"The Tao is not far from people; people naturally follow the Tao." (Tai Chi Techniques)

In his spare time, Chen Huiliang goes to the "North Library" to browse through martial arts magazines. Reading the article "The Way of Tai Chi, Passed On to Those with a Heart" written by Mr. Zhou Zonghua of the United States, which was continuously published in Wudang in 1992, I was deeply impressed by Mr. Zhou's passionate and straightforward attitude, his profound love for Chinese martial arts, and his long-term and in-depth research on Tai Chi. It can be said that he has achieved considerable attainments. Although Mr. Zhou's assessment of the renowned Tai Chi masters and experts in Chinese mainland is somewhat biased (Note), the flaws do not deify the merits. The article discusses the problems existing in the current Tai Chi movement in China and how to truly inherit and promote the essence of Tai Chi, so that this unique flower in the garden of Chinese martial arts - Tai Chi - does not become a "martial art for the elderly" or a "fitness exercise", etc. It should be said that they are all targeted and thought-provoking. It has great reference value for both instructors and learners, as well as all relevant individuals. As for me personally, I'm not a martial arts professional. My profession is acting, but I'm just passionate about Tai Chi in my spare time. I started to get in touch with it in the early 1960s. In 1964, I followed Master Wu Tunan to learn boxing. Although I once stopped, I didn't do it until Master Wu passed away in January 1989. I am quite familiar with Mr. Wu's situation. In his article, Mr. Zhou highly praised Mr. Wu's longevity due to Tai Chi and his Xu Ling Ding Force. His words were so definite and not empty. On November 27, 1988, Yang Chenghan, a disciple of Mr. Wu, and I went to visit him. Before leaving, Mr. Wu asked his wife to take out their own camera and asked Brother Yang to take a photo of us together. After the film was developed, when I went to the art agency to pick up the photo, a stranger beside me was astonished and exclaimed, "Oh, this old man!" Look at this!" Yes, Mr. Wu in the photo was already over a hundred years old at that time. Although his calves were somewhat swollen due to illness, he sat upright and his head was weak. His expression was like a towering peak reaching up to the sky. How could it be that of the person who passed away on the morning of January 10, 1989, 44 days after the photo was taken? At all times, Master Wu was always in a state of humble leadership, which was obvious to scholars. Moreover, Master Wu had repeatedly advised everyone to carefully study the phrases in "The Song of Heart Meeting" such as "The waist and spine are the primary masters, and the throat is the secondary master" and in "The Great Application of the Whole Body" such as "Never abandon the throat, and ask all the heroes in the world". And it was noted: "The throat refers to the top of a person's head." He believes: "The head takes up one seventh of the human body. If it is not straight, it will inevitably affect the stability of the body's center of gravity." Therefore, at the beginning of learning boxing, one must pay attention to slightly pulling in the chin and slightly lifting the top of the head at the Baihui point as if it were tied with a rope. However, one must not deliberately push it up, as this may cause the neck to become stiff due to excessive force. This is why it is called "empty leading". If one can do so, the head and face will naturally be upright, the countenance dignified, and the spirit concentrated in the ears." Not only did he say so, but he also taught by word and deed. He was extremely familiar with the "Xu Ling Ding Jin" (also known as "Ding Tou Xuan")! As for sinking the qi to the dantian, Mr. Wu often elaborated on it tirelessly and in a gentle and detailed manner. There are numerous and profound concepts such as "qi sinking to the dantian", "Qi gathering in the dantian", "mind and qi staying together in the dantian", and "mind remaining in the dantian". He believes that the character "sinking" in the phrase "qi sinking to the dantian" can easily mislead people into thinking that one should force the qi down from top to bottom. If it is said that "qi gathers in the dantian", the advantage is that it makes people think that it should not only be from top to bottom, but also from bottom to top, with the intention of gathering towards the dantian from both the top and bottom. The disadvantage is that it overly emphasizes the word "qi", and often makes people focus on "qi", which can easily lead to the mistakes of straining qi and having an excessive intention. He is more inclined to the proposition of "concentrating the mind in the dantian", and of course, it is also acceptable to say "keeping the mind and spirit in the dantian". In conclusion, Mr. Wu believes that "hollow leading the top force" and "sinking the qi to the dantian" can help the spine to be relaxed and deep, the coccyx to be upright and the spirit to be at the top, forming a posture of pulling and pulling up from top to bottom with one qi and two seizing. This is very important for the practitioners of Tai Chi to build up their bodies. Mr. Zhou pointed out in his article: "The reason why Tai Chi has declined is that (from the perspective of learners) those who practice Tai Chi are all familiar with the Tai Chi classics and theories, but few can put them into practice and persevere." Reflecting on my own and my fellow practitioners' practices, I ask myself, isn't it not the same? I saw Mr. Zhou's masterpiece in 1994. At that time, I had been learning Wu-style 37-Form Tai Chi, Tai Chi Broadsword, Tai Chi Sword, Tai Chi Push Hands and so on under the guidance of Teacher Wang Peisheng for more than ten years. Compared with the past, my own progress was still considerable. However, compared with the requirements of some of my fellow apprentices and teachers, I still felt it was not very satisfactory. Blame the teacher for not teaching truly? No, blame yourself for your poor comprehension and lack of effort? ! And I was a little reluctant to admit it. After reading "The Way of Tai Chi, the Way is Passed on to Those with a Heart", there is a certain statement in the article about those who practice Tai Chi, especially a sentence at the end asking: "How many people can truly practice the Tai Chi classics and treatises?" It was like a sudden enlightenment to me. Recalling that Mr. Wu once warned us before his death: "If you want to master Tai Chi well, you must have the courage to face ten thousand obstacles and the perseverance to never give up; otherwise, you will fail at the last moment." Isn't that so? Tai Chi Chuan integrates Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism, and involves numerous disciplines such as physiology, psychology, medicine, mechanics, philosophy and Qigong. It is profound and extensive, emphasizing both Taoist and martial arts skills, and cultivating both internal and external aspects. It is a difficult-to-practice, hard-to-practice and hard-to-apply martial art. If one is lazy, takes shortcuts, does not pay attention, does not use one's brain, and is unwilling to put in the hard work, how could one possibly see the way and understand the true path? Several years have passed in a flash. I have taken notes in over ten books, and the subtitles have been changed again and again, from "Picking Up the Lost Items Outside the Door" to "Entering the Path of Enlightenment", to "Advancing Both Dao and Skill", and then to "Improving Dao and Skill". Now, I feel more familiar with what my teacher has taught and some of the requirements in the boxing classics and theories than ever before, and I have a deeper understanding of them. Because through repeated thinking, hard practice and calm reflection, I unexpectedly discovered many things beyond words and between the lines, and these things indeed seem to be hard to express but can only be felt. For example, the first two lines of "The Song of the Beating Hands" : 掤, pressing and squeezing, being serious; following up and down, it's hard for others to advance. I have been learning the individual training method of the Four-Way Push Hand from Teacher Wang Peisheng since the mid-1980s. Teacher Wang is a true master of martial arts with profound knowledge, exquisite skills and rich teaching experience. He clearly and thoroughly imparted to everyone the individual training of 掤 squeezing, pressing, fixed steps, pushing hands, the pre-lunge 掤, elbow bending and squeezing, sitting and straightening, turning and pressing down, the body shape, gestures, positions, routes, the coordination between hands and feet, the connection and variation between movements, the direction of the inner spirit, as well as the inner state and feelings during the practice. His hands and the table not only require the body to be relaxed, but also each individual practice requires the body to be relaxed. Every morning, they need to find the square and then the circle, and practice carefully on each side twenty times. To be honest, my drawback at that time was that no matter what I learned, it seemed that I had mastered it after learning it. As for whether I had truly mastered it, I never carefully considered it. Later, influenced by Mr. Zhou's article "The Way of Tai Chi, Passed on to Those with a Heart", I began to calm down and carefully study the videos of Teacher Wang teaching the pushing hands. I reviewed every move as the teacher instructed. At first, my residence still hurt, and my practice before the Ming Dynasty was far from enough. Later, I gradually returned to normal. Before and after each set, I had to practice other formations and movements, and I couldn't help but practice and savor them. After persisting for nearly a month, I seem to have become much more flexible. Remember that Teacher Wang once said, "When training the Four Upright Pushing Hands alone, at the beginning, it should be like practicing calligraphy. Every stroke must be done perfectly. If you can't do it perfectly, no matter how many times you practice, it won't help." To what extent can it be considered complete? The weak feet under the soles of the feet become firm, the solid feet become weak, and they change freely back and forth. Even if the movements are all done perfectly." It is also said that when practicing the basic eight methods alone, one should be determined to practice them thousands and thousands of times until they are proficient. To practice from being overly familiar to not being overly familiar, and to have the interest of deliberation, one can figure out things. Now, I seem to have a physical and mental response to what the teacher says, such as "When in use, there are two sides, break through from the center", and "when pressing, open the center to encircle the opponent's rear route and seize their territory", etc. Moreover, this movement of the body, both inside and outside, up and down, left and right, was orderly yet dynamic, as if it could divide and combine. When one part went down, the other naturally came up. The lower back was also alternately firm and sometimes weak, and the feeling was quite obvious. I'm already 67 years old and know that I can never become a martial artist. I'm just a beneficiary of Tai Chi. However, due to my extraordinary love for Tai Chi in traditional Chinese culture, I have been determined since my youth to study and promote it for life, so that it can benefit all mankind. Based on this, after much deliberation, I am sincerely grateful to Mr. Zhou Zonghua for his inspiration and encouragement in his article "The Way of Tai Chi, the Way is Passed on to Those with a Heart". I would like to present to Mr. Zhou a answer sheet that has been filled out with hard work and sweat over the past few years: "The Way is not far from people, and people naturally travel far from the Way" in response.