My New Taiji Teacher

I've been studying Wu style taiji for about six months now. I'm slowly loosening up my upper body and strengthening my lower body, both essential to good form. I'm unlearning some of the hardness I picked up in aikido (and in life) and learning how to soften and relax. I sometimes do miss the aikido samurai spirit, but taiji has its gifts, too.

On Friday, I had lunch with my Israeli friend Oren, who is a long-time practitioner of taiji. He told me that sometimes when he practices in parks, Chinese people (who usually have a lot less experience than he does) like to come up to him and correct his movements. We both wondered why Chinese people like to do this. I've seen Oren do taiji. He's quite advanced. For instance, when he and my teacher do push-hands, Oren wins every time.

We both laughed. Chinese people, upon seeing his caucasian face, perhaps, feel like it's a good opportunity to be cultural teachers. Chinese people are proud of their culture and they would like to share it with Westerners.

I practice taiji every day, and sometimes in parks, but I haven't been "corrected" by a stranger--until today.

This evening, while practicing outside of my apartment, I notice a slightly overweight, bald Chinese guy in his thirties watching me. He was out walking his little dog, which looked like Lassy, but was tiny and long.

I kept practicing my set, but after closing it, he began to present his evaluation.

"Taiji is supposed to be round, and soft. You need to be softer. Also, you should squat lower," he said.

Uh-oh, I thought. I guess this was what Oren was talking about.

"What kind of taiji do you practice?" I ask him.

"I don't practice. I mean I learned a little a long time ago. But my mother is an expert and has been practicing for a long time," he explains.

He suggested that I buy a video and study the movements to get the feel of taiji.

"But I have a teacher," I told him.

"You can still learn from watching the video," he says. "You can study how Chinese people move differently from Western people."

It sounds like he has a lot to express this evening, and I decide to be receptive and listen. After all, I am still just a beginner and I need all the help I can get. At this point, I think Oren would have wrestled him to the ground and thrown his miniature dog onto the roof of the building next to me.

"One thing you can do is do a standing meditation for a half an hour and feel a round ball in front of you. Your hands will also start to get hot," he explains. "And you can pretend like you are holding balloons in your hands, too."

"I see," I respond as I nod my head.

"You see," he continues, "taijiquan is based on the Doctrine of the Mean, everything is balanced. So you shouldn't be so tight. You need to be soft."

"You must live according to this Doctrine of the Mean," I say. "which is why, even though you don't practice taiji, you can still me taiji."

"Yes," he replies.

Actually, I appreciate the feedback and it inspires me to ask my teacher to soften my movements. I know I still have a long way to go.

"Thanks for your help," I tell him.

I ask him one more question: "Do you do Chinese calligraphy (shufa,書法) ?" I figure he's probably not really into exercise, but wonder if he practices a more sedentary art. And I figure even if he doesn't practice shufa, he'll probably still offer to teach me and who knows, he could probably teach me something.

"No, I don't," he response, "but I could probably find you someone who does."

"That's okay," I say. "It was nice to meet you." I thank him and he walks off.