There are great benefits to learning standardised forms and I have stumbled on to the best of them. For as long as I can remember, you could drive down Belmore Road North Balwyn at the right time in the morning and see a tai chi group on the netball courts. Many would wear tai chi uniforms, others civvies, and all were practising the various forms at their own level. There were fans, swords and sticks too. The overall impression from a distance was that they were exceptionally good and they were all Asian.
Looking closer, there are actually two groups: one more beginner level and the other more advanced. Dotted between the groups there are often various solo people practising their own forms. Weaving in and out of the tai chi groups will be dogs and their owners, kids on skateboards or scooters, adults on rollerblades and any number of other variables. It looked to me like the heart of a healthy community.
On first venturing near the group I was roundly welcomed by a smiley man. He explained how the groups worked and that we were welcome, welcome, just join in! The majority of the people were Mandarin speakers, so we all communicated with the universal facial expressions and tai chi salutes. I was a bit scared of the advanced group at the start and kept to the beginner group, who were delighted to welcome a couple of extras, especially as we knew the forms and people could follow us.
Eventually I edged closer to the advanced group and watched a bit before pretty much being pushed to join them. I needed the push with my natural introversion otherwise holding me back. Along with the push from behind were the come join us gestures from among the group. Well what a whirlwind, eye-opening, brain-expanding time it’s been since then.
This group have a standard routine that varies slightly. They start with Ba Duan Jin, then move on to the standardised 24-form, 42-form and 48-form. There’s generally a quick break for a drink and a chat at this point. Then the weapons come out and it’s on to 32-sword, 42-sword, Kung Fu Fan and Yang Style 18 Fan. That’s most mornings a week. Variables include Chen 56, Stick 13, Wudang sword and probably many more that I haven’t seen. Sometimes they use the official music with spoken cues in Mandarin and other times just music.
I and my friend Mun have been fairly regular at once a week for a while now. What really stands out is how welcoming the group have been. They are friendly, generous, light-hearted and very committed to their own health routines. They are delighted to have us there and we are so delighted to be there.
We are able to join in with this group because they are practising standardised forms and we have learn standardised forms. They learnt in China, we learnt here, but it doesn’t matter where we learnt because the form is the same. You can travel all around the world and chances are you’ll see a group doing a standardised tai chi form.
The most commonly practised is Tai Chi 24-Form and this is what I’m teaching in several classes at the moment. This is your basic tai chi currency. Learn this and you can communicate and make friends all around the world!
A certain amount of sneering can go on in the tai chi world. This is often directed at those who only learn standardised forms instead of traditional forms, or those who learn too many forms – a ‘collector’. I’ve given a lot of thought to this, particularly in the last 10 or so years. I was once dismissed as a collector and it really gave me pause. I mean, it’s a little unkind frankly, and also a gross simplification.
If you enjoy going to your class, and your teacher teaches forms fairly quickly and then moves on to the next one, and again, if you enjoy that class, well you stay and you learn the next form (or try to). And if a Master visits from another country and you have the opportunity to learn from them, well you do if you can. I don’t think learning in this way should be looked down on. It’s just how it is for many of us; it’s what’s on offer. You might not learn the forms terribly well, or have to do a lot of homework in order to learn them, but again, it’s what’s on offer if you want to stay with that group.
Which brings me back around to the group in Macleay Park. I would not have been able to join them as easily as I have if I had not ‘collected’ all of those forms.
That’s not to say I remember all the forms I’ve been taught over the years - no! But this group has now given me the motivation to work on some forms I haven’t done for years. I’m loving re-learning 48-Form, a complex and beautiful form that I actually did at the WTQA competition in 2014. I let it go because I couldn’t seem to find room in my brain for both 42 and 48 forms, but now I’m going to give it a try. It’s coming back pretty quickly I’m pleased to say. I’m also rediscovering the joys of 42-Sword, a delightful and nuanced form.
I’m going to try to learn the Kung Fu Fan so I can do it with the group. If you haven’t seen it before, have a look on YouTube - it’s quite something! It makes me smile and I can see why it appeals to me as an old calisthenics girl, being set to the grand, crazy music.
I’ve also shown the group a couple of forms that I have learnt over the years. It’s such a delight demonstrating a form to genuinely curious people who are watching with wonder! They loved the Phoenix Fan and were impressed by the tosses (and catches), and I also showed them the Tai Chi Flute. The memory will make me smile for a long time. We all should have a cheer squad for when we nail a balance! I think it was one woman who hooted but it felt like a stadium full. Mun videoed the demo and I put it on YouTube here.
One thing that’s so refreshing about this group is that they just don’t care what others might think. They don’t care who’s watching and they don’t care when the cameras come out - in fact they welcome the cameras! They are there doing their tai chi and whether they know the form or not, they are following along as best as they can. It’s very simple. We westerners can get so self-conscious and worry terribly about what others might think of us, or be embarrassed that we got that move wrong, or looked a bit different. It just doesn’t matter to this group and I think that is so wonderful.
We can care too much about others judging us (which they’re probably not doing anyway). Just get outside and practise your tai chi. Practise what you remember and what you like. Don’t worry if you get some moves wrong or forget some segments. Do what you can and keep moving. The beauty and benefits of tai chi and qigong are in the practising of them. So make sure you practise, either by yourself, or if you are lucky enough, with a friendly group of tai chi buddies.