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| Moving slowly towards correctness |
Chen style Taijiquan is a
relatively new kid on the block in Western Taiji circles. In a short time many Chen
teachers have sprung up – self proclaimed masters proudly proclaiming that they
are doing the original, the real, the authentic Taijiquan passed down from Chen
Wangting the creator of Taijiquan himself!! You know the type – trained for 2
years and loudly talking about push hands, applications and realistic training…
or instructors qualified to teach the Chen short form: Can you imagine a Karate/Judo/Ju
Jitsu student training for 6 months and then getting an instructor’s certificate
– “qualified to teach up to yellow belt”!! While marvelling at their own
achievements they disparage Taiji players from other systems as having too much
emphasis on softness, no fajin etc etc.
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| Traditional training - precise, meticulous, long-term... |
Let us be clear - the unique
features of Taijiquan are song, rou and man – that is looseness, pliancy and slowness. Slowness is the
method where we can, as it were, expand time to check that every aspect of
posture and movement fulfils the necessary criteria. Through meticulous
self-examination and correction from a knowledgeable teacher we slowly move
closer and closer to the standard required. Following the traditional method it
is accepted that the qualities of pliancy and looseness can only be cultivated
slowly. Only when these qualities have been honed are we ready to train the
wider parts of the syllabus. Many modern Chen players pay lip service to the
traditional way but in reality cannot accept this preliminary stage. I know of an
ordained Buddhist who received his appointment after completing a “fast track”
course in Zen Buddhism. Comparing a traditionally trained Chen Taijiquan player
with these “fast track” Chen players is like comparing western boxing with a boxercise
class at the local health studio.
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| Or does it have to be fun or you're not playing! |
