Taoist Tai Chi Society New April Class for Beginners (Buffalo NY)

[East Winds]

Myrmidon,

Exactly!!!!!!

Very best wishes

 

[DaPoets]

I'm trying not to be a jack of all trades to be honest. The Taoist Tai Chi set has done wonders for my back, my posture, my knees, ankles, and bottom of my feet. All of this I have had some issues w/ in the past. Now that I am doing pretty well w/ my Taoist Tai Chi and comfortably teaching now as well (student for 12 years now) I'm picking up other forms taught w/ in the TTCS like Sword and Sabre, as well as Lok Hup Ba Fa and Hsing-I. My goal is to master Sword and Hsing-I as best I can as not many are qualified to teach it in the US and Canada. I can say for myself, that if I picked up learning other forms of Tai Chi, that would take away from my time and ability to really understand the benefits of the Tai Chi taught by the TTCS. Can some do multiple styles at once and keep them separate? Perhaps, but I would just rather be great at doing what my organization has to offer and spend the next 12 years fine tuning my skills and those of others than going outside of the group and confusing my self and potentially others as well.

I don't think there is anything wrong w/ people doing what ever they want to be honest, but w/ there being so much to learn just w/ in my organization, I don't see the need for myself to step outside it right now. I'm happy, learning, benefiting, helping others, volunteering my time (I don't get paid to teach and neither does anyone else) and just promoting the health giving qualities of Taoist Tai Chi.

We recently put on a banquet for over 800 people and it was ran, completely by us volunteers at our own location. Not many Tai Chi clubs can do or say that. I like how we all come together to help each other and do things all over the world. My main teacher right now is in China and Australia right now helping our branches there for the full month of March. I plan on going to Quebec City in August to help w/ the new building opening there that we have and to party as it's the 400th anniversary for the city.

 

[Myrmidon]

I'm trying not to be a jack of all trades to be honest. The Taoist Tai Chi set has done wonders for my back, my posture, my knees, ankles, and bottom of my feet. All of this I have had some issues w/ in the past.

Good for you!... But you must understand that you would have attained the same benefits from practicing traditional Yang style taijiquan (from which the form practiced by the TTCS comes). The same could be said if you had practiced any other style of traditional taijiquan. So, the health benefits you obtained could be attributed to your constant practice of taijiquan in general and not specifically because you practiced a particular "brand" of taijiquan.

Now that I am doing pretty well with my Taoist Tai Chi and comfortably teaching now as well (student for 12 years now) I'm picking up other forms taught within the TTCS like Sword and Sabre, as well as Lok Hup Ba Fa (Liu He Ba Fa) and Hsing-I. My goal is to master Sword and Hsing-I as best I can as not many are qualified to teach it in the US and Canada.

There are many excellent teachers of traditional Xingyiquan, Sabre and Sword in North America...

I can say for myself, that if I picked up learning other forms of Tai Chi, that would take away from my time and ability to really understand the benefits of the Tai Chi taught by the TTCS.

I have never suggested that you take other forms of Tai Chi... what I am suggesting is that you should get to know the traditional Yang style taijiquan, which is basically what the TTCS teaches (its own particular version of the traditional Yang style 108 postures). You don't need to go and learn other styles such as Chen, Wu or Sun, but it would be really good for you to deepen your knowledge of the Yang style taijiquan you already know by exploring what the traditional masters of that style are doing and teaching...

Can some do multiple styles at once and keep them separate? Perhaps, but I would just rather be great at doing what my organization has to offer and spend the next 12 years fine tuning my skills and those of others than going outside of the group and confusing my self and potentially others as well.

That's precisely the problem... by confining yourself to what is taught within the TTCS you are depriving yourself of the possibility of really fine tuning what you already know by getting exposed to the traditional art.

 

[Xue Sheng]

The Taoist Tai Chi set has done wonders for my back, my posture, my knees, ankles, and bottom of my feet. All of this I have had some issues w/ in the past.

Traditional Yang style taiji (with martial arts) did wonders for my back as well and has not hurt my knees at all.

However the tree I encountered a few years back didn't do me much good Taiji however has not hurt me at all... well maybe ocassionally in push hands with apps but thats fun stuff :EG:

 

[East Winds]

DaPoets,

I hope you will continue to contribute to this board. It was always my hope that the TTCS would lose some of its insularity and participate in the wider world of Taiji in general. Myrmidon gives some good advice which I hope you will take on board in the spirit it was given. You will find the people on this board both knowledgeable, experienced and generous with their hard earned knowledge. There is a lot to be learned about Taiji's different styles here. You do not have to practise other styles, but you should at least try and learn something about them. Would you become proficient in English literature if you only read the works of William Shakespear?

Please keep contributing and don't be put off by old cynics like me who spent a lot of Instructor time with the TTCS. Some of us have been where you are now.

Very best wishes

Very best wishes

 

[DaPoets]

I'm not really put off and I came here to share my insight as well as take in as much as I could as well. This weekend I'll be learning the TTCS Sword Style from Friday morning through to Sunday afternoon and I'm very much excited about it. Again this will be at the temple in Orangeville Canada where I was this past weekend for a Women & Tai Chi session all weekend. I did have a nice little crash course in Saber of the weekend as I'll be going to Columbus Ohio in 2 weeks to study Saber there for a weekend. Yes I'm learning both at basicly the same time..... but I'm willing to take on the task since I'll be able to practice with others about 5 nights a week who have been doing these for many years now.

I have come to this site as I am very much open minded, and I know that even though I have gained enough experience to teach others, I really don't know all that much even after having been doing this for 12 years now. I will always be a student and I will never consider myself a master of anything but my goals are always to master what I do.

It was kinda funny though as I though of all of you as we worked on making sure that everything we did it was good for the knees... we spent probably about 4 hours over the weekend just on angles to ensure good posture and keeping the knees in a healthy position.

 

[East Winds]

I learned both Sword and Sabre with the TTCS, but since beginning Traditional Yang Family Taijiquan I realise the limitations of the TTCS forms.

A good thing to remember when doing these forms is that "Sword is for the Surgeon, Sabre is for the Butcher".

Very best wishes

 

[DaPoets]

Yes I believe John Huang will be teaching Sword this weekend as I have heard through the grapevine and when he does Sword it's so incredibly fluid it's jaw dropping. His Saber is stellar as well but Saber is just so quick... I like the length of the Sword set more.

 

[Xue Sheng]

A good thing to remember when doing these forms is that "Sword is for the Surgeon, Sabre is for the Butcher".

Then I guess I'm a Butcher :EG: I have always preferred the Dao over the Jain

Actually speaking historically the Dao was used more by the military and the Jain was for the gentry/officials if you will.

 

[DaPoets]

Very correct Xue Sheng. Saber is a warriors blade and used a lot for close combat fighting. The sword is of "high class" (stand back so I may cut you and not get your blood on my clothing)

In the TTCS we actually do call them taijijian and taijidao now but still put (sword) or (saber) next to them to get people used to the terms. In the past we didn't use those traditional terms as many of our members are not as well versed as others in the terminology.

 

[newGuy12]

Well, I can say this: There is a Taoist Tai Chi group here in my city. I attended their classes and learned the motions of the form. I practiced with them often, and found benefit from it. Now, I went mostly out of curiousity, to see what it was about.

I think its great that the old people were given this way of benefiting their health. I asked them when we would learn to employ these motions, to fight with -- they told me that they do not practice the fighting part, but concentrate on health only. The students were mostly members of the local orchestra (the advanced students, at least), and were fine people, I had much fun with them, they were people that I would not have crossed paths with had it not been for this practice. That alone was interesting to me.

Now, I do not practice this Tai-Chi in any way now, because I prefer the more outward ways -- and the flashy motions in TKD, but that is just my personality.

Though the TTC does not teach any fighting, I can still see great value in its practice, because I myself have felt benefit in my body -- yes -- particularly with the knee!

Also, my personality is such that I do not wish to engage in training that takes SO LONG to learn well. I do not have enough patience for that, again, that is just my personality.





Regards,

Robert

 

[Myrmidon]

Now, I do not practice this Tai-Chi in any way now, because I prefer the more outward ways -- and the flashy motions in TKD, but that is just my personality.

You may like this:

 

[DaPoets]

I think any type of art takes a long time to become profficient at, but of course there are many types where the basic moves are very powerful and are quick to become second nature. Tai Chi does take many many years to get used to and I guess that's something I appreciate about it. One of my friends that started w/ me in 1996 didn't last long as he said he just wanted to come out and do a jump kick and tackle someone after coming out of a single whip lol but my 2nd friend that started w/ me still practices today ( just in another city).

I think this is very common and thus people of like minds tend to find similar martial arts to practice.

 

[Xue Sheng]

I believe it was Chen Xiaowang that said that Taiji as a martial art was virtually dead just based on the number of people that do it for health and only know the health side of it as compared to those that actually know the martial arts of it as well. There are so few by comparison that know the MA of it or want to know the MA of it that it will not be long before virtually no one knows Taiji as a martial art.

Think about it, how many people actually know taiji is a martial art, even amongst the martial art community.

This to me is quite sad but if doing taiji for health is someone’s thing than I will not try and stop them all I ask is that they do not try and get me to stop doing the MA of taiji or force there views of taiji training on me and so far over the years in my training there have been a few who tried in one way or another.

 

[Myrmidon]

Don't despair, Xue Sheng, Tai Chi Chuan (with the "chuan") is alive and well!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nIpU6S_RDew&feature
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mH0nZGnl5zQ&feature
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mk68WsIoAGg&feature

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GtQXLjmDJVg&feature

 

[newGuy12]

Whoa!

 

[Xue Sheng]

Don't despair, Xue Sheng, Tai Chi Chuan (with the "chuan") is alive and well!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nIpU6S_RDew&feature
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mH0nZGnl5zQ&feature
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mk68WsIoAGg&feature

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GtQXLjmDJVg&feature

Thanks, nice clips, I have seen clips of Chen Zhonghua before and he is rather good.

But it is not just those that do not want MA it is those that are claiming they are doing taiji as a martial art when they in fact are not, too much force to much wrestling. I have said it before, my taiji Sifu is the only person I have ever had use Qinna on me and I absolutely do not feel it coming.

I no longer let any of it get to me, I use to, I just see many more that do not do the MA than do. I do however still see more Chen stylists that are interested in MA that are not but things are changing there to and not for the better. Yang style has been hit by this hard and there are an awful lot of people out there learning Yang without MA. My Sifu will ad does teach taiji with the MA intact but most of his students do not want to learn or do the MA of it they just want forms, forms and more forms and it makes it very difficult to train the MA when so few care to know it. But I just train and let them go and that is all I can do.

 

[DaPoets]

As for many of us "westerners" when we think taiji we think old people moving slowly to some type of martial art for health... and that is exactly how it's portraid in the media when you see commercials for health products, there is always some person in their late 50's trying to stay young doing taiji. Media plays a powerful role. Now if those same commercials that were focusing on health showed an old lady do a taijiquan move against a young mugger, then perseption about taiji would change.

For me, it's not about the form, it's not about MA, it's about health, longevity, and overall improvement of body, mind, spirit. I do believe that it's harder to improve the mind and spirit if the body is not healthy, thus I practice taijiquan 5 nights a week, play indoor soccer twice a week, ski when I can, and keep up w/ my fiance who is 23 ;-) (I'm 30).

After I become exceptionally good at what TTCS has to offer; taijiquan, taijijian, taijidao, lok kup ba fa, hsing-i and the meditations, I will probably take a hyatus from the TTCS for a while to explore other styles both hard and soft again. When will that happen, who's to say... but I know it probably will happen and I look forward to it as well.

 

[Xue Sheng]

As for many of us "westerners" when we think taiji we think old people moving slowly to some type of martial art for health... and that is exactly how it's portraid in the media when you see commercials for health products, there is always some person in their late 50's trying to stay young doing taiji. Media plays a powerful role. Now if those same commercials that were focusing on health showed an old lady do a taijiquan move against a young mugger, then perseption about taiji would change.

Or just watch my 70 year old, half my size, taiji teacher throw me around like a rag doll

For me, it's not about the form, it's not about MA, it's about health, longevity, and overall improvement of body, mind, spirit. I do believe that it's harder to improve the mind and spirit if the body is not healthy, thus I practice taijiquan 5 nights a week, play indoor soccer twice a week, ski when I can, and keep up w/ my fiance who is 23 ;-) (I'm 30).

After I become exceptionally good at what TTCS has to offer; taijiquan, taijijian, taijidao, lok kup ba fa, hsing-i and the meditations, I will probably take a hyatus from the TTCS for a while to explore other styles both hard and soft again. When will that happen, who's to say... but I know it probably will happen and I look forward to it as well.

Damn!!!! I almost remember when I was 30

Hey whatever makes you happy in yor chosen art.

 

[ggg214]

one thing for not only taiji but for most of CMA,never changed, is that the real one is handled only in small part of practitioners. we call it lineage.
why? because the real CMA requires many characters for its successors. because of its internal (not just in taiji, but in CMA), it only could be taught one by one.that is why i am so confused that some one who study in a big class can learn the real taiji.
but that's ok, for health, i think what they are doing is enough. for fighting, it's totally the different way.the latter way is my way, and fortunately, i have two masters who are experts.