More methods for training the basic walk of Classical Tai Chi

Video of Classical Tai Chi Walking by Master Stephen Hwa

I am very grateful to my teacher for the work he did in making this video.  Over the years of practice and training students I have discovered a few other methods and observations that can be used for the training. In Classical Tai Chi the basic walk is done with the knees slightly bent and remaining so. When practicing the first lesson of Classical Tai Chi Walk one should first look to stretching the neck up.  Students should also check that they are not watching the ground to see if their feet are correct.  Check the position of the feet  in one of the exercise methods we outline below wherein the student will stand in one spot. The position of the legs can also be checked in this “one spot” method, thus making sure that the thighs line up when the student sits back, or the knee does not go over the front toe when the student leans to the front.  As the student progresses they should find they are automatically stretching the head up and looking forward as well.  This is an important part of the “lean” forward posture where unless checked a student will watch their feet. When one “sits” back, the body should be vertical and perpendicular to the floor

As training progresses, the student will keep the body weight back when they are dropping the foot.  It is a sign of a perpetual beginner to have the body weight lurch when the foot takes a step. The foot pushes down until it is completely flat on the ground then used either to pull the body forward or back.  Until the foot plants firmly the body does not move and hence the body moves in a pulling from one weight shift to another.  One wants to learn to recognize,then end, any kind of rocking action with either lead foot as the weight shifts.  I show this “rocking” in my class by students pulling me  by the arm AS my  lead foot is being planted, then pull me  AFTER my lead foot plants.  This also holds for stepping backward and plant the foot by actually touching the heel to the floor first.  Eliminate the rocking action that occurs with stepping onto the ball of the foot. I will also have them do the same comparative movement.  They readily see the instability of rocking the foot as one is shifting the weight vs. “planting” the foot.

Students who do the basic walk for a while will not stand up when they lift the leg to take a step.  By “standing up”,  I mean that the weight bearing leg does not flex and straighten itself.  This type of flexion will result in the student bobbing up and down as they walk.  Or what might be called a kind of duck walking .  To do the walk correctly, the bend of the standing knee will not change as you lift the other leg,  whether moving forward or backward.  I have my students lightly touch a wall as they move, so lightly that the fingers gently slide as they walk.  I tell them that if they are aware enough, they will actually feel the hand move up and down if the “standing” leg is bobbing up and down as they walk.  Another technique I recommend is to put a piece of tape on a mirror at the level of one’s head as they stand with knees bent. Students   watch   the top of the head as one walks toward it.  Do not bob up and down and  keep looking forward while not watching the ground.  The top of the head should not rise above the tape as the student moves.

Another use for a wall, post, kitchen counter, etc.,   is to isolate the walking practice into a few basic walking steps.  The first advantage of this method is that one does not have to worry about their balance.   In the beginning,  students will inevitably be overly concerned with balance and not able to concentrate on the real movement itself.  With holding on to the wall or post, at least the balance problem takes care of itself so one can give full attention to the actual practice and training of movement.   In a first step, the full planting of the foot while holding the pole will make it less likely that the body lurches forward.  Additionally, the student can check their posture in either lean or sit back positions because they can take an extended pause with no concern for maintaining balance.  Is the rear end tucked in, is the neck stretched up, is there a continuous stretch from top of head to bottom of heel, etc.  ?  In this one position, one should just slowly deliberately shift the weight from front to back while pausing to do the self - check in each posture.

Another method one can use for these exercises is to do numerous continuous walking steps while sliding the hand along a wall.  This method  is slightly different from my teachers which as I iterated involves  holding  a support without moving the hand.  I teach students to practice different exercises while using both methods. The “holding” onto a support is very useful for lessons that involve the training of core movement to move the body.  Students doing this can do many repetitions where they can contract the lower abdomen or tan tien area to move the body either front  or back and shift the weight by pulling.  Eventually, one learns to feel the contractions of the abdomen engage the lower back, buttocks, legs and feet, etc.   I tell students who struggle with feeling the contractions engage with other muscle groups to simply “pull” with the legs. Or as Mike Fittipaldi who is also a teacher put it, to “pull with the knee”.  That is the way that I started out as I gradually began to learn not only to contract the abdominal muscles but also to learn where they contract, how it felt and how to engage the other parts of the body.

One other method I use for “core contraction” training is to have students simply sit in a straight back chair with one foot slightly in front of the other.  I then tell the student to contract the muscles of the lower abdomen while leaning the upper body slightly forward.  From the “lean” position, I then tell students to contact the lower abdomen while pulling the body back to a straight and perpendicular sitting position.  Like the “holding” onto a support while one stands, this sitting in a chair method can generate many, many repetitions to train such core contractions and body movement.  The student thinks and feels what sensations are happening and to look for such things as engagement with the feet to coincide with the pulling action. One can also gradually learn to detect engaged muscle groups such as the back, buttocks, etc. 

Another component or method for training the walking is to hold the support, take a couple of steps either forward or backward and pause at each juncture.  Of particular significance at each “pause” is to check head stretched up, and a stretch from top of head to bottom of heel.  However, an additional check is made on how well the rear end is “tucked” in with both the forward lean and sit back postures.  For the forward lean one still has to try and tuck in the buttocks.  For the sit back posture, one also has to tuck in the buttocks.  In the lean of course, one will not fully tuck under the buttocks as much as one can when sitting back.  I frequently point out to beginners how important the tuck is.  To illustrate this I have them move to touching a wall with the backs of their body.  With their legs straight and not bent at all they see they can run their hand through the curve in their lower back between the back and wall.  Then I have them bend the knees and tuck in the behind while feeling the same area of the lower back.  With their back to the walls I can also have them practice the “one step” method of shifting the body back and forth numerous times.  When they pull back, I urge them to see which part of the back will touch the wall first.  If the shoulders or even the head touches the wall first, the obvious correction is to tuck in the buttocks fully.  The lower back near the sacrum should be touching the wall with no other portion of the back in contact. These types of additional practices besides breaking down the various components of walking thus enable students to practice the most difficult portions of the walking.

The point is not the "benefits" but how one gets the benefits

The march to publish more books, start more classes, develop more styles of Tai Chi is on the increase.  In these videos about Tai Chi at the Mayo clinic for instance there is talk of Tai Chi being "an internal martial art".  However, I find that I am  left to my own definition of what an "internal martial art" is and how to "get internal" is not made clear. Clinic says "Internal" Tai Chi is good for what ails you but what is the path to "Internal" Tai Chi?

Tai Chi is "internal martial art" but how do I get "internal"?

The  Clinic states that: " it  incorporates Tai Chi into physical medicine and rehabilitation and it does this because it has several components such as meditation so called Chi Kung where you cultivate your energy, second component is a memorized sequence of slowly, mindfully performed movements that are a way of practicing self defense movements, then thirdly brings this all together in push hands, a sort of slow moving  dance that you do with another person to practice the movements that you have learned in situations where you might have your balance being challenged".  Essentially, it was introduced because studies suggest it is  good for what ails you because it does not raise heart rate.  Patients ask what they can do for health and Mayo suggests Tai Chi because it is holistic and might be applicable in a number of areas.  Meditative aspects can help with cultivating equanimity under stress.   How does it do this "internally", how can I learn to "internally" achieve this?

One has to think that the Tai Chi must affect our physiology in order to accomplish all these wonderful claims. When I hear "physiology" I think, ah, my blood is pumping.  Well, this is fine, but what goes on "inside", "internally" when I do  Tai Chi? My blood is pumping, my nerves connect with each other, isn't it amazing how my nerves connect back with my brain.  However, with no understanding of how this complexity does this, it is  as if to say:  "Well, I'm standing and moving with another person in this "internal" martial art called push hands with my balance being challenged, so all you nerves you need to boost up my brains understanding so I do not lose my balance".  

Media, as you know, has a byline for everything ever said or that will be said about Tai Chi.  "For hundreds of years people have practiced the Chinese martial art of Tai Chi for its many health benefits. Researchers who study Tai Chi say it can help reduce blood pressure, decrease anxiety, improve flexibility and much more. For these reasons, some doctors at Mayo Clinic have embraced Tai Chi and are teaching it to their patients."

Remember we are still talking about "internal" martial art. The "Doctor" says "very slow motion", the patient says "just the relaxation helps with aches and pains" and phrases it like a question.  The "reporter" says "Yin and Yang, it brings opposites into balance". What does that statement mean in terms of how I can learn to do that, internally?  "Balance is found through meditation, and pushing against one another." The Doctor says "what you are learning to do is to maintain central equilibrium, that center of gravity, that sense of yourself in the world and your environment". What is the significance of this in terms of how to achieve "internal"?  In addition to bringing about balance, Tai Chi can improve your health in many ways, how does one learn to  do this "internally"?  If the famous clinic is telling us of all the benefits, then are we to accept this "internal" at face value?  It seems to me that there is a complexity here about "internal" that is not being talked about.  In such complexity,  any scientific  institution or individual for that matter who talks of potential benefits should not only  explain the elements of the "internal" discipline but also explain the elements in terms of how to "internally"  achieve the benefits.  As science, what are the "rules" that each element follows?  What is the logical structure that the rules follow?  Finally, what is the calculated scientific reasoning behind the logical structure?

You can "uncover" the treasure but you should not "expect" it

Sooner or later, new students to Classical Tai Chi may reveal their expectations about the learning path. Sooner or later, long time students in Classical Tai Chi who expect that they are on the right learning path  may "become careless, neglecting some of the fundamentals in the form playing".   This as Master Hwa describes in Forum 10, October 2004 is called "advancement followed by periods of stagnation, and even a turn for the worse."  Whether beginner or advanced, our expectations will most often be the deciding factor in whether we are happy or sad over our study.

There are interpretations of the I Ching that point out the danger inherent in expectations which are too grandiose.  The Tao te Ching advises us not to "fight" over issues that do not meet our expectations.  This even applies to our own gumption in maintaining our practice; practicing when we don't feel like practicing for instance.  There is no point in "beating ourselves up" because we expected that not only would the Tai Chi be easy, but that it would be correspondingly easy to get up in the morning and even practice. Various writers have described expectations to be a kind of prison.  The many styles of what Master Hwa calls "ethereal Tai Chi" seem to encourage unrealistic expectations. Medical investigators compare Tai Chi with conventional aerobic exercise and qualitative analyses explore  patient experience, belief systems and expectations.  Participants in various studies are asked what their expectations are.

Psychologists who do Tai Chi warn against making mountains out of molehills, creating psychological barriers for ourselves in learning Tai Chi, which inevitably have to do with expectations.   I notice that students who merely think they are going to be pushed back hard during push hands (not that we ever push anyone hard), react prematurely by exhibiting extreme muscle tension, this is because of expectation. A new student said "I expected more people in this class, aren't there going to be more".

People who begin or who have only been involved for a year or so question why they are not teaching or what criteria it takes to be a Master. In other words, they are expecting to receive the "treasure" for their work in Tai Chi. Notice I say "expecting" not "uncovering", there is a difference which as we have established as "expectations" in both attitude about standards of achievement in Tai Chi , even down to finer and finer distinctions.    Master Hwa has said: " I am always amazed at the extenal martial arts schools that they can have such fine distinction between different color belts and different color strips on each belt".

I have happily discovered (uncovered) that there is both a tempo and a rhythm to Classical Tai Chi.  It was only with my venture into "Internal", note the emphasis on "Internal" Discipline that I stopped demanding of both myself and my teachers that there be signposts for my progress.  I also find that true understanding of internal means I can have classes of mixed levels because there are truly no tests of achievement when it comes to developing internal energy.   I realize I do not have to "expect" The Treasure; I feel like I can breathe freely. I can enjoy allowing the Treasure to be Uncovered.  Will this attitude allow consistent progress without having to compete with myself or others?  The answer has been yes, but not through "pie in the sky" but through the little things.

 The "little things": A student can reveal their expectations that the Tai Chi lacks quality if the classroom is not filled to the brim and in the process fail to see that the Tai Chi has made them feel better.  A student can constantly complain that they lose balance when doing basic walking; "I expected Tai Chi was supposed to improve my balance"  and miss the fact that they have gained strength, flexibility and body awareness.  In any event, an expectation is making them unaware of what they do achieve and keeping them aware of what they "think" they should achieve.  An expectation keeps them from making coherent reasoning in situations like this.  Reason being, if one does not know or refuses to acknowledge where they are unbalanced, how can one expect to "improve" anything. As for me, I am happy as a teacher to work little by little toward never have any expectations and in that way, I will uncover the fact that I no longer get disappointed.

Be impatient with Classical Tai Chi but don't throw out the baby with the bath water.

Enter the New Year by first recognizing then taming  your dragons of impatience, frustration and boredom. How do you tame them?  Realize that you can't fight them but you can learn to live with them with some equanimity by simply remaining  aware from whence they come.

Speaking of impatience, one wonders how many students are so impatient that some will only read my email notice for 10 seconds and not the blog.  Who wants to even admit they are impatient, right? I have met many students who talk about the  Tai Chi as an art that has to prove itself to them. It has to prove its efficacy and its fighting ability over other martial arts.I don't attempt to talk about the efficacy of Tai Chi over other martial arts here but I do attempt to analyze why students may feel this way. 


The most common scenario is a student who in various ways expresses their displeasure over the "slowness of the learning curve" whether for health or martial purposes.  They express their impatience at their "slow" rate of "progress" in gaining experience or new skills in Tai Chi.  Most simply leave the training early on rather than verbally expressing their displeasure. It is interesting that each student who expresses this seems to feel that they are the only student in the world who experiences this.   Additionally, they state they alone are "impatient", they never mention "I guess I am not unique but  I'm really like all the other students who have such impatience".  If they did admit that they were not alone I think they would   realize that they have literally fallen prey to boredom, impatience and frustration, which are states of mind universal to all humans and not Classical Tai Chi per se. 


In falling prey,  they blame the Tai Chi for their impatience but in truth  they are  not aware of the source of those maladies.  The source is something that every bored, impatient and frustrated student possesses and that is a nervous system.  They figuratively throw up their hands or slap their sides and disavow the Tai Chi . In that moment how can they see what they experience as "impatience, frustration, slowness, boredom" is really proof that they need the benefits of Tai Chi even more.  The more impatience over slowness of the learning curve, the more you need the benefits of the Classical Tai Chi.   I wonder if they know that the true meaning of "learning curve" is really to present a graphical representation of a common sense principle.  In the case of Classical Tai Chi the principle being that the more one does something, the better one gets at it.  The common sense of it dictates that the more one works to curb their impatience, frustration, boredom, the better one gets at it.


My own teacher Stephen Hwa addressed this common sense principle and even provides a methodology for achieving it just recently, to a student who expressed his impatience at the slowness of the learning curve when it comes to martial application.     

There is no mystery to be good at martial art application. This is discussed in my book and video.

One needs to go through three steps:

1. Develop internal energy or power through Form practice, so that one can deliver the power at any angle and position.

2. Practice the form such that the ability of delivery becomes instinctive, no need to think.

3. Practice push hand and sparing to develop sensitivity and finesse.

Some students visit me in Florida and express their impatience but also show me they are  not close to master step 1. They are able to use internal at several moves but not all angles. From their description of your sparring experiences, (Tai Chi vs. Wing Chun, etc.) they  still need to think when they move. No wonder they were always one step behind, and being controlled by the opponent.

Step 3 needs a partner to practice. There is no short cut to that.

I understand this a little better now in light of this analysis.  Those many students also do not see that we all swim in a literal culture of impatience. The dubious virtues of multi-tasking, and hurry, hurry, hurry are extolled to say nothing of our being unaware of how much we even compete with the very machines we design to "make our lives better".   When we do the Tai Chi we bring a desire for Tai Chi to get into the batter's box and knock one out of the park.  What's it worth, how good is it, how fast can I get it, why can't I "get it" now?  Then even though we are "swimming in a culture of impatience", it does not mean we are aware that we do so.  So what we are working with is like a house with a poor foundation for living that we don't know has crumbling brick.  What kind of an environment do we have here for success in Tai Chi?  If the environment is shoddy to begin with, why would we add to such impatience with more impatience of our own?    Then there is the inherent difficulties one faces in remembering "how to do things" in Tai Chi. What else to do   but throw in the towel?

I cannot help but think here of the many students who do not even make it past basic walking practice, much less get on the path to martial expertise.  The common refrain I hear is when I see students wobbling and even losing their balance.  The refrain goes like: "I thought Tai Chi was supposed to improve your balance".  To which I say, "what it does is point out to you where you are unbalanced, the improvement is up to you".   That's Classical Tai Chi, it shows you where your work is cut out for you, doing the work is up to you.  Don't throw out the baby with the bath water.

Why talk about your illness in a Tai Chi Forum?

I don't want to get into why folks think that Tai Chi is a panacea, that is a big, big area, so lets not go there.  It happens from time to time however  that I read Tai Chi forums or any forum and see students/people  revealing intimate details about their medical history...I think they feel that they are safe in doing this.  I have a suspicion, it may be they feel they are safe under HIPAA and that no one can use their information in a harmful way.

Overall, I think there is still quite a bit of misunderstanding about HIPAA, what it does and does not do. I can provide a definition of the acronym however:  HIPAA is the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, Public Law 104-191. One of the things it provides for is a privacy rule and individuals who believe the privacy rule is not being upheld can file a complaint with the Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights.  According to the Wall Street Journal however, the OCR has a long backlog and ignores most complaints Wall Street Journal Examines HIPAA Loopholes  . It does not mean that one's complaint will be ignored but it does sound like a bit of a "crapshoot".   I will readily admit I am one of those who understand very little about it....that admission may be my best ally, I hope it is yours. 

I think some people believe they have a plethora of rights under HIPAA and that belief is coupled with an unawareness of how they may exercise the rights that they do have...key word here ""believe".   My free advice is worth exactly what you pay for it, so I'll simply ask a couple questions: Even if this were a perfect world, which it is not, don't you agree we owe it to ourselves to protect our own health privacy?  How can we disclose intimate details about our medical history in public forums on the web and expect that the information will be private and confidential?

The Learning Path of Classical Tai Chi in the Year of the Dragon

Master Stephen Hwa as a celebrant of Chinese New Year giving crisp dollar bills in a red envelope to the mouth of his Lion friend.


Link to Master Stephen Hwa demonstrating "Round" and "Square" Form for the IBPS Miami, Fl

Link to video of Lion Dance at 4:45 you can get a glimpse of Stephen and Eva Hwa
Ahh...Sunny Florida

This Chinese New Year gives us all hope for a better year in 2012 and it begins this Monday the 23^rd. It is the 2^nd new moon after the Winter Solstice of December 22, 2011. The Chinese year 4710 begins on Monday with the new moon, and in Master Stephen Hwa's hometown in Wuxi, Jiangsu Province it is considered the beginning of Spring.

The dragon is the major symbol of good luck. In this context, we can expect great things in 2012 for since 1996 we have been through the longest unfavorable period in the 60-year cycle of Chinese astronomy. The dragon marks an end to the destructive period and the beginning of better things to come.

• The tradition begins before New Year's Eve by cleaning out your physical, spiritual and emotional closets. Attempt forgiveness, let go of grudges and genuinely wish peace and well-being for all.
• Celebrants give crisp dollar bills to friends, family and associates in red envelopes, expressing prosperity, joy and happiness. At midnight on New Year's Eve, windows are opened to bring good luck and a fresh start. Fireworks close the night to frighten away evil spirits and bad luck.
• Fitting in perfectly for the ultimate goals of Classical Tai Chi, everything associated with the New Year is meant to reflect good fortune and positive affirmations, encouraging a healthy lifestyle.
• Greet people who bring you joy with a spontaneous smile and habitually offer them positive intentions. Implement a schedule that allows for exercise, good food, meaningful work and time for yourself. Sticking with a routine will help you make it through the winter.
• The Chinese New Year celebration typically ends on the full moon with a colorful dragon parade in the street. The dragon is a sign of passion and self confidence. Dragons are brave, honest and dependable.
• Dragons frequently help others but rarely ask for help. Many dragons prefer to be alone, and can be misinterpreted as arrogant or conceited.
• Practice understanding because, like many of us, dragons can have a quick temper and suffer signs of stress. Symptoms can be headaches, depression and high blood pressure. Dragons can calm the mind and tone the body by practicing Classical Tai Chi

The Chinese New Year greeting "gung hay fat choy" is more than just a wish or desire, or a hope or belief. It presupposes that you already have the means for which congratulations are due.

Do not touch your body when performing "Tight Compact Form"

Video of Linear Compact Form followed by (Circular) Tight Compact Form

Seasons Greetings

I have been working more and more on the Tight Compact Round Form, not because I "want to" but because it has become a kind of physical necessity and a natural extention of the Compact Linear Round Form.  I feel myself fully grown into doing tight compact form, like shedding my skin or being able to stretch further.  I feel it as a natural progression and demand of the process. When I do the tight compact form, I do not have to struggle to maintain the integrity of the form; or in other words be concerned if  everything is being done correctly. I can concentrate on maintaining internal discipline and  not worry about doing the form wrong.

Recently I asked Master Stephen Hwa about something he said in an article as well as a problem I experienced in doing tight compact form.  The problem is  where I still touch my own body in light of how tight the space becomes when moving arms near one's own body. On the article he wrote I said: "You said this following statement in an article that Eva wrote some time ago".

He said: "For the advanced T' ai Chi practitioner, the form itself becomes less expansive externally (so-called "small circle" or "compact form"), and more angular. As such, Yi takes on increasing importance in playing the form. There is less movement and more Yi. Also, to have smaller external movements and yet reach to all angles in the form requires greater internal movement, more stretching at the Yin- Yang junctions, and more internal energy flow. This is the next level in T' ai Chi."

I told Master Hwa I was intrigued by the statement "to have smaller external movements and yet reach to all angles in the form requires greater internal movement, more stretch at the yin-yang junctions and more internal energy flow".

I said to him, I think I understand this statement on a visceral level as I try first a compact form movement then alternate with a tight compact form movement. On the concept of reaching to all angles in the form, the Yi starts to play an even more important role. I surmise it might be any movement where I
want to attack the opponent on a particular angle that compact form could not reach but tight compact could.

I'm thinking largely of course where the opponent is already in contact with you and as an example, you want to palm strike to acute angle of their body with fajing ;  I see tight compact being of real importance in such close quarters. With such close proximity, it would seem only such angles provide viable attack venues do they not?

I said I have another question although it is by way of observation rather than conjecture: I notice when I do brush knee push during the tight compact form, I have such a hard time not touching myself because things are so tight in there.  For example when compact brings brush knee hand across body then down to groin before turning over the  knee, tight compact brings the brush knee hand tight into chest area and very close to the other arm, it is extremely difficult not to touch myself with it so tight?

Master Hwa  wrote back with :Jim: Your question " tight compact brings brush knee hand tight into chest area and very close to other arm, it is extremely difficult not to touch myself with it so tight? I see that the problem is the move"brush knee hand tight into chest area ". He continued "In tight
compact form, that move is different from compact form. I think I explain that in the Disc 4, that move is more circular, that is the elbow stretch more forward with the hand comeback to the body."

I responded to Master Hwa with:  " I have to say I looked at the Disc 4 numerous times and see that more circular move and more forward elbow stretch.  However, in regard to touching oneself when doing the compact form,  I have to say as being taller I have to take a little longer step size when doing compact.  Also, I find I have to still take a little longer step size when doing tight compact. There is no way I can do form and maintain good balance when I try to take same size as you for instance. So I am thinking perhaps the question of touching oneself still has one's size as an exacerbating factor."

I continued with: "So many different body types are doing this, I am surprised the question I raise has not come up before now. Not just with tight compact, for as far as I know I am only one doing tight compact.  But I am surprised no one says, in spite of their best efforts they find themselves touching their body even during compact and more linear movements. Some people's arms are extremely long, one wonders how does one deal with this without compromising the form."


He responded with the suggestion that perhaps this might indeed be a good question to ask the group of Tai Chi players in the Classical Tai Chi Yahoo Email Group.  I did just that and received a couple of responses. 

I have some good news to report on how things have improved here, thanks to encouragement from Master Hwa, a few great students and the wonders of technology.  I hope what I discovered will help everyone else as well. Originally my wrists were bent at almost a 90 degree angle which is similar as well to what another student  says he experienced,  in order to avoid hitting the arm. I think the expression is that the hand and wrist are "seated". Note the difference in this "seated" position of hand and wrist from other positions of hand and wrist in the form. I think hand should be seated but I do not think it is correct in this to have such an angle that the wrists lock and Qi is blocked.

I also experimented with NOT having the hand pointing up, seated, and/or locked but with the hand pointed down as it passes close to the chest and other arm. In other words, I fold the wrist down much like single whip in order to try getting it past the arm and close to the chest. In both cases I still end up touching my shirt. I'm not sure if even a skin tight, as my wife calls it "tight as a doll's shirt" would keep me from touching something, it just seems too tight in there. In both I will admit however if I took it at a literal snail's pace, watching my hand and fingers I can do it without touching but this is uber slow. It is very "obvious" and hardly "formless" when one has to go to that much trouble.

Then some good news:  I watched Disc 4 and the Compact (Tight) Form sequence, that I provide here with Master Hwa's permission,  once again in slow motion. I find in watching Master Hwa's arms and upper arm elbow, that I was bringing the elbow of the upper arm too close to my body. In a sequence of moves where every inch of space becomes important, the potential to create more space is important. See the Form sequence  to see what I am referring to as  he does the brush knee sequence . I now find that I have more room in which to avoid hitting the "seated" hand as it passes by and touching my body. I don't have to "lock" the wrist. In order to see this as I describe it, I used the KMPlayer and put the video at 50% of speed to view things in slo mo. I see that the elbow of his upper arm is actually at a significant distance from his chest on the side. A rough estimate of distance, no pun intended would be one hands length if you touch your heel of palm your own chest side and extend the fingers, the angle and distance is more than I could observe when the DVD was in regular speed.

I find now that I can do the move without watching my hand and am able to speed it up a little more without touching myself. I look forward to more practice with the arm and elbow at that increased angle and distance from the chest. The elbow is still pointed down on the upper arm and as the palm strike proceeds forward, I can then bring the elbow in toward my center of body in a circular fashion instead of linear as in the Compact.

Well, one thing about tight compact form is that I did feel it as a "natural progression" (p. 74 Uncovering the Treasure , Stephen C.P. Hwa,  or as I call the book : "UTT".  My jury is still out on how "easy" it is because I have to work for consistency in keeping that elbow the same distance from the chest.  To other people who do Classical Tai Chi particularly  if  you are a tall person;  we have this commonality of long limbs, legs, arms, torso, hands as well when we talk about it.

My next conundrum is being able to shrink my step size and still stay balanced. When I started Linear Compact Form Master Hwa urged me to slightly increase my step size because of my tallness, I was losing some balance. Like I said, Tight Compact has a smaller step size p. 74 and a larger step size would create slowness and obviousness...however what we are after is instantaneousness and effortlessness. Then,  "From Form to Formlessness".

Thanks for the encouragement one and all.

The "Tai Chi Classics" have some glaring mistakes

Video excerpted from "Tao of Martial Applications DVD series Volume III"

Recently a question arose in the Yahoo Email Group of Classical Tai Chi regarding the statement:  "Every movement in Tai Chi Form has to have 2 complementary sides of the body, a moving part Yang and a stationary part Yin. When the yin-yang junction is located in the torso of the body, it is an internal move.  When it is outside of the torso, it is an external move." This statement has we have said before was the most important statement made by Wu Chien Chuan to his student Young Wabu. You can find this statement on p. 2 of the book "Uncovering the Treasure" by Stephen Hwa Ph.D. and it is available at Amazon.

The statement was challenged by someone who asked: "Can someone please explain to me how this conforms to the classics of "when moving, there is no place that does not move". "When still, there is no place that is not still".  He continued by saying "The statement about 2 complementary sides, moving Yang and stationary Yin sounds like a broken posture as how a force can pass through the body, if it is not working together as a unit, moving as one".

Master Stephen Hwa has written the following response on October 6, 2011 to the question and challenge, the video above provides an illustration  of his major points about holding the body still while executing a movement that sweeps the leg of the opponent. The video very graphically shows how the movement only works if the nonmoving side of the body is held very still.  Further information about the "Sweeping Movement" is contained in the topic  "The Concept of Yin (nonmoving) and Yang (moving)" on pp. 50 - 51, "Uncovering the Treasure" by Stephen Hwa, Ph.D.

Tai Chi Classics

These Classics started became known in the 1930-40s when book about Tai Chi started to be published in China. These writings reported in those books are a collection of short works attributed to different authors from Chang San-Feng to anonymous authors. Even though their authorship cannot be verified, they are considered to be the holy writ on Tai Chi. They do contain some insights and principles of Tai Chi; but also some glaring mistakes.

How is that possible that both good and bad could be contained in one work. My suspicion is that there is more than one person involved in the writing as we see now. One of my ancestors in the fifteen century wrote a collection of short poems. We have the original hand written manuscript which we published three years ago. During research, we discovered that these poems have been published six times over the years. Many of the published poems are identical to the manuscript; but some have been altered – the later version has more alteration than the earlier version. Apparently, these publishers exercised their poetic license trying to add what they thought a better wording. This kind of alteration is very common in old writings in China and also in the west, such as the bible. The church has devoted inordinate effort to select an acceptable version of the bible.

Two major mistakes in the Classics are: "when one part moves everything moves" and "The jin should be generated from the legs". The later was discussed in Forum 11.

During our last work shop in Buffalo, I warned everyone that you would be challenged by "when one part moves everything moves" when you talk about Classical Tai Chi in public Tai Chi gathering. So you better be prepared. First of all, any martial art move depends upon rooting, there will be a nonmoving part of the body attached to the ground to provide the rooting. Only external martial art which uses push off to generate momentum to attack can qualify "everything moves". In addition, some of these rooted moves, the requirement of nonmoving is very dramatic. During one of the Jou Tsung Hwa Birthday Celebration Gathering ( David Brown was there), I demonstrate this point by asking audience to do a leg sweeping move by standing on one foot and sweep the other leg and move their body with it just slightly. I heard many "ouch" sound from the audience. Then they do the same move while keeping the side of the body above the standing foot still. There was no pain in the knee and delivered a much more powerful sweep.

I think you all need to keep this demonstration in your pocket. Because, you will need it in the future.

Stephen Hwa, Ph.D.

One Yin, One Yang

My own teacher of Classical Tai Chi would probably shrug his shoulders at my revelations here; no big deal, because he knows this already. But at the heart of it, I guess I will always talk as a "westerner" and seemingly be amazed by things, (as his wife Eva has said to me in so many words, we should rue the day when we stop learning) no matter how much Tai Chi I learn.

The Wu Style but more comprehensively Classical Tai Chi talks about "ting jin" and the sensitivity that enables it.   Undoubtedly at its finest it picks up even the most subtle sensations of an opponent's movement. Then, I feel there is our ''ting jin", our sensitivity  when it comes to our own bodies and our minds. Some would call this self-awareness, self-sensing, somatics, etc. It has become quite well accepted that calming the mind through Meditation can have good effects on one’s body.  What has not been well documented, much less accepted is the flip side on how calming the body can have good effects on the mind.  

In his book “Uncovering the Treasure”, p. 31, Stephen Hwa makes the case that mind and body have a relationship which proceeds from the  initial difficulty of learning and total engagement of body-mind. One is struggling to learn in the beginner’s stage, one has to think about everything they do, one has to memorize the movements.  The training then makes a progression toward disengagement of body and mind.  One has memorized the movements, one no longer has to think of what comes next or how to do things .  So this clearly differs from what the meditative traditions state when they say body and mind are inseparable and stay as “one” during Meditation itself. In one sense Tai Chi is similar to meditation with a starting point of “oneness” of body-mind but in Tai Chi the end result is what might be called disengagement of body-mind.

The result of this disengagement is that the mind, no longer having the difficult tasks to do, can simply monitor sensations of  stretching and energy circulation in the body itself. This is where the term “sensation” is joined with the idea of enjoyment;  but the idea of sensitivity to sensations along with  feedback from sensations is an overall prevailing theme. In Uncovering the Treasure, Dr. Hwa talks about the word "sensation" about 20 times, it is indeed quite important.  More than any other style of Tai Chi I studied, Classical Tai Chi teaches one to pick up on these sensations, the subtle signals of the whole body throughout the body, systematically and perseveringly.

In reflecting on this however, it occurs to me there is not only the enjoyment of the sensations of internal energy, there is also dissatisfaction with other sensations in the body. I talk to students about this on occasion both in my studio and Internet Forums.  Student's say during the playing of the form and then even afterward they notice areas of their body that are tight, achy, etc.  One would call these the negative sensations. 

Certainly mind and body are disengaged at advanced levels and one is playing the Tai Chi subconsciously, yet the mind is “still minding the store” by monitoring both enjoyment or satisfaction and  dissatisfaction.  As some exampIes:  I never used to give that much attention to my back, now I know of more areas where it is tight;I notice a plethora of areas in the body where things feel tight, tense, itchy, painful, etc.  Then the sensations seem to go beyond the tactile to sight, hearing, smell, etc. Even when I am through practicing, almost as though the mind is still working on a subconscious level,  I even have things like increased awareness of hunger, I feel hungrier, sounds seem clearer, lights seem brighter, etc.  

There is no doubt in my mind there is a greater diversity of signals on the negative things as well as the positive things; but are the "negatives" really negative, aren't they all just sensations after all? . Haven't we just interrupted the flow of internal  energy where mind and body were disengaged; now we find ourselves naming things?  I enjoy the sensations of internal energy, immensely.  I still sit on the couch, even after 8 years and I do what is called quarter body movement, I do this seemingly without thinking; my wife nudges me, "stop that, it is embarassing".   

 In understanding what happens when one begins to master the Tai chi however, the one disengages and becomes two;  body disengages from mind.  When body and mind are thusly disengaged of course we are doing Tai Chi; but what do we "hear" in regard to sensations?  We hear of sensations some of which we assign as negative, one is dissatisfied; then there is  what we assign as positive or  satisfied. Is it not  all "sensation" ; whether negative or positive, is there ever only one side to the coin?

When I started Tai Chi in the 70's, we all were kind of trapped in  Western hemisphere thinking.   Nowdays, parts of Tai Chi which used to be difficult to explain have become easier to explain but which of course many do not believe; mind and body are one, but in Tai Chi they disengage.  Nowdays, Buddhist monks come to the West and scientists study them, so the differentiation between East and West is slowly disappearing. In the 70's Rene Descarte's "turf deal" with the church (Cartesian Dualism) was dominating our understanding (we have a mind linked to a soul, which is also independent of our body). That illusion has faded with our study of the meditative “mind controls body” disciplines but what about “body controls mind” disciplines such as Tai Chi.

I taught Tai Chi to Therapists at the Veterans Hospital in Buffalo in the 70's. At that time we were getting the first wave of returning vets from Vietnam; some of those armed service personnel had very serious trauma. They could not  begin to relax; some lived in terror and they did not feel safe. What my Tai Chi students only partially realized at the time but what we now seem to know is those vets had sensations of combat imprinted in their bodies too. Scientists tell us  now that mind and memory are imprinted on the whole body;  their trauma is stored in their whole bodies.

I tend to think our  minds note every bit of information that is stored in our bodies, that  we are big memory banks. It is truly great to revel in the enjoyment of the "sensations" of internal energy as Master Hwa says. In some ways however, this is a mixed blessing because as I say, we seemingly also get more to complain about with increased sensitivity to all sensations. Take heart that it is a gradual process however, I have experienced it thusly but certainly more intensely with Classical Tai Chi with its emphasis on Internal Discipline.

Why are sensations so intense with Classical Tai Chi? I have done several other styles of Tai Chi and in none of them did I find  such intensity. I think this is largely attributable to what is referred to as   “one yin, one yang”.   As passed on from Wu Chien Chuan to Young Wabu it was the most important instruction he gave: “Every movement in Tai Chi Form has to have 2 complementary sides of the body, a moving part yang and a stationary part yin.  When the yin-yang junction is outside the body,the movement is external, when it is inside the body, it is an internal movement”.  The profundity of this statement never ceases to amaze me, for the more I can keep still , the deeper I can make that stillness, the movement itself becomes deeper, more intense.  This is referred to as "one yin, one yang".  With one yin one yang we attain greater and greater levels of intense sensation internally.  We refer to intense sensation in the core of the body; the long neglected torso where the internal organs are stored.  To reiterate,  that is greatly dependent on how much stillness I can achieve which is then coupled with movement  This is in sharp contrast to the commonly held notion that we get greater sensation simply from increased movement or being totally Yang.

Iron Island...Needles of Steel

            The church, then funeral home, now "haunted" Iron Island Museum, Buffalo, NY  featured on "Ghost Hunters"


Not really an article about Classical Tai Chi,nevertheless it is dedicated to a Classical Tai Chi student John C. and all those folks that suffer from "back ails".  John indirectly had asked me about acupuncture and so I felt it only appropriate to tell him of my experience.  Here is my defining and  I hope the reader will find somewhat humorous  moment in acupuncture to the tune of an old Forbes Magazine article called:   "The New Old Medicine" by William Flanagan.  In it I reminisce about Dr. James Gong (who helped me alot)  "Ghost Hunters",  Car batteries, Chinese herbal soup and more...


It was a frozen rope cold day in mid January 1987, Buffalo, NY.  I thought it was going to hurt but it did not bother me one bit.  The bespectacled and kindly face of Dr. James Gong hovered above me as he inserted needles into my lower back around the area of the sacrum that had been bothering me. Other needles were slipped into my arms, shoulders and, strangely, my upper lip.


I remained very relaxed and it seemed to increase.  My back and shoulders began to feel a warm sensation like bath water when he hooked the needles to alligator clips.  My muscles in back, shoulders, arms began to twich.  Oh yes, and the alligator clips were electrodes which were attached to what only could look like mini car batteries. When attached,  the devices had a very slight humming noise. "What on earth had made me come here to do this"?...to the Lovejoy Street, Buffalo, NY  office of Dr. James Gong, in mid frozen January in Buffalo's Iron Island District.

Then I remembered-how painful my lower back and neck were.  Several trips to a Tonawanda Street G.P. , a physical therapist, a chiropractor had failed to pro­duce much relief.

I decided to take another tact and try acupuncture. A Tai Chi student of mine recommended Dr. Gong. I took my car to Lovejoy Street passing four pizza parlors, a  Cafe, numerous bars,  grocery stores, a drug store , a bank, and other personal businesses. I passed a  formerly popular Methodist Church at 998 Lovejoy, which on that day was a funeral home.  The funeral parlor long ago donated it to the Iron Island Preservation Society and it is now a museum called "Iron Island Museum".   The museum was even featured on the Sci-Fi Channel series Ghost Hunters.  The TAPS people believe that ghosts of an older man and woman are part of the Iron Island Museum. Reaching Gong's first floor office in a semi brick home built in 1900, I entered the front door.

Dr. Gong spoke English, but not often. Most of my questions to him were greeted with a friendly chuckle, but I managed to let him know where my back and neck hurt. He hustled me into a room, which was half filled with other men, all in their shorts and with needles sticking out of their backs. He had me lie down on a cot, and went to work. In the next room, I learned, that several women were also getting a treatment. I thought back on what my student had told me and the Forbe's article he had given me.  The article had featured that piece "The New Old Medicine" by William G. Flanagan and how much Gong had helped him.  Flanagan spoke in glowing terms about Gong after he visited him at his Mott Street, NY City office.  He had spoken of Dr. Gong even treating the NY Giants professional football team with acupuncture.  He mentioned how Gong had even been flown overseas by wealthy clients in order to treat them.

As I lay there a while, becoming oblivi­ous to the needles and the muscle spasms and the electric current shooting through my arm, I drifted into a dream-like state and of all things fantasized about doing Tai Chi in the old Central Railroad Terminal which was close by.  "Really" I asked myself,  " while hooked up to a car battery"?   I recalll now  that not only was the Iron Island Museum  featured on Ghost Hunters...it was featured  along with the Buffalo Central Railroad Terminal when they were in Buffalo. I remembered in writing this, that  the museum is allegedly haunted and that nowdays I could actually now spend the night in the "haunted" museum, maybe even still hooked up to the "car battery"?

There was an incredibly delicious smell coming from what appeared to be the kitchen, "Was that soup he was making?'  "This guy treats rich people, and he makes his own soup?"  Then I could smell what smelled like ..."Wait, is someone smoking marijuana?" How did I know that...why else...I worked for U.S. Customs at the time.  No, I've heard of this, here he comes holding what appears to be a lit cigar. That's moxa and yes he is holding it over the needles on one of the gents on the other table. What a fantasy trip this is, I feel like I've stepped out of time and place.

I had been to another acupuncturist before this.  I feel it safe to say not every acupuncturist offers such fantasy trips, soup  and beyond along with the price of treatment, of course. Acupuncturists today are as likely to be found on  Lovejoy Street in Buffalo as in Chinatown's all over the world, and they are as likely to be Caucasian as Asian. There are probably 10's of thousands of acupuncturists in the country today.  A trip through the phone book...excuse me Google will show M.D.'s, DDS, who know  acupuncture techniques. Why so?   Easy,  it is in big demand, but I'll bet only a few of them can give good reasoning why the thing works.


Very gradually I began to rouse from my half sleep reverie and smelled something else. It smelled like the soup was burning. Oh no, I wanted to try some, it smelled wonderful. Then the smell became stronger and I realized it was coming from my room. I managed to lift my head even though the effort was staggering, I was so relaxed, my head felt like it weighed a ton. As I looked to my left I could see smoke coming from one of the throw rugs on the floor. I noticed that his heat lamp had fallen and started to scorch the rug...wait, now there is a small flame.

I started calling, "Dr. Gong, Dr. Gong", I thought I was barely whispering but he began to enter the room. "It's OK", he said, you can all go back to sleep. He went over and stamped out the fire. During this time period, I began to fantasize once again. All I could think of was that I was in my underwear. "What if the fire spread, what if we all had to get up while needles were in our bodies and still attached to electrodes, what if we all had to run out into the frozen snow, into the street, staring at oncoming fire trucks while attached to car batteries with our backs and shoulders twitching like a bunch of demented frogs?"

He came over to me, detached the electrodes and began to remove the needles. With each couple of needles, he began a deep massage with some type of pleasant smelling ointment. That feels really good, this guy really knows his stuff. He gently said, "come on, get dressed, the soup is ready".

Addressing the need for perseverance in Classical Tai Chi

Last night I watched 2 of my more concientous and persevering students take to the learning of Square Form like "Ducks to Water".  What a rewarding experience.   I offer this quote:


"Teachers are sort of faced with a thankless task, because no matter how good they are, unless they find a way to personally rationalize the rewards of their effort, nobody else is really going to do it for them en masse."  Julius Erving 
 
In a recent conversation with my teacher Master Stephen Hwa, he stated that the problem of student perseverance needed to be addressed.  What follows is my humble attempt, mostly based on my personal experience and insight to address the problem.  Unfortunately, I do not have any easy solutions, but what I do offer is some analysis and  insight into what constitutes the problem.  I organize the analysis around what I feel is a persistent symptom of the lack of perseverance which is as follows: 


 That is the rationalizations over training or not training that students engage in on what often seems like a constant basis to this teacher.  I have a feeling that if students can recognize their own urge to rationalize their lack of practice, absence from class, etc., then they can at least head off some of the impulse they have to not persevere in the discipline. On the other hand a rewarding facet of Classical Tai Chi training is that it is indeed subject to such rationalizations.  One can learn to deepen their practice and since Tai Chi is indeed a meditation in motion a student can learn to recognize them just as they would in any other meditation practice. Rationalizations, emotions, thoughts, fantasies, quasi-logic, insights will all come to the surface during consistent and deep practice of the Classical Tai Chi and it is part of the mediation process for the student to not only recognize them but to detach themselves.


Classical Tai chi essentially is a self-discipline, of both body and mind. Its practice is not intended only for the days when one feels good, inspired, awake, enthusiastic, or energetic. Classical Tai Chi is meant to be practiced through everything that life offers up.  Consistent daily practice is the only way to progress through Tai Chi's many stages of personal development. Whether one is  financially burdened, responsibility laden, busy, sick, worried, sad, injured, tired, or even indifferent, the discipline calls us into that present moment to face life’s constant changes.

The mind will always provide opportunities to rationalize not engaging in practice. In other words, one must persevere to practice in spite of lack of motivation. Master Hwa has always stressed the importance of consistency and perseverance. Through his decades of experience, he knows as do I that the Tai Chi is not only a tool to face difficulties in life, but also a way to create the capacity and potential for growth. In tough times, when it becomes actually easier for one to hone the ability to make rationalizations/excuses, a steady practice can make a huge difference. I advise students to come to class, take off their shoes, begin their practice, and see where this leads. This teaches not only discipline, but detachment.  Detachment, equanimity, grace under pressure...all rewarding things that can come from perseverance in spite of adversity.

Self-discipline, like many other qualities, must be cultivated. Progress in learning the Tai Chi forms is accomplished through sustained effort. There are no shortcuts. The truest essence of Tai Chi is not in any outward physical manifestations, but rather in the deeper, more subtle and profound physical and mental internal changes. These are gained only through meeting the challenges that a daily practice reveals. Except that I see many, many students over the years who tell me they rationalize such challenges as mountainous, when actually they become molehills if one can persevere with practice. After all one of the eventual goals of learning Tai Chi are: Using internal movement to direct external motion.

I even have conscientous and devoted students still studying who tell me they cannot wait till they retire from their jobs so they can devote time to learning Tai Chi. On the other hand people have come and gone who have said: "but, I cannot come to class, I have (insert responsibility)". "But, I did not study, I have... so what's the point of coming to class", "but I came to Tai Chi and expected this and I did not get it, so why should I come to class", "but the teacher is too meticulous, I just want to do it", etc., etc.  So then they end up quitting entirely in spite of their protestations that they "will continue study on their own".

It is not learned in a vacuum, you need almost constant input from a teacher, preferably in person. Beginning students not only need steady input from a teacher but they need nurturing (yes, much like growing anything from plants to children) over the first 3 years and some cases perhaps 5 years. Now if you truthfully are so disciplined that you feel you can study on your own, there is no reason why you cannot come to class if there is one near you. My weekly trips to Toronto to learn , encompassed hundreds of miles per week for study and in the face of the adversity and responsibility, some of which I still have.

I understand completely and I empathize, please do not say that I do not. Before I retired, I raised children, cared for a spouse, cared for 3 dogs, other family, worked for U.S. Customs before and after 9/11, taught Tai Chi at 3, sometimes 4 different locations , traveled to Toronto for lessons, ran a studio in Buffalo, NY. I did these in conjunction with each other and I had my own practice. As the saying goes, I needed my practice even more, sometimes very much more to "consolidate the input" from all these other stressors. So, I do understand, and that  in contradiction to people who say or imply that I don't. I do not contradict them however as to the veracity of their responsibilities.

However, had I waited to have such time as I do now before I began or continued with Tai Chi would waiting for a "but" that will never come. As some have said: "it is like being a person waiting for the ocean to calm before going to take a bath in it".

Don't get me wrong here. I am not the proverbial man with a stick who "whacks" someone if they do not come to class or study. Nor am I the confessor that will tell you to "go and sin no more" for not coming to class or practicing. I once had a clinical psychologist in class who after his initial interest wore off seemed to have a different excuse (he jokingly called it "rationaizations") each week for why he did not do this, or do that. Finally, I told him: "I tell everyone this and that is that the emotion of guilt is no help whatsoever in learning this". I'm pretty sure most folks who come and go whether long time or short get to the guilt stage. It has been said that one reaches the guilt stage when they run out of excuses/"rationalizations". Or as the psychologist would say "rationalizations for not coming or practicing". Some run through the rationalizations faster than others. Here's a "confession": I stuck with it sometimes because I got tired of feeling guilty.   I told myself, "if you feel that bad for not doing it, then you must really need it".  Believe me, I do understand but I'm not going to feel guilty with you. I learned to recognize my rationalizations and detach myself from them, but that only comes with continuing the Tai Chi.

It does give you a "look inside" yourself, doesn't it? I have a suspicion over these many years of seeing a "revolving door" of students, that people do not like what they see sometimes, don't want to see anything deeper and find it easier to rationalize, feel guilty then...