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page I

The Secret Elements of Mastering Taiji Quan

By Sifu Patrick Lee

What does it take to master the art of Taiji Quan? I ask all my students this question
after they have been with me for a while. Their answers usually sound good: a good teacher, a
good memory, disciplined practice, intelligence, a good attitude. All are good answers-but they
are not good enough.
Relax, stay soft, practice hard. At first, these answers appear to be correct. Chinese mar-
tial artists have a saying,_ "Practice the set one thousand times, then you will understand the
set correctly." But there 1s another factor. You will not understand the set correctly, even after
1,000 years of practice, if you do not have correct instruction to begin with. At thtl beginning,
imcorrect instruction may only differ from the correct instruction by one-tenth of an inch in
oody position. But if instruction is not correct, the more a student practices, the worse he or
she becomes. Later, the results of such imcorrect instruction can detour the student's path so
much that the difference up front might as well have been 1,000 miles.
Unfortunately, most Taiji practitioners lack correct instruction. Over time, m血y realize
that they are not progressing. In the back of their minds, they may even question the instruc-
tion they have received. But few will admit their doubts out loud, especially if they have
believed and practiced for years or decades. To admit they have chosen and continued down a
wrong pa th is to lose face.
So what does it take to master the art of Taiji Quan? Correct instruction helps. It places
the student on the correct path to begin with. But is that enough? And what if correct instruc-
tion is not available? In every case, the secret elements of mastering Taiji are simple and direct:
They are honesty and humbleness.

Honesty: true communication with yourseli

Honesty is true communication with yourself. Humbleness is true communication
between yourself and the rest of the world. These qualities exist within all of us. But they are
often blocked or locked away by the imposing presence of the ego. On some level, we are all
aware of our own failings. If we review our actions and thoughts when we are quiet and still,
the little voice within the heart tells us when something's just not right. Unfortunately, we
tend to ignore this inner voice, allowing the ego to justify the actions that we desire or which
~seem profitable.

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Martial arts practitioners bow to the ego every time they allow themselves to almost cor-
rect a move. If you know you cannot fully execute a move and so continue to work on it, you
are being honest with yourself. But if, instead, you tell yourself that you know the move well
enough and that no one else will notice the imcorrections, then you are "sweeping dirt under a
rug." You are bowing to your ego. And, ultimately, you are lying to yourself.
But if you can stop making excuses and justifications, if you can hear and act according
to the inner voice of your heart, the ego's grip will be broken. Honesty will show itself in you.
Then and only then will the doors to the true path begin to open for you. You'll feel lighter and
more energized. Why? "Because no one knows you better than you know yourself." To live a lie
and believe the lie requires a lot of energy. Once you can admit your wrongs, you no longer
have to expend energy by lying to cover the lies you've told yourself (and others) before.

Humbleness: true communication between you and the rest of the world
Once honesty has emerged, humbleness can begin working for you, as well. Humbleness is the
guide that beckons outside information to enter. If you are filled with ego, you have no space
within to accept outside information. Because your ego always knows best, it blocks, interprets,
and colors any new ideas that come your way. But once you reduce the ego, you suddenly have
room to receive new ideas. Humbleness allows you to be open-minded so that you can study
·without preconception, without self-delusion.
'Honesty and humbleness are like the Taiji sign. They are yin-yang in that the essence of
the two is rea昕 one. When you stop lying to yourself 血d review your instruction with an open
mind, you begin to understand Taiji from the inside out. Otherwise, you learn the form or the
set of Taiji only. In such cases, the form is driving you. You adjust the principle, or what you
are willing to see of the principle, to meet your idea of what the form should be. This leads -you
away from the proper path. There are a thousand ways to do Taiji wrong, 血d only one way to
do it right-fulfilling principle to produce the form. When a student works without interpreting
the information, he or she can truly study 皿d analyze principle, such as yin-yang and spiral
theory. Then the student can begin to develop the set as it flows from the theory.
It's like baking an angel food cake. Consider Taiji principles as the cake's ingredients. The
same ingredients must always be used to make angel food cake; otherwise, it is not angel food
cake. It is something else--or maybe it is nothing. If you have the proper ingredients, it doesn't
matter what shape pan the batter is poured into. The result is still angel food cake. Chen, Wu,
or Yang style are like the p皿 They hold the ingredients. If all the principles are present, Taiji
It",' will result. The practitioner needn't confine the shape of his or her thinking.
But wait, my students say. "If experimentation is okay, how will we know if we stray
from Taiji?" Ask yourself if you are being true to principle, I tell them. Is the form developing
from the principle, or are you skimming the edges of principle so that you appear able to per-
form the set? To know Taiji, you must study and know the principles. If you obey the princi-
ples, you will know when it is appropriate to step outside the form. And you will be able to do
so while still remaining within the principle.

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Then, I tell them to do the posture of white crane opens up wings lany posture will do).
First, I tell them to perform the posture the way I have instructed一so they are able to feel the
connection of the body and the Qi (energy). When done correctly, the body is in proper anatomi-
cal position. This allows the Qi to be cultivated and become symmetrical force (peng energy)
that flows freely throughout the whole body.
Once students have felt the peng energy, I tell them to change the stance by moving the
hands/palms, legs, and body away from correct posture. "Move up and down," I tell them, "to
the left and to the right." Bring it in. Move it out. Make it harder, softer, sm詛er, larger. By
doing this, students can feel the difference in posture stability and Qi level. They can compare
the results of the altered posture with the results of my instructed posture. Self-awareness
increases as students begin to understand why a posture has to be done in a very specific way.
Through this simple experiment, students develop trust in the Sifu's instruction. Unlike blind
trust, this trust comes from testing for truth.
Kung Fu is time and effort. But to seek learning simply by going after form will not yield
the essence of the move itself. You will be moving, but not doing Taiji. Instead, the form will be
driving you. Only by executing the the principles can you drive the form. When this happens一
when you become master of the form-Taiji becomes a vehicle, a tool for you. In this manner,
Taiji event四lly results in the Six Togetherness: You have harmony between heart and mind,
mind and chi, chi and power, as well as the shoulder and hip, elbow and knee, and palm and
1eg. Once you reach the Six Togetherness, the Wuji appears.
This is the goal of Taiji Quan, to return to the state of Wuji that we have all forgotten. If
a practitioner is to reach this state, he or she must be taught correctly in the beginning. To
deviate from correct instruction places an extra burden on the student. If he or she realizes
progress is not occurring, the student is faced with continuing a lie or losing face. This is a cliffi-
cult choice. Most find it easier to live a lie by allowing the ego to block honesty and humble-
ness. And without these essential qualities, a practitioner cannot find the essence of the Taiji
principles. As a result, no amount of practice, belief, or good intentions will place the student
on the proper path back to the Wu社．
The path to Wuji is a process of self-transformation. Taiji practitioners are like the cater-
pillar, whose great purpose is to emerge from the cocoon as a butterfly. The practitioner devours
information, just as the hungry caterpillar strips green leaves from the tree. And, like the cater-
pillar, the practitioner must eat the right food. If he or she does not absorb and digest the right
information, self-transformation cannot occur. Instead, like a caterpillar that has eaten poison
leaves, the practitioner's process of transformation is either deformed or it withers and dies.
But if a practitioner digests the right information, he or she eventually reaches a stage
when 叫 the pieces begin to fit together. During this "cocoon stage," the Six Togetherness
occurs, and body, heart, and mind transform themselves. The person, like the caterpillar, then
emerges from the cocoon as a new being. The Wuji is with this person, and he or she is the
Wuji. All things are then possible. As it is said in Chen Village, "Once you are on the right
path, becoming a dragon or a tiger is all up to you."

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