Please introduce yourself    
My name is Shelagh Grandpierre, a native of Ireland living for many years in England. I teach Traditional Yang Family Taiji. I’ve studied with both Yang Zhen Duo and Yang Zhen Ji, 4th generation successors of Yang family Taiji. For many years I’ve worked with Christopher Pei, whose Taiji seminars I’ve hosted in England for the past twelve years. I also teach Eternal Spring Qi Gong, an ancient Taoist system with its roots in the Song dynasty and which was transmitted to me by Wang Zhe Gang, a direct lineage Qi Gong master, in Huangshan China ’92.

When & how did your relationship with Taiji begun? 
My Taiji journey began in London in the days of the Bruce Lee era in the early 1970’s. None of us had seen anything like that before and many people wanted to learn Chinese martial arts and become like Bruce Lee! (some wanted to BE him!) Personally, I didn’t want to become a Kung Fu fighter and I was more drawn to and inspired by the philosophy of Tao and its link to Taiji with its poetry and mystery. I was intrigued on hearing about Taiji from a Kung Fu friend, and it was enough for me to take the first steps in my study of the art.
From humble beginnings has grown a grand passion and deep interest. Taiji has had a powerful impact on all areas of my life, and on looking up from my life one day in recent years, I realised I was on the warrior path, and in fact had been for a number of years.

Which typical characteristics of a Taiji practitioner are the most difficult to correct?
Sometimes a student will doggedly practice the same mistake over and over hoping that will make it turn out right. This approach can make the person blind and deaf to corrective instruction. As a teacher I try to lead students away from getting bogged down there, and help them to alter their perception and work through their frustration. Another thing I’ve noticed is that people in a hurry to learn often attempt to accelerate their practice. Tai Chi learning is un-hurryable and always unfolding. It is important to remember the words of the old master when discussing the two thieves of good practice: speed (wanting to learn too fast) and greed (wanting to learn too much). Diligently working on one or two concepts over a period can help people to thoroughly assimilate material and begin to develop internal energy. That way, students are more assured, and become more focused and grounded in their study.

Can you tell me more about Tingjing “listening energy” and the possibilities during competition? I sometimes have the impression that Tingjing is lost when training for competitions. 
Listening energy is essential for developing maturity both in pushands and also personally. Daily life is very complicated and the ability to pay attention and listen within is important, to help you mature emotionally and spiritually. With pushands, you try to understand your partner and improve the ability to listen to or sense their force. You have to touch more so that all the time you can feel what your partner is going to do and how you can respond, going with the flow. What I’ve noticed in competitions is that the true finesse of pushand listening skill often disappears due to the restrictive tournament rules with their emphasis on the safety factor. The resulting spectacle can end up resembling more a case of ‘pushing and shoving’ or two sweaty people pulling at each other’s T shirt. Many highly skilled people avoid competing for that reason, where the biggest and strongest is more likely to be the winner. Perhaps the name should be changed to wrestling hands… Though I think the competition bouts are still the best way for practitioners to test their skill in a safe environment. Having said that, I’ve often wondered what would happen within pushands contests should the rules and restrictions disappear and people were free to apply their listening skill.

And finally… 
My final words recall the founders of the art who observed life, learned how to get rooted and why, learned about the principles of movement, life and death, studied nature and its secrets. True progress involves internal growth, real deep strength, centerdness and smoothness. Sometimes in order to grow we are called on to meet the challenge and allow ourselves to be stretched beyond our limit. Follow the 10 principles and the basic teaching in the classics and progress will be assured. I wish you well in your practice.

Contactgegevens  
Shelagh Grandpierre
Email: sbgrandpierre@aol.com
Website: www.www.taichialliance.co.uk