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Alex Dong Intl Taijiquan Assoc: Pacific NW School - Essays and Articles |
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QUEST FOR BALLANCE In 1993, I wandered into a tai chi class in Olympia, Washington taught by Joseph Coppo, a ten-year student of Master Kai Ying Tung. I don’t really know why I joined at the time, except that I was just like any other young man wanting to stay in shape. Almost 30 years in age, my strategy for health then was typical; go to the gym and lift weights. Supplement the bodybuilding routine with aerobic exercise, and stretch out to stay limber. I was doing all right with it, I could bench press my body weight and leg press 2 times that weight. I guess I realized sub-consciously something was missing in regards to tying it all in together. Other areas of my life had to improve as well, and a physical/material process was just the start towards a more complete health. My body was developing in a certain way, but somehow inside I knew my whole being wasn’t developing automatically along with my body. Anyway, I thought tai chi was just a stretching class that was a lot easier than Yoga, which was too feminine for a masculine dude like myself! It seemed like stretching in this way would be a good supplement to my weight training so I went for it. Joseph explained that the ‘Tung’ style Slow Set was an authentic Chinese exercise form, and that comprehensive health benefits were derived through a complete understanding and practice of the Martial Arts aspects. He told me not to expect much from tai chi unless I practiced regularly for 6 months. So I committed to myself and started a journey that I continue today, which I call a “Quest for Balance”. My time with Joseph was short as he moved away and his student Jon Donze took over the class. I spent the next few years studying with Jon, and occasionally with Joseph, and attended Master Tung’s camps occasionally around the U.S. Another one of Master Tung’s long time students, named Patrick Slattery, moved to Olympia during this time. I trained one on one with Patrick for almost two years while he was getting a degree at our local college. Patrick was a very serious student and had experienced many of Master Tung’s difficult training camps over a 13-year period. Pat taught me some key points about commitment and dedication. I learned that tai chi is best applied to a person’s life when adopted as a daily regimen. We had ritualistic practice methods, meaning we met at the same location, same time, and year-round during all types of weather. I also met Jane Golden during this time and attended her training camps. Jane is a very personable woman who has many years of experience studying under Master Tung and others. She really helped me get a deeper understanding of the finer points of tai chi. Her teaching is centered around the more energetic aspects of Tai chi, rather than just showing how to do slow movements and trying to make students feel at peace like many other instructors teach. Having a teacher that can articulate these aspects to students in a direct and understandable manner is very satisfying, especially for such a deep art form like tai chi chuan, and Jane is very encouraging and welcoming teacher as well. At one of Jane’s summer camps she invited Alex Dong from Hawaii as a guest. Alex is the nephew of Master Tung Kai Ying. What a surprise for me to meet an authentic Chinese tai chi expert who was just 25 years old! The Discovery channel only showed the old masters in their 70’s, and I was under the misconception that maybe they didn’t come out to teach the Western public until they hit age 50 or so. At the camp, he taught us a two-person kind of san-shau based on the 1st section of the long form. He was well received by all of Jane’s students, and in the evenings there was a line of people waiting to push hands with him. This was my introduction to Alex, which eventually led to the association that I currently have with Alex’s ‘Dong’ Style of tai chi chuan. Since 1997, I have attended training camps with Master Alex and his father, Grandmaster Dong Zeng Chen. Both have lived in Hawaii for many years, and there they have taught their version of Dong style, while the brother of Dong Zeng Chen (Kai Ying Tung) taught his slightly different style in Los Angeles. My previous experience studying Alex’s Uncle’s form had prepared me well for learning Alex’s style. I had a strong stance and was able to root well from several years of low and slow practicing. Alex’s style seemed slightly more physically demanding in regards to actually applying martial applications and also more clearly centered on cultivating a stronger martial spirit. Regardless on the accuracy of my interpretation of what I saw and felt, I was ready for this kind of development in my tai chi. I decided to study with Alex for several reasons. His youthfulness was important to me. He is 7 years younger than I am and I saw that he had tremendous potential to mature into his tai chi even greater than he already was. For example, when he has 40 years of practice under his belt, he will be only 45 years old! This is still within the age of great physical capabilities and yet his current internal skills will be that much more developed. Also, the fact that he can clearly speak English is a great plus. For a Caucasian American like myself who is not bi-lingual, it is helpful to have things explained in a language I can actually understand. Even though continued practice is the predominant method for developing real skill in the Dong style, I feel that westerners need verbal communication to help intellectualize things. This is how we are typically educated so it is familiar to us, and I think that such an elusive thing as learning an Internal Art form warrants teaching from multiple styles. Anyway, Alex is not that big on words, but when he does have something to say I usually find a lot of value in it if I actually listen at the deepest level. Finally, he was willing to accept me as a student and share his high level of martial skill with me. I have learned from my own experience as teacher that students come and they go. There are some that are just ‘dabbling’ and I don’t really want to invest that much of myself in someone who is looking to take away quick techniques or is simply out to test their skills and pick up a few new traits along the way. In addition to my continuing studies with Master Alex, I have also checked out several different styles of Internal and External Martial Arts, and will continue to seek out other Yang Style teachers to share with and learn from. I am grateful for my exposure to other instructors through their workshops and seminars. These teachers include Michael Gilman, Li Tai-Liang, Sam Masich, Andy Dale and others who have helped and may continue to help me along in my tai chi development. Life for me is about balancing career, family, leisure, and other pursuits so that we can evolve not just emotionally, but also spiritually, intellectually, socially, and physically. Tai chi Chuan is the vehicle that I have chosen to help me further towards this goal. Much gratitude goes out to Master Alex, and all the other teachers and students who support me in my Quest for Balance.
TAI CHI FOR PARKINSON'S THE DONG FAMILY FAST SET SLOW AND
FLAWED vs. FAST AND PRECISE MIND BENDER EXPLAINED MIND BENDER TAIJI CHI KUNG WHAT IS
QIGONG? TIGER
MOUNTAIN TAI-CHI KUNG UNITY THROUGH POLARITY |
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