Tai Chi

Tai Chi is an ancient Chinese martial art and spiritual practice but it is currently taught as a form of low impact exercise and stress relief. Too often the ancient practices are watered down or skimmed over. But the real benefits of Tai Chi are revealed only after long training and a willingness to explore our inner world. Tai Chi is the physical embodiment of Taoist philosophy. It reveals the ebb and flow of the forces that shape our lives, both physical and spiritual.

The classes cover the Hidden Tradition of the Yang Family style of Tai Chi Chuan, also known as the Michuan style ( “Michuan” is simply Hidden Tradition in Chinese). It is sometimes referred to as Yangjia Michuan Taijiquan.

The Hidden Tradition of the Yang Style of Tai Chi (Yangjia Michuan Taijiquan)

Yang Luchan developed his style of Tai Chi in the 1840’s. He became famous for his martial art skills, and was even nicknamed “Yang the Invincible”. His fame drew the attention of the Manchu ruling class, and Yang Luchan started teaching the princes and bodyguards of the royal court.

But as an ethnic Han (whereas the Manchu where the descendants of Mongolian invaders) Yang Luchan was reluctant to teach them his full art. So two Tai Chi forms developed; the popular style taught to the Manchu and their followers in the capital, and the Hidden Tradition taught to the Han Chinese.

Most modern forms of Tai Chi taught today are based on the style taught to the Manchu princes, with gentler, rounder movements.

This is the other style.

The Michuan style has retained it’s martial art roots, as well as the deep Taoist practices that are sometimes missing from modern Tai Chi classes. Many modern Tai Chi forms have been simplified in order to fit our modern schedule. The Michuan form has not. It requires a long but fulfilling practice to learn it’s many subtleties.

The Studio is dedicated to the study of Tai Chi and the Taoist philosophy it’s based on. The goal is to bring the benefits of these ancient Chinese exercises to our busy lives, blending traditional knowledge with modern teaching methods. I have over 30 years of experience studying and teaching Tai Chi, as well as some experience with Aikido, Judo and Tae Kwon Do. But the main focus is on the art of moving and breathing, of clearing the mind while empowering the body.

The flowing moves of Tai Chi never fail to entrance those who are sensitive to the beauty of movement. The animators at the Disney Animation Studio had hired me to teach them some Tai Chi and demonstrate some move for a movie which shall not be named (but the title has a dragon in it). It was great fun to watch these artists who spent most of their days hunched over a drawing board (or a computer screen) try to mimic the flowing movements. But all, with their keen artistic eyes, saw the beauty of these movements, and how different they were from anything else they had drawn before. More importantly, they saw that the beauty of the movements was the source of the power within them. Grace is a sign of efficiency, and Tai Chi is very efficient.

At the Studio we cover all the bases. We study the self-defense aspect of this ancient martial art. We study breath, meditation and energy work. We talk about Taoist philosophy and how it is still relevant in our daily lives.

I fell in love with Tai Chi when I was 15 years old. It has sustained me for all these years. No matter what martial art I dabbled in, I always returned to Tai Chi because it taught me not just to have a body, but to BE a body, moving through space and time. Tai Chi transforms the body into an instrument of peace, of joy, of spiritual transcendense, of comfort, of strength.

I saw this first hand when I participated in a study run by the USC School of Health, studying the effect of Tai Chi on chronic pain. The subjects where a group of elderly imuno-compromised men suffering from arthritis and joint inflamation. it only took a few classes (that mostly involved walking slowly and breathing) to see dramatic results. The symptoms were still present, but their relationship with those symptoms had changed drastically, and enabled them to live with them much more comfortably. And had gained more mobility to boot.

No other martial art I’ve ever studied healed the body like Tai Chi does. That’s why I still practice it, and teach, to this day.

Christopher Nelson can be reached at chris@hiddentaichi.com

Coaching Work:

USC School of Business – guest teacher, Developing the Imagination in Business

USC School of Health – consultant and head teacher, Using Tai Chi for Chronic Pain Managenent

Disney Animation Studio – consultant, Tai Chi and Taoism

Sony Pictures – teacher, Employee Health classes

“Ray Donovan “, The Mark Gordon Company – consultant, Tai Chi