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.