Yang Family Tai Chi Discussion Board

Dao is a Chinese Broadsword. The fajin form you will likely only find in direct lineage to Tung Ying Chieh

The form is much less important than the internal energy.

Maybe try practicing a new form. Or find a new teacher. If you don't have a regular teacher that may be part of the problem.

Getting motivated to practice is always a problem for me, that is why I attend regular group classes. Something about the group energy.

saxgentleman67 wrote:The form is much less important than the internal energy.

Maybe try practicing a new form. Or find a new teacher. If you don't have a regular teacher that may be part of the problem.

Getting motivated to practice is always a problem for me, that is why I attend regular group classes. Something about the group energy.

Thanks you, but please read all posts first.

I have a regular teacher and have had one for 20 years, Tung Ying Chieh lineage. Group classes was not the issue, do not know what the issue was, but it is over, now and I am back at it.

To me, the form is like learning how to play an extremely complicated classical music piece, and once you've learned it, you could keep tweaking it and practicing it until it becomes ridiculously second nature. This is when boredom is exhibited the most perhaps. Two things: do it for health upkeep and heighten the energy control. Last: do something different. Learn a new song and master it. If you've been doing the form that long, surely you can feel chi clearly like most without years experience can't as well, but the greatest matters emphasis is on heightened energy use. Make focus on that a priority. Good luck.

Well, it has been awhile since I posted in this thread.

Have decided it is time to put Yang style (Tung Ying Chieh Lineage) aside. I greatly appreciate all my Shifu taught me, and I am grateful for his endorsement to be a teacher. The decision has not come easily and I have been doing this for over 20 years. But the form feels empty of late and it is time to move on to other things and put this aside for awhile or longer. Looking at the Wu style I dabbled in years ago and looking at Sun style as well. Considering pursuing a variation of Yang though the William CC Chen branch and even considering a return to Jeet Kune Do.

Just wanted to do a quick update

Hi T,
Sad to hear that you have been unable to re-ignite the interest in practising the Yang Long form. I would have thought that teaching Taiji would have kept the interest going, but sadly that appears to not have been the case for you. I have been practising for the better part of 30 years, but I mix it with other forms that I have learnt for a bit of variety. However, as my former teacher used to say, the Yang Long form should always remain your bedrock, and I have followed this advice to this day. Only in recent years have I been teaching and I have found that it has given me greater insights and have also encouraged me to reassess and analyze the execution and purpose of my practice. It has unquestionably made me a better practitioner and teacher. I hope that you will one day rediscover the fire for practising and continuing your Taiji journey.
Take care,
Frank

Thanks.

I have discovered that I very much like the William CC Chen version of the Cheng Manching version of Yang style. I have also discovered that I very much like Sun Style (likely my xingyi background talking there). For the first time in a long time I am having trouble stopping myself when I am doing my Taijiquan.

I want to make it clear that I am not saying anything against Yang style. I trained it and enjoyed it for many years. It did not leave me, I left it. For some reason it no longer felt right and most of the time, of late, it felt empty. And due to that I did not think it was right for me to teach it since I would only be teaching because I had done it for so long without passion for the art and I did not want to pass that along to any would be students. Had I still the passion I would have continued.

I also have back ground in Chen style as well, not as much as Yang, but more than many. I have no desire to train any Chen either, and II lost that a while ago. I also have some small experience with Northern Wu, and for a brief moment after losing my desire to do any traditional Yang I was doing what little I know of Northern Wu... and then that left me as well. But William CC Chen's Taiji and Sun Lutang's Taiji have re-energized my desire and passion to do tajii... just not Yang style. And that is because of something inside me and has nothing to do with the style itself. It is an amazing and wonderful style of Taijiquan.

Thank You to the Yang family for its development and to the Tung Ying Chieh who taught my Shifu and to my shifu for teaching this poor student.

T