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Lineage student
In 1990 Sifu Waller became Peter Southwood's
lineage student.
This marked a sharp increase in training intensity and a higher expectation of
practice and competence.
He received a nephrite jade amulet depicting the I
Ching on the front and 3 Taoist symbols on the reverse: a gourd
(longevity), a sword
(truth/clarity), a fly
whip (avoid distractions).
10,000 hours was long ago
Sifu Waller embodies the Chinese homily:
"I have eaten more salt than you have rice."
He trains over 3 hours a day of tai chi chuan, fitness
exercises and qigong, 365 days a year and has done so for decades.
This figure excludes partner work, teaching commitments and personal
study/reading.
He has been practicing since 1975.
Teaching
Peter Southwood began Sifu Waller's
teacher training in 1994.
Sifu Waller had no interest in teaching people but acknowledged that
explaining things to junior students would deepen his own
understanding.
He went on to teach martial students in Peter's class until 1999.
The teacher training included designing a syllabus, a
scheme of work and writing the material that would later become
this website.
I like the classes because I know I'm entering a
healthy zone.
I've done a lot of travelling, learning, and philosophizing in my life and
what I like about your classes is their integrity. I like the total absence
of bullshit. It encourages me to embody what I know, to enact the
conclusions I've arrived at, and practice walking the walk, however bizarre
the walk may appear at times!
By observing the way my body does or doesn't move each week, I'm able to see
where the problems are in every other aspect of my life. For this I'm very
grateful.
(Ian)
Teaching qualification
In order to further expand his understanding of
the teaching progress and learn new methodology, Sifu Waller passed
a postgraduate certificate of education at Leeds University.
His first student
Sifu Waller trained twice a day with his first student Shaun Ullah - 365 days a year -
for 6 years.
In addition to his solo practice and lessons.
Dynamic Balancing Boxing
Starting in 1999,
Sifu Waller offered his own classes.
He continued to train privately with Peter Southwood as a lineage student.
His Leeds classes were small, home-based workshops aimed at students who
already had a foundation in martial arts training and were seeking something
more advanced.
More training
2004 was the beginning of a full-time commitment.
Sifu Waller trained about 5-7 hours a day of
tai chi, bagua,
qigong, 365 days a year, plus walking and reading.
In hindsight, Sifu Waller realised that the
'traditional' approach actually meant that he was
over-training.
Newcastle Tai Chi
Sifu Waller has offered many classes in the North East: Newcastle,
Durham, Sunderland, Whitley Bay, Dance City, Gosforth, Wallsend and Fenham.
He had many private students and hosted residential boot camp twice a
year in Northumberland. Most of the classes closed when we were forced to pare back after the
2008 'credit crunch'.
Good reputation
For 7 years Sifu Waller taught
qigong
& tai chi to the over 50's at Age
Concern in Newcastle and Age Concern North Tyneside.
The students were people of all ages who had a variety of
health conditions.
He had referrals from Freeman Hospital, medical students visited the class
regularly and the classes were featured in the local newspapers.
I
don't know how many people supply you with feedback, but from my perspective
I believe the Newcastle class is going from strength to strength.
The evening has an excellent atmosphere for learning with a real sense of
camaraderie among attendees, be they regulars or first timers. It is
something I really look forward to and have now adjusted some of my work
commitments just so I can be there more regularly.
(Susan)
Rank
Peter Southwood awarded Sifu Waller his rank early
2010. Sifu Waller saw this grade as an indication of
progress rather than a conclusion to the training.
He doesn't think that tai chi can be mastered;
instead, the student is mastered by the art.
The amulet
The jade amulet worn by Sifu Waller is made from
jadeite. It features a Chinese dragon (wisdom/strength/power/mastery)
on the front and a Chinese phoenix (virtue/grace/longevity)
on the reverse.
These mythological animals are not the same as their Western equivalents.
Their depiction and characteristics are quite different. Some versions are
considered to be a chimera (mixture of
animals).
A Chinese dragon is a long snake-like creature known for it's
fluidity and grace. It
does not breathe fire. A Chinese phoenix is known as fenghuang (August
rooster). Once again, it has nothing to do with fire.
The dragon and phoenix design is a yin/yang
illustration symbolising harmony. These Taoist creatures have been
carved/represented for at least 10,000 years.
Other disciplines
Sifu Waller studied Iyengar yoga weekly (with Lillian Biggs and Beryl Howarth) over a
period of 25 years.
He explored Taoist Yoga with Peter Southwood from 1985
onwards.
His Alexander Technique lessons (with Heather Gretton, Eileen Armstrong & Ann
Massey-Lynch) took place every week between 1995 - 2010. He
was asked to train as an instructor in York.
Pilates weekly private lessons (with Lynn Cavanagh) took place between 2004 -
2009. He was asked to train as an instructor in Newcastle.
Curious
Sifu Waller's reading skill came to the attention of his uncle when he was just 5 years old.
His uncle managed to secure him 16 library cards, access to both the
children's and adult library at 2 separate libraries.
Every week, Sifu Waller would borrow books on every conceivable subject that
took his fancy - ranging from sci-fi to dinosaurs to Jacques Cousteau to
Romans and of course martial arts.
A relentless quest for knowledge was always present, and his self-directed
home study far exceeded what took place in school.
Scholar
I could not even begin to count how many
books
Sifu Waller has read.
His tastes are wide ranging:
Human anatomy
Tai chi
Chin na
Shuai jiao
Qigong
Neigong
Dim-mak
Jing
Form application
The Tai Chi Classics
Combat
Taoism
Zen
Meditation
Self defence
Biomechanics
Sports injuries
Massage
Physiotherapy
Spirituality
Eastern philosophy
Western philosophy
Asian culture
Language
Japanese art & culture
Chinese art & culture
Design
Pop-psychology
Self-help
Poetry
Other martial arts
Martial principles
Martial history
Self-awareness
Alexander Technique
Asian weaponry
Business culture & practices
Emotional awareness
Relationships
Sex
Knots
Outdoor skills
Survival skills
Longevity
Creativity
Health & wellbeing
Food
Sifu Waller doesn't
really care for fiction.
Our bookshelves contain the books he has not given away.
He regularly clears out books that no longer seem relevant in order to make
space for new titles.
At one point we had 4 large book cases of training-related books.
Does Sifu Waller practice xingyiquan?
No. Sifu Waller could never determine whether or not Peter Southwood knew
xingyiquan or not.
Peter shared some knowledge of dachengquan
but it seemed to be more of an interest than a serious commitment to the
art.
Sifu Waller found the training uninspiring compared to tai chi and did not
continue to train dachengquan.
Does Sifu Waller practice baguazhang?
No. He trained the art for decades but dropped it from his daily practice in
2023. Nowadays, Sifu Waller focuses upon tai chi chuan, chin na and shuai
jiao.
Is Sifu Waller a member of The Tai Chi Union for Great Britain?
Sifu Waller Is not affiliated to any organisation. He left The World Taiji
Boxing Association in 2004 and withdrew from The Tai Chi Union for Great
Britain in 2023.
At every turn he aimed to pare
away everything that was not strictly necessary to leave only the more
austere and sublimely refined.
(Andrew Juniper)
Page created
18 November 2007
Last updated
26 October 2023