Incomplete Tai chi, Lesson 3:
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From the Head and Neck to the Chest, and back. A new video has been posted. Click here.or go to the Courses link in the main menu.
The right image size for all social media.
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If you feel as if following social media wastes of time, I can tell you that posting to social media is a much greater soul-sucking waste of time, largely because of the little details that I never went to school for. Being self employed, as my friend Clayton points out, just means that “…your boss . . . read more
Belief vs Faith vs Martial Arts
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It is remarkably easy to provoke people into attempting to explain things that they do not understand. Such games have become a staple of late-night talk shows and comedy routines. I think of Rick Mercer’s “Talking to Americans”, Jimmy Kimmel’s “Can you name a country”, or the Jaye Leno’s “Jaye Walking.” Think also of most . . . read more
New video series
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The last few weeks have been challenging for me and for the business. I have survived it, due in no small part to donations made to this site. Thank you to all who have contributed to this work. I will be continuing the “Introduction to Tai chi” series. I am also starting a new ongoing . . . read more
The most important martial arts lesson.
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Wuji central alignment of body and mind Does your monster have your back? The most important lessons are usually taught on the first day. But students rarely understand, and usually fail to notice. You can read the transcript on the lesson page. (click here)
The 4 Pillars of Martial Arts Training
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Transcript: Before I talk about the most important lesson in all of martial arts, I want to address what I call the pillars of martial art training. Typically, I call them the four pillars. I used to like to conflate two of them, since a three-legged table doesn’t wobble. But I have learned that things . . . read more
Introduction to Tai chi, Episode 9: The Eight Trigrams in the Hands
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“The 8 trigrams in the hands” is a vitally important concept in martial arts…especially in tai chi. But it comes with some philosophy and some physics. Don’t expect to understand it all right away, and don’t worry if it doesn’t make sense at first.Introducing the eight trigrams Transcript: As much as I do endeavour to . . . read more
Paraphrasing Agamemnon: Kungfu and Life Lessons from a Greek Tragedy.
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In part of the chorus in Agamemnon, the Greek tragedian, Aeschylus (circa 525 BCE – 456 BCE) writes the following “Mortals are set on the path of wisdom,bound by holy ordinance to pay, with suffering, for their education. Even in our sleep, the relentless pain that we try in vain to forget falls drop by drop . . . read more
Intro to Tai chi, Episode 8: The Five Elements are in the Feet. …What?
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This is another one of those opaque concepts that needs to be explored, or updated, or ignored. Understanding it might be out of the question. Transcript There is an important dictum in taijiquan literature that declares that one should have “the 5 elements in the feet and the eight trigrams in the hands.” This has . . . read more
Five Element Theory vs Rock Paper Scissors Lizard Spock
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How far can a tai chi metaphor go? When you practice and art and follow its philosophy long enough, you eventually start to see it everywhere. You may even be tempted to manifest it in places where it probably shouldn’t belong. Case in point: tai chi fanatics on a dance floor. Another case is the natural attempt . . . read more