65
IN the old days, those who were well versed in the
practice of the Tao did not try to enlighten the
people, but rather to keep them in the state of simplicity.
For, why are the people hard to govern? Because they
are too clever! Therefore, he who governs his state
with cleverness is its malefactor; but he who governs
his state without resorting to cleverness is its
benefactor. To know these principles is to possess a
rule and a measure. To keep the rule and the measure
constantly in your mind is what we call Mystical
Virtue. Deep and far-reaching is Mystical Virtue! It
leads all things to return, till they come back to Great
Harmony!
Translated by John C. H. Wu
Interpretation by Bill Bernsen
TEACHING
TEACHING
Enlighten
Students
By simply
Doing slow set
Getting them to listen
To themselves
Keep in mind
They were
All children
At one time
Their parents/teachers/leaders
Undid the child
In them
By using
Cleverness/intellect
If the students
Loses part
Of their old selves
They will try
To escape
The change
Some never return
If they do return
They return
With youth and thanks
The most difficult
Time
For a Tai Chi Chuan
Teacher
Is when the student
Is losing what others
Have made them
Keeping the above
In mind
During teaching
Means conscious
Of student’s movement
Measuring their progress
Undoing their old self
The profound
Success
Of Masters
Virtue
I am passing
On the art
With the Masters guidance
Measure
How many students
Are really getting it
Keep it simple
Foundation
Is the most important
To go lower
Really means
Go deeper
Live by
The rules/measures
What
Masters will instill
Them in me
Rule without rules
The rude/unworthy
Will make
Themselves known
Great harmony
One must feel
In class
Thinking too much
Causes cleverness
Not good
For the students
Heal
Do not harm
Leads to harmony
Simplicity of form
Relaxes life
Don’t use
Shoulder joints
Turn waist
Do not move
The support leg
Keep students
In a state
Of simplicity
Inside themselves
The masters
Simply teach
The forms
Student
Internalizes it
Do not say it
Just think it
Those that are truly
Listening
Will receive it
Know
Plumb/align/fulcrum
Tai Chi
Main principles
The spiritual virtue
Finding
Fulcrum
Is the secret
Principles
Of a seminar
Rules and measures
The great harmony
Is being one
With the Masters
Let students
Express
The art thru me
Do not try
To teach
Other teacher’s students
If they are supposed
To learn from me
They will be my student
The above
Is also
Being frugal
Not wanting
To be first
Slow Set only
And
Not being clever
Via short cuts
Chi Kung and yoga
Unfathomable
Virtue
Tops all things
Keep
Slow set
In mind
All the time
Rule/measure
Align/balance
Fulcrum/scale
Transcendent
Virtue
Is Tai Chi Chuan
Allows return
To a newborn babe where
Everything
Is a new delight
Simplicity
Of form
Is another secret
The rule/measure
Of slow set
Constantly in mind
4th Dimension
Natural humble
Slow set
Connect
To Masters
To teach
Correct slow set only
The rest will come
Naturally
If the Lineage
Accepts me
Opening
Of the heart
Connecting
To the earth/China
Is Tai Chi Chuan
Get the students
Strong enough
To relax
Both physically/mentally
Simply
Be aligned
And relaxed
Master teaches
Simplicity
Of form
Master teaches
The postures/form
It is up to student
To be enlightened
Understand
Returning
To being an animal
Mystical virtue
Connection
To Masters
Subtle insight
Knowing Masters
Are with me
Push hands
Is trying
To be clever
Just practice slow set
It is the rule/measure
This leads
To applications
Application comes
From the Masters
Must worthy
To get it
From them
Loyalty
Is being part
Of the lineage
In all art
Devotion
Is being a conduit
For the art
Let the Masters
Work thru me
Be passive/receptive
Loyal endeavor
Simplicity
Is Slow Set
Cleverness
Is push hands
Slow set until
Reaching
Subtle insight
Then Push Hands
Will be the great harmony
Be connected
To Masters
To teach/learn
Tai Chi Chuan
This is the great harmony
Simple physics
Is the answer
To Tai Chi Chuan
Harmony with nature
Is the answer
To Tai Chi Chuan
Go against the laws
Of nature
Is going
Against the Masters
For the Masters
Are nature
Get students
To hollow
Undo their intent
Mystical = simplicity
Simply align
The students
In body (gravity)
And mind (spirit)
Listen
With the gesture
Do not push
Just listen/follow
Opponent’s intent
Don’t try
To enlighten students
But rather get them
To align their body physically
The spiritual will arrive
If they are worthy
Simply relax
Keep them
In slow set
Correcting
Their bodies
First know self
And then others
Understanding
Simple physics
In Tai Chi Chuan
Via slow set
Teach
Subtle insight
To the worthy
Keeping
In the state
Of simplicity
Only teaching slow set
Stay away from
Cleverness/tricks/ Chi Kung
Do not try
To enlighten students
Just try to open them
The Masters will
Enlighten them
The more knowledge
People have
The harder
They are
To rule
Perhaps knowledge
Means
External knowledge
Just applications
Of Tai Chi Chuan
Or weapons
Without feeling
It inside
To be always able
To follow
The masters
Is called the
Enigmatic
Command
The Masters’ intent
Unfathomable
Probing far
Into my future
Refined awareness
Conveys
The unity
Mystic Virtue
Opens
To centripetal force
Of the heart
Connect to the
Earth
Don’t let the students
Know about the politics
Of the schools
Confusion sets in
Do only slow set
Students will
Enlighten themselves
The lineage
Standard
Is the worthy
Keep it simple
Slow set only
Do not be clever
Do not have
An upside down pyramid
Lead the students
To obey slow set
True Slow Set
Is profound
Remains a secret
To the unworthy
All gestures return
To the harmony
Of Slow set
More awareness
Of other martial arts
The harder students
Are to Teach
WALT WHITMAN’S “SONG OF MY SELF”
“TRAPPERS AND ASKERS SURROUND ME
PEOPLE I MEET
THE EFFECT UPON ME OF MY EARLY LIFE
OF THE WARD AND CITY I LIVE IN
OF THE NATION
THE LATEST NEWS
DISCOVERIES, INVENTIONS, SOCIETIES
AUTHORS OLD AND NEW
MY DINNER, DRESS, ASSOCIATES, LOOKS BUSINESS, COMPLIMENTS, DOES THE REAL
OR FANCIED INDIFFERENCE OF SOME MAN OR WOMAN I LOVE
TH SICKNESS OF ONE OF MY FOLKS OR OF MYSELF OR ILL DOING
OR LOSS OR LACK OF MONEY
OR DEPRESSIONS OR EXALTATIONS
THEN COME TO ME DAYS AND NIGHTS AND GO FROM ME AGAIN
BUT THEY ARE NOT THE ME MYSELF
Just do slow set
It is the secret
To push hands
Let the other
Have the intent
Receive it
Read it
If good…good
If bad
Divert it with
A Tai Chi Chuan
Gesture
Be the wild animal
In the forest
When I come out
Of the forest
I’ll be
Wise warrior
My job is not
To enlighten
But to give
Directions
To locate
The light switch
Good practices
Student has taken
His own progression
Let the student
Feel the hollow
Undoing
Their dysfunctional
Ways
Slow set
Is the rule/measure
Keeping this
In mind
Is mystical virtue
Rule is
Only answer questions
Measure is
Don’t question answers
For they are from
The Masters
Deep/far reaching
Transcendent virtue
Leads to
The great concord
Think
When offering
The Tao
Teaching Tai Chi Chuan
Undoing their old ways
Body and mind problems
Tai Chi Chuan
Gestures
Are inside
As infants
It is just covered
With years of adding
By others
Teach to subtract
Same goes
With push hands
The idea
Is not to do
Application/techniques
On the opponent
But to undo
Their attack
Tai Chi Chuan
Is passive
Enigmatic control
So deep/far
Follow things back
An infant again
Approach
Student/opponent
See the infant
In them
It is easy physically
To move a child
Only the lineage can
Calm over the class
An bring oneness
Some teachers
Assume if they just do
The form practice
They will reach the Tao
But one must practice
Undoing old problems
Before they move on
We are all
On the return
To the great harmony
Look for the subtle awareness
Uncharted return
Any statements
About what is going on
Confuses the students
Going onside
Their bodies/minds
If on the return
Then giving
Them more
Goes against
The journey
Just teach
Slow set
The students
Will stay longer
If they are worthy
All the teacher
Can do
Is give them
The slow set
Tool to discover themselves
Sometimes they do not like
What they find and quit,
End up blaming
The teacher for
Their short slightness
Simplify
Thru slow set
Eliminate old problems
Mental /physical
Go back to childhood
Some student will quit
Some will dislike
the teacher
the teacher
Some will love
The teacher
But all will benefit
Simply relax!
Then principles
Of Tai Chi Chuan
Will apply
Keep them
In slow set
Correcting their bodies
Understanding
Simple physics
In Tai Chi Chuan
Via slow set
Teach subtle insight
To the worthy
Starting
Over workshop
Simplicity
No weapons/push hands
Slow set only
Master teacher
Only the form
It is up
To the student
To add the spirit
First alignment
With earth/China
Apply physics
The above the principle
Eventually if worthy
Masters will descend
As will harmony
Teach slow set
It is up
To the Masters
To advance
Externally/internally
Slow Set solitary
Must recognize
The worthy
Be open
To Mystic virtue
This descends deep
Then returns
As Jing/Chi
If they are worthy
The Masters will
Enlighten them
This is the mystical
A way
Masters
Restrict the art
Rarer students
More secret art
The worthy
Do worry
About sharing
The oneness
Slow Set
Is the decree/measure
Leads to epiphanies
Harmony in life
Rule/measure
Is the physics
Of Slow Set
Mystical
Epiphanies
During Slow Set
Slow Set
The conduit
To the lineage
Past/present/future
Weapons
Too soon
Causes students
To wonder
Off course
Missing
The Tao target
Chi Kung
Is cheating
If worthy
The lineage
Will be the lever
In life
How the Master
Teaches
The worthy will be
Clever on their own
It is mystical
9-24-20
Cleverness
Severs
Masters
Connection
Only
The worthy
Are allowed
To wave
To the lineage
Do not
Try to outthink
Masters
Find insight
In Slow Set
Grandmaster’s
Teaching technique
No to weapons
Until I understand
The virtue
Of not using them
Found in Slow Set
Mystical virtue
Oneness
In body/mind
One Jing/Chi
With Lineage/China
Malpractice
Leads to
Malefactor
Leads to
Negligent
Gestures
Mystic
Virtue
In Slow Set
Find it
Own it
Being
At one
With self
Is selfless
A secret
To mystic
Gestures
Elasticity
In all endeavors
Is subtle
Alertness
Slow Set
Aligns/enlightens
Mind/body
With spirit/gravity
Returning to youth’s
Mystic adventure
Master teaches
Verbally Less
Spiritually more
Worthy student
Practice becomes
Physically
Mystical more
All Tai Chi
Forms
Lead back to
Slow Set
Being skilled
As to know
When to say
No!
2-26-24