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When I first met Ma Yueh Liang, Wu Chian Chuan's son-in-law in 1990, he was 90 years old, but physically appeared to be in his seventies at best. Moreover, his manner was spry and young. He would practice the slow set in 30-40 minutes -- very slow, and then do the fast set with great fa-jing and power. However, at the time I was fixated with learning the Chen Style of T'ai Chi Ch'uan and the concept of silk reeling.

Picture: Ma Yueh Liang Performing Wu Style T'ai Chi Ch'uan (ABOVE) Playing Pi Pa posture; (BELOW) Single Whip.

Over time, I observed that Ma was able to render any movement outside of stillness to his advantage. His movements were so slight and seemingly uneventful, that to my external eye, I thought it was nothing and useless at first. With what's new and fashionable still garnering much of the attention in the uninitiated mind, it's no wonder that many flashy styles of the internal arts and modern wushu still attract a great deal of attention.

Push Hands has often been dismissed as a training method or something for scholars, but these accolades are usually used by those who likely have no understanding of how to apply T'ai Chi and utilize Push Hands. They may believe that a high kick, a low posture, or a fast series of punches directed towards the head and body of the opponent may be more useful. The latter may have value, but Push Hands skill can reduce the amount of stress in a self defense situation to a minimum, and keep you from being viewed as a bully when you are only trying to defend yourself.

Zhou Zhan Fang and Gerald Sharp pushing hands. These indoor students of Ma Yueh Liang have created a Wu Style Push Hands instructional video series.

However, the idea that the Chinese have some superior skill simply because they are Chinese is as false as believing that Chen Style T'ai Chi is somehow superior to Yang Style T'ai Chi or any other style T'ai Chi, because it is the father of all other styles. In fact, concerning this latter point, I believe just opposite, and in this agree with the majority of Yang Style practitioners both in the U.S. and China who know that historically that the Yang Style was a revolutionary style that was introduced to the public, not as a watered down version; but a more internal form of the art.

On the other hand, some of these same practitioners of Yang Style T'ai Chi Ch'uan and their derivatives, may also believe that Pa-Kua and Hsing-I are external arts. Concerning this particular point, I don't agree. In my opinion, it depends on how you approach and follow through with the quality of your practice is what's essential. Some practitioners of the internal arts of Hsing-I and Pa-Kua believe that the application of the art lies in training in boxing skills or San Shou fighting skills. In my opinion, the Hsing-I Push Hands adept or Pa-Kua Rou Shou practitioner would provide a great deal of enlightenment to this type of practitioner.

Knowledge of the language and the culture is extremely useful to the dedicated, serious practitioner of Chinese Internal Martial Arts. The more you can learn about the language and the culture, the more ideas and concepts you will expose yourself to. This will allow you to consider on a more sophisticated level the multiple meanings that the language often suggests. For instance, song is often interpreted as "relax." But song, or fan song, also refers to the process of relaxation. A process that requires time and a personal commitment to all the attributes which create relaxation such as softness, yielding, or even exhaustion. Of these components, softness is the hardest to achieve. Even people with years of training and good yielding skills, can still be heavy and use strength to dominate or attempt to break down their opponent. However, this is not the reality of the internal arts, but instead is a false sense of strength and power--that can be further expressed as charismatic.

Be wary of teachers who insist on being respected or having you salute them. It's one thing to be appreciative, but it's another to give respect to those who seek it first above being humble themselves. I can tell you that Ma Yueh Liang, who was as old school as you could get, never saluted, unless you consider putting hands together as if to pray and bowing your head a salute. His attitude was so unassuming, he never put on airs that he was the Master. If you didn't know who he was, or were unaware of his skill, you would have thought he was just a mannerly, optimistic elderly gentleman. More importantly that was how he approached the application of the art--simple, soft, and seemingly yielding.

Ma Jiang Long, Ma and Wu's eldest son, and his wife with Gerald A. Sharp just after Ma Yueh Liang's death in March, 1998.

Concerning more on the uselessness of high kicks and low postures, I remember one time watching Ma Yueh Liang practice the slow set in his home with a group of grand students who trained in Wu Style in the People's Park in Shanghai (Grand students meaning their teachers were students of Ma.). The students made a concentrated effort, in my opinion, not to raise their leg to kick high, nor lower them self too low when pushing down. They also didn't move much, nor turn their waist grossly. The young, uninitiated student that I was, asked Ma in front of these students (as if to make my point) if it should be a goal to kick higher or squat lower. His answer was that it should be a goal to keep the Lower Dantian (located in the center, lower abdomen region of the body) at one level. When kicking stretch from there, but keep the Lower Abdomen still. Stretching to kick more from the hips. When pushing down, also stretch from there, but focus on stillness and economy of movement. Again, using the hips to lower the body downward. Zhou Zhan Fang, a senior student of Ma, also discussed this idea with me once, and pointed out pictures of both Wu Chian Chuan and Yang Cheng Fu, and how both masters were able to keep the lower dantian seemingly at one level, and stretching from it as they moved through the postures of their respective forms.

This is why the idea of sitting back when moving to turn, which has become a hallmark in professional T'ai Chi Tournaments, especially both in China and now in America, is detrimental. Sitting back was designed supposedly to help beginners move easier and avoid excessive stress on the knees (thought to create T'ai Chi knee). However, nothing could be farther from the truth and just the opposite can happen. Instead, moving from the lower dantian, helps focus the energy downward, and helps movement from one Running Spring (a point known as the Yongchuan located behind the ball of the foot) even more useful and applicable. This stillness maintained in the lower abdomen can begin to release stress held in the shoulders, neck, elbows, and fingers. The movement from one running spring to the next is more fully achieved when the lower dantian is kept downward, almost pointed towards the earth, and the ankles relaxed gradually with each and every movement.

This focus on pointing the lower dantian downward, can lead to a more deeper quality of breathing. When you inhale and maintain concentration on your lower abdomen, your breathing will be gentle and easy. This not only helps to bring more oxygen into your system, but develops strength in your diaphragm to exhale at least as long as you inhale. Breathing from the diaphragm encourages chi, or fresh energy to be gathered during practice and stored in the lower dantian. Keeping the Lower Dantian or lower abdomen at one level also helps increase the ability to drop one's center of gravity without bending your knees and placing more undue pressure on the knees -- more than is necessary.