# Who would you study with?



## bigfootsquatch (May 18, 2008)

This may seem kind of silly, but since the tai chi board is rather quiet I thought I would ask this. Out of all the tai chi masters and teachers(dead or alive) you know of, who would you choose as your instructor if you had the opportunity and why?


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## ggg214 (May 19, 2008)

first of all, we should understand that good master doesn't mean good teacher. 
in my experience, taiji is a way to Negation of Negation. maybe what you are doing in this level is right, but in the senior level, it's wrong. however, one could not reach the goal by jumping directly to higher level. so, the process is more important in your training. only a good teacher can bring you to the ultimate goal step by step.
secondly, taiji is not a mystery thing. it's a martial art, every goal can be reachable.and its training way is also simple but boring, and exhaustied. 
that's my understanding on choosing a instructor!


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## Xue Sheng (May 19, 2008)

Alive today; My sifu, Tung Kai Ying, Chen Zhenglei, Chan Xioawang, Ren Guangyi

No longer with us; Tung Ying Chieh, Chan Fake, 

Maybe Yang Banhou, Yang Shaohou.... but I am not sure I would survive the training with either of them.


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## Formosa Neijia (May 19, 2008)

Peter Ralston of Cheng Hsin fame. Without a doubt. Anyone near San Antonio should look him up. I have his fight/play DVD and his movement skills are the best I've ever seen.


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## Xue Sheng (May 19, 2008)

I need to make a major correction it is Chen Xiaowang and Ren Guanyi not Chan Xioawang, Ren Guangyi... sorry about that

I can only plead that my fingers is stupid in the morning


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## marlon (May 19, 2008)

Formosa Neijia said:


> Peter Ralston of Cheng Hsin fame. Without a doubt. Anyone near San Antonio should look him up. I have his fight/play DVD and his movement skills are the best I've ever seen.


 

i have his book... very difficult to understand but the stuff in there is very valueable to training.  although i would not have considered him a taiji instructor.

respectfully,
Marlon


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## East Winds (May 19, 2008)

I had the pleasure of working with Peter Ralston for a week at Tai Chi Caledonia  a few years ago.  I can confirm that he is awesome!!!!

I would love to have worked with Yang Cheng-fu. Who else?????? 

Very best wishes


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## marlon (May 19, 2008)

East Winds said:


> I had the pleasure of working with Peter Ralston for a week at Tai Chi Caledonia a few years ago. I can confirm that he is awesome!!!!
> 
> I would love to have worked with Yang Cheng-fu. Who else??????
> 
> Very best wishes


 

sounds like fun...i must admit his stuff makes more sense now that i am practicing taiji.  

respectfully,
Marlon


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## Formosa Neijia (May 19, 2008)

marlon said:


> i have his book... very difficult to understand but the stuff in there is very valueable to training.  although i would not have considered him a taiji instructor.
> 
> respectfully,
> Marlon



Get all his books, plus the fight/play DVD and then immerse yourself in them. They make more sense when taken as a whole because he covers the same material from different angles. The Cheng Hsin Tui shou book is especially good for getting across the principles in action as is the DVD.

I'm telling you guys, Ralston moves better than most anyone I've seen, even in Taiwan. The fight/play DVD has an unrehearsed "freeplay" section done with a taiji teacher that is trying to push Ralston but he just walks around the taiji teacher. That guy can do nothing to Ralston. 

I wish he'd do a full set of DVDs that cover all his material. 

BTW, it took me many years of taiji and bagua before I could appreciate Ralston. He operates on another plane from most people. If you don't get it now (as I didn't for 15 years) then just keep his stuff in mind as you practice. He's right on the money.


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## DaPoets (May 20, 2008)

He seems like an interesting guy.


Biography
Peter Ralston was raised in Asia and began studying martial arts at the age of 9. By the age of 20 he was a black belt in Judo and Jujitsu (Nidan), black belt in Karate (Shodan), had been Sumo champion at his high school in Japan, Judo and fencing champion at UC Berkeley, and had demonstrated proficiency in Kempo, Ch'uan Fa and Northern Sil Lum Kung Fu. A growing interest in the "internal" martial arts lead him to study T'ai Chi Ch'uan, Hsing I Ch'uan, and Pa Kua Chang. 
Ralston has pursued this endeavor with a passionate determination for more than 35 years. He sought out and studied with the world's most demonstrably skilled teachers, broadening his study with such arts as Aikido, Japanese and Chinese fencing, western boxing, Muay Thai (Thai boxing), and new levels of his own investigations into all of these arts. His exceptional commitment (often practicing for more than eight hours a day) and depth of study, his intense meditation and open inquiry have led Ralston to profound levels of skill and understanding. Consistent with Zen studies, his investigation into martial arts also came to include a questioning of reality. Long periods of intense contemplation resulted in many enlightenment experiences regarding the nature of self and reality which greatly influenced his study.

To communicate his understanding, in 1975 Ralston founded the Cheng Hsin School. In 1977 he opened a center called "The Cheng Hsin School of Internal Martial Arts and Center for Ontological Research" in Oakland, California. Intent on revealing the depth and power of this work, in 1978 he became the first non-Asian ever to win the World Championship full-contact martial arts tournament held in the Republic of China.

Ralston's main focus in his teaching has been to uncover and communicate the principles behind any subject matter; frequently it is about being effortlessly effective. His main focus in his facilitation work is to uncover the truth of things, to break through assumptions and beliefs, and to assist others in having a direct, authentic, and experiential increase in Consciousness.

He has trained staff or done workshops for numerous groups, including various t'ai chi, aikido, and other martial arts associations, as well as human transformation organizations such as Lifesprings, Institute of Self Actualization (ISA), Robbins Research Institute (NLP), Actualizations, and the Institute for Empowerment. He is a highly trained and insightful facilitator, freely and openly teaching what he has learned from years of insight and direct experience.


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## Myrmidon (May 20, 2008)

Alive today: Feng Zhiqiang and Chen Zhonghua

Passed away: Chen Fake, Chen Zhaokui and Hong Junsheng


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## fyn5000 (May 20, 2008)

Today: I would study with my teacher Dave Graham, my Master Alex Dong, and my Master's Father Dong Zeng Chen.  And I've heard great things about Tung Kai Ying.

Those not with us anymore:   Tung Ying Chieh, Tung Hu Ling, and  Li Xiang Yuan (Tung Ying Chieh's Hao Style Master - I've begun learning the Hao Form from my teacher and I really like it, so learning from the Master who taught it to the founder of the Style I practice would be great.)

fyn


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## bigfootsquatch (May 20, 2008)

Thanks so much for the answers guys. I'm surprised no one has said anything about Sun Lu Tang and his tai chi. Do any of you guys have any thoughts regarding his tai chi. My understanding is that he combined his hsing i, tai chi, and bagua knowledge into one form. I know he was an amazing martial artist and am sure he could make his tai chi work as well as masters from other styles. What does everyone think?


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## JadecloudAlchemist (May 21, 2008)

Zhang Sanfeng.

I do not know if he counts but it would pretty cool to train with him.


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## masherdong (May 21, 2008)

Chen Fake and Li Enjiu


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## Xue Sheng (May 21, 2008)

bigfootsquatch said:


> Thanks so much for the answers guys. I'm surprised no one has said anything about Sun Lu Tang and his tai chi. Do any of you guys have any thoughts regarding his tai chi. My understanding is that he combined his hsing i, tai chi, and bagua knowledge into one form. I know he was an amazing martial artist and am sure he could make his tai chi work as well as masters from other styles. What does everyone think?


 
I have a lot of respect for Sun Lutang but I never trained Sun style so I really can't say much about it.

Sun Luntang did train, and was highly skilled at, Xingyi, Bagua and Hao Taiji prior to coming up with Sun Style


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## DaPoets (May 21, 2008)

With out a doubt,  Wang Ch'ung-yang


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## ggg214 (May 21, 2008)

bigfootsquatch said:


> Thanks so much for the answers guys. I'm surprised no one has said anything about Sun Lu Tang and his tai chi. Do any of you guys have any thoughts regarding his tai chi. My understanding is that he combined his hsing i, tai chi, and bagua knowledge into one form. I know he was an amazing martial artist and am sure he could make his tai chi work as well as masters from other styles. What does everyone think?


 
because Sun style is combination of Tai ji, Xing yi and Ba gua, my master says before studying the taiji style, one should become a senior in xing yi or bagua firstly. then one can understand what's the special in the form or applications. i think it's true. 
i have a friend who is practising sun style, but so far he is still training Xing yi, such as San ti, pao chui etc. he has been told that only when his Xingyi level reaches his master's goal, he could start the taiji style training.


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## marlon (May 21, 2008)

i am not very knowledgeable in taiji but i would study with whoever Yang Luchang studied with to start off.

respectfully,
marlon


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## Xue Sheng (May 22, 2008)

marlon said:


> i am not very knowledgeable in taiji but i would study with whoever Yang Luchang studied with to start off.
> 
> respectfully,
> marlon


 
That would be Chen Changxing (1771-1853) 14th generation Chen Family


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## tlk52 (May 13, 2012)

William C C Chen, NYC


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## blindsage (May 14, 2012)

My teacher, his teachers Tchoung Ta Tchen, Dave Harris, Gao Fu.  Feng Zhiqiang (RIP), Chen Fake, Yang Banghou, Yang Shaohou.


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## oaktree (May 14, 2012)

Alive would be Chen Ziqiang he is just amazing to me to watch. I really enjoy the younger Chen generation because they are big on martial and very dedicated to the arts. I enjoy my training with my teacher as well and I think his patience and knowledge is alot.
  Dead I would say Sun Lu Tang because he has met so many famous people and has so much knowledge in so many areas. I really wouldn't care if I did not have the chance to train under him just to meet him and have a conversation would be awesome. I think the same about T.T.Liang he was an interesting person.

I think having a conversation with Chen Fake and him seeing how Chen Taijiquan has come around would be cool too.


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## Valhalla (May 16, 2012)

Yang Chenfu or Fu Zhongwen

Basically because this is the style I started with and I'm trying to Re-learn. Shift work and lack of Schools close by are making it hard.

I actually did a day course with Fu Zhongwen when he visited his family in Perth years ago. My only claim to fame.


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## sicko (Dec 18, 2012)

Chen Xiaowang

Last year I had the pleasure to be in his class for four days and it was a crazy experience.
The energy in the air around him was so special, I could just train for whole day long without a problem.

But.. I'm very happy with the teacher I have at home aswell. He does follow Xiaowangs steps.


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## Dirtymeat (Mar 5, 2013)

*Chen Yun Ching *Born June 3rd 1939 in Chong Ching China, number seven child, considered to be the favorite of his father&#8217;s eight children, migrated to Taiwan with his family at six years of age and began his strict training in Shaolin Boxing at the age of eight.
 In his adolescence progressed to the three main systems of Chinese Internal Gung Fu, Tai Chi Chuan, Hsing I Chuan and Ba Gua Zhang.

He mastered the complete Martial and healing arts systems of his father Chen Pan Ling, but never taught publicly in Taiwan until his retirement from the Tai Chung bus company in 1999.
 Since that time has opened a full time Academy in Tai Chung and taught relentlessly everyday to all age groups.

His life mission is to ensure his father&#8217;s arts are passed down as accurately as possible and preserving the Traditional arts of China for future generations.


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## K-man (Mar 5, 2013)

Dirtymeat said:


> *Chen Yun Ching *Born June 3rd 1939 in Chong Ching China, number seven child, considered to be the favorite of his father&#8217;s eight children, migrated to Taiwan with his family at six years of age and began his strict training in Shaolin Boxing at the age of eight.
> In his adolescence progressed to the three main systems of Chinese Internal Gung Fu, Tai Chi Chuan, Hsing I Chuan and Ba Gua Zhang.
> 
> He mastered the complete Martial and healing arts systems of his father Chen Pan Ling, but never taught publicly in Taiwan until his retirement from the Tai Chung bus company in 1999.
> ...



There we go again.   If you are going to cut and paste please acknowledge the source of your information. Otherwise it is plagiarism.





> *About Chen Yun Ching*
> 
> 
> Born June 3rd 1939 in Chong Ching China, number seven child, considered to be the favorite of his father&#8217;s eight children, migrated to Taiwan with his family at six years of age and began his strict training in Shaolin Boxing at the age of eight. In his adolescence progressed to the three main systems of Chinese Internal Gung Fu, Tai Chi Chuan, Hsing I Chuan and Ba Gua Zhang.
> ...


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## Dirtymeat (Mar 5, 2013)

K-man said:


> There we go again.   If you are going to cut and paste please acknowledge the source of your information. Otherwise it is plagiarism.



There you go again acting like a Moderator or Administrator when you hold no such powers, if you would have taken the time to read my post you would have found the link to my source in  Chen Pan Ling_, name.

Maybe your _Flaming or Trolling my post because I'm a new member, but get your facts straight because your starting to look foolish.


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## mograph (Mar 5, 2013)

Mmm ... no, calling out is cool; k-man doesn't have the power to _ban_ you. In other words, his admonishment has no teeth, nor did he indicate that it does.

I realize we're not required to use Chicago, MLA, APA or any other recognized format, but it's just good form to quote and cite your sources if you expect to build credibility as a new member. Hyperlinking inside the text doesn't cut it. Sorry.


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## K-man (Mar 5, 2013)

Dirtymeat said:


> There you go again acting like a Moderator or Administrator when you hold no such powers, if you would have taken the time to read my post you would have found the link to my source in Chen Pan Ling_, name.
> 
> Maybe your _Flaming or Trolling my post because I'm a new member, but get your facts straight because your starting to look foolish.



:lfao: :lfao:

Maybe I should have busted you for your first post but I gave you the benefit of the doubt. 

Recognise this site?  You should because you copied it for your first post on MT.  




> *Greatly Improve Your Kung Fu Training in 3 Simple Steps*
> by Ben
> Here are 3 simple ways to greatly improve your Kung Fu training.
> 
> ...



So unless your name is Ben!

Oh! In case the others missed your first post, here it is again.



> *Improve your practice*
> 
> Apply these to your form, your techniques, your applications and especially your drills & sparring.
> 
> ...


.


So yes, I'm not a moderator or administrator but, I like to read original thoughts.  If you want to discuss someone else's work, by all means, but make sure it is properly acknowledged.

If we were playing baseball, I would call that "Strike Three"!
 :asian:


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