Re-examining Basics

Hello from the East Coast everyone!

I've been travelling so much lately that I'm just getting downright burnt out on it. And if all goes according to plan, this might just be my last travel for the remainder of 2009... allowing me to be back at the helm of the Saturday Tai-Chi classes!

I've been working on a project to make Tai-Chi more understandable, more appreciable, and more teachable. Some of you already know that I've been doing this piecemeal for over 2 decades now. But there's a time-sensitive project now that will require me to really buckle down and focus in on this. And that's what this post is all about.

The big question here is two-fold: How do we develop skill while fostering an increasingly deeper appreciation for the process of skill building?

And that's where we need to make what we do ultimately digestible. So let's look at food.

What attracts us to food? First, scent & appearance.
Then taste.
Then the feeling of it.

How do we do that with Tai-Chi?
Step 1: Appearance - posture (conveying powerful mastery of movement)
- Mastery of movement is evidenced by proper posture, control of fast/slow speed, difficulty of techniques, and coordination of proper body mechanics.
Step 2: Scent - aroma
- The aroma is created in movement arts by how well the practitioner not only displays the mastery of movement (appearance), but also conveys a feeling of intent with his/her movements.
Step 3: Taste - biomechanics
- After taking a bite of food, the eater chews the bite, breaking the components of the food down and mixing it in the mouth. This creates a specific taste. We need to do the same thing with movement by teaching the experience of proper, powerful movement, starting from the ground-up.
Step 4: Feeling - coordination to the point of subconsciousness
- The epicurean understands the worth of feeling the entirety of the process of eating. From preparation, to presentation, to consumption, to reflection, to digestion, it's all appreciated. Nothing's lost on such a person.
* But we need to TEACH people to be gourmets of movement.
* We need to make that message appealing to the masses.
* We need to make the curriculum progressive and scalable on ALL levels of Tai-Chi.

This is what I'll be working on systematizing and recording for the remainder of 2009. A lot of it is already outlined in the PDF that's kept on the SantaMonicaTaiChi Yahoo group files list, but there's so much more coming, and it's gonna be a whopper!

One point from todays training 7/25

After class had ended, Sifu gave me a que that was really good to stop my samba tai chi hips from occurring and to generally pull my hips into proper alignment. That was to think of creating as long of a line as possible from your back heel to back hip! Forcing the heel into the ground and really opening the hip up. Hope everyone enjoys the rest of their saterday!
-Anton

Author is Jou, Tsung Hwa (you spelled it correctly)...
"The Dao of Taijiquan-- Way to Rejuvenation" is the title...
It is wonderful that Mitsuko now has a copy; it is the best, most concise book I have ever found on the form and philosophy; recommended to all who study this path.
I will bring my copy to class tomorrow. See you in the morning.
Glad to be back with you all!
—Chris

thank you from Mitsuko

Dear All, Below is a note that Mitsuko sent to me in the hopes I would forward it to all. So here it is. (Please no one needs to contribute towards the book. It wasn't costly. I can't remember the title of the book -- by Jou Tsung Hwa (probably misspelled) -- but will try to remember to bring it to class in case anyone is interested to get a copy. It is a very good one that Sifu has recommended in the past on one of his websites.)

:-) Kate

Sifu Mark Cheng Sensei, Chris, Kate, Anton, Ellen and Roslyn

I do not know how to thank you for the book of "Taijiquan." This is a wonderful book! Explain the meaning and how to do Taijiquan form. I like to study this book, even take time. (Because I have English handicap.) But I understand some Chinese letter. Thank you very much for your thoughtful gift and beautiful card. (I think Roslyn made the card.) All of you help me in the class always. I appreciated. Thank you very much for your thoughtfulness.

Mitsuko

the party's over (before it even started)

Greetings again to all.

It looks like we WON'T be having a party for Mitsuko this weekend after all. I saw her this AM at qigong and casually asked if she'd be coming to class on Saturday. Unfortunately, she had already made plans for that morning from about 8AM on!! When I mentioned that we had hoped to have a small celebration of her birthday, she basically requested that we NOT do this. Ros told me she was making a card, and I already got her a book about Tai Chi. I spoke with Sifu and he suggested we leave it at that and cancel the party. I sincerely apologize for any inconvenience. Perhaps we can celebrate together some other time, and for no particular occasion.

I'll also try sending e-mails to everyone, in case you don't see this.

Video taping section one

Hey all!
Yesterday I spent the afternoon doing section one over and over again while recording myself. For years Sifu had suggested this and I had never actually tried it. After many takes this was my favorite www.youtube.com/watch?v=eX389l11jMk . I thought I knew what I needed to work on, but I was still amazed at the amount of times I saw where I needed to pull my head up, pry my knees out, and tuck my hips! If anyone else would like me to film them doing section one, I can bring the tripod and camera and film you either before or after Mitsukos party and send you the video.

Mitsuko's Birthday

Hi All!

I think some have already heard that our dear fellow student Mitsuko will be turning 85 this Saturday the 11th. I spoke with Sifu about the possibility of celebrating her birthday after class this Saturday. Sifu suggested a pot-luck party at the park right after class. (He thought - and probably rightly - that Mitsuko would be more comfortable with that than with going to a restaurant and making that kind of a fuss.) If we each brought something to eat we'd have a nice feast. I know Ros is the ultimate cardmaker, but if you don't have the time Ros I could pick something up at Papyrus. I could also look for a nice Tai Chi or qigong book...

Please everyone let me know your thoughts on this. Hopefully we can plan something lovely for her.

(I hope other people check this blog more frequently than I have been doing of late!)

Looking forward to another great class and then a party this Saturday... :-)

4th of July weekend Tai-Chi class

Folks, per my earlier communication with you on this past Saturday, let's start up at 7am on Saturday 7/4/09 and go until 8:30am. You'll have your whole day ahead of you, and we won't be feeding either the bugs or the fray.

Work your walking drills diligently this week. The pry will be a major focus this month!

Question for Sifu from 6/13/09 Class

For Sifu,
May we have clarification on a couple of movements? (Classmates--If you can think of the other question(s), can you please add to this?)

Ba Duan Jin:
In the 4th piece of brocade (palms down on either side near the waist and we twist to each side), we're supposed to look as far back with our eyes as we can. Do our heads keep twisting all the way over our shoulders (like a spiral or screw) or do our heads only rotate in line with our shoulders so that our heads are always in line with our center line, but only our eyes keep moving towards our shoulders?

Needle at sea bottom:
Just confirming that at the bottom, when hands are on either side of the knee, that our abs are tight and pelvis/hips are tucked in that the lower back is straight and not curved. The shoulders are not hunched, of course. All weight is on the right leg, also. Is that right? Or are the hips/butt somewhat more relaxed?

Thank you, Sifu, (with salute)!

Class Notes: 5/2/09 & 5/23/09

Here are more notes from class. The one thing I've been forgetting to do that I know Steve used to do was to write down what our drills or practice were for the day. I'll remember to do that. Anyway we must've been working our our breathing and focus in May:

Focus on breath--the deepest breath pushes the pelvic floor.
Train movement that does not inhibit breathing.Purpose the thought, emotion and movement through breathing.

Difficult goal is to focus on one thing or movement while being aware of everything/your whole body. It is an absence of distraction.

If you're tense and don't know it, it manifests itself in two words, "I Am!" For example, someone tells you to "relax." You respond defensively, "I AM!" or "I KNOW!" It is a knee jerk reaction. You are unaware of your baseline tension.

Things to work on this saturday.

Hello everyone!-
Yesterday, as I was doing a kettlebell work out in the park near my house, I observed a few people practicing Tai Chi together. It was very interesting. It closely resembled what we do (the hands form was a little different but the sword form was exsactly the same) except for one thing. Posture! Their chests were sunk in and their necks were chickened forward. If there is one thing that Sifu says that has been burned into my mind forever it is "Pull your head up!" I like that we have been going through the entire form the past couple of weeks, but this weekend as Sifu is away, I prepose that we break things down a little more and really work on pulling our posture tall and tucking our hips in the proper postures. I just wanted to get everyone eleses thoughts on what we should focus on this week as Sifu is out of town?
Also, this morning as I was covering the Chi Gong class that my mother teaches, I was relived and happy to see Mitsuko in attendence and in high spirit. She told me she would be there on saturday so I just thought I would let everyone know incase anyone was concerned for her. Hope everyone has been having a great week and I look forward to a great class as always on saturday.

Class notes - 6/6/09

Hello, Saturday classmates,

As much as possible, I will post our Saturday tai chi class notes. I'm going to start with the most recent and work backwards up to a couple of months. They may not be 100% accurate, so I hope Sifu will correct what I have been able to decipher. If anyone has any questions about any particular parts of the form and you're able to describe the movement you're thinking about, Sifu said that he would attempt to respond from the road, if not in class. So, here were the gems from last Saturday:

Anybody can move. You have to move with coordinated motion. Coordinated motion requires control.

You need to have:
Straight posture (lower back strength)
Pelvis control
Deliberate step (no dropping into your step)
Breath control

Then be aware of the experience.

You need to carry adequate discipline so that you can see your shortcomings/weak or off spots.

Be aware of every microsecond. Is it right? Does it feel right?

-------=======================
Try to keep the "palm leaf" hand (line between tip of index finger down to opposite lower corner of palm, then relax rest of hand around that line). Hands are predominantly this way throughout the form with a few exceptions (punches, gouges, single whip, etc.)

When transitioning from pushing toward the right, then trailing the hands 180 degrees into single whip, the left palm pushes outward somewhat--it's a neck dragging (?) move.

We were speaking of knee injuries. Knee injuries often start at the hips or feet. Women in high heels or people who wear thick soled boots often experience problems, too. They get no feedback from the ground.

I will also add pointers that were for particular students, but are areas that we can all benefit from in practice:

Focus
Breathing
Intention

See you next time,
Ros

RT: Handholding

As much as I hate to repost this: HERE IT GOES...
http://sifucheng.blogspot.com/2008/06/handholding.html

Read it. Re-read it. And then think on this...

"A word to the wise isn't necessary - it's the stupid ones that need the advice."
- Bill Cosby.

Handholding, while irritating as F--KIN' HELL and unbelievably time-consuming for the leader, can be one of the only ways of making efficient progress for the student who recognizes the importance of the leader's message, yet doesn't have a clearcut understanding of how to implement the leader's knowledge.

Far too often, we as instructors (at least in this country) want to just teach and set someone free to do their own thing. Unfortunately, that often results in the student floundering about in his/her own randomness, wasting energy trying to reinvent the wheel instead of swallowing their overinflated sense of self and independence and ASKING wholeheartedly to learn a step-by-step process.

[Man, that's some harsh sounding rhetoric there. I don't have an overinflated sense of self!... BULLSH!#... If you didn't have that overinflated sense of self, you'd have recognized your own lack of understanding and done something concrete towards improving that situation. Did you handle it yourself? Did you ask an expert for help? Or do you still think you've got your $h!# completely under control?]

Parenting can be the same. We want our kids to evolve and expect that we've set the stage for them to bloom by providing them with an education, food, shelter, and boundless love. But sometimes that's not enough.

Take me for example. If I hadn't taken it upon myself to find masters and mentors (outside of the schools my parents paid for) to guide me personally, then there are plenty of instances where I'd never be at the level that I am now.

However, I made sure that for every bit of energy my masters & mentors poured into me, I poured back into them OR poured into my own education so that I wouldn't be such a dead weight on their lives. Throughout the years of my education (which continues to this day), my friends and past girlfriends often criticized me harshly, saying stuff like...

"Why are you kissing so & so's ass?"

"Why do you have to do so much for so & so?"

"How come so & so isn't paying you?"

"Why are you working so many hours for such low pay?"

"For someone with a college degree and a professional licensure, why are you getting up so early just to scrub down an herb cooker and do someone's filing?"

I heard all sorts of $hi# and then some. And I won't lie. It irritated me having to explain some of these issues, and there were more than a few times that I began to see things through the eyes of my friends. And my inner attitude occasionally shifted from grateful to entitled.

Thank God I have a better grip on the situation now. These days, I understand that the people that say such things say them out of ignorance or entitlement, and that their attitudes don't have to reflect on me or how I choose to interact with the people who do so much to teach me and provide opportunities for me.

Even among the readers of this blog, I've heard comments like, "You do an awful lot for Pavel" or "I know Gray's your teacher, but I still think he should've paid you to write that book and given you more credit on the Turkish Get-Up" or "Why are you paying the Lee family a big lai-see when you spend more time teaching at Gee Yung than you get to train?" or "How come you killed off your clinic practice for so many months while you were translating, editing, and rewriting Master Lin's book without pay?"

Here's my reply... SHUT UP and listen more... and then DO more. Your speculation is worthless. Your actions, your generosity, your giving of self and resources is all that's meaningful.

Those of you who think or talk that way do so because you're trying to curry favor with me in a cowardly and unethical way, and most likely, you don't really understand the way my relationship is predicated with my teachers.

What makes me a strong leader and a great instructor is the fact that I am first and foremost a devoted follower and a hungry student.

* I am not afraid to ask others to handhold me through certain steps of a process, or to spoonfeed me information, even though there are times when those I ask may look at me with great disdain for having asked.

* I am not afraid to work twice as hard as anyone else around me or around them because I know that the handholding, mentoring process is a laborious, time-consuming, and usually financially punishing undertaking.

* I am not afraid to devote more of my time to my teachers because, in teaching me, they are spending hours they could have spent on someone or something else that would bring them more income or greater joy.

* I am not afraid to put someone else before me, since you cannot lead from the rear and you cannot follow from the front.

* I am not afraid to reprioritize my "friendships" and other relationships since the views of others in my social circle may get in the way of the progress and growth I can best make by serving others.

* I am not afraid of investing time and money in learning a skill set that I've researched and believe in. The investment of time & money in these skill sets will eventually turn into revenue as long as I know how to use those skills to provide meaning and value for others. More importantly, I must know how to communicate that value and meaning for others instead of thinking that they will magically flock to me just because I got business cards printed.

* I am not afraid of telling someone that I don't have time to do whatever it is they want to do if it doesn't move me towards my goals and competes with something important that WILL push me towards my goals.

* I am not afraid of taking the time to spend handholding any one of you who needs it, appreciates it properly, esteems the process and all that's involved in it, benefits from it, and then shows me that you can do all of those things with CONSISTENCY.

Seniority & Sensibility - The Ego Discussion of Learning Martial Arts

Yes... I know I've been travelling a lot. And completely contrary to what I thought was going to happen at the end of 2008, it looks like 2009 will (for the most part) continue to be a year full of travel.

As I continue to grow in the world of kettlebell training, it looks like I'll be travelling more & more. If you haven't done so already, please make a habit of checking my other blog - Kettlebells Los Angeles - every once in a while. My travel schedule is usually updated with regularity and posted on the right hand side.

Just to put it down in writing and remind everyone, there are 3 main senior students that are in charge of my Tai-Chi classes while I'm gone: Anton Summers, Kate Summers, and Chris Shea. They've learned enough from me to be able to teach on their own. And they each have PLENTY of information to share with their junior classmates.

Here are a few of the questions I want to answer here & answer definitively...

Will you teach on Saturdays when you're in town? Absolutely. I have no intention of abandoning my Saturday morning Clover Park class. I do, however, have other obligations and opportunities as far as work goes. So by the law of simple economics, I'm going to have to go where the greatest opportunities lie when they call.

What if I don't get along with the senior students and I just want to learn from you, Sifu? Then don't come. Ever. If you just want to learn from me and only me, then do it via private training sessions. Don't expect to come to a group class and have me there at your beck & call all the time. Also, I've said this more than a few times, but there are plenty of so-called Tai-Chi authorities who know less about real Tai-Chi than my senior students. So they've got PLENTY to teach you. If you want to disrespect them by doing even as much as ignoring them when they teach you, then just go elsewhere.

Well how come they said one thing and then one week you said something different about the exact same subject? There are 3 possible answers to that question:
1. People make mistakes. It's entirely possible that the senior recalled my position on the matter incorrectly, interpreted your question incorrectly, or just didn't know the right answer.
2. The knowledge that was being quoted to you was from a snapshot of a different time. Chris Shea has trained with me probably the longest out of anyone in the group, so he's seen my teaching method evolve over the years. He can tell you how many movements have different teaching cues than they did say 10 years ago. So don't be bullheadedly stuck in one and only one way of doing something. Be open to receiving the little bits of evolution as I or the seniors dole them out.
3. The answer you were given is correct, and the answer I gave you is correct. In other words, depending on the context, a movement can be peformed differently. You just have to know what to do and when to do it. For example, if you're in the middle of leading a class of beginners, you're not going to go at ultra-slow speed, since most of them don't have the strength or patience to handle moving at that speed. Instead, you move at a moderate speed, do a shorter segment, and do it multiple repetitions.

Regardless of who's at the helm any given week, get in there and give your all! Don't let your eyes wander, your mind turn off, or your form lack effort and concentration.

Yang style Tai-Chi origins

A couple of weeks ago, I fielded a few questions about Yang style history during my Tai-Chi instructors' course in Irvine. Just now, goofing around on Wikipedia, I happened to find a great article.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yang_Lu-ch%27an

Please keep in mind that history has different interpretations, depending on your personal perspective, so I don't necessarily agree with all of this, however, I do think it to be worth reading.

Chinese New Year celebrations

Students,

On Saturday at the Tai-Chi class, we stumbled onto a great idea for this upcoming Chinese New Year celebrations. The Year of the Ox begins on January 26, 2009, which puts it very close to the weekend of the 24th.

Instead of going to a restaurant and doing all the "usual" stuff, we figured that it'd be a lot of fun to simply get together after Tai-Chi, crack open a few drinks, order some Chinese food (or whatever food), and watch 2 Chinese sword-based movies: Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon and Jet Li's Hero.

We'll train 'til 10:30am, then just head over to a place (yet to be determined) with a big enough screen & DVD player, then just hang, eat, & enjoy each others' company until the 2 movies are over.

Who's in?