“Blending Traditions" Was first posted on the old site by Tom Divney. He proposed writing a short article on the issues raised when learning from different styles/instructors. His article with comments, is reproduced here
: Learning Tai Chi from Two Distinct Styles” explores the journey of a Tai Chi student navigating two contrasting teaching styles—one from a traditional in-person instructor with martial applications, and the other from an online instructor who emphasises flow, breath, and personal interpretation. How can we reconcile these approaches, and still find value in both physical guidance and digital resources?
Choosing Your path
Different, intertwining paths in my life led me to Tai Chi about a year ago. I followed one of those paths and ended up in a twice-weekly Tai Chi class with the Professor (no names here), who has studied Chinese medicine and practiced Qi Gong, various forms of Tai Chi, and martial arts for close to 40 years. My classmates are all women, most in their mid-70s, some six to eight years older than me.
Another path took me to the teapotmonk. After exchanging a few emails with the mOnk, I decided to become a Quiet Ninja. I also bought the 12-Month Complete Tai Chi Home-Study Course on sale. Hooray, mOnk! I was on my way.
This combination of in-person and online learning suited me. I’d attend a class, and then in the evenings, I’d go through some of the mOnk’s videos and materials to get the nuances of the movements. Then back to class in a couple of days.
I soon realized that this plan wasn’t going to work as smoothly as I thought. The Professor teaches the Yang 108-movement form, while the 12-month course focuses on 10 movements flavored by the Cheng Man-ch’ing 37-Step form. I’d look at the videos at night and think, “This is different from what the Professor is showing me.” I’d mention this to the Professor, and he’d say something like, “Well, that’s Cheng Man-ch’ing. Now, the Yang form…” Or something like that.
The Professor enjoys the martial aspects of Tai Chi. He likes showing us how some movements are used for self-defense. He pulls me aside to practice push-hands, stating that my classmates aren’t interested in that. (“Women…” He’s a bit of a machista.) I enjoy learning about the martial foundations of Tai Chi, but I’m never going to toss people around by Repulsing the Monkey or Hitting the Tiger on the Ears. I like the mOnk’s approach to Tai Chi—his flourishes in the movements, the flow between the movements, and the links to breath.
Dilemma: How to reconcile the two styles, the two approaches?
Roll with it.
It wasn’t hard to figure out. The Professor likes hearing about other styles, what I’ve seen on YouTube or elsewhere. He tries to understand and then explain what I’ve seen, always finishing with, “…but, in the Yang style…” He isn’t totally closed-minded, but I’m not going to change anything with him. I can’t say to him, “…in the mOnk’s videos…” Nope, not going to work. But the Professor is my go-to guy for seeing me in motion and correcting my movements. “You’re doing fine. You’ve got it. It’s just details, details,” he tells me. Then he corrects me, shows me how to do it, and I try to ignore that he does it differently from what he just told me to do.
The mOnk and 21st Century Tai Chi continue as my references, my Tai-Chi-apedia. From the mOnk’s videos, I understand movement flows and transitions better, how to position my feet, and how to align my body. From the 21st Century website, I feel a sense of community—however distant—that I don’t get with my classmates, who don’t practice when they’re not in class. I also find peace in the mOnk’s approach to Tai Chi, which emphasizes that everyone is different and that every move is different every day. Don’t worry about the angle of your eyebrow or the position of your index finger. There may come a day when I can continue with just the mOnk’s digital guidance, but for now, I still need a physical instructor.
A few weeks back, the mOnk posted a video about the early American students of Cheng Man-ch’ing. I remember that one woman*, now probably in her 80s, said something like, “The Tai Chi I am doing now is not the same Tai Chi I did last year, last month, yesterday, or even five minutes ago.”
That’s the way.
Roll with it.
Note by Paul - *The woman Tom mentions above was Maggie Newman who died October 2025 at the age of 101.
COMMENTS
Tobias Kirschbaum
Sep 1, 2024
Hi Tom. Thanks for sharing! I am actually experiencing the pheomenom of several (analogue AND digital, physically present AND, I'd call it, 'videologically' present) Taiji worlds as well. AND I got to love it. - I am studying with a Chinese teacher (starting of with Beijing 24, now adding a sword form) just round the corner of where I live. AND I am broadening my views and deepening my understanding using digital ressources, above all 21st century's or rather Paul's approach. Yes, there are contradictions or different interpretations. But I love those irritations to re-think and search for the essence. - It's a journey well worth! (@Tom: I am looking forward to parts 2 and 3!) Toby
Paul Read
Sep 2, 2024
I admire your approach Tobias. But it takes a certain detached (Step back to Repulse that Monkey) approach that not everyone has, or not everyone is encouraged to take. When I began learning Tai Chi back in the 1980s, I began by learning two styles at the same time. I had to hide the fact from both teachers that I was doing this, otherwise both would refuse to teach me unless I would commit to their style only. Fortunately, things have moved on a little - nudged by the internet and the distribution of material more widely.
Dirk
Sep 3, 2024
Hi Tom, the story you wrote there is also mine!
We practice in a beautiful park in Brussels Le Cinquantenaire, under the trees and near a fountain all year round. I like that aspect. The people in attendance are also mostly women in their 60-70-80s and a few odd men.
Since the Master returned to China, his "disciples", who are quite accomplissed in their own right, don't feel that they have the right to teach and give corrections. They say they are not teachers, but still (in my view very advanced) students themselves. Why should these be mutuelle exclusive concepts? Can't you be a teacher and at the same time a student? I know I can...
So learning is by imitation only. And no corrections! You are lucky my friend! Because of the lack of explanation and practice of the basics (e.g. transfer of weight, moving with the whole body instead of the arms only etc) the twenty or so students do whatever they think they just saw...
I can't look at it, anybody with any experience in martial arts would be shocked.
I have always been in the teaching profession: I taught Aikido at several clubs in my home town and at the university so I have to controll my frustration and exasperation. I have learned "to steal with my eyes" from the best, so that's what I decided to do: only focus on the best...avoid looking at the rest!
Because these disciples are left on their own by the Master and they too want to progress the lessons can include Yang 85, 37, 28 and some forms they have made up themselves... This is followed by stick, sabre, sword and fan forms that are impossible to follow except when one spends every morning half a day in the park. Something I can't. Although I manage to go three to four times a week and this already for quite a few years. Because of this constant changing of forms, and yes, they also do several forms of push hands and to simplify add some additional Chen sword forms.
The result of this is, that after all these years of practice I have the impression I am getting nowhere. Just confused and sometimes demotivated. The disciples themselves, are devoted to TaiChi they practice almost every day...and with support from the Chinese Embassy give excellent demonstrations around Belgium as part of their soft power diplomacy.
One solution that I have found, to force them to correct my form is to participate in competions. Since one has to register under the club's name, they are afraid "to loose face" and only then, they correct here and there something in my form.
Against this background, the TeaMonk's humour and method speak to my heart and character. But it is still hard to fit these two ways of learning TaiChi together. I will have to figure this out...
I am curious. what the TeaMonk would say.
I am afraid his answer will be something along the lines of "If you have the feeling to get nowhere, then you are in the right place. If you feel that after five or six years of study you have the feeling you know nothing, rejoice, because that's the ultimate goal to know you know nothing". Am I right?
I know this. But still.
I think it would help me out, when I could combine the online information the TeaMonk's website with a few seminars a year in Spain or elsewhere...
Of course I could also spend some time in China with the Master himself, who speaks only Chinese...but my Chinese is inexistant!
Haven't worked this out yet. What frustrates me also is that I am also not allowed to teach which I would love to do at my school and the facility for older people near my home.
My Japanese teachers had the opposite approach, they said the best way to learn something is to teach it. In Aikido it certainly worked for me and apparantly it also worked for my students among. many became black belts and teachers themselves.
And to conclude, if I would teach.TaiChi one day, it would be the TeaMonk's Way.
What a coincidence. To day, I got back in the TaiChi saddle after a few months of absence and total lack of motivation... Because I cannot not practice TaiChi, each time I come back to it, I see things differently and with a heightened sensibility.
My apologies for being so long...let's blame my frustration...
Best regards,
Dirk Van Eeckhout
Tom D.
Sep 13, 2024
Hello. Thanks for your kind comments about the article. @Toby, I'm not sure if there are parts 2 and 3. I think you and Dirk already wrote them. I like your term "videological".
@Dirk, yes indeed we share stories. When we have a new person in the class, the professor tells us "work on parts 2 and 3 [Yang 108 form] while I go get so-and-so started." So we practice, and we take turns missing a move or getting something out of sequence. Every once in a while we get it all correct, finish with a big sigh, and a short round of applause for ourselves.
There is one classmate who, having been in the class the longest, feels like she can correct us when we practice alone, and sometimes even when the professor is there and we squabble over what happened and who did what and so on. I quietly take a few steps out of the group and work on something else.
"The best way to learn something is to teach it." I've thought a lot about that. It's also the basis of the Feynman technique (https://fs.blog/feynman-technique/). I think I would like to teach tai chi someday, but I have a long way to go before I am comfortable enough to do that.
Now Dirk, there is some ideas in what you write. How about a Teapot retreat? A week in Spain working on tai chi? Hmm. Or we could do it here in Costa Rica where I live. I can imagine it would be quite a collection of people with different skill levels and backgrounds, like the three of us (including Toby here).
I took a few months off from the class, also, because of work and family obligations. I'm due to get back in the saddle in about a week or so. Let's see if my practicing with the Monk over these past weeks helped keep the rust out of my joints.
Thanks @Toby and @Dirk. And thanks @Paul for posting my short article.
P.S. Sorry for the duplicated paragraph. I don't know if that was a copy-paste error on my part.
Sep 20, 2024
Thanks for sharing! I am a former Tai Chi snob. I used to say "If you don't learn the martial applications you're just eating the skin of the apple". (My own analogy. As a writer I'm quite proud of it.) It became a barrier to my practice for far too long.
Now I'm learning for my health! It's nice to know the martial applications so you can put the energy in the right place, but that's about it. Today, I'm ready for any mugger out there, as long as he attacks very slowly.
Paul Read
Sep 24, 2024
I'd also add a request from an Aikido perspective, that any mugger should not only move slowly, but when attempting to strike, leave their arm outstretched and motionless for 10 seconds or more, so as to give me time to get into position and apply the appropriate arm lock.
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