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So what?
Why am I sharing all this?
Perspective.
Sifu Waller did not get as good as he is by attending class just once a week.
He did so much more than that.
Classes were treated as learning opportunities; between class was
when the practice took place.
Read Outliers...
The Outliers book explains how successful people attained excellence via a
series of seemingly improbably circumstances/coincidences.
In the case of Sifu Waller, he was part of the generation who watched David Carradine's Kung Fu TV series.
There were only 3 TV channels and few US series being broadcast so most
people tended to watch the show.
He was young enough to take advantage of the inspiration by joining martial
arts classes.
Abraham Lincoln said that he
destroyed his enemies by making them his friends. Which is nice.
Sifu Waller is more efficient. He allows his enemies to destroy
themselves.
(Rachel)
The internal
The 1983 Way of the Warrior TV documentary introduced Sifu Waller to the
internal martial arts and he has able to find a teacher in his home town who
was willing to teach him.
With 4 TV channels, no internet, no mobile phones - living in small
town England - there were few distractions and limited scope for other
leisure activities/pursuits (apart from football and drinking).
Books
In the 1990's imported American translations of Eastern philosophies,
Asian arts etc became available for purchase in the UK - furnishing Sifu
Waller with much-needed, previously unavailable knowledge.
Web & image change
By 2000, people were less inclined to commit to long-term training regimes.
There was also the web, mobile phones and a wide range of other activities.
The image of tai chi had also changed; making it a health exercise
suitable for older people rather than a viable martial art.
1969
Sifu Waller happened to be born at a time that enabled him to realise
the childhood dream of becoming a martial artist.
Modern children are highly unlikely to be presented with such an influential
show (Kung Fu/Way of the Warrior), and even if they were, it would be competing with an enormous array of
other stimuli.
Serious & fun
Although Sifu Waller's class attitude may seem somewhat serious and stern,
he balances professionalism/focus with lashings of humour.
The one person he never takes too seriously is himself.
'Biomage'
Sifu Waller was always intensely curious about biomechanics: balance,
leverage, structure, stability, mobility, coordination, range & reach,
natural order...
This high level of interest fuelled decades of research into different
methods of using the human body.
Other martial arts
By training a wide range of martial arts, Sifu Waller gained some
understanding of how those arts approached the experience of combat and body
use.
This informed his applications; encouraging methods/strategies for
defeating other martial arts.
The highest level of tai chi practice
is high
stance and small circle. In high stance and small circle you can
conserve your energy to a maximum level. This is very crucial in battle.
Endurance has always been the crucial key to survival in a long battle.
Moreover, due to high stance and smaller shape you can reach to the
deepest relaxed stage, the mind is highly concentrated, and the sensitivity
and alertness can be extremely sharp.
(Yang Jwing-Ming)
Passion
Sifu Waller did not require external motivation, coaching or
self-discipline.
He has passion.
His enthusiasm and zeal for learning drives him endlessly forward.
Peter Southwood gave Sifu Waller a bagua pendant
for lineage; it represents ceaseless, unending change.
This is how his teacher saw Sifu Waller; a person driven to get
better.
The exchange
All spiritual endeavours require the exponent to make a trade.
This is part of what yin/yang means.
To get you must give.
The more you give up, the more you get in return.
Overtraining
Sifu Waller was encouraged to follow an 'old
fashioned' approach to training; train to excess...
He does not advocate this same method.
His school encourages a beginner not to
exceed an hour a day of qigong & tai chi. Two hours a day should be considered 'a lot'.
Invest in loss
To do what Sifu Waller did, the individual must be willing to trade
more than time, money or effort.
They must lose their ego, their
self and become lost in the Tao.
This is no small undertaking.
Learn
Sifu Waller learns from everything.
He is highly observant, listens very closely, is intensely
curious, has a good
memory and continually challenges his
brain.
Instead of watching TV or the news, talking
politics or playing with
technology... he guards against pollution.
Cognitive development is taken
seriously.
Be inspired, not
scared
Rather than be overwhelmed by my account of Sifu Waller's journey, seek to
have perspective and
respect
for your teacher.
Then look to your own practice.
Do not be put off by the task before you.
A life without challenge is tepid and
weak.
Your own
journey
Find the inner rhythm; the inexpressible essence
within each of us.
It is our own harmony with Tao.
Beyond words and thought, there is something that makes you
uniquely you.
Sifu Waller's story teaches us that the journey is what matters; the journey
within. Everyone is different and must find their own way. We take from the
art
what we need from the
art.
Your ambitions
Many tai chi students might not become as skilled as Sifu Waller
nor could they realistically replicate the circumstances of his development.
Competing with him or comparing your progress with his is pointless. Instead, have your own
ambitions and
tailor your
expectations relative to
your degree of commitment.
It is important for students to be honest about their own level of
commitment and their
expectations.
I've done some martial arts before
including tai chi but Sifu Waller's syllabus is so beyond anything I've seen
it's ridiculous! Practically all my previous training has not helped me at
all and I'm just grateful I found Sifu Waller when I did.
(Tim)
The
syllabus is for you
Sifu Waller has produced a syllabus designed to give students the
opportunity to benefit from his
experience.
No wrong turns, blind alleys or
wasted time and money.
All the good parts and none of the
bad.
Your story
We each have our own story.
Your tai chi journey may be a long one or it may
end this very year. Who can say?
Sifu Waller's story continues even now.
You decide
What about your own tai chi story?
Will your odyssey be a short story, a mere
introduction or will it be a lifetime's
adventure?
You get to decide.
Page created
18 November 2007
Last updated
16 June 2023
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