Finding a Teacher
Students seeking a tai chi teacher today are challenged with abundance. Tai chi teachers traditionally hid their art from the public, but today they may be seen in many recreation centers and health clubs. This easy availability creates a challenging paradox. Tai chi teachers may be easily found, but they may not be teaching authentic tai chi. Some teachers have a low level of skill and a superficial understanding of the art. They may be able to teach only the art’s physical movements. Some teach practices called tai chi that may instead be types of qigong (pronounced chee gong, a related but different Chinese art). Some of these practices, for example tai chi chih, employ principles taken from tai chi chuan and may achieve similar health improvement outcomes. Other practices, for example tai chi kung, employ different principles and may not achieve the same benefits. Some teach abbreviated versions of tai chi that extract a few movements developed for special populations, for example, tai chi for arthritis, tai chi for wellness and tai chi for diabetes. The challenge with each of these abbreviated forms is that a student does not receive authentic, comprehensive tai chi teaching and therefore may not achieve the same health outcomes.
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Authentic tai chi masters are difficult to find, but they are teaching in most cities. Here is what to look for. In their bearing, high-level tai chi teachers will seem modest, nonjudgmental, relaxed, calm, and centered. They smile easily and are often light-hearted and whimsical; after all, lighten is the root of enlightenment. With a deep understanding of the art, they should be able to answer questions based on their personal experience of the internal cultivation resulting from tai chi practice rather than merely repeat what they have read in books or what their teacher told them.
Ideally, the teacher will be trained in one of the five major lineages in tai chi (Yang, Chen, Sun and Wu; note there are two Wu families with different Chinese names but that appear the same when translated into English). Lineage matters because it increases the likelihood that the teacher is passing down authentic tai chi knowledge accumulated over the centuries. Students should search for the best teacher they can find no matter the distance, cost or inconvenience.
Traditional Chinese advice concerning the search for a good teacher is, when the student is ready the teacher will appear. Another teaching is it takes three years for a student to find a teacher, and three years for a teacher to decide if he or she will teach the student. If one practices tai chi with dedication and an open heart, even with a teacher with limited skills, one will sooner or later find the teacher that one needs to achieve the next stage of development.
Donald Davis, Ph.D., is a professor of psychology and Asian studies at Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Virginia. He specializes in the study of personal and organizational transformation. He has practiced tai chi, qigong, and other Daoist arts since 1982 and teaches them at Tidewater Tai Chi Center (www.tidewatertaichi.com) in Norfolk and Virginia Beach, Virginia, and at workshops around the country. Dr. Davis serves on the editorial board of the Journal of Daoist Studies and is co-founder and member of the board of directors of Legacy of Dao (www.legacyofdao.org), an international non-profit foundation organized to spread the ancient wisdom of Daoism in the modern world.
REFERENCES
- Chan, W. W., & Bartlett, D. J. (2000). Effectiveness of tai chi as a therapeutic exercise in improving balance and postural control. Physical and Occupational Therapy in Geriatrics, 17(3), 1- 22.
- Christou, E. A., Yang, Y., & Rosengren, K. S. (2003). Taiji training improves knee extensor strength and force control in older adults. Journal of Gerontology: Medical Sciences, 58A, 763-766.
- Wang, C., Collet, J. P., & Lau, J. (2004). The effects of tai chi on health outcomes in patients with chronic conditions. Archives of Internal Medicine, 164, 493-501.
- Wu, G. (2002). Evaluation of the effectiveness of tai chi for improving balance and preventing falls in the older population—A review. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, 50, 746-754.
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