Grandmaster Wang Fu-Lai graciously offered to be videotaped answering several of the most common questions from students. You can see a translation of his answers below.
1. What kind of health benefits can a student expect from practicing the Cheng Ming system of internal arts in the short term and the long term?
Practicing Cheng Ming internal martial arts can help students feel stronger and healthier. Our martial arts system also helps the Ch’i circulation become smoother and deeper. It can also help the harmony for all internal organs. Continue reading →
Leonard Tuchyner describes how he found t’ai chi and some of his favorite benefits studying with Hiromi Sensei.
My name is Leonard. I’m seventy-one years old. I’m a beginner, having studied with Hiromi for one-and-one-half years. There are a few facts that you should know about me. I’m legally blind, and have been so for many years. My condition, called Stargardt disease, is a very slow developing one which started in childhood. So I’ve had a lifetime to adapt to this condition.
I started training in the martial arts at about thirty, cycling through several different styles, never having a teacher who I would consider a master, or having direct access to one. I hated kata (choreographed movements), and was only really interested in sparring. I was reasonably effective, relying on peripheral vision to block and strike. I also had a good sense of fighting distances with my opponent. Continue reading →
John G., a second-year student at Hiromi T’ai Chi, explains some of the most meaningful changes that he has experienced studying T’ai Chi and Ch’i Kung.
I really want to write a story that is filled with good things from beginning to end, but that would not be completely accurate. Mine starts with great difficulty. My battles with chronic back pain and depression were overwhelming.
I was very lucky to “catch” the advice of someone near to me who suggested that I give T’ai Chi a try. So I began, and it was quite difficult at first. I felt self-conscious, worrying about what other people were thinking and I remember many times thinking, “I just can’t”.
Thankfully, I ignored these thoughts, and they slowly started to happen less frequently. Something strange started to happen. I started to step out of the pain I was in Continue reading →
Kath Weston, a two-year student at Hiromi T’ai Chi, answers some questions about her practice and experience with the school.
1. How did you begin doing T’ai Chi?
I used to watch people doing T’ai Chi in the park back when I was a graduate student living in San Francisco. The power and beauty of the practice intrigued me, so when I found out that a local YMCA was offering a class, I decided to try it. I loved it, but I didn’t pursue it at the time because I moved to another city. After that I focused on learning Qigong, a sort of moving meditation that works with the breath, which Continue reading →
T’ai Chi and Chi Kung have truly been blessings to my life. I began practicing both while going to school for acupuncture and Chinese medicine over 10 years ago. They were both required courses, and I looked forward to learning them. We started with T’ai Chi the first semester. The class was at 7:30 a.m. 3 days a week, before a full day of intense classes. Many of my classmates grumbled at having to start class so early in the morning, but I always looked forward to it. I felt it helped oil the works of my brain and the rest of my body to get ready Continue reading →
Our spacious training center is available for compatible activities such as meditation or Yoga. It is a wide open room (1400 sq ft) with a high ceiling and a bamboo floor.
Our dojo is also ideal for workshops and weekly meetings. The space is available for $50 per hour. 30 chairs, plus mats and screens are included with the hourly rental rate, if needed. Discounts are available for any single event longer than four hours. Discounts are also available for multiple events paid in advance.
