Adjunct:
"There is no Wrong Tai Chi":
Looking for good
instruction in Tai Chi? Wrong and Right are concepts in themselves.
Although people will need to do specific things to progress in their
tai chi practice, right and wrong are less productive than practicing
to produce a physical or even emotional feeling or effect: further
explanation within.
Instructors understand how their own
bodies responded to the instruction they received in the past and
should know at what stage a student is at by how they move in tai
chi. Instructors themselves always try something that is being shown.
However, we need to know what is good for ourselves. We should also
know when our bodies might not be ready or not ready to accept the
new instruction. Students are no different in this. The only way to
find out if an instruction is working is to do more practice. The
instruction we receive today may not bear fruit for months or even
years, but none of it, not one moment, is wasted. Every member should
have a Tai Chi Toolbox of things to use and try, especially if you
are an instructor. Tendon changing takes time, so not much is right
or wrong except if you are hurting yourself or causing imbalance in
yourself; that only undoes the good tai chi provides.
The
signs of rigidity in instruction might be "This is MY class"
or any version of "My way or the highway". Each instructor
performs their own understanding of what Master Moy taught us. We are
there to absorb the pieces of knowledge, many different from each
other, Master Moy left all over the world with his students. He left
different understandings with different people all over the world, as
tai chi is not about One Way, but many ways to serve for our better
health, the main objective. We were meant to share what was left for
us to glean from his whole knowledge.
Taoist philosophy – wrong
only exists when there is right
Tai Chi is an art and is
designed to produce physical and even emotional feelings; balance is
a big part of this. Being able to distinguish between the different
feelings produced, contrast, in our lessons gives us the tools to
compare between the eventual subtle feelings of internal tai chi, our
main goal. There are plenty of ways and words to describe the changes
in our tai chi for health. But, without practice to strengthen and
change the tendons, no words will make sense of the tai chi you wish
to improve on. The best way to taste something is to put it in your
mouth and the best way to 'get something' in tai chi is to practice
practice practice; feel the changes.
Some signs to look for
in a productive class is the instructor saying things like "This
is your practice.” “This is your tai chi.” “I know a few
things that will help you with YOUR practice to contribute to your
overall health.” “I can share with you what the subject/practice
in this lesson means to me.” “Try this.” “What do you
feel?"
Words can be a trap. When sharing what we know, a
single word can have different meaning to each and every 'body' that
hears it. Instructors should try utilizing words to convey an image.
Images create feelings. A feeling is so individual and much more
productive. 'A picture is worth a thousand words'.
From the
late and great Dr. Bruce McFarlane, International Level Instructor,
Medical Advisor to Master Moy and The Taoist Tai Chi Society of
Canada.
“Whether
you are seeing perfect tai chi or not, the thing you do not want to
destroy with your correction, is the harmony, softness, quiet and
pure enjoyment, which is where the health benefit is.”
We
do not own tai chi. We do not know enough about tai chi to teach,
only instruct. We are custodians as volunteer instructors and
administrators. We facilitate the learning of tai chi with providing
lots of practice and some guidance to offer increased circulation for
our fellow members. We are always looking to welcome more people and
offer more practice of tai chi.
THERE
IS NO 'WRONG' TAI CHI
What
if the miracle of Tai Chi was just allowing the body to move normally
without causing it a lot of pain, without using a lot of energy nor
overdoing any movements?
Letting
the body move naturally allows it to efficiently accomplish normal
functions it was designed to do from birth. Just about all the
medications prescribed attempt to bring our bodies back to the point
of homeostasis and allow the body to heal itself. Mediocre
function may not be the best for any condition the body may be
struggling to cope with. What if our condition deteriorates over
time, accumulating and picking up speed in a vicious self destructive
cycle as we age. Does this really need to happen? What if we could
perform much better with a functionally younger body? Tai Chi calls
this the Return to the Golden Body or a path to reverse aging.
Everything
we put upon our bodies, physically and mentally, accumulates
somewhere inside in a negative way. E.G, whiplash may show up within
hours or take even weeks to make an appearance as a physical symptom
if not dealt with. Sometimes it is so subtle that a person might not
notice right away. Even a sedentary lifestyle is among the list of
accumulative collection of 'blockages'. Blockages are a symptom and
cause of illness in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM). Tai Chi is a
part of TCM. Stagnant energies created by blockages are stored and if
not released stay as your 'little friend' for years or even a
lifetime. Moving with balance and strong circulation, tai chi, can
move these energies, clear these blockages and assist the body in
restoring balance.
Normal
functions of our bodies actually differ in one part of the world from
another. The quality of these functionalities sometimes differs
immensely. In North America we have lots of chairs. In other parts on
the globe there are a lot less chairs. Chairs do not allow the spine
to stretch to the extent it was designed to do for optimum
functionality. The stretchiest material in the whole body is in and
around the spine, and with good reason. When a person sits directly
on the ground from a standing position, the spine stretches to its
limits and we arrive to the ground softly sit. If the spine cannot
stretch the knees will move forward until balance is lost or hit the
ground first . We just sit down as far as we can and fall backwards
the rest of the way to the ground without the suppleness of the
spine. This happens a lot in Western cultures with lots of chairs.
The
spine stretching is normal.
We normally lose that function as we age with the exclusive use of
chairs. Tai Chi restores the natural stretching of the spine
called Dragon, one of the 5 animals in every movement of the tai chi
set. The Donyu, actually a Hsing I exercise, serves the function of
putting the stretch back into our spines. Donyu is a full body
exercise and a key training tool passed down from Our Teacher, Master
Moy Lin-shin. Master Moy called our various types of connective
tissues One Big Tendon. Muscle is about 30% tendon and bone is even
another type of connective tissue. Down to a cellular level all
connective tissues are connected. Master Moy was right, and didn't
need a microscope to see.
When
sitting down to the ground the ball joints on the femur bone are
fully rotated, as designed. The connective tissues all around this
area hold the ball joint into the socket and guide it smoothly as it
rotates. These ligaments and tendons are designed to stretch all the
way with a full rotation of the joint. Sitting on the ground and
getting up from it allow for full joint movement.
The
pelvis is designed to move in 5 different directions and is fully
open when sitting on the ground and getting up. Even if one of those
directions is compromised it effects how we walk and our overall
balance. As we age our movement decreases and so does the range of
movement in our pelvis as it slowly solidifies and stops opening up
as it should. A restricted pelvis effects how we walk, the same way
it effects the walk of someone who has had a catastrophic pelvis
fracture; it solidifies. Each and every joint in the body is
surrounded by connective tissue that holds it in place and allows for
the full movement. We don't all have perfectly formed joints; some
from birth and some due to misuse or accidents. This can effect our
movement and posture as well. If you were to look at a silhouette of
a tall 19 year old athlete walking beside that of a 60 year old
person with a sedentary lifestyle, do you think you could spot the
difference? The answer is yes. We recognize elderly people because
their bodies tell the story of their life, physically and mentally.
As instructors, we should be able to distinguish between these
details of their journey.
The
good news is that connective tissue loves to be stretched, at any
age. Connective tissue maintains itself by stretching, keeping it
soft yet stronger at the same time. A tai chi set provides full
engagement and range of motion of all the joints. Even the bones are
made stronger by the tendons and ligaments being stretched. As our
tai chi progresses more weight is kept on the bones instead of being
diverted through the soft tissues and muscle. When we keep letting go
more effectively, we gently find our own personal blockages and, over
time, start to reverse these effects of old injuries and stress.
Everyone's
tai chi is different. Why? Because we are all unique in
how our bodies and minds developed over time. A person's tai chi is
their own creation at any one point on their path developed through
the understanding they have at that time no matter if it's their
first class. Everyone starts somewhere and we develop our own tai chi
equipped with the set of life tools we have honed and with the minds
we have developed up to that point. Our bodies and minds matured over
years and were evolved from our individual family upbringing,
environment, life experiences, intellectual and physical training.
Physical trauma affecting the normal operation of a body will exhibit
differences in a person's tai chi.
If
psychiatrists knew tai chi like they know their study of the human
mind we would feel a little naked doing tai chi in front of them.
Master Moy was famed for knowing, or 'reading' people just by
watching their tai chi, how they stood, walked, talked and reacted to
different situations. He had a life time of learning in these arts we
are endeavouring to pass on. The depth of Tai Chi and Taoist Arts
knowledge is held by only a few people. They are also disappearing as
Master Moy did in 1998. On a scale of Taoist Priests, 1 to 7, Master
Moy was considered about a 4. His teachers, mentors and masters are
just about all gone now. Good News is, apparently there is not too
much to worry about concerning losing the teachings. The teaching
originated from the experience of practice and with practice the
arts can be recaptured. Master Moy was chastised for teaching the
Gweilo the Taoist Arts, Tai Chi being one of them. The collective
phrase 'Westerners' in China was applied to a long list of conquerors
and occupiers from the empires of Portugal, United Kingdom, France,
USA, Russia, Germany etc, even the Japanese. China did not possess a
lot of trust in other countries and cultures due to these wars and
occupations. Traditions were held in high regard.
Master
Moy saw the collapse and the destruction of the internal arts coming
from world modernization. First he escaped to Hong Kong and continued
his studies with great masters who had also escaped the purge of the
Cultural Revolution by Mao Zedong and the war with Japan. In the
purge, monasteries were burned and monks killed because religions
were outlawed. Mao's
policies were responsible for a vast number of deaths. Estimates
ranging from 40 to 80 million victims due to starvation, persecution,
prison labour, mass executions, and the government described as
totalitarian.
Organized religion was seen as a threat to Communism.
Master
Moy modified Yang Style Tai Chi and developed his own way of training
Westerners who were not familiar with the internal arts and how there
were traditionally passed down in China.
With
proper instruction and regular practice, our Tai Chi can also be
utilized to modify how we move and even feel and perceive the world
around us by re-establishing balance. Balance is the key for
regaining and maintaining overall physical and mental health.
Think
of Tai Chi as a kind of reverse engineering for our bodies and minds
back to our original selves, “Return to the Golden Body”. We may
present as having some emotional or physical issues, but the design
of Tai Chi is to use the body to reverse these effect in ourselves;
balance our internals is what Tai Chi was designed to do.
Created
centuries ago, a Tai Chi set was developed in collaboration between
Taoist Sages and Shaolin Monks. The intent was to reverse the effects
of the body being out of balance with the mind and spirit due to too
much meditation or sedentary life style. Too much of anything is
imbalance. Each of the parts of us, Mind Body and Spirit, effect each
other when even only one is out of balance.
Some
of the wonderful benefits from tai chi are reduction pain from the
discomfort from lack of physical/mental balance. The Yin and Yang
symbol represents balance. When our own instructors relay their
knowledge and their experiences to us through instruction and
demonstration, we learn more about the art of Tai Chi and the
improved circulation it creates. Circulation is a vital piece of
Traditional Chines Medicine (TCM). Tai Chi is, with regular practice,
an integral part of TCM. A major piece of TCM is balance, in other
words, we become our own physicians doing our tai chi.
Master
Moy gifted this system to us. It is a system that starts producing
benefits from our very first lesson in tai chi; follow, quiet, soft,
relax and smile.
We
become good at what we practice the most, and that means anything.
But tai chi practiced even just 2 to 3 times a week when we have not
yet honed the skill to an advanced level, has a profound effect on
our overall human condition. Just eliminating activities that produce
negative physical and mental effects helps. If a person is
continually abased for their behaviour when they are children it may
force them to lie to avoid constant degradation or discipline. They
are now trained to become good liars. If a child is constantly fed
positive reinforcement, kept away from experiencing failure, made to
feel special and unique without any consequences for negative
behaviour towards others, we have trained someone to be a privileged
loner without any social skills in the real world. Both are extremes
and beg for the balance in parenting. Balance is the key for
circulation and good practice delivers it.
In
our classes we need balance. Not everyone is there for just
instruction but sometimes there for their personal time. People are
busy with family, work and the things that makes life rewarding for
them. Just the practice of the art of tai chi helps brings balance to
them and they can feel that after class. We have a responsibility to
provide that exercise, the quiet practice and balance it brings for
every member. Without practice, people cannot grow an understanding
of tai chi and the changing of tendons to understand it. Instruction
is not practice. Ergo, instructors must provide quiet practice time
along with a bit of instruction in every class for there to be
balance in class.
The
suggested practice time on the floor of an hour and a half class is
about 75% or about 68 minutes out of 90 or 45 minutes in an hour long
class. A 10 minute tea break provides the opportunity for social
interaction. In the Beginner Tai Course, repetition is much more
important. The tendons must be prepared over the approximate 4 month
course for the challenges in Intermediate class . Repetition is the
best way to learn the set. Also, it is impossible to explain tai chi
to anyone. We can only provide guidance and then practice time for
our members/students; we cannot explain or do the tai chi for them.
Again,
as instructors we convey instruction from our own knowledge and
experience base. Our understanding of tai chi is the only tai chi we
can share. The people in our class are no different than us. Audio
learners are at a great disadvantage in learning tai chi because
audio learning involves less practice than Kinetic or Visual. Audio
is just the mind running or doing tai chi. Instructors must be
careful with the words they use as the interpretations of what the
instructor is saying has as many interpretations as there are people
in the class.
Master
Moy gave us the 333 method of instructing tai chi not for just one
reason but as many reasons as Master Moy had teachers in his lineage.
Moy grew up learning Tai Chi / Lok Hup etal passed down from the
sages, teachers and monks from the age of 14. You would think that
over hundreds of years they would have learned a few things about
instruction. The point is, the 333 works. Why reinvent the wheel; use
the best system. There is plenty of room for individualism and
adaptations.
To
find the genius of Master Moy's 333 system the answer is sticking to
it and continue to work on your delivery of it. From Master Moy
himself: “Tai Chi is do.” It is easy to deduct that Tai Chi is
“not talk”. Let's all be guided by this wisdom from Master Moy's
lineage. Examine our choices with instruction and look at our
students. In them is a reflection of our choices and our
understanding of tai chi. Let Master Moy and his tai chi help guide
their future.
Keeping
our tai chi close to Master Moy's is not something that should be
taken lightly. By attempting to replicate Master Moy's wonderful
healing art, whether
passed to us directly or indirectly, we are learning balance and
circulation.
For
most of us now, learning tai chi is from an indirect path of
transmission. We cannot deny the benefits of our own limited
understanding of tai chi. But please consider that the only
thing that is wrong in our tai chi is when we are not receiving any
health benefits from it or enhancing our own bad habits through
repetition. Master Moy's lessons
shared over time with us are now closest in the lessons shared
from those who were closest to him.
The
story of Master Moy asking a group “Who has the best Tai Chi
here?”. The one receiving the most health benefits from
their practice. This applies to everyone even though we all have
different tai chi.
There
are many paths we can take in our tai chi. The variables are our
state of mind as well as our physical condition at the time; complex
to say the least. Our own evolution in tai chi is determined by what
steps we take to hone our skill. In this, we are all alike; most of
us are reasonably well functioning bipedal human beings; save for the
reptilian overlords in our group – har har. We look to apply the
best next steps, in coordination with and under the guidance of our
own instructors, to receive more out our tai chi. We need to 'hone'
our tai chi skills in order receive better health. Our status in tai
chi is recognized as our current point on the path. That point can be
modified/effected by applying different “next steps” in expanding
our 'circulation', the result of practicing better balance. When we
strive to improve our own tai chi we pass it on to others.
Circulation
is the main goal on our own path to improving or maintaining health.
Better balance ergo better circulation ergo better health. We should
be able to look at a person practicing their tai chi and be able to
recognize something different between their tai chi, the person
beside them and ourselves. As instructors, we study general and
subtle movements of bodies and determine what is good circulation
because we have been through it ourselves. If we are willing to
learn, there are methods we can apply that do help others on their
path. It's our calling and why we volunteered.
Without
good tai chi being offered in class, we have nothing to offer and the
efforts we have put into sharing Master Moy's art to the public will
miserably fail. All that we do is offer people a place to practice,
give them guidance and an opportunity to feel what we feel when we do
tai chi. Without “follow, quiet, soft, relax and smile”, there is
no Academy. Offering tea is as important as any one thing we do to
help others as it is part of what we offer, inclusion and caring. We
must recognize and respect everyone in front of us as we were when we
first started. There is no wrong tai chi.
Back
to basics:
Practically,
there is no difference between giving a general tai chi offering to
the whole class and assisting an individual with their own tai chi if
it brings better health to all. Both offerings are of great value.
Determining if an individual will accept the offering or feel singled
out in front of the class is a whole other issue. Our experience and
skill is key to choosing the proper method and there are ways to
increase the size of our tool box containing those skills. We cannot
pass this tool box on without the person experiencing how these tools
got added there in the first place. Only tendon changing will get
them close to the same level of understanding as ours. We can only
rely on them to learn from their own practice, experiences, attitudes
and willingness to take instruction. Tai Chi is 'do', not listen.
Talking will not convey much about the art of tai chi you
experienced. So, if they are not able to feel what the tai chi can do
to change their tendons to produce better circulation and balance,
they will not progress. Everything we do in class is focused on their
progress, not ours.
Consistency:
Our next step on the path is complicated enough without having a
constantly moving point on our own path. By continually adding things
to our tai chi, without internalizing them, the path is so
inconsistent that it wobbles and weaves left and right and forward
and back so much that no one could be able to appreciate or recognize
what that next step actually is.
When
we hear that someone has regular practice, it is a joy to hear.
Whether they are getting the most out of their practice is another
thing. With many of the people in the class, consistency is directly
tied to how they perceive tai chi. If they are there for a social
gathering and a little exercise, their path wobbles because their
focus is different than ours; they are welcome to do so and we should
accommodate them. If they are there for more study and practice, we
should also accommodate them as well. If they are there to try out
tai chi and see if it is for them, we should accommodate. Everyone is
welcome.
Our
next step used to be termed, and maybe for some instructors still,
'corrections'. As instructors, I personally would prefer the method
of just adding something to someone's tai chi. The person may or may
not accept it but will take it as an offering for their own
experimentation. We should respect each individuals perspective and
not assume what it may be.
Correction
may imply that we were
doing something wrong. Offering a perceived 'next step'
implies that we really believe the persons tai chi might expand and
bring them better health. As instructors, this is at the core of
'helping each other'. We were accepted by the Academy as instructors
based upon several requirements, the first of which is a “Good
Heart”. We fit this primary requirement and it should serve to
govern all of our actions in class, as Master Moy intended it would
naturally do. Sometimes we need help, or need to improve our
instruction in a way that is better for members growth and
understanding of tai chi. An example of this would be, “We are here
for the right reasons”, but, for the best interests of the members,
we need to learn how to benefit them in a more appropriate, effective
or pragmatic way. Nearly all decisions are based upon this first
requirement of an Academy instructor. We all need to be looking for
improvements or growth to our skills. We owe it to everyone involved.
A
thought: tai chi and the skills it enhances in us is a microcosm of
our lives?
Consistency
in everyone's tai chi is paramount to making any progress. It's not
that our tai chi has to be 'right', but that tai chi needs to be
consistent enough for someone to be able to assist when attempting to
broaden their understanding and practice. If we do not practice we
cannot progress. The more we practice and establish consistency, the
clearer the next step is revealed. The same is true of people in our
classes. No one can do our tai chi for us and we cannot do tai chi
for the members in our class. If there is no consistency, learning
without internalizing or perhaps integrating into our own tai chi, we
are shifting between points on a very flexible path.
Think
of a pin ball machine. Gravity and the stored energy in the spring of
the plunger striking the ball determines, or rules, the path of the
ball through the game board full of pins. If we could release the
plunger with the exact same force each time, the ball would have the
exact same path and hit the exact same pins on its way down the
canted table top. If we think of the pins as either a blockage or a
good pin to strike for our better health the trip starts to make
sense as the rules reveal themselves. Gravity and position, speed,
angle, direction, timing and balance. We all want to hit the good
pins because we want better health and we want to share this with
others.
By
consistently releasing the ball with the same amount of force each
time, the ball will likely strike the same first pin each time
whether it is a good or bad pin. However, if we adjust our release
with the same consistency, we can 'aim' more accurately and intend to
hit the good pins on a regular basis. Let's say the first pin is a
'Blockage' in our circulation and we adjust the 'release' to have it
hit a good pin on the way out, full points!
When
we begin our tai chi our release is based upon the outer form. As our
tai chi becomes more internal, we start hitting more good pins than
bad ones on the way down because our aim is better, more consistent.
Thusly, we are avoiding the undesirable pins or blockages. Our path
becomes less and less complicated and is aligned to hit all the good
pins! Bingo, better circulation and better health outcomes.
There
is sitting and standing tai chi. Nearly everyone can do some form of
tai chi. A good instructor makes the study and practice of the art
enjoyable and interesting to all in our class, no matter how each of
us perceives our tai chi to be. The art is a tool to regain or
improve one's health. Everyone is welcome.
It
is the instructors job to help everyone's tai chi get bigger and
better in understanding and practice. Just as we would buy a bigger
or better tool for our toolboxes. Bigger or better tai chi is more
effective in regaining or improving our health.
Important
thing to remember in tai chi? Practice and enjoyment! If a person
does not like the exercise they are performing, it is clinically
proven that there is potential for harming oneself in some way; this
includes tai chi. Another thing of importance to remember when doing
tai chi: we must be patient and kind with ourselves and realize, that
it takes time for the body to change. But change it will, with
regular, consistent practice.
Wherever
or whatever we practice, choose a person to help you get more out of
our own tai chi be it a guide, a mentor, a good instructor. Don't let
negativity squirm it's way into our practice.
Happy
Tai Chi'ing! Cliff Yerex
