This website is dedicated to the Students of Seifu A.S. Umar Sharif, MA. It is also dedicated to the promotion and propagation of the Traditional Afro-Asian Martial and Healing Arts. Our goal is to inform, educate, inspire, encourage, and motivate others to improve their lives by applying The Wisdom of the Ancients.
As your teacher and host, Seifu Sharif [aka: Xia` Xue' Gong] [aka: Tobi Alakoso] is dedicated to helping each of you to remember and nurture the Spirit of Wu-Te and the powers dormant within you.
Namaste’ Students and Fellow Martial Arts Enthusiasts!
It was the summer of 1995 and I was on my way to travel the west coast of China. Little did I know that I was about to be treated to one of the highlights of my life. I had already been studying various martial arts, especially Chinese Kung Fu for about 30 years, and although I had heard about and seen some Tai Chi Chu’an, the inclination to study Tai Chi just had not been triggered. That changed instantly the moment I met Master Li Shixin watching and feeling his movements flowing through my body. I drank from his fountain like a man trying to quench a thirst that he did not know he had until his first taste of an elixir. Not only did I have the good fortune to study with Master Li, Shifu Madam Chen, and Shifu Madam Li, but I got to see various Tai Chi masters as we traveled the coast from Beijing south to Tianjin, Qufu, Qingdao, Shanghai, Hangzhou, Fuzhou, Xiamen, ending in Hong Kong.
One of the most important and liberating lessons that I learned during my travels and studies came from my observation of the many variations in the way different practitioners executed their art. Even though the majority of what I saw was Yang Style Tai Chi Chu’an, each practitioner, each master did something a little differently. Each practitioner expressed both the art and themselves. My journey lasted just over a month and I observed, studied, trained, and taught Tai Chi each and every day. Another great thing for me was the fact that the mix of all of my previous martial arts training had blended to a point where it seemed possible to merge, integrate this new why of thinking and moving into who I was becoming as a martial artist. The 7 Circles System of Southern-Northern Shaolin Kung Fu, Qigong, Tai Chi, and Chin Na has evolved from this ongoing process of integration. It is important for you, my students to know that this process of integration is ongoing so that you are prepared to evolve with the system.
Our Kung Fu training influences our way of performing Yang Style Tai Chi. Our Qigong training enhances our Kung Fu and our Tai Chi training since both martial arts are based on controlling the flow of energy. Our Tai Chi training also influences the execution of our Chin Na techniques since the effective execution of Chin Na requires fluid body movements, flow of internal energy, and the release of explosive power. Hopefully you can see that the 7 Circles System is both comprehensive and well rounded from the standpoint of the weaving of the seven animal styles, and the integration of Jujitsu, Chin Na, Kung Fu, Qigong, and Tai Chi that has and is taking place on my martial arts journey. You are invited to take that journey with me. Seifu Andrew has spent over 20 years observing, studying, training, and teaching this process, and continues his training with me to this very day. He is certainly qualified to assist you on this journey.
We’ve devoted many of our Posts to various aspects of Kung Fu and Qigong training but have not spoken too much on the Tai Chi aspects of the 7 Circles System. Let’s devote the next few Post to exploring some of the 7 Circles approach to Yang Style Tai Chi Chu’an. We can begin by stating that Tai Chi Chu’an is a martial art, a fighting art. The principles and concepts that lay out the essential fabric of the art are aimed at producing the Supreme Ultimate martial art. So, let us be clear! There are two ways of approaching the practice of Tai Chi Chu’an. In the 7 Circles System we call these the Longevity Style (Way) and the Wu Kung (Fighting, Combat) Style. These two are not mutually exclusive but do have some significant differences. We'll discuss the Longevity Way first and we’ll use the Tai Chi Classics to help guide our discussion. Longevity Way is practiced primarily for the wellness benefits. The movements are long, smooth, evenly paced, and coordinated with your rhythmic breathing.
The Treatise of Master Chang San-Feng on Yang Style Tai Chi is referred to as T’ai Chi Classics I, ca. 1200 C.E. (TCCI)
TCCI.1 states:
Once you begin to move, the entire body must be light and limber. Each part of your body should be connected to every other part.
You might think, ‘Well of course, every part of my body is connected to every other part of my body!’ But, you would probably be wrong! Most of us move about in very disconnected ways from the perspective of uninterrupted energy flow, structure, foundation and rooting, as well as alignment of mind, body, and spirit. The deep wisdom of the Tai Chi Classics should not be taken for granted. Think of a person getting ready to deadlift a heavy weight. If there is not an uninterrupted energy flow, proper body posture (structure), a solid stable foundation (rooting), then the attempt may fail or injury may occur. I know for a fact that you can bend over to pick up a pencil, and if your posture is not correct, you can throw your back out just from a poorly executed movement. So the first principle for you to consider in your Tai Chi training is TCCI.1 stated above.
Make sure you subscribe to the 7 Circles YouTube Playlist so that you can view all of the materials that relate, directly and indirectly, to our Blog discussions.
To be continued:
Click on the Contact Us link above or below to comment or ask questions about this Post or other related topics.
It is not simply practice that makes perfect. It is perfect practice and consistent practice that makes perfect.
