and high kicks can damage your back and your knees. The external arts are certainly impressive, effective and exciting - but they usually harm your health.

The internal arts are a lifetime’s work. You can start aged 40 and potentially still be training for the rest of your life. You do not need to quit once you are 50. Tai chi is not dependent upon conventional muscle strength.

No blocks in tai chi

There are no blocks in our tai chi.
Rather than block, we affect the incoming force in other ways:

Wardoff
– absorb, bounce up & forward


Growing
– spread forward within the defences


Filing
– rubbing, sliding, forward


Interrupting
- catching the opponent before their expression is manifest


Adhere & stick
– connect & remain, listen with your body


Yielding
– no resistance


Intercepting
– meet the attack, adhere, neutralise


Wrapping
– curl/slide around opponents arms


Neutralising
– softly redirect


Leading
– overextend opponent further, but do not force it


Borrowing
– bounce the attack back into opponent


Blending
- join the line of attack and move with the opponent


Deflecting
– slightly bump the attack away, rather than adhere


Folding/entwining
– bend, forward

There are many other jing that could be used but these are the main alternatives to blocking.

Kicking, striking & being thrown

(i) Kicking

Many martial artists suffer from back injuries caused by kicking too high. Perhaps the individual has failed to warm-up and stretch properly? Or their form is poor and the body use unsound?Who can say? Yet injuries from kicking are common. As you get older, injuring your back is not a good idea. You lack the suppleness of a 20 year old. Injure your back when you are 40 and you may be paying for it for the rest of your life.

(ii) Joints

Striking thin air or hard pads can cause joint injury. It is a question of physics. Using power but not hitting anything with it means that external tension will keep much of the force trapped in your own body. This can jar the joints quite severely. Hitting pads, bags and people - and then pushing upon impact - causes adverse feedback that has a deleterious effect. Look at Newton's third law of motion? Most external arts strike this way.

(iii) Being thrown

A number of martial arts neutralise their opponents by throwing them to the ground. This is a tried and tested highly-effective way of deterring an attacker. It can be surprising, and it is usually painful. It is also very hard on the body. The older you get, the longer it takes you to get up off the floor.

Small san sau knife defence

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j028ML2Jla8

No power, no responsibility...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KT5cioWgLL4

Self defence

Self defence is not fighting; it is the ability to protect yourself from harm.
It is about doing whatever you need to do to survive an attack.

In our school, we aim to incapacitate the attacker without causing them unnecessary injury.
A student should know how to adapt, change, improvise, yield and strike.

You should be capable of handling punches, kicks, grapples, multiple opponents and armed assailants.

Kick-Ass

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rQ1EmSMMsNM

Not karate

You cannot take the tai chi movements and use them in the same way as karate, ju jitsu, kickboxing or wing chun.

Tai chi is unlike mainstream martial arts. It relies upon softness, sensitivity, gravity, neigong and change.
Conventional strength is not used at all.

Self defence

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xdNWZIF3JAU

Appropriateness

In self defence, you must do whatever feels appropriate.

Some of your responses will have gaping holes in them, but others will not.
The more skilled you become, the more effective your responses will be.

Gauge the appropriateness relative to the effect:

Did it work?

Are you compromising yourself? Over-committing?

Was there any adverse feedback?

Did you allow for multiple attackers?

What did it do to your opponent?

Were they rooted when you struck/manipulated them?

Was it easy to perform?

Smooth or jarring?

Was it hurried and quick?

Were you calm and composed?

Be honest with yourself and work on any weaknesses in your composure, body use and application.

Beyond the medical

It is easy to think of tai chi study in terms of how it improves your health, but tai chi is far more than treatment.
Exponents typically find that the benefits of the study extend to all aspects of their lives.
People look at things differently. They change how they live. Priorities change.

Patience

Tai chi self defence skills take longer to learn than those in other arts because the emphasis is different.
It is not enough to defend yourself. You must also simultaneously improve your health.

Combining looseness, relaxation, composure and pragmatic self defence is quite an endeavour, but very worthwhile.

If a person is learning tai chi with a view to gaining self defence skills it is essential to prove that these skills work when you need them.
To obtain a black belt, every student must have certain proficiencies and undertake a variety of challenges.

Versatility

Versatility is the key to good self defence.
Choices, options, variables, possibilities, opportunities and nuances offer you creativity.

Self defence is not to be found in any form or drill.
They only represent material.

Your ability to defend yourself must transcend the lessons.
It must extend into your everyday life...

Daily practice

This has been Master Waller's daily kung fu routine since 1992:

1. Strength-building
   - balls & grips
   - taoist yoga self-massage (100+ exercises)
   - ba duan jin (8 exercises)
   - reeling silk (6 exercises)
   - 16 elbows
   - moving qigong (15 exercises)
   - standing qigong - single posture (20 minutes) or full circle qigong (30 minutes)
   - taoist yoga leg stretches: day 1 or 2
   - taoist yoga postures (30 minutes)
    
2. Tai chi chuan forms (regular & mirrored)
   - slow form (regular & mirrored)
   - pao chui (regular & mirrored)
   - sabre
   - 2 person cane
   - staff
   - walking stick
   - jian
    
3. Weapons (regular & mirrored)
   - knife drills/small stick drills/stick drills/broadsword drills
    
4. Drills (regular & mirrored)
   - small san sau
   - silk arms
   - 5 pre-emptive measures
   - pushing peng/double pushing hands/da lu/penetrating defences/reflex drills
   - 3-tier wallbag
    
5. Baguazhang (regular & mirrored)
   - 8 mother palms
   - 6 direction changes
   - circle walking
   - figure of 8
   - 9 palaces
   - 8 palm changes (clockwise & anticlockwise)
    
6. Cool down
   - stretches & joint work (tao yin/taoist yoga)
   - psoas exercises
   - standing qigong (5-10 minutes)
    
7. Meditation
   - constructive rest position
   - guided relaxation
    
8. Reading/study

Progress

Doubt can cripple your ability to learn; maybe you think that the tai chi will not work.
But - you could be wrong...
Your teacher can manifest the skills, so they must be doing something correctly.
Put your doubts aside - and act.

Do the tai chi exactly as you have been shown and see what happens.
If you fail, so what?
Re-evaluate what you did, change what needs changing and do it again.
Trial and error lies at the heart of learning.

De-tox: day 2

Cycling helps the purification process.

There are many different kinds of fitness.
You may be able to stand in a qigong postures/postures for 40 mins, practice for 2 hours without rest, but how do you fare on a bicycle?

I try to vary what I do.
Tai chi is the foundation of the routine, but I also train cycling and walking.

Even the tai chi isn't what most people imagine I might train.
Yes, the long form is slow, and so are the qigong, but not everything else is slow.
Pao chui, baguazhang and the weapons are vigorous and the combat work makes your heart beat faster.

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.

De-tox: day 1

The first day of de-tox is perhaps the hardest,or at least it seems so at the time.

Other days will be harder than the beginning.

In some ways it is easy to begin something.
Much harder to endure.
To sustain.
And not to quit.

I cut out sugar, saturated fat, de-caff coffee, reduced my portions and increased my fluids.

Sifu's mantra "If it feels strong, you are doing it wrong"...

My husband maintains that jing is only felt by the opponent. It is the outcome of your actions. Any sensation of power/strength in your own body indicates tension, not strength. Only the opponent should feel anything. Your own body is merely the conduit.

Sifu illustrated this easily in class, but somehow my brain lags. It is like a zen koan: an apparent contradiction/paradox. My husband pointed out that the paradox does not exist, and that the knot lies inside our own minds.

Name-dropping

Tai chi books and articles can sometimes read like an exercise in name-dropping; as though the skills of the quoted master had somehow been bestowed upon the author by the very act of naming the teacher.

This hardly seems realistic.

Rather than kneeling before another or climbing upon their shoulders, why not stand on your own feet?

Sifu exploring

Jing

Adding neigong to your tai chi will produce unseen substance and power.
If neigong is present and you remain relaxed and loose, your tai chi will work.
You should feel to be making no effort at all, yet another person experiences your strength.
This is the essence of 'jing'.

A jing is what the other person feels - they receive your energy and substance.

As you progress, your ability to express energy will improve.
The real skill is to avoid force.
You must elude your opponent's strength and incoming force, and express your own energy without tension or effort.

If this sounds improbable and unlikely, then you see the dilemma of faith in tai chi?

What is balance?

Balance is commonly seen as being a condition of stillness and rest.

Yet, people cannot reasonably find a fixed point of balance in their lives because life is not static.
The changing nature of existence means that we need to be re-adjusting constantly.

This process of continual re-adjustment is called dynamic balancing and occurs in relation to the changing nature of what is happening.

We cannot expect to be 'balanced' because nothing in our lives will ever remain stable and fixed.