Since getting my karate Dan grade I
have always enjoyed going on open courses. The opportunity to learn something
new, to gain a different perspective, or indeed to delve deeper into a specific
aspect or technique. When I saw that a day workshop was being held
promising to be an introduction to Chen Style Tai Chi I just had to attend. Most
of the seminars I have attended had been with a particular notable instructor,
so this was a unique opportunity to get to grips with the stylistic foundations
and not be thrown in at the deep end! Coming from a mainly external martial
arts back ground the seminar promised to be really interesting, and it
certainly didn’t disappoint. A full day of Chen Style Tai Chi with a 5th degree Duan Wei (Chinese Wushu Association).
Needless to say I really enjoyed, and came
away with so much more than a small portion of the Lao Jia Yi Lu form. The
instructor tried to explain the philosophy and the approach of Chen Tai Chi and the
methodology behind this style. Luckily for me all of the other course participants were
from hard styles; mostly Wing Chun and Lau Gar. So the course participants were all in the same boat.
Questions were encouraged, and answered comprehensively. The best courses I
have attended have included an element of exchange between styles and a focus
on shared concepts, in this case it was referred to as good gong fu. It was
highlighted that regardless of style you can see if someone has good gong fu or
not. Equally to put our various styles into context we were told that hard or external
styles and soft or internal styles start at the opposite end of the spectrum
but we are all aiming to meet in the middle. This type of understanding and
thinking is really up my street. Regardless of your rank or prowess in a
particular style, a style is merely a vehicle for an understanding of martial
principles that should be shared by all schools and styles teaching martial
arts.
One part of the course I found really interesting was the
standing meditation, although it looks very simple, it really is more than just standing still.
It is an exercise that really does need a teacher to guide because the body
position is so important, I hadn’t previously appreciated this, nor the subtleties of
standing meditation’s practice. After the standing meditation we then moved on to 2 pieces of chi kung. The opening and unfolding of the hips was particularly challenging and something to work on! After a short break we started on the Lao Jia Yi Lu form and ran through the following:
1, Yu Bei Shi – Preparing Form.
2, Jin Gang Dao Dui – Buddha’s Warrior Attendant Pounds Mortar.
3, Lan Zha Yi – Lazy About Tying the Coat.
So basically I have a lot to practice and think about! If anyone can recommend any good Chen style DVDs or resources please leave a comment to let me know.
