In early 1990, I first took up the practice of Tai Chi. After many years pursuing a career as a musician and music teacher, I felt the need to complement that sedentary occupation with a more physical component. Additionally, I had a feeling of being “stuck” and some part of me was prompting me to learn, grow, and explore. From my first class, I realized Tai Chi embodied great skill and acute intelligence. I had no idea how profoundly its practice would affect my life.

Tai Chi is based on the ancient Chinese model of Yin and Yang. Most are familiar with the symbol of the “two fishes” each containing the germ of its opposite. In practice, the Tai Chi adept learns to incorporate the seeming opposites of hard and soft, fast and slow, high and low, and so transcends their seeming duality. To me this was a revelation- my university philosophy classes led me to duality’s door, but could not imagine passing beyond its portals. In Tai Chi, I encountered Oriental wisdom for the first time, and grew to respect its profundity. Tai Chi prizes balance; developing flexibility in body and mind in order to respond adequately and efficiently to challenges. Fluid, continuous movement mimics the very current of life itself. Tai Chi’s injunction is to be Yin/Yang and release energetic and physical blockages. The results are profoundly transformative.

Independently of my Tai Chi practice, I had begun reading a little Zen literature. Like many people, I found it more engaging to read about than to actually practice. But our organization also held regular classes in meditation, so I began to attend. It wasn’t long before I realized that the practice of Vipassana or Insight mediation was the correlative of Tai Chi-that is, what Tai Chi promoted for the body, Vipassana did for the mind and subjective elements. Sitting quietly and observing the interior flow of thoughts and emotions revealed many of my habitual personality patterns, thought processes, and compulsions. Seeing those clearly without condoning or condemning led to a letting go, with a corresponding feeling of openness and expansiveness. My “stuck” feeling began to dissipate and changes in my life began. I saw that “letting go” or non-attachment was of the same order as Tai Chi's“balance” or removal of obstacles and restrictions. My conception of practice now recognized a two-fold nature: Tai Chi represented the Yang or active element of practice, while meditation was the Yin, or passive.

One of my favourite quotations is “The journey begins with the first step, and the first step is the last step.” To me it speaks of a never-ending process of learning and a recognition of the ceaseless dynamic of the transformative practices of Tai Chi and meditation.

Jeff Willis

We realize that the “Tai Chi and Meditation Centre” is a somewhat cumbersome and not very marketable name, because people generally want to practice something specific within their very limited time (and now money) budget - either Tai Chi, meditation, qigong, yoga etc. They shy away from too much commitment and undertakings that seem too “complex”. Those who have known us over the last 25 years, know that our previous organizational names were even more puzzling. Firstly, “Emerge” (tagline: Emerge and meet yourself) and then “Emerge Internal Arts”.

The common thread or the “method in the madness” in these names is the attempt to convey the fact that human beings are complex, multi-faceted and capable of higher levels of consciousness and action beyond the conventional, “hard-headed” reality. Moreover, there are traditions and systems which explain all these (presently obscure) dynamics in detail. If this seems to be fanciful, consider that even “hard-headed reality” is pushing us to expand our minds and hearts. In spite of greater income, information and “prosperity’ in the privileged West, people are feeling greater stress, confusion, alienation and insecurity, whether from external threats, health issues or just the volatility of the markets. In addition, we have created a global society together with global problems and challenges, but we are far from the global consciousness necessary to rise to these challenges.

Society cannot radically change if individuals do not radically change. Individual problems tend to be repetitions of basic behavioural and attitudinal dynamics, which cannot change if individuals do not radically change. Thus, the secret of initiating real Change lies within the capacity of you and me, right here and right now in the present moment. We need the will and the method or tools.

Forty-one years ago, a near fatal car crash propelled me into a search for the meaning of life, starting with my own life. I initially experimented with yoga, and judo and karate, in which I got black belts.  My life was radically changed when I discovered Buddhism and I soon settled on Insight Meditation (Vipassana) and the Chinese “internal family” of martial arts (Taijiquan, Baguazhang, Xingyiquan and Qigong) as my main practices, with V.R. Dhiravamsa and Miss Rose Li respectively as my main teachers.  Along the way, I have been fortunate to meet and study with other excellent teachers like Prof. Jerry Alan Johnson, Prof. Liu Yuzheng, Chungjen Chang, Zhang Yufei and Steven Law.

Twenty-five years ago, I started teaching in Toronto and in time, my teaching organization became the Tai Chi & Meditation Centre.  Our specialty is integration and connection, including body, energy, emotion, mind and spirit.  Martial, medical and spiritual qigong are not separate, but part of the same integral path.  At our deepest level, we are spiritual beings.

The need for integration and balance is becoming more apparent in our everyday lives, individually and collectively, and therefore genuine “internal” knowledge and expertise are becoming ever more relevant and precious.

We hope you enjoy this blog, which will be written by the Instructors of our organization.  We invite your questions, comments and topic suggestions.

Andy James
Founder and Chief Instructor.

Congratulations on your blog!

Hi Andy et al I am looking forward to your blog!

Hi, look forward to the postings....should be a good medium for discussion on Tai Chi.