Both of our advanced Tai Chi groups, let by Masters Tam and Kang, learn and practice sword forms. Everyone is invited to join in, but don’t expect to master this art without lots and lots of serious practice, and a grounding in Tai Chi is not going to hurt.
Starting this week Tai Chi Circle, Jully Kang’s group, will be learning a new form, so for those interested, this is a reasonable time to get involved.
The lessons will start with a review of the 18 Forms Sword. Here are a couple of videos that show the basics of that form:
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KvfcZ-y6d5Q?rel=0]
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=49zU0uo8yUE?rel=0]
This fun, annual event is celebrated world wide. This year one of our mall groups went up to Sacramento to join with others from San Jose, San Francisco and Sacramento to demonstrate, practice . . . and have a picnic. You can find many pictures of the event here: Sacramento Tai Chi Day.
If you haven’t tried Tai Chi or QiGong yet . . . what’s the holdup? Do yourself a favor and join one of the many groups practicing these healthy exercises at the mall. All groups are open, and free. Plan to follow along with many mistakes as you learn. As your balance, strength and flexibility increase, you’ll be glad you made the effort.
Some of our mall Tai Chi folks attended the World Tai Chi Day celebration in Sacramento along with others from Sacramento, San Francisco, Davis and San Jose. The event was hosted by our friends, Sifu Jenny’s group, who arranged for space near the Zoo at William Land Park, and also provided a wonderful meal.
Here’s a video of a combined performance of the 42 forms:
Watch for folks you know. And forgive our missteps, this is not a form we practice very often :-). Just goes to show that you can have fun, even without being an expert.
I urge all mall walkers to give Qi Gong and Tai Chi a try. It’s so good for body, mind & spirit, plus it will open up a whole new world of friends and possibilities for enjoying life more.
Here it is, the final video of Mall Walk performances at the Year of the Snake festival on March 3. Again mislabeled, this is not Tai Chi Institute but Master Tam:
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5hlT5A04QIg?rel=0&w=560&h=315]
For anyone who missed the wonderful Year of the Snake celebration at the Civic Auditorium, we were lucky to have a great videographer in the audience, so I can share these performances with you:
A Chen Style QiKong form (label not correct – will likely be adjusted soon),
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5kF21YDYBqk?rel=0&w=560&h=315]
And a push-hands form with fans.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VSDEFmMoCQs?rel=0&w=560&h=315]
Everyone is welcome to join and practice with all Mall Walk groups, even the more challenging ones. Do remember that it takes time and practice to keep up with, much less master, these forms. Be persistent and you will be amazed at what you can accomplish.
Watch for video of Master Tam’s group as well. Will share here as soon as it’s uploaded.
George’s group will now have more space at the Penney’s area M-W-F from 9:00-10:00. This is an excellent place to practice, practice, practice.
At the same time Master Tam will move to Dillard’s M-W-F from 9:00-10:00. Master Tam is now teaching the Sun Style 73 forms (see link to video, bottom right). This is an advanced group, and moves quickly, however tai chi players of every level are welcome. Join in – challenge yourself.
Anyone interested in continuing with Yuanji dancing, please stop by and let Kristen know. We’ll find a time & space to put that back on the schedule if there’s a group wanting to learn.
What’s important is to keep moving, so find a group with music and a pace you enjoy and go for it.
A big, blog welcome to Delta College SICL students who are participating in my Yuanji class there. I hope many of you will also be stopping by the Mall to dance with us in front of Dillards.
The purpose of this post is to correct some misinformation about the meaning of some Chinese words. Both the mistakes, and this correction, are my best efforts to understand a difficult but beautiful language. Some of the difficulty comes from the Chinese use of analogies, which are powerful but depend on a deep understanding of the comparison being made.
Here’s an example. The “Yuan” in yuanji dance is written :
emphasis rises
This symbol means dollar (i.e. the Chinese “yen”), first or head. “Uan” with rising emphasis is a more accurate Mandarin pronunciation. In Cantonese, I don’t know how to pronounce this word. I also told my Delta class that this word means “gold”. However, I’ve discovered that there is a completely different Chinese word for the metal gold. I now think that the “gold” translation that was suggested to me was more of an analogy, where “gold” is used to indicate a very high standard (golden).
Even more interesting are the words “chi” and “ji” or “key” or “qi” or even “xi” — all of these sounds seem to be used, somewhat interchangeably, for two separate Chinese words:
abrupt cutoffemphasis rises
To the left, in red, is a word meaning “extreme, furthest, final”. This is the word used in the names Tai Chi and Yuanji.
To the right, in black, is the word meaning “spirit” which is closer to the meaning most of us attribute to the second syllable of Tai Chi and Yuanji. Interestingly, “spirit” is the word used in the name of the philosophy underlying both exercise systems: Qi Gong.
SO, Tai Chi is the “ultimate/final extreme” while Yuanji is the “golden/first extreme” and both are based in Qi Gong, or “spiritual achievement”.
Now, about that Ugly Step-Daughter Step, it’s wonderful and funny analogy that anyone who has ever danced or tried Tai Chi will be able to understand. It goes like this: When your son brings home an ugly step-daughter, your family will pay for that for 3 generations. Equally, as a dancer, when you make one wrong step, that’s going to throw off your next 3 steps. Ah, so sadly true. Avoid the Ugly Step-Daughter Step whenever possible.
This is an instructional video, rather than a performance video.
For anyone interested. Jully Kang is teaching this form now. See schedule for days & times. All are welcomed.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ym-TvU6K86s&w=420&h=315]
For those interested, here’s some background information about, and a partial video of, the “Holding the Sun & Moon” tai chi form that Jully Kang’s group practices. All are welcome. See the schedule for times & location.
