SIFU - A personal perspective ( by John Hanna )
It's a vastly different world now from the one I was born into.
I currently train diligently in a Tai Chi system and yet I have never met my teacher. After studying Tai Chi for almost 3 decades and in person with some of the finest Masters on the planet, I have now found a teacher who is offering so much more than everyone else.
He's providing alternatives to all the dead ends. He offers step by step practical insights into all the theory that has for so long been little more than rhetoric. Amazingly, I study with him via an on-line training course and what's more, he is not Chinese. His name is Adam Mizner and in colloquial parlance, he is a freak.
Sifu Adam Mizner
Most of my teachers over the years have been Chinese. Not that I have avoided learning from non-Chinese, it's just that many of the highly skilled internal martial artists are of Chinese descent.
If I may digress for a moment, it is interesting though, that many Chinese consider Tai Chi to be part of their birth rite. When a taxi driver in Penang asked me what I was doing in Malaysia and I responded by informing him that I was teaching Tai Chi here, he then proceeded to explain to me what tai chi is and why it's good for you. Of course he had never actually done it himself but his cousin tried it once. My 25 years of devotion to the art didn't stack up against his genetic predisposition to 'gongfu'.
In my experience the average Chinese person is certainly no better than non-Chinese at Tai Chi and they do make up a disproportionally high number of those who struggle with body connection or coordination.
So having trained with many very gifted Chinese Masters, I now find myself compelled by the teachings of a Caucasian from Sydney, Australia.
It all came about when I was searching the Internet for on-line tai chi training. I wasn't looking for a teacher, I was actually looking for competitors and ideas. My thinking was to start making tai chi training videos and either sell them on-line or give them away to help promote our overseas Tai Chi training tours.
I came across a site called Discover Taiji. It looked ok but I wasn't about to pay around AUD70 a month to look at videos the like of which you can watch on YouTube for nothing. I was just about to move on when my eye caught a testimonial by Damo Mitchell. Damo is a young English Tai Chi practitioner who is an exceptional talent. Here is what he wrote:
“Over the last decade or so I have traveled extensively throughout Asia studying the internal arts. Along the way I have had the chance to push hands with many Taiji masters, including many of the great names from the different lineages. Through doing this I have had the opportunity to touch hands with many practitioners with a high level of skill, sensitivity and internal power. I can safely say, with no over-exaggeration, that in my opinion Sifu Adam Mizner has reached a higher degree of skill than any of the others I have met. His understanding of the internal mechanics and application of Taijiquan is without comparison.”
Damo Mitchell
I went straight to YouTube and searched for Sifu Adam Mizner. Very very impressive. Back on the Discover Taiji website, there was a list of workshops for the following year, including one in Melbourne to be held almost exactly 12 months from then. It was to be conducted by Curtis Brough, Adam's 2 IC, a phenomenal martial artist in his own right. It was a year away but I immediately shot off an email to book for the workshop. Within half an hour Curtis replied - "The date is wrong, the Workshop is actually tomorrow." I cancelled everything for the next day and went along to the Workshop.
It was fantastic. This school has synthesised the true essence of tai chi and develops the internal energies in a very practical way. They focus on structure and release ( relax ). The aim is to create the tai chi creature. There is no learning without proper foundation. There is no skill advancement without 'song' ( release ). Song overrides technique. This was real tai chi, not just arm waving and talk. These guys walked the walk.
I was also fortunate to meet Paul McIntyre at the Workshop. He teaches this system in Melbourne and I have since attended several of his classes. It's extraordinary to think that some high profile teachers attract hundreds of students and yet Paul's classes usually comprise 3 or 4 students and the man ( Paul ) is one powerful internal unit who would control many professed Masters with a touch.
Ok, now here's the catch. This 'real' tai chi comes at a heavy cost. No, not the AUD70 a month. That is actually cheap for this level of transmission. The catch is, you have to Chi Ku ( eat bitter ). The system is based around Zhan Zhuang ( standing ) and the continual focus on Ting ( listening energy ) and Song ( releasing ). Choreographed movements in a tai chi class for one hour a week will burn a few calories and give you a social outing but the 'real' stuff demands commitment and effort. Possibly few people are prepared to last that journey.
For my part I am eternally grateful to Sifu Adam Mizner for opening a door and being willing to share his skill and knowledge. It has rejuvenated my Tai Chi quest and although I suspect that many of my students will probably not want to devote themselves to Tai Chi at this level, my current progress will make me a better teacher and more tolerant of everyone's individual needs and aspirations.
For anyone who thinks that they are ready to go much deeper into the art of Tai Chi, I totally recommend this system and Sifu Adam Mizner. I keep thinking about why I didn't discover this school years ago but then feel consoled by the thought that I may not have been ready and buoyed by the reality that I'm here now.
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