September 2012

Volume 65

COMBAT&HEALING
Taijiquan

Baguazhang

Qigong

The Complete
Guide To The
Internal
Martial &
Healing Arts

e
u
s
s
I
is
h
T
e
Insid
Death Of The Sifu
Whats Next?
The Self Tuning
Body
A Qigong
Exercise For All
Reasons
WTBA News
And much
more...
the world taiji boxing association

Combat and Healing

Volume 65 September 2012
Editor

Nasser Butt

September2012NasserButt/Combat&Healing.
All Rights Reserved.

The points of view represented here are solely those of the authors concerned. You do not have to subscribe to them if
you do not wish. Nor is their inclusion here necessarily an endorsement by the WTBA or the Erle Montaigue System.

COMBAT&HEALING

September 2012

Photography Nasser Butt 2008

EDITOR
Nasser Butt
Email:
CombatandHealing@gmail.com
Tel: +44(0)7792242150
+44(0)1162708730
83 The Fairway, Oadby,
Leicester LE2 2HP
England, UK
http://www.fajing-chuan.co.uk

COPYRIGHT
All articles, images & logos
appearing in this publication are
protected under international
copyright law. Please do not
copy, reproduce or redistribute
without prior written consent of
the copyright owners. All
photography by Nasser Butt,
unless stated otherwise.

CONTENTS

Editors Note

Page 7

Death Of The Sifu

Dr. Gregory T. Lawton

Page 10

Erles Tree - An Update

Nasser Butt

Page 15

The Self Tuning Body

Colin Power

Page 18

A Qigong Exercise For All Reasons

Erle Montaigue

Page 20

Connecting The Dots

Ramakrishna Chedumbarum
Pillay

Page 25

WTBA Gradings - Why Some Qualify Before Others?

Eli Montaigue

Page 26

Camp USA 2012

Nasser Butt

Page 27

The Dragon Turtle

Kurt Levins Snr.

Page 38

Whats Next?
Nasser Butt

Page 39

WTBA Summer Camp UK

Eli Montaigue

Page 42

The Use Of Tension

Gord Hill

Page 52

Wallys Corner

Page 53

New Guidelines For WTBA Instructors & WTBA News

Eli Montaigue

Page 54

2012....
What a year it has been! I started
preparing this edition of the magazine
way back in August, after all the main
camps had ended. However, due to a
lack of articles initially, followed by a
series of family emergencies and work
in general, time appeared to fly by.
I finally managed to start work again
on this issue at the beginning of
December after receiving sufficient
articles to go ahead with the
publication.
I want to thank everybody who kindly
wrote for this issue, especially my dear
friend Dr. Gregory Lawton, whos
work and opinion I highly respect, for
sending me his most excellent article Death of the Sifu.
It is an article I highly recommend to
everyone, irrespective of your style
and system. There are many truths in
there, which we can all associate with
if we care to remove our own
blinkered half-truths.

EDITORS
NOTE
Nasser Butt

The year has had many highlights for

myself. Especially, the trip across the
pond to visit our WTBA family in the USA. It was another
magnificent camp organized by Al Krych, Chief WTBA
Instructor USA, and I had a great time there with Eli and the
rest of the gang. The enthusiasm in the USA grows each year
and it is so great to see friends developing and moving forwards
with their training.

To train correctly and not to rush from one thing to the next,
and fail to understand the very essence of the system that we
hold dear!

Systems stand and fall by the abilities of their current

practitioners and one cannot just rely on the glories of their
past. That is why they became reputed styles in the first place,
The summer camp in the UK, although a low key affair because of the practice and dedication of their founders and the
compared to our previous events, was a highly emotive one for next generation. Yet, with the passing of each generation,
myself. Bloody Eli Montaigue made me blub in public but I complacency appears to set in until all that is remembered is the
that once glorious past!
still love him nonetheless!
Titles... What do they mean? I dont care other than knowing It takes a lot of hard work, perseverance, dedication and hours
that I have a long way to go down this road yet and much more upon hours of training to ensure the survival of any system.
That much ought to be clear to a student of any art but the
to learn and understand!
internal arts in particular. Its a slow cook. Youre learning for
And thats what most of 2012 has been about for me. life not just for your arrogant youth. We have been warned:
Reminding myself and others how crucial our foundations are.

Slow yielding to fast.

Have-force beating lack-force and
Hands-slow yielding to hands-fast
Is all from innate, natural ability,
Not brought about through learning.
Refer to the phrase: "Four ounces deflect a
thousand pounds"
This is clearly not forces victory.
Regard the image of the old man able to hold off a
Multitude - How could this be by speed
accomplished?
Great Pole Boxing: The Theory
So, pay heed. Dont fall by the wayside. It took Erle many years of practice, research and hard work in order to discover the
information which he so selflessly shared with the world. Treasure it but, more importantly, learn from it as you were meant to.
That, too, has been made abundantly clear by Erle, himself!
Once again, I must appeal for articles. Please share your thoughts with your fellow practitioners. I have only a few left, not
enough for a whole issue and Im sure you dont want to hear me rant alone! Itll be Erles second anniversary soon and anyone
who wishes to submit their thoughts can email me on the address at the back of this issue. Id also be grateful if anyone wishes to
forward reports on their local workshops with Eli. Its always good to know how everyone is doing.
Finally, all that is left for me to say is that I hope that you have all had a wonderful 2012 and that 2013 brings you many hours of
joyous training and happiness. As Erle used to often say... Taiji is for fun, there are far more important things in life - like family,
music and friends!
And... It is in honour of that friend and guide and all that he taught me and continues to teach me that I use the honour bestowed
upon me by Eli, just this once:
Happy New Year
Nasser Butt (Master
Degree, Llangadog
Wales).

Death of the
Sifu
Dr. Gregory T. Lawton
The origin of the traditional martial arts is shrouded in mystery
and myth. At the fountainhead of the history of martial arts,
and in the majority of martial art systems, is the story of a great
teacher. This great teacher, or sifu, is the martial arts warrior,
or sage, who is credited with creating the body of knowledge
that late, becomes a martial art system to be passed down
through oral tradition and rigorous training to successive
generations of students.. Occasionally, written materials such
as a master training manual were also passed down through
traditional lineages. In addition, when the lineages were
broken, the knowledge of that martial art system was lost. For
individual martial art students, the sifu likely served as a father,
teacher, trainer, priest, and role model.
This article investigates the traditional lineage system for the
transmission of martial arts knowledge through the sifu, and
addresses the question of whether or not the role played by the
traditional sifu still serves the needs of individuals who are
training in contemporary martial arts.
Every nation and cultural group in history has had their heroes
and all cultures have romanticized and exaggerated the abilities
and exploits of these heroes. From the heroic stories of Greek
mythology, we have heroes like Hercules, Achilles, Jason,
Odysseus, Perseus, Theseus, and the Amazons. In the recorded
chronicles of their lives and exploits, there is found a history of
civilization, war, love, philosophy, myth, whether fact or
fiction, interwoven within the fabric of a single story. In more
contemporary times, we have grown up with stories about
heroes like Robin Hood, Davy Crockett, and Daniel Boone.
In Asian historical literature, we find a similar blending of fact
and fiction, perhaps to an even greater degree. Western readers
usually expect that the books they read are classified as either
fiction or non-fiction. In Asian literature; however, this
distinction is usually not made, especially in works of ancient
and modern literature that pertains to the martial arts. Just as
Western historians blended fact with fiction in the stories of
great civilizations and heroes, Asian historians and writers have
done similarly throughout recorded history and, in particular,
over the past two or three centuries.

Before the Tang dynasty (617-907) the Chinese

literary tradition made no clear distinction between
the modern categories of fiction and non-fiction,
although elements of what we would call fiction
were present.(1)
To say that the traditional martial arts were confused by the
merging of fact and fiction would be an understatement as the
written manuscripts and oral traditions led to major
disagreements among the martial artists. To understand the
scope of the problem, different people reading the same
material would draw different conclusions depending on
whether they felt the information was fact or fiction.
The combining of fact, myth, and superstition within the
martial art literature was further confounded by the general lack
of written historical information. Detailed information about
key historical figures in the Asian martial arts was missing,
which led some historians to fill in the blanks on their own.
Many of the historians of the martial arts were also martial
artists, studying with a sifu and this makes their accounts and
conclusions less objective. Their research was likely biased and
frequently lacking in scientific rigor. In addition, poor verbal
and written Asian language skills, a lack of knowledge about
Asian history, and a lack of awareness about the cultural and
social milieu of Asian nations, especially the caste system, were
complicating factors.
Another major issue that plagued the validity of the existing
body of knowledge and prevailing opinions derived from the
Asian martial art literature was the falsification of records, and
the premeditated destruction of the historical records for
political and financial gain.
Noted contemporary martial artist and author Harvey Kurland
commented that:
The senior students of Yang Shao-Hou, who did not
become disciples of (Yang) Cheng-Fu, were written
out of the Yang family lineage after the death of
(Yang) Shao-Hou and for that reason are not as well
known.(2)
So far, the discussion has been focused on the issue of an
overall unreliability of the Asian martial arts historical
literature. Since much of the contemporary Asian martial arts
literature is based on historical accounts, both written and oral,
its reliability is equally suspect. Numerous examples from
modern martial arts literature illustrate how the same fiction
and mythologies are passed along from earlier historical
accounts.

10

From a practical point of view, one might ask how the

continued transmission of fiction and myth adversely affects
training in the martial arts? If a student begins studying the
martial arts as a purely recreational or leisure activity, without
intending to use its martial applications, one could argue that it
is unimportant that the student is learning baseless skills and
information. In fact, some students seem to relish this kind of
knowledge and practice. If, however, other students are soldiers
or law enforcement professionals who might need to apply their
skills in defense of their life or the lives of others, then what
they learn and how they apply that knowledge becomes crucial
for the protection and preservation of life.
At the center of all martial arts learning and for the continued
transmission of knowledge, is the sifu, who is usually the
primary source of information and training. Because of the
nature of the student/teacher relationship, students trust that the
information they receive is true and effective. In the traditional
Asian martial arts; however, this may not be the case. Although
the purpose of this article is not to disparage any teacher or
system of martial arts, the facts reveal several common failures
of the traditional sifu system of training:
1. The curriculum of traditional Asian martial arts
is based on fiction, myth, and superstition and the
sifu often perpetuates this false information and
training.
2. A sifus claim to rank and lineage is often
fraudulent, or misrepresents the sifus training and
ability.
3. Some sifus attempt to inculcate a relationship of
dependency and control over the lives and affairs of
their students.
4. The traditional Asian martial arts are composed of
many different systems of martial arts that have
different techniques and training methods. No
universally agreed upon standardized training
technique or method of practice exists to ensure the
safety of students. Thus, students are at increased
and unnecessary risk of injury due to poor or
improper training methods.
Some sifus make greatly exaggerated claims about their
abilities and promote psychic and metaphysical beliefs to
impress and manipulate their students. As a result, a sifu may
achieve personal recognition and fame and benefit financially.
Due to modern information sharing, that is both rapid and
transparent, the credentials and claims of some ranking martial
artists have been shown to be fraudulent. Such fraudulent
claims commonly include false claims about studying with

noted teachers, claiming to have an unearned rank or lineage,

and exaggerations about the number of years studying with a
particular teacher, or within a system or style of martial arts.
Some of the fantastic and exaggerated claims made by martial
arts teachers have included: the ability to render opponents
unconscious without physically touching them; the ability to
psychically transport a body from one location to another; the
ability to levitate; and the ability to dodge bullets or to become
impervious to gun fire. Numerous examples of these claims
have been produced by past and current martial artists. Indeed,
many modern students of the martial arts believe that a goal of
their training is to be able to perform these supernatural feats.
(3) From the perspective of diagnostic psychology and
psychiatry, individual martial artists who have made such
exaggerated claims would appear to be suffering from various
forms and degrees of narcissism, paranoia, and delusion.
In the article, Dangers of self-proclaimed masters, martial
artist and author Don Cunningham, a debunker of supernatural,
fraudulent, and delusional claims made by martial artists, refers
to the psychiatrist Dr. Mariam Cohen who stated: Its possible
they feel powerless, weak and frightened in most other areas of
their lives, and therefore are attracted to the image of power.
Dr. Cohen further states: There is also the image of the
master who is capable of defeating all enemies and has
incredible wisdom. If youre struggling with inner demons
and fears of your own weakness, this is an incredible image to
connect to, to hope to be perhaps.(4)
Within the lineage system, myth, superstition, metaphysical and
occult practices are inculcated and transmitted via an unhealthy
system of dogmatic blind faith. After all, the lineage student
is charged with retaining the systems knowledge intact from
the masters who preceded him. Certainly, if the body of
knowledge is based on scientific principles of training and
conditioning, and proven methods of combat, then retaining
this knowledge is valuable, but if the system is permeated with
superstition, metaphysical beliefs, and occult practices, the
system will be without merit.
A cult of personality is defined as extreme devotion to an
individual person, and while similar to general hero worship,
this extreme form of devotion is the adulation of a specific
personage. Margaret T. Singer. Ph.D., former Professor in the
Department of Psychology, University of California at Berkeley
stated: Historically, the power of certain persons to
dramatically influence others was considered supernatural, i.e.,
the influencer was a magician or witch with secret potions and
arcane knowledge, or had godlike qualities. Some people have
attained compliance from and influence over others through
coercion, brutality, or the wielding of religious, political, or

11

financial powers.(5) The martial arts community has always

had numerous examples of individuals or lineage students who
contribute to the creation or maintenance of a cult of
personality around a living or deceased grandmaster. In a
number of ways, the promoters of a cult of personality gain
from this activity. In the martial arts community, knowledge is
equated to power and money. Any claims to a direct lineage, or
to exclusive secrets and superior abilities and styles are the
keys to the kingdom for recognition and reward.

traditional martial arts also taught varying degrees of Asian

philosophy and religion. Some contemporary Western students
of Asian martial arts have personally adopted Asian
philosophies and religions, blending them into their study and
application of the traditional martial arts. The adoption of Asian
philosophy and religion by traditional martial artists, in
combination with the acceptance of aspects of ancestor worship
and filial piety, contributes to the manifestation of a cult of
personality within the traditional martial arts.

The traditional martial arts are in an area of human knowledge

where knowledge of the past is felt to be more important that
modern discovery or innovation. At the beginning of the 20th
century, martial art reformers, such as Chen Pan Ling,
attempted to modernize the Chinese martial arts. Chen Pan
Ling, in the preface of his original book (Tai Chi Chuan Chiao
Tsai), states: If we can but standardize nomenclature, theory,
postures, and movements, our martial arts will rapidly increase
in popularity, not solely in China, but throughout the world.(6)
Chen Pan Ling was only marginally successful in attracting the
martial arts communities to his call for reform. In all fairness,
Chen Pan Ling was attempting to reform not only the martial
arts, but the stubbornly inculcated religious beliefs that were
based on concepts like ancestor worship and filial piety.
Richard C. Bush, author and historian of ancestor worship,
wrote:

The hierarchy of the lineage system in the Asian martial arts

raises several additional questions:

The veneration of ancestors by royal families and

common people alike reveals several reasons for
ancestor worship. People wanted their ancestors to
be able to live beyond the grave in a manner similar
to their life-style on earth; hence the living
attempted to provide whatever would be necessary.
A secondary motive lurks in the background: if not
provided with the food and weapons and utensils
needed to survive in the life beyond, those ancestors
might return as ghosts and cause trouble for the
living.(7)
Another concept commonly seen in Asian culture is filial piety,
which is the devotion and obedience by younger members of a
family to their elders. Although this concept existed in Asian
cultures, prior to Confucius, it is often identified with his
teachings, and in The Analects, Confucius said, "A young man
should be a good son at home and an obedient young man
abroad... In The Classic of Filial Piety, we find, "The services
of love and reverence to parents when alive, and those of grief
and sorrow to them when dead these completely discharge the
fundamental duty of living men."(8)
Within the lineage descendents of teachers of the traditional
martial arts, we still see evidence of behaviors and beliefs
associated with ancestor worship and filial piety. These
behaviors and beliefs exist because the teachers of the

1. Is the lineage student the best of the masters, or

the best student in the system? The history of certain
martial arts suggests that this was not the case.
2. Is the master of a system (the person from
where the lineage originated) necessarily the best
practitioner or teacher of that system?
3. Are all of the great martial artists known?
4. Were some martial artists unconcerned about
being famous?
5. Did some great martial artists choose not to teach
or publish their work and thus remain unknown?
6. Is the lineage system the best method for
transmitting knowledge to future martial artists?
Chinese martial artist Tang Hao (1897-1959) addressed some of
these questions and called for reform. From his published
opinions he was attacked for his heresy and several attempts
were made to arrest and imprison him.(9) Many familial and
societal pressures were placed on students of the martial arts
that restrained them from being free of dogma and superstition.
Even among the few who broke from the dogmatic traditions of
the prevailing martial arts and created new and innovative
approaches, some created new lineages or mythologies to
explain the origins of their knowledge and abilities. For
example, in the martial art baqua, its founder Dong Hai Chuan
is claimed to have related the origin of this martial art to a
mythical Taoist immortal.
Every style of martial arts has its fountainhead and some claim
that their martial art began with a mystical figure or perhaps a
Taoist immortal in the Wudang Mountains. In an essay by Gu
Lieu Xing (In Memory of Tang Hao), Gu states, In the 1930s,
people in the martial art circles of our nation clung too much to
the idea and the importance of lineage, and this caused major
disputes... Rigorous research by scholars and historians, such
as Tang Hao, have shown that at the fountainhead of every
martial art is a common man who, through hard work and effort

12

(kung fu), and by building on the work of predecessors, he was

able to achieve innovation, and contribute to the evolution of
knowledge and advancement of the martial arts.

exaggerated or were moved into the realm of the supernatural.

As a consequence, these kinds of beliefs make it impossible for
living breathing men and women to live up to the fiction.

In 1844, the invention of the telegraph by Samuel Morse

brought the arrival of a new era in global human
communication, and along with it came the death of the sifu.
The first message sent via telegraph was, What hath God
wrought? Indeed, over the course of several centuries, the sifu
had been the singular source of knowledge for the marital arts.
With modern communications and the multitude of
communication devices which have appeared in the last 150
years, historical records and documents, copies of original
manuscripts, translated words of the founders of martial arts
systems, are available through rapid large-scale global data
searches. With the introduction of film, video, digital media,
and other online media techniques, most forms and systems of
martial arts are available to students of the martial arts in an
unprecedented abundance in the new era of information access.

Another evolutionary step occurring in the martial arts is taking

place in two areas. First, the emerging and developing mixed
martial arts are quickly adapting modern scientific methods of
human performance conditioning, as derived from exercise
physiology, biomechanics, and sports science. Second,
knowledge and skills are expanding in relation to the combat
martial arts. Because of the high degree of athleticism and risk
involved, these areas rely on no nonsense pragmatic approaches
in the martial training and fighting applications. Of course,
some limitations are used in the rules of engagement for sports
martial arts, in comparison to combat martial arts, where the
objective is to maim or kill an enemy, but todays mixed martial
artist is generally a well-conditioned, multi-skilled athlete.(11)

Knowledge is essential for so many human activities

and values, including freedom, the exercise of
political power, and economic, social and personal
development.(10)
Was the role of the traditional sifu supplanted by the
availability of information in the age of technology and
communication? Certainly the technological advances have
enhanced the ability of martial arts students to access
information and to communicate directly with teachers and
other students online. Web and video conferencing can even
allow students and teachers to communicate verbally and
visually through webcams, so that training sessions can be
conducted online. Moreover, this high level of access and
communication has facilitated the investigation of teacher
claims about their work, publications, rank, lineage, and
history, etc.
If we strip away the esoteric, psychic, metaphysical, occult,
superstitious, and fictitious elements of the traditional Asian
martial arts, what is left? In most cases, the central theory,
which allows for advancement and the evolution of a particular
martial arts system, is the remaining element. In baqua, for
example, the central idea was to use continually changing
postures and positions, accompanied with moving behind the
opponent, which led to the systems fighting concept as seen
today.
Why are the contemporary innovators and creators in the
martial arts community denigrated and criticized? The answer
seems to stem from the ignorance about the unsubstantiated,
conflicted, and shaky history of the martial arts. Over time,
falsities and facts have become blurred in the minds of the
ignorant or gullible. The abilities of teachers became

Mixed martial art trainers are often athletic coaches and

seasoned fighters, with backgrounds in boxing, wrestling, and
the Asian fighting arts. The fighters are commonly trained by
teams comprised of athletic coaches and martial artists.
Trainers often have credentials in one or more of the following
areas: coaching, sports science, sports medicine, human
performance testing, personal training, and exercise physiology.
The traditional martial arts use of rank and lineage, while
possessed by some fighters, may be of little importance in the
new system. In the ring, on the platform, or in the cage, when
combatants are on equal footing, and in one-on-one combat,
spectators pay little attention to the color of a belt or the lineage
of a fighter, but tend to focus only on the substance and ability
of the martial artist.
The modern fighting arts are now evolving into the kind of
scientific martial art that was envisioned by Tang Hao in the
1930s. Nevertheless, continuing to promote false information
and superstition in the martial arts community and especially
among martial arts teachers is counter-productive to the
advancement of the marital arts.
About the author:
Dr. Gregory T. Lawton is a health science writer with over 100
publications to this credit. Dr. Lawton has enjoyed a lifetime of
training in the martial arts, including boxing, wrestling, kenpo,
and the Chinese internal martial arts. He served in the U.S.
Army from 1965 to 1968. In the mid-1970s, his instructor in
Yang Tai Chi Chuan was the highly regarded Professor Huo
Chi Kwang. Dr. Gregory Lawton is a licensed chiropractor,
naprapath, and a certified acupuncturist.

13

Definitions of terms:
Baqua (Pakua):
is considered one of the three great internal martial art systems
of China along with Tai Chi Chuan and Hsing Yi. Baqua
incorporates principles of continuous movement, and the
changing of postures and hand positions along with the intent
of moving into the weakest areas of an opponents defense,
including to the rear of the opponent. The baqua are also the
eight trigrams described in the I Ching; the combinations of
whole and broken lines represent the ever-fluctuating elemental
forces of the universe.
Mixed Martial Arts:
are a full contact combat sport that allows a wide variety of
fighting techniques, from a mixture of martial arts traditions, to
be used in competitions. The rules allow for striking and
grappling techniques, both while standing and on the ground.

Modern Martial Arts:

are those which have been largely developed over the last 100
years and include combat and tactical fighting arts, as well as
contemporary sports martial arts such as mixed martial arts.
Traditional Martial Arts:
are those having both an internal and an external system, that
date back to the earliest history of martial arts, or martial arts
that reflect the same formal structure of master and lineage
transmission, but may only be two or three centuries old.
Examples include Chinese Kempo, Tai Chi Chuan, and baqua.

5. Singer, M. T. (1987). Group psychodynamics. In: R. Berkow

(Ed.), Merck Manual, 15th ed. Rahway, NJ: Merck, Sharp, &
Dohme.
6. Chen, Pan-Ling. Chen Pan-Lings Original Tai Chi Chuan
Textbook (Tai Chi Chuan Chiao Tsai). (1998). Transliterated
by Y.W. Chang, Translated by Ann Carruthers, Ed.D. Page
xxiii, Blitz Design, New Orleans, LA.
7. Bush, Richard C. (1977). The Story of Religion in China, p.
2. Argus Communications, Niles, IL.
8. Mueller, Max, ed., (1879-1910) Vol. III, p. 448. Sacred
Books of the East, Krishna Press (50 Volumes), London,
England.
9. Kennedy, Brian and Elizabeth Guo. (2005). Chinese Martial
Arts Training Manuals, a Historical Survey. pp. 39-53, North
Atlantic Books, Berkeley, CA.
10. A2K (Access to Knowledge) Treaty, Consumer Project on
Technology. (May 9 2005), Available online at: http://
www.cptech.org/a2k/
11. Rooney, Martin. (2008). Training for Warriors, The
Ultimate Mixed Martial Arts Workout. pp. 7-17, HarperCollins Books, New York, NY.

References:
1. Holcombe, Charles. (1990). Theater of combat: A critical
look at the Chinese martial arts. Vol. 52 May 3. pp. 411-431.
Michigan State University Press.
2. Kurland, Harvey. (1998). Article. May T'ai Chi Ch'uan and
Wellness Newsletter.
3. Friedman, Harris. (2005). Problems of Romanticism in
Transpersonal Psychology:
A Case Study of Aikido. The Humanistic Psychologist, Vol.
33 No. 1. pp. 3-24.
4. Cunningham, Don. (2002). Dangers of self-proclaimed
masters. Furyu: The Budo Journal of Classical Japanese
Martial Arts and Culture. Vol. 10 No. 7 (Summer- Fall).

14

Erles Tree - An Update

Nasser Butt

Erles tree is growing beautifully despite the drought and rain!

Yes, you heard right - drought!!! Britain was officially in a

drought at the beginning

of the year and then the
rains came and 2012 has
been the wettest year
since records began t h a t s o ff i c i a l n o w !
However, Erles Red
Oak has taken a lead
from the man himself
and has continued to
grow beautifully.
We visit it regularly,
especially if we have
time after workshops and
i t s g r e a t t o s e e i t
blossoming over the
seasons and finally turn
red in the autumn.

15

Top left: Tony, Faith & Krish blowing bubbles.

Top right: Kathleen trying to sleep in the shade!
Middle: Lady bugs & buds.
Bottom left & right: Lars-Erik & I on a frosty morning.

16

Autumn red
17

The Self Tuning Body

Colin Power

Our bodies are in constant need of fine tuning to make them

run smoothly. All they need is a few minutes here and there,
not much to ask really is it. The modern hectic pace of life
seems to make these maintenance sessions of secondary
importance, we fall behind and the troubles begin. We
soldier on through injury and poor work environments until
we are finally brought to a standstill. We do more timely
maintenance on our cars and houses than we do on our
bodies.
Imagine if we drove our car faster and faster each day, never
taking it to the mechanic for a service or a new set of tyres.
Would it last the distance?
Most likely one day it would just refuse to start and you
would rant and rave about how useless the manufacturer
was...it could not be your fault.
We treat our body with the same disrespect, and may even
blame the manufacturer...or Old Age. We start to say we
cant do this, we cant do that...we start to compensate...it
influences everything. We change the way we get in and out
of the car, play with the kids, work and play... even do Taiji.
Should we give in or fight back?

Could our everyday Postures help us with our Taiji postures

as well as our Taiji postures help us with our everyday
postures???
This question lead me to the work of Osteopath and
Acupuncture practitioner Phillip Beach and his book
Muscles and Meridians- the manipulation of shape. The
book can be a little hard going at times and full of
assumptions, although his discussion on human Archetypal
posture of repose or in other words our original ways of
laying about has some interest to us all. He states that
archetypal postures, and the effort to erect oneself from the
floor to standing are a way of fine tuning the many muscles
we use in life. These postures include lying on ones back,
lying on the front, sitting cross legged, knelling Japanese
style, squatting and all there variations.
It seems we have to reclaim the floor to fine tune our
muscles...
Assuming that you have general good health without
limitations brought about by joint replacements we will find
that we all have little imbalances regardless of how well we
perform our Taiji form. You will need to experiment with all
the archetypal postures to find your main imbalance. Some
people will be able to squat easily whilst have trouble sitting
cross legged.
Time to work on our Archetypal postures so that we can
improve our Taiji postures. Taking these postures in isolation
we can gradually improve them or work up to the correct
posture the same way we work up to correct taiji.
We need to
reclaim a
f
e
w
postures
from our
not
so
distant past
to help us
with our
t a i j i . We
have to

My current job as Podiatrist and Taiji instructor for a

Community Health Provider has given me great insight into
the battle we can wage to fight back against the aging
process and poor body maintenance. First and foremost we
dont want to add to the long list of Things that need doing
in our modern life...we will just do some of these Things a
little differently.
First let us think over a few thoughts...
Our environment has changed faster than our bodies can
adapt. What we surround ourselves with has a profound
effect...especially the chair we sit in. The voluminous
recliner chair that seems to suck you down and support your
body without any postural effort of our own is a monster that
has only been around for a brief time in our evolutionary
history...they are thieves in the night.

Full squat - side view.

acknowledge
that the fighting arts did not evolve from a plush leather
armchair set in front of the TV...more like it evolved from
squatting around an open fire seeking to survive another day.
It is time we reclaimed the ability to transition from the floor
to standing without grunting and groaning.

18

The full squat has been identified as an essential part of our

evolutionary history. Look how a young infant squats down
to play with or pick something up...in total balance. A
posture that has helped define us... should not be taken for
granted or neglected.

To start with just work on being able to attain a full squat

with relaxed balance then work on transitioning from the full
squat to standing with that same relaxed balance. In

The ideal squat has the feet parallel, the heels on the ground,
and the knees over the second toes with no inward collapse
of the arch of the feet. If you have difficulty attaining this
alignment it means there is a need to tune the muscles from
front and rear compartments of the lower legs. To improve

Transitional squat with heels raised.

transition to standing work towards the point that you can

raise straight up without the need to swing your arms or lean

Full squat front view. - knee over second toe.

the alignment you can tackle this in stages, moving gradually

o the ideal squat. You may need the support of a wall to
guide you on the way down or start with a slightly wider
posture than ideal, or let the heels raise to achieve a full
squat. You can bringing it gradually to ideal after a little
practice. When we are in the need for a complete overhaul it
is better to achieve a lesser posture without stress and strain,
then aim for gradual improvement.
The Taiji form is the ideal self tuning system for the body if
the postures are correctly performed. Qigong could be
described as the best rehabilitation self tuning systems again
if correctly performed, yet the modern western body could
be so far out of tune we need to resort to the archetypal or
Primordial postures of our ancestors before we can move
on to correctly perform our Taiji or Qigong.

Assisted full squat - support to assist decent/raise.

forward. Work on slowing down the decent as well as the

transition to standing...you are in control.
In the next articles we will look at the other archetypal
postures, then we will tie them into our Taiji and Qigong
practice. Until then Remember nothing changes until we do
something different.
19

A Qigong Exercise For All

Reasons
Erle Montaigue
(Originally published October 1999)

When I began teaching the Qigong exercise back in the

early 70's, I was probably one of the only Westerners to be
teaching this wonderful healing art. Since then a plethora of
different so-called Qigong exercise methods have come
mainly out of China claiming all kinds of miraculous healing
benefits.
However, many are no more than a simple exercise, which in
itself will do anyone who is totally unfit and unhealthy a lot
of good. So it is most cases not the new Qigong exercise that
is doing the trick but rather the simple fact that the patient is
at last getting some much needed exercise, albeit very little
exercise at that!
However, the same cannot be said of the original 'Post'
standing Qigong exercise methods as these have stood the
test of time and have had done on them much scientific
research always with positive results.
Having said that, it is most important that the patient learns
these standing Qigong exercise methods absolutely correctly
as damage can be done to the internal energy (Qi) system of
the body resulting in some instances, brain and mind
problems, mental problems and immune system imbalances!
Which is why in particular my video tapes that teach Qigong
exercises are always so comprehensive where only the most
basic of patients could possibly get it wrong.
People still get it wrong of course and they also teach
incorrect Qigong exercise methods to others. The reason is
that they simply have not had the training necessary to be up
on the dangers and dangerous ways of performing Qigong
exercises. For instance certain stances in Qigong may seem
to have tremendous power due to an upsurge of 'rising Qi'
from the point called the 'Bubbling Well Point' or Kidney
point No. 1. This gives an immediate 'hit' of well being and
power in much the same way that coffee and its associated
caffeine gives an immediate hit to the brain causing the
neuro-inhibitors to be retarded this causing the brain waves
to speed up dramatically. However, the brain waves must at
some stage slow back down again and then people do into
deep depression etc.! So they have to take more caffeine and

so the cycle continues until usually a complete breakdown

occurs!
And it is the same with Qigong done incorrectly for the sake
of an instant 'hit' of power. At some time, that power must
dissipate giving the opposite feeling of no so well-being and
weakness! This is because so much yang Qi is built up during
incorrect Qigong practice that at some time, it must burst
through the incorrect tensions caused through incorrect
stances and reach the brain all at once! This is incorrect of
course as the brain along with the rest of the body must
receive a constant and balanced flow of Qi from the ground
via the K1 points.
The Classic Qigong Exercise Methods
You cannot go past the original classic Qigong exercise
stances and there are many different stances for many
different reasons, some of which I will show in this article. In
my some 30 years of practicing and teaching Qigong
exercises I have experimented with myself and my own
students with the various postures and what they are
supposed to do. I have given up teaching some Qigong
methods and have kept only the ones that I have found to be
of real help.
Method No. 1
For general good health and as a beginner's Qigong exercise
we always start with the 3 Circle Standing Qigong. This is
the 'Mother' of all Qigong methods and you cannot go past
this for good health and an overall balancing method. It
balances the amount of Qi out in the upper and lower body
by supplying 60% to the lower part and 40% to the upper
which is natural.
See Photo No. 1 & 1A for the posture.

Photo No. 1

Photo No. 1A

20

The feet are parallel and shoulder width apart when

measured on the outside of the feet. The 'parallel' bit should
be measured on the inside of the feet which causes the
outsides to be only marginally un-parallel.
The knees are bent so that if a straight and vertical line were
drawn from your knees to the ground, it would touch the tip
of the big toe.
The back is vertical and as straight as possible given that the
back is never fully straight! You must sink straight down and
not bend the back backwards at all. This is one big mistake
that most people make. In fact I would say that I would
correct 99% of all students on this. And I keep on correcting
them year after year!
So if you are standing up straight and were to place a string
onto the roof with a small weight on the end of it which was
located over your crown, that weight would still be in that
position once you bent your knees.
The chin is held pulled in slightly but not forced and the
tongue is placed up onto the hard palate like saying the letter
'L'.
The eyes are not closed nor are they fully open (staring).
They will look to the ground about 20 feet away. The
shoulders are dropped naturally and the arms are held such
that you are sort of hugging a tree with the elbows dropped
below the wrists and shoulders.
The palms are turned out slightly so that they are at an angle
of 45 degrees to the ground with a straight line of skin but
not stretched between thumb and forefinger.
The palms are held in the typical "Tile Palm Hand" where
each finger is kind of layered over the next like the tiles on a
roof.
The fingers of each palm are held about three inches apart.
And as a beginner the upper side of the forefingers should be
in line with the under side of your nose.

The breathing should be deep but relaxed and not forced. In

the beginning you should always use a natural breathing
pattern where the abdomen expands upon inhalation and
contracts upon exhalation. You breathe with your diaphragm
and not your neck! So do not tense up your neck, just treat it
as a straw through which the diaphragm pulls air into your
lungs. Just breathe naturally allowing the natural rhythm to
take over.
You should in the beginning hold this posture for at least 15
minutes. This is difficult, however, it will be worth it. You
will begin to shake, not violently but a vibration will take
over your whole body and you will begin to perspire from
your palms and fingertips.
After some minutes, check your posture again to make sure
that you haven't slowly crept up and your knees are still bent.
To finish, slowly lower your palms to a lower position to
near your lower abdomen and hold that position for a few
minutes. Photo No. 2. After you are adept at holding this
position, you can do the first two thirds of the total time with
your palms in the upper position and then the last third of the
total time with your palms in the lower position. When you
have had enough, slowly raise both palms out to your sides
and up to shoulder height inhaling as you do this, then bring
both palms to chest height and press downward from chest to
lower abdomen as you exhale and straighten your legs
slowly. Do not make any sudden movements nor in particular
have anything cold to drink for at least five minutes, just
walk around slowly.
The non-thought process
would take up a whole book
so it is sufficient to say that
you should simply but with
much difficulty, think upon
nothing at all! Just do
nothing, no conscious
thought at all! This is the
secret to good Qigong.

The buttocks are held slightly under naturally as this is the

natural position for the lower back when the knees are bent.
Do not force the bum under as this is just as bad as sticking it
out.
The Toes are held slightly but not as much as to turn your
toes white, concave. Like as if they are gripping the ground.
This is to bring yin and yang into the base of the foot so that
the Yang Qi will be drawn down to the 'Bubbling Well' point
(KD 1) to be re-routed all over the body.

Photo No. 2

21

Method No.2 (Holding the Baby).

Photo No. 3

This is the one we use in

the martial arts. It sends
60% Qi into the hands
and only 40% into the
legs. So it is obvious that
you should not ONLY
train in this one Qigong,
you should always
perform the basic 3
Circle Qigong exercise
as mentioned above.
Then, if you wish, do
these next few Qigong
exercise methods at
other times or substitute
one of them at a time in
conjunction with your
Basic Qigong exercise.

The 'Six Balanced Pairs" must also be apparent in Qigong as

it is for Taijiquan. So if you look at the above basic Qigong
method you will notice in particular that the elbows and
knees are aligned. It is the same for this Qigong exercise
method.
The Six Balanced Body Pairs:

allow your knee to deviate from this position, otherwise you

could do your knee some damage from incorrect alignment.
Many people perform the posture of "Stork Spreads Wings"
absolutely incorrectly by allowing their knee to angle
inwards so that the vertical line would be somewhat to the
left of their right knee. This will cause all kinds of bone and
ligament problems later in life.
Place your left foot's heel so that it touches your right heel
and the foot is pointing to an angle of 45 degrees to that right
foot. Now, move your left foot in a straight line to where it is
pointing, out to where it is almost straight but not quite.
Turn your hips so that your upper body is now pointing to
where your left foot is pointing. This is the danger time as far
as knee alignment is concerned. By turning your waist and
hips, you could move your knee away from that alignment.
You should at this stage be able to lift your left foot off the
ground without moving any weight onto the right foot. All of
your weight is now placed onto your right foot.
Raise your palms so that they are in accordance with your
feet. The left palm will be forward of the right. The palms
however, are NOT situated over each foot but rather more to
the centre of your feet. The Fingers of your right palm will
point to a position that is about one inch towards the left
palm end over the centre of your forearm. (7 tsune or cun:
Both spellings are pronounced as the first spelling).

Hands and Feet corresponding to Stomach and Spleen.

Knees and Elbows corresponding to Kidneys and Bladder.
CV1 (Point) and The Crown (GV20) corresponding to the
Pericardium meridian and the Triple Heater Meridian.
Buttocks and Axilla (Armpits) corresponding to the
Gallbladder and Liver.
Coccyx and Back of the head at GB19 point corresponding
to the Heart and Small Intestine.
Shoulders and Hips corresponding to the Lungs and Colon.
Turn your right foot (to begin with) out by 45 degrees and
lower your weight onto that foot with the centre of gravity
being just forward of where your leg joins your foot. In other
words, just forward of the front of your heel pad. The right
knee is bent so that the tip of the knee is in a vertical line
with the tip of your big toe. It is more important during this
Qigong to adhere to this rule as you will have all of your
weight placed onto only one leg placing more physical
pressure onto that leg. It is very important that you do not

Both Palms are facing slightly upward and if you were to

draw a line flat on the palms that line would meet the ground
at an angle of about 45 degrees.
The Top of your left finger should be in a line that is under
your nose.
The fingers are again held in the "Time Palm Hand" position
with a straight piece of skin between thumb
and forefinger.
Breathing, Tongue and lower abdomen is the same for the
basic Qigong exercise. You should hold this position for only
3 minutes at the most in the beginning as it will place some
strain onto your legs. Then you should go on to the left side
and hold that side for 3 minutes. You will however, find that
at each change of leg, you can hold the position for a little
longer as the Qi is now beginning to assist the muscles.
The Three Signs
There are three things to look for especially when using the
above Qigong. And this is very important to avoid any
22

muscular damage!

4th Method: Qigong exercise to Enhance Your Qi

Transference Ability

No. 1: You will feel a burning piercing pain in the centre of

your thigh like a red-hot needle is piercing your leg.
No. 2: After some more time, this piercing pain will dissipate
into a warm all over glow around your thigh.
No. 3: You will begin to shake.
The shaking is a sign that you should not change legs. Allow
the shaking to continue for about 20 seconds before changing
legs. You will discover that you will be able to hold the
position for slightly longer each time you change legs. You
must of course spend the same amount of time standing on
each leg. The time you spend is up to you.
3rd Method: Qigong exercise for the Brain/Mind
This method is the same
as for the basic 3 circle
standing Qigong however,
your palms will be placed
above your head with the
PC 8 (Lau-gung) pointing
down to the middle of
your crown. Lau-gung is
an important Qi emission
point on the palm located
where your longest finger
points to when you hold a
tight fist.
The important points of
this Qigong are: make sure
that your shoulders do not
lift up as this is usually
Photo No.4 what happens when you
raise your arms up so high. A little trick used to cause you to
know when you have them raised is to physically raise the
shoulders while in this position as high as you are able. Then
relax them so that they will drop down to the correct
position.
You should hold this position for at least ten minutes. It will
be difficult but the rewards are great. This is the one that
Aldus Huxley advocated while experimenting with drugs! I
do not advocate experimenting with drugs of course as we
now know better. However, the mind enhancement that he
received was not from the drugs but rather from the Qigong!
This one is good if you have to take an exam etc.

Stand as for the No. 2

method with one foot
forward of the other.
Hold your palms as in
the photo facing
downward to the
ground, the left one (if
your left foot is
forward) will be
forward of the right.
And again, the elbows
are over each knee.
Yo u w i l l h a v e t o
imagine and 'feel' the
Lau-gung point in the
centre of your palms
Photo No.5
as this is the point that we use to enhance the Qi giving
ability.
As you breathe in for the first time deeply, imagine that the
breath is coming into your body from the ground into your
rear heel. (The Qi is actually coming in through the Qi input
point of K 1 (Kidney Point No. 1) on the base of your foot.
However, it is the heel just forward of it, that is the
'activation' point for this point.) Now take that breath up and
over you head via your backbone, down the front of your
face and out along the top of your left arm down to the
ground again via that Lau-gung point. If you are doing this
correctly that point will buzz and will turn slightly red. On
your next inhalation, this time drag the breath up through the
right Lau-gung point in your right palm. Up the inside of
your right forearm, through your armpit over your head.
Then down the front of your face again and out via the left
Lau-gung point again to earth. Continue this for at least 5
minutes then change legs and sides and repeat on the other
side.
5th Method: To Build Upon Your Post-Natal Qi
This method can be used with the basic 3 circle standing
Qigong position as it is a breathing technique and not a
specific physical stance.
As you inhale, drag the 'breath' up from the ground via your
right heel (for a male) or left heel (for a female). I will give
the more common 'male' way of doing it here as the female
way is to simply reverse everything! You must completely
relax your anus sphincter when inhaling, this is the whole
crux of this exercise. The breath (Qi) will then be routed over
23

your head, down the front of your face, down the front of
your body to the tantien point near CV 4 about 3 inches
below your navel. When the Qi gets to the middle of your
forehead to the 'third-eye point', this is when you begin to
exhale. As you exhale, you must now tighten slightly the
anus sphincter, thus locking and packing in the Earth Qi. Do
not squeeze the sphincter too tightly as it only needs a tweak!
Continue in this way for the whole time of standing.

As you can see, all of the above methods are based upon
basic standing Qigong exercises. If you never learn another
Qigong exercise in your life, you will not lose out on
anything as you have all there is in the above for Qi
enhancement and therefore Body and Mind enhancement.

24

Connecting the dots

The first thing I have to confess is that
my ego has taken a battering, and it all
started at summer camp 2011. It was my
first, after a couple of months of hard
training and realizing that this was real
martial arts, I was just determined to go
there and have some fun. This was the
first time I would be instructed by Eli so I
was eager to see how he was. So there we
were on the first day doing some of the
Bagua power sets, with Eli pulling them
off seamlessly, and as you would expect
I as well as many others were all over
the place. Things went on as usual we
were all enjoying ourselves the weather
was beautiful and were all just one big
family, but at the end of the camp my
mind inevitably stumbled upon one of the
most dangerous feelings, can anyone
guess what it was? Comparison. Upon
seeing a man who was only a couple of
years older than me but decades ahead of
me in something I truly love, was a shock.
I was in a sort of deadlock, how would I
ever be that good? Would I ever be able to
get to that level? Now I am embarrassed
writing these words but they were my
honest thoughts at that time. It was like
my mind was an endless maze of self
doubt, bouncing between the walls of a
path that went round in loops. I had some
searching to do, I had to confront these
thoughts.
For a while I just pushed it away but each
and every time I trained there it was
again. I confessed this to one person who
went through the same problem as me and
they said, look at your life what else has it
ever been about but comparison? Can you
blame yourself for the way you feel? This
was the trigger I needed. Every single day
of my life has been about comparison,
from the time I attended school we were
divided up into groups, which in itself is
fine, not everyone is the same. When we
played sports naturally the people who
were better were picked first, and the
people who were not so good tried as
desperately as they could not to show up
or found something which they were good
at, but this is fine, not everyone is the
same. My most recent example was job
interviews, you are chosen on the basis of

how another set

of people judge
your abilities,
and this is what
r e a l l y
hammered
things home for
me. Im sure
that

By
Ramakrishna
Chedumbarum
Pillay
everyone at some
point
in their lives has
experienced that sinking feeling after they
have been told by someone else that they
just are not good enough. Unfortunately
today this is what a lot of modern society
is all about comparison and judgement,
compartmentalizing an organic living
breathing individual into something as
impersonal as a set of abilities, endless
competition.
For me things really didnt settle down for
my tai chi until a good friend saw a video
of me practicing a drill, the first thing
they said was, I am actually worried for
you, it looks like when you do fajing your
going to rip yourself apart from tension.
The reason this made an impact was that
for months after the camp I had spent all
my time trying to get power from my
strikes, trying to do fajing, and pulling a
lot of muscles in the process, so when I
was told this I thought to myself what am
I doing? So I proceeded to do just that, I
stated only doing qigong, the Yang Lu
Chan form without the fajing movements,
the post everything else was done slowly,
including the wudang hammer, just
keeping the wrist in the center and
moving the body as one unit. Now things
really started happening, and I realized
that over time I just had to stop fighting
with my biggest enemy, myself. All the
time it was me stopping my training
progressing, I was allowing my ego to
compare myself, I was looking down on
myself from the perfection I wanted to

achieve. I remember reading Erles

articles about how chi is like a shy girl
peeking at you from behind a tree, you try
to catch a glimpse and you never can but
when your stop trying to look, there it is,
in other words when you seek power it
will never come to you only when you
accept yourself and live in the moment
and just do it, without thinking does the
power over yourself come, accepting your
weaknesses and your strengths and all
those minute little things that come
together uniquely to create you. The
ability to accept yourself as you are is real
power, as I mentioned not everyone one is
the same, everyone is beautifully unique.
And the best thing is that even though we
have weaknesses, we also have to realise
that the world does not revolve ourselves.
The one thing that has helped me on this
journey so far are my friends who point
out my mistakes, in this way the people
we know make up for our weaknesses,
wouldnt perfection be a lonely place?
Tai chi has taught me so much already,
because I have had to confront myself
over something that means so much to
me, and I have started to discover that life
is not about competition, with other
people or with yourself. The trick is to let
yourself be, it reminds me of another of
Erle's sayings, when you do Tai Chi it
eventually becomes your art and yours
alone because everyone is different, Tai
Chi is a true art as its expression is totally
unique to every person. Go and make it
your own.

25

WTBA Grading - Why Some Qualify

Before Others?
Eli Montaigue
The WTBA may seem very laid back and easy going when it comes to grading
instructors.
But this is not the case!
It seems this way, because we do not have tests and exams, like other schools do. So
people see me come to a workshop, and then at the end just say, Oh and so and so is now
level 1 instructor.
When I am in a workshop, or any class, I pick out those that are doing well, and I test
them without them knowing throughout the whole class, or in most cases, for the whole
year. So I do not give a grading based on a short grading session, I have been analyzing
them over many months at least, as it is my job to make sure that if they go out and start
teaching, that those students are getting the right stuff.
I have never given out an instructors degree to someone who does not deserve it. I am
very strict with who I award this grading too.
I have been accused a few times in the past of giving out degrees, to those close to me,
close friends, and girls I have been in relationships with.
The classic, oh she just got her degree because shes sleeping with him!
This has never been the case, and I never favour anyone for any reason, you either
deserve it or you dont. I am a complete professional when it comes to the things that
matter.

ELIS ONLINE
LESSONS
I have started series of online
lessons, so far mainly on the YLC
form, but have also done the whole
small San Sau, and starting on
some Bagua as well.
These are the most detailed and
easy to learn from videos available
on the basic form. Covering the
basic level form as I teach it in my
c l a s s e s . T h e D V D s o n t h e
advanced form by Dad are great,
but the only thing on the basic form
is MTG 2, which is a good DVD,
but out-dated and not very detailed.
The whole form is shown in 2
hours.
T h e n t h e re i s t h e
corrections series, an amazing set
of DVDs, but not teaching the form
as such, but just showing how is
should be done and how it
shouldnt.

What I get up to in my private life is my business, but I will never let it have any effect
on the business of the WTBA.

These clips, however, at 20 minutes

each, have as much detail on the
basic structure and flow that you
could ask for! The first third is 15
lessons, about 5 hour of teaching.

People often say, Ive been training years more than him! When I give out a degree.
Yes this is sometimes the case, some people have been training for 5 years or more and
not got their grading, then a new student comes along, and in a year they get their
grading!

These clips are on Facebook http://

w w w. f a c e b o o k . c o m /
elimontaigues.teachingpage as well
as on youtube.

This often annoys those that have been training longer.

But you have to take into account more than just the years youve spent training.
Ben has been training more years then me, does that mean he should be head of the
WTBA?
No, because years dont count for anything, its hours that count! Yes in some cases you
might have trained hard for many hours, but maybe not every day with a teacher. Those
who train daily with an advanced teacher are of course going to grade before someone
that comes to weekly or monthly classes.

There are lots of free clips, first 10

lessons of YLC etc.

Then there is also the persons background, if you have done nothing before starting,
youll take longer. If you have learnt a very stiff style before starting, you will take
longer. But if you have done some form of flowing movement, dance, Yoga, etc. some
thing like this will enhance your Taiji learning a great deal!
I have seen some people who train with me on a weekly basic take 5 years to grade.
Then others that take a year. Because of their background, how much they train at home,
and the individual learning ability of each person.

If youre learning without a

teacher, then these clips will give
you the best possible learning
experience. Or if you do have a
teacher, they are still great to help
you train at home in-between
classes, so that you dont fall into
bad habits.

There are some people I know that I would love to grade, due to their dedication, and just
because there are such nice people. But if they are still making mistakes, then those
mistakes will be passed onto anyone they teach, therefore I can not grade them.

Check out the free stuff on facebook

or youtube, and if you like it then
just contact me for links to the rest.

Then the cost of further lessons is

very cheap, only 3 per lesson, or
10 for 20. Plus you have can them
sent to you on DVD as well, for
viewing offline.

Its my responsibility to make sure that students get the right stuff. So I have to be hard
on gradings.

26

CAMP USA 2012

Report & Photography by Nasser Butt

While the UK came to a halt at the end of May to celebrate the Queens jubilee celebrations, Eli and I quietly slipped out of England to
make our annual trip across the pond.
Once again, the setting for the camp was at the hauntingly beautiful Pocono Plateau in Pensalvaniya state and I was hoping to catch
glimpse of a bear or two this time round.
We were met by our dear friend, and camp organizer, Al Krych (Chief WTBA Instructor USA) at Newark Liberty airport, as per usual, and
headed towards New Jersey into a warm May night. It had been a long day of traveling yet, seeing Als smiling face at the terminal
seemed to drive all the tiredness away. It was so great to see him and catch up with his lovely family again. Al and Carols beautiful home
has become like a second home and... this time I got to sleep in the den!
[27]

After a well deserved lay in, followed by an exquisite omelette for lunch, we packed the car and headed for the campsite in beautiful
sunshine. The Pocono lake plateau was exactly as I remembered it. Thankfully, the weather was brighter and drier than the previous
years visit and we all looked forwards to the next three days training.

Training started almost immediately upon arrival once Al had sorted out all the paperwork, even though the Canadians contingent,
led by the wonderful Josephine Anderson, broke down en route and arrived several hours later!
The main theme this year was Dim-Maks 12 Deadly Katas and their corresponding qigongs alongside the Snake Qi Shaking Form.
Also covered were double push hands
as well as some of the bumping
hands methods. Eli taught a couple
of these everyday, starting with
Snake Hands, covering in intricate
detail the associated qigong and
martial applications for each kata.
Snakes were to be a huge part of
this camp as we would literally
discover whilst crossing the small
bridge leading us to the training
area by the lake! Several people
sighted these oft misunderstood
reptiles whilst walking past the
lake, including myself and my dear
friend Arlie Stroud. What we
spotted on a walk one afternoon
was thoroughly confusing. We
thought that we had spotted two
snakes sitting basking in the sun
until, when startled by my camera,
the snakes moved suddenly and
there was only one! It baffled us
both how it could be as we had
both clearly seen two heads? Ill
leave that for you to decide and the
locals to expand upon as I was told
that such mutations were not
unheard off!
[28]

Al Krych WTBA Chief Instructor USA.

With Josephine Anderson, WTBA Chief Instructor Canada

[29]

[30]

This year we had an extra days training,

which meant that we could move at a more
leisurely pace and spend more time developing
and understanding each training method. Over
the entire weekend, we managed to cover six
of the 12 Deadly Katas in the following order:
Snake Hands, Straight Hands, Changing Hand,
Throwing Hand, Waving Hand and Breaking
Hand (The full 12 Katas are available on
Erles MTG62 dvd and the corresponding
Meridian Healing Qigongs are available on
MTG88).
As we had done in the previous year, another
evening of Q&As with Eli was scheduled.
Bryan Flood kindly entertained us with some
beautiful guitar solos, which were enjoyed by
everyone, as Don Jennings kept the fire
burning and kept us all warm until Eli arrived!
The topics ranged from correct form practice,
qigong, single and double push hands as well
as a whole range of other training and fighting
methods. Eli spent a good couple of hours
dealing with each question in detail, relating
the subject matters directly to his own training
and development, providing invaluable insight
into how a student should develop. It also
allowed a lot of the students and instructors
the chance to share ideas with each other from
training to teaching, what works and what
doesnt.

Eli teaching the Snake Qi Shaking Form.

After the Q&A session, we spent the evening

catching up with friends around a real log fire
and my brother from another mother - Kurt
Levins - had me in stitches most of the night
with his warped humour and tales form his
police days! This is probably one of my
favorite things about the WTBA family, its
warm and welcoming no matter where you are
in the world and perhaps the greatest testament
to Erles work and vision.
Training continued and before we realized, the
camp was already coming to end. Time just
happened to fly by as we filled our days with
hard work and of course some play! I had
great fun shooting some hoops with my
wonderful friend Joel Friedman, in between
breaks as well as engaging in some great
banter with Joel B. Fant.

Bryan Flood entertaining the troops.

As per custom at these camps, Eli awarded

Level 1 Instructors certificates to Joel B. Fant
and the lovely Elizabeth Fortin in recognition
of their hard work, dedication and
achievements. Congratulations to them both.
On the final day of camp we all said our
goodbyes with great emotion and hugs - lots of
hugs - and the promise to meet up again next
year! I have always found this difficult and it
never gets any easier parting from friends.
A great, special thanks to Al Krych for all his
hospitality, hard work and enthusiasm that
goes into making these camps the success that
they are.

Early morning Qigong.

[31]

Its not easy sorting out the logistics of getting people from across
the globe together in one place yet, Al seems to manage it so easily
or so he makes it appear!
The trek back to New Jersey was beautiful however, upon our
arrival we were greeted by a thunderstorm that brewed up from
nowhere! Eli, nonetheless ran out and jumped into the pool in Als
backyard. Nothing was going to stop him from having a swim!
We had a mouthwatering supper, cooked by Als lovely wife Carol,
in the evening before sitting down to watch a movie. Then tired,

Shooting hoops with Joel Friedman (opposite).

Photos appear courtesy of Colleen Gifford.

we headed to bed to get some rest before the return journey home
the following day. I must add another special thank you to Carol
Krych for looking after both Eli and I and making us feel at home,
for thats how it feels being there.
The morning and early afternoon was spent with Al in New York ,
wandering through China Town and taking in the sites before
finally heading towards the airport, where we hastily said our
goodbyes and parted.
The journey home had begun and I suddenly realized, I had not
managed to see a single bear yet again!
Oh well, theres always next year.

[32]

Eli with new WTBA Instructors Elizabeth Fortin & Joel B. Fant

Q&A with Eli.

[33]

[34]

Master Brian Alexander receiving his

afternoon wake up call from Lisa Ludwig.

Push Hands.

[35]

Master Brian Alexander receiving his

afternoon wake up call from Lisa Ludwig.

Push Hands.

[36]

[37]

Wtba camp usa 2012, pocono plateau, pensalvaniya

The dragon turtle

My

Master had often told me that I Dick told me

needed to find a dragon turtle because h e r e c e n t l y
they bring good fortune and are "good had a run in
Feng Shui." I could never figure out what w i t h
a
he meant. "Dragon Turtle" I had never s n a p p i n g
heard of such a thing, So I looked up t u r t l e . H e
Dragon Turtle and found statues and picked up a
paintings of a large turtle with scalloped large one and
carapace and ridges down the back like s was taking it
stegosaurus. I was not familiar with any back to the
such animal.
house to show
h
i
s
Then many years later while reading on
turtles I saw a picture of a turtle and it
was a dragon turtle. It was a South
American Snapping turtle.
Dang, I knew snappers. They live all
around me. Only my local snappers have
smaller ridges down the back but the
shells were rougher than the more
common Painter or Boxed turtle. The
edges of the shell were indeed scalloped.
About two weeks ago I was hiking in the
woods with my son Alex, when I saw
something moving in a pond and it was
big. We closed in and I saw it - a snapper.
It was on the surface. You could clearly
see the shell. The turtle's head was huge
and the neck was thick.
The turtle pulled his head back and then
quickly snapped out and bit into some
pond lily and ate it. The turtle did this
several times. I saw the resemblance to a
dragon. When that huge neck and head
came out of the water it was like that
famous photo of the Loch Ness monster.
Alex was afraid the turtle would get him
and I explained that he could certainly
outrun a turtle.
A few weeks later I was discussing this
with my friend Dick Marcinko. Now Dick
is a real world expert on reptiles and such.
Not a professor, he has real world
experience. He is what is known as a
snake eater. This is a term used to
describe SEALs and other Special
Operations military units that live off the
land. Dick did time deep in the Mekong
delta in Viet Nam where he encountered
numerous poisonous snakes such as
Cobra and the Fleur De Lis.

By

Kurt Levins
Snr.

daughter.
Dick
said he
w a s
holding it
w h e n
suddenly it stuck
out an enormous head with a thick neck.
For reference, the turtle I saw's neck was
as thick as my arm at the wrist. Once the
turtle had its head out and neck fully
stretched, it turned the head around and
came straight at him over the shell,
quickly. Dick said he had never seen a
turtle do such a thing.

Sifu Alex
PhotoKurt Levins Snr.

turtle sitting on top of the stump of a log,

just basking in the sun. I can only imagine
that they are doing Sun qi gong soaking
up that qi.

As a result of these observations, I now

realize how the turtle became such an
auspicious animal to the Taoists. How
much healthier would our lives be if we
didnt fill it with monkey chatter and
monkey action. How much unnecessary
actions do we bring into our lives. Then
how many of us do qi gong regularly like
I related to Dick that I once saw a snapper the turtle?
in the back of a pickup truck. An old
farmer had a stick about an inch thick and A second lesson is how Commander
was teasing the turtle,"just wait and see Marcinko became a mentor and friend.
what happens." The turtle then slowly sat Real simple, we met over the Internet. We
back on its hind legs and then in an started talking and that is that. Dick has
instant sprang maybe even jumped helped me through some truly terrible
forward and grabbed the stick and times. Fortunately I was able to help him
snapped it in half. It was impressive.
out with some herbal treatments. This
demonstrates one of the oldest Taoist
I thought about this for a few days and the adages, when the time is right, the
lesson finally came to me.The turtle is the teacher appears. Dick is one of my best
perfect yin animal. Staying still and only teachers. As founder of SEAL TEAM 6,
moving when necessary. The Taoist he offered me training and insight into
s y m b o l o f l o n g l i f e a n d i n d e e d true combat something most martial
herpetologists tell us turtles do have teachers no nothing of. Also, having been
incredibly long life spans.
through life as a warrior, all of his
wisdom has been tempered in the fires of
Yet within their stillness, the turtle combat and reality.
possesses a great potential power. It can
move explosively when it has to. I can Third lesson is one Ive shared before,
only compare it to the Fa Jing of internal you never know where a lesson in the Tao
martial arts.
will come from, so keep your eyes and
mind open.
I have a pond near me which I and my
family pass. On every warm day there is a

[38]

Whats next?
Nasser butt

Whats next?
How often have I heard those words
uttered by students over the years!
I have always advocated that all students
pay heed to the foundations of the system,
as have some of the other old school
instructors, especially since Erles death,
as well as Eli himself.
The foundations are critical in the survival
and understanding of any system and in
the development of the student him or
herself. However, over the years, I have
seen many students, both my own and
those of Erle and other instructors rushing
towards the advanced forms or ideas and
training methods, despite being warned
repeatedly against such a folly.
Erle was prolific at putting out
information on the internal arts so that we
were all able to advance in our training.
However, he was always at pains
reminding everyone that just because he
was showing the advanced ideas or
forms, it didnt mean that everyone was
ready to do them. Rather, it was his way
of showing the diligent students of what
lay ahead if they continued to train
correctly.
I will let you in on a secret, if you
havent figured it out already - there are
no advance forms per se! There is only
the form - the one form - perfect from the
start. The imperfections, however, are in
us, the practitioners. The form goes to
work on us right from the start, like a
master craftsman, a stone mason, it slowly
chips away at our imperfections if, and
its a BIG IF, we allow it to do so,
sculpting and moulding us in its own
image.

(some even begin with this instead of

MTG2!!!) and physically start to put the
opening and closing movements into their
form, as opposed to using these volumes
as a guide once opening and closing has
already begun to happen naturally. This
would be akin to attaching a patch made
from sackcloth onto the finest silk!
Instead of learning from the form, you are
now trying to become its teacher, this is
surely a recipe for disaster!
The same is true for the waving form
and the stone hands form, and all the
various other ways Erle showed the form
could be done. He was simply laying
down markers on a route, showing which

You can
only fight
the way you
practice
Miyamoto Musashi
way to head once you had come upon that
road and how the various energies
interplayed in the ONE form.

The form is littered with keys, which

when found or given, lead you to the
higher levels of practice. But these keys
can only be discovered or given when the
student is ready. Most students, in fact,
will go through a life of training never
This is what practicing the foundations is even realizing of their existence simply
all about. There is no opening and b e c a u s e t h e y h a v e i g n o r e d t h e
closing form. If you practice your form foundations!
correctly and pay heed to the foundational
principles, you will one day arrive I have been often accused of focusing too
naturally at the point where the opening much on the foundations by some of my
and closing movements will begin to own students as well as others. I do not
manifest themselves. Most students, apologize for that! It is my duty to ensure
however, buy the To The Max series that the system I have inherited and had

[39]

the privilege to teach over the last 12

years or so, passes on exactly as it was
taught to myself. The fact that most
students fail to understand the precise
nature of the foundations makes it even
more imperative that we, as teachers,
insist upon the mastery of them!
Herein, perhaps, lay the advantages of the
classical schools and their hierarchies,
where students stood for hour upon hour
practicing a single movement, day after
day until perfection was achieved. No
student would dare move from the spot
where he had been asked to stand by his
teacher and practice what he had been
told to do, regardless of the time. Far
more importantly, no student would have
dared ask his teacher: Whats next? or
Show me the next move! Within these
hierarchical institutions the students
would know their place. Their job was to
do as they had been shown, until told to
do so otherwise.
Can you imagine a primary classroom in
any school, where the student would go
up to the class tutor and tell him or her
what to teach them next? Or, that they
were ready to take their GCSEs or
Higher Education Diplomas? No! It
would be an absurdly laughable situation
yet, there are students who are doing just
that! I have trawled through my memory
banks and spoke to several of my
contemporaries as well as some of Erles
oldest students and not one of us has any
recollection of ever having gone up to
Erle and asked, Whats next? Or, even
suggest that we were ready to move onto
the next level! When we were ready, we
were told so by Erle himself.
As all of us who knew Erle, know, he
wasnt so fond of such rigid structures
and all that they entailed. Erle had spent
most of his life self-learning and seeking
information near and far in order to better
himself, not only in the martial arts but
also in life too. In a world littered with
secrets, closed door students and
magical and esoteric energies, he taught
and showed everyone everything equally,
simplifying the most difficult of concepts
for the beginner, with which to learn and

[40]

You just throw your hands up in the air and say: Oi vey!!!!"
Erle Montaigue

So important to have got the very basics down and you MUST have them perfectly
before you can go onto anything else! And I literally see this all around the world People buy the advance tapes and 3 weeks later, they'll get in touch with me and say
they've learnt the Old Yang style at small frame level, and what do I do next?

"It's so necessary to have learnt the very basic form perfectly before going on to all
this stuff... the openings & closings & the small frame and everything else!

develop. Furthermore, rather than being

the Master, aloof and beyond approach,
he chose to be a friend to his students and
stand amongst them as opposed to
towering over them. Herein lay the
problem, not with Erle but rather with the
students themselves, they became lazy
and complacent!

apply the same critique to ourselves? A

person practicing a modified form with
dedication and to the best of their ability,
in my opinion, is far better than someone
practicing poorly with an Erle Montaigue!
You can never achieve real success
through association alone. You WILL be
found out in the end. Success comes
through hard work and effort leading to
Maybe, familiarity really does breed understanding. It wasnt called Gung-Fu
contempt!
for no reason. One had to train hard and
invest in a loss in order to achieve.
Any art or system is only as good as its
current practitioners and students. No
point claiming to be studying the
Supreme Ultimate or the original form
Though the
of Yang Lu-chan, when you do not
metamorphoses be
invest time in understanding and
ten thousand,
developing the foundations of that system.
One principle
An arrow fired from a bow will behave in
pervades them.
exactly the same way whether in practice
or in actual combat. It remains true to its
From familiarity
understanding and that is exactly how the
with the moves,
student of any system ought to be!
one gradually
I often find students looking on in
amazement when you show a martial or
healing application and relate it to a
posture in the form. Their amazement
shows that the students have NOT
connected the dots for themselves even at
the most basic level. Equally, whilst doing
the form, failure to recognize where
postures are repeated in a variant or more
subtle manner in the 2nd and 3rd thirds, are
usually greeted with the exclamation:
Oh, I never saw that! And yes, it will be
these very students who will be rushing to
buy the advanced MTG tapes or asking
to learn the next level!
Here is a question. I address this to
WTBA practitioners in particular:
Where in the Old Yang form do we first
come across the concept of the
penetration punch?
If you cant answer that question in an
instant, then you need to take a good hard
look at your training and be honest with
yourself - are you training correctly?
Its no good sitting at home, watching
YouTube and criticizing how badly other
schools practice their taiji or self-defence,
when you dont understand your own
system! Rather, spend that time wisely,
training and bettering yourself. Any fool
can point a critical finger at others. How
many of us would have the honesty to

awakens to
understanding
power.
From understanding
power, one by stages
reaches
spiritual
enlightenment.
Without long
application of
effort
One cannot
thoroughly
penetrate it.
Great-pole boxing: the
theory

Erle stipulated, incessantly, that it took

years of investing in loss in order to
gain. He would, often, tell stories during
class of how he would stand practicing
the same movement for several hours a
day in order to understand its essence.
Yet, it seems, that these stories have
largely fallen on deaf ears! The modern
student does not understand nor wish to
invest in the loss which Erle spoke
about. I look around and see students
rushing, worst still, going on to forms
which they have no right to be even
contemplating, let alone be doing - the
ego can be a dangerous thing! Take the

[41]

Pauchui as an example. There are

students, whom I know, to have been
training for less then 2 years and already,
they are practicing the two-person form!
One would have to ask whether and if
they have fully understood the small sansau at this stage? Definitely not, would be
the answer! What they end up with, is a
hollow form, a dance - void of power and
essence. As if an affirmation of this point,
I was contacted not so long ago by one of
Erles overseas students, asking why it
was going to take me a year to teach the
Pauchui when it was a relatively short
form? I just shook my head at my
computer screen!
The same goes for double push hands. So
many rushing to do this and yet, I hear
Erles words ringing in my ears as if only
spoken yesterday - that it was in single
push hands where we understood and
developed our foundational skills. Again,
how many of us actually practice hours
upon hours of single push hands?
I remember once being asked by a fellow
practitioner at one of Erles sessions, how
often I would practice push hands? I
replied as often as I could and that for the
first few years of my training I used to
practice anything up to 3 hours a day,
every day with various partners, in fact
anyone I could get my hands on! The guy
was suitably impressed. I only became
aware that Erle was standing behind me
when he casually leant forward and said,
Nass, you lazy bugger, I thought you
trained harder than that? Try practicing
7-8 hours a day like we used to do at my
old school in Sydney - then you can
brag! He wasnt joking and I am certain
that his old students from Sydney would
happily confirm that!
I could go on with such stories and I have
no doubt that my older and more
esteemed colleagues - Wally Simpson,
Peter Smith, Peter Jones, & Al Krych could tell you even more. But, enough of
these. You dont need the monkeys to tell
you what the organ-grinder was saying.
Pick up any publication of Erles and
youll hear the man tell you himself - train
hard, train diligently. Do not rush and do
not omit parts of your training. The
system is set and taught in a particular
order for a reason. There are no short cuts.
Only hard work and loss. And when
you invest in loss, there is only one way
your stock can go - up!

wtba Summer camp 2012, leicester uk

Photography by Nasser Butt

My thanks to Nasser Butt and some feelings and stories about

my Dad
by Eli Montaigue
[42]

Early morning qigong.

A great camp, everyone leant a great deal of stuff, new as well as really grounding all their basics.
Last years camp, I had a lot of stuff I wanted to say, but it was too soon. So below is the speech I read out at lunch time on the Sunday
of camp. Monica Mitoli was also awarded level one instructors degree, a much deserved grading to a very dedicated student.
If any Instructor in the WTBA has helped me to make sure that I know I'm worthy of leading the system, and taking us forward from
where Dad left off, it's Nasser.
Some others would have doubts in my abilities, with me being young. Of course these are only the ones who don't know me, and have
not trained with me. Not that I ever had any doubts, I've always been very confident in myself to lead the system forward. Many other
instructors have been very supportive as well, but Nasser knows me the best. He's seen me grow from age 17 when I was just a very
basic level instructor, to what I am today.
So, if he thinks I've got what it takes to lead the WTBA, then I know I'm doing pretty well. Right from day one of Dad's passing, he
was the first person outside the family that I told.
I called him up that night, and he was his usual jolly self, in the middle of teaching a class, I think. He said Hey mate how is
everybody? I said, Ummmmmm, not too good actually! I've got some bad news for you. That was about all I could get out before
bursting into tears. He, of course, then knew it was something big.
I finally got out the words that he had had a heart attack, and Nasser just went into help mode, asking Where is he now? Is everyone
else ok? Thinking he was in hospital or something, wanting to know what he could do to help?
I then said, No.... he's gone... Dad's dead!
He didn't know what to say, as that just didn't seem like something that could happen. It was the most unexpected thing I could have
said. But I could feel from his voice how much he wanted to be there, like he was reaching down the phone wanting to hug me.
The first of Dad's workshops that I had to take, was the USA camp. That was very hard for me, as it had all been planned for Dad. He
had already bought our flights. I've been flying all over the world teaching since I was 18, but this was different. And when I got on
that plane and there was an empty seat next to me where Dad should have been, I felt lost. I kept remembering the year before when
we did the trip together, he was there laughing so hard at this film we were watching, nearly hitting the seat in front of him!
Every boys Dad is his hero.
And my Dad was the epitome of that, he was always like Superman to me. From when I was a little boy and he would throw us all so
high into the air to then land in the pool, or when we'd sit on the chair outside on the veranda under a blanket in a thunder storm. To
our last days together, training, when I could feel and appreciate his awesome power, that I knew would never hurt me, but only
protect me. His power came from his love for his family.
[43]

Getting ready to watch a movie. Yes, we have our own mini

cinema at the training studio complete with surround sound!

[44]

[45]

At that US workshop the year before, he was

on top game, he'd not been over there in about
10 years, and was throwing me all over the
place, showing how an old bloke could still
kick some arse. I got a great beating that
weekend!
Everyone was so amazed at how powerful He
was at 60 years old.You could never feel in
danger of anything when he was around. The
only thing I was ever scared of was loosing
him, cause I always knew that he would put
himself in the way of anything that would
harm his family. He really was the ultimate
hero Dad.
One day I was with him in Ammanford, and he
was hit by a car. Properly knocked over, with a
spin around and slamming onto the road. He
just got straight up and was fine! The couple in
the car had come back to see if he was ok, as
he was about 57 years old!

Anyone for breakfast?

But he just said, Nah I'm fine, don't worry I'm

superman!
They couldn't believe it, as most people of that age would have broken a hip or something! This figure in my life will never be
replaced, but the love and support from everyone helps me to find it in myself.
Anyway, the US camp. Nasser had gone out of
his way to make it to this one, to support me,
and when I got off the plane he was there to
meet me.
A friendly face and a big hug made me know
I'd be able to get through camp.
I also had a dream on the first night, before
having to teach.
Dad and I were teaching a class together
somewhere, having a great time messing about
as usual. He was showing a set of moves from
the form, and someone asked a question about
it, and so he did it again explaining it. Then he
looked over at me doing the same moves, and
just said, You know what, forget what I just
said, look at how he's doing it, that's exactly
how it should be done! And then raised his
voice to the whole class, and said He's your
leader now, follow him and trust in what he
says, I've taught him everything that can be
learnt. And then he stepped back and handed
the class to me, and said, It's your turn now.

Ben Montaigue & Sonnia Gough.

Now I know that seems like a big headed dream, but it wasn't from my mind, as I was feeling lost and insecure. I do believe it was
Dad talking to me. So, knowing I had Dad there with me in spirit, as well as Nasser in person, I was then full of confidence to run the
workshop.
Nasser has done so much to help me in heading the WTBA, making sure that everyone else also knows that I'm the one for the job.
Dad told me in his own words a year before he died, that I was a master of the arts. He said, Be confident my sonny, you know as
much as me now in what we teach.
Some people don't think that counts, they want to see paper. I don't give a shit, and nor do any of the people I care about. But even
still, Nasser has made sure that anyone who makes some remark about me being too young or something - that he stops them right
there, and tells them what's right.
Of course it's important for instructors to be graded, for your own knowing of where you're at, but mainly for the point of others
knowing what I think of you. It's a way of me showing how much I think of your Taiji, and so that others that can't train with me
directly can see what I think of each instructor.
[46]

Beautiful Kathleen.

[47]

From a combination of getting all the basics down over 7 years, then seeing Dad on a regular basis for 8 years, being completely
dedicated, and it being at a time when Dad had perfected his teaching methods, Nasser to me has taken the arts to the top. Dad
thought this as well, he would
always make comments to me in
our Llangadog classes, how
Nasser was the one he didn't
have to explain anything to, and
how he really understood the art
as we teach it.
Instructors in the USA, Canada,
and Australia in particular, have
also done so much to help, both
with their support, and setting up
of workshops and camps etc. My
life would be so much harder
without these people. And I want
to make sure that they know how
much I appreciate them as well,
and respect them as experts in
Taiji.

Dim-Maks 12 Deadly Katas

The first time I saw Nasser after

Dad's death, I know that I had
support. Not just with the
WTBA, but life in general. He's
like a big brother to me.
The times when I would have
gone to dad for advice, I know
I've got Nasser there to help me
now. I still speak to Dad all the
time, and nothing will ever fill
the gap he's left. But it's nice
knowing I've got someone in the
physical form to look out for me
in life. He is a lot like Dad in
many ways.
With regard to Dad's training,
and life with the WTBA, what he
would have wanted for it etc, no
one knew him like I did. And in
our last days together, we had all
the same views and ideas. So I
do this on his behalf.

Checking Sonnia & Tonys Push Hands.

So!..... By the power given to

me, by my Dad, Erle Montaigue,
The Grand Master and Founder
of the WTBA:

I, Eli Montaigue, world leader of

the WTBA, Master Degree, and
Lineage holder to the Old Yang
Style and the Erle Montaigue
system. As well as holding a Grandest of supremely grand master degree and doctorate in the Chinese internal martial arts. Which is a
proper certificate that is officially official by order and other official stuff, due to the fact that it was signed by an actual Chinese
person! (That Leigh found walking down the street in Swansea.) Awarded by my students at Wel Hung Martial Arts School in
Swansea, ha ha (So I think that's all the authority I need for this!).
As a way of saying thank you to Nasser, and acknowledging his dedication, support and expertise in the internal arts, I award Nasser
Butt the degree of Master. I, also, declare Nasser Butt as WTBA Vice President of the world.
I cried my way through this speech at camp, as I finished and pulled out Nasser's certificate, I looked over to Nasser, and was about to
lose it, so I went over to him and gave him a big hug. We both stood there having a good strong cry, then after a while I got everyone
else to join in for a big group hug around Nasser.
It was very beautiful and emotional, after that we all beat shit out of the kick bags!
[48]

Faith & Ben practicing double push hands.

Irene testing her punch on Eli.

Mark practicing qigong.

Elissa doing 3 Circles.

Eli testing Sarbs peng.

Irene & Monica practicing double push hands.

[49]

Taiji gave me four hands, four legs & a small headlike growth on my shoulder! Elissa & Evert.
Dev, Mark & Carlos.

Coops and Crompton!

Monica Mitoli receiving her Instructors certificate.

More qigong!

[50]

Remco working the bag.

Eli reading his speech.

[51]

THE
USE OF
TENSION

hen people talk about a principle centered martial arts, we often

wonder what they mean. 20 years ago we simply did karate. Talking about
learning a principle centered martial art verses a non-principled martial art is
all a little confusing. If we described the two different approaches to Martial
arts as One is a collection of ideas, possibilities and pathways to a limitless
area of knowledge and expression, the other a collection of techniques
limited by memory and practice. All you have to ask yourself is which
would you prefer to learn.
Sometimes when you walk into a Dojo you know you are in a special place
not because of what is hanging on the wall, rather by the quality of people
who are standing in the hall. You will usually find that this instructor was
also blessed with an equally great instructor.
This is a story of my Karate experience...

Gord Hill

Blessings come in many shapes and sizes. Our instructors blessing came in
the shape of... principles! He didnt tell us that is what he was doing.
Instead, he taught us methods that helped us forget about things for a
moment, and let our bodies do the work. And really, that is what you want!
A principle that is only in your mind is useless to you.

The one method that has had the largest impact on my life and martial arts, and in fact, is one that is easily adaptable to your
study of internal martial arts, is simply called Tense-Release.
We were taught to do the karate punch in an unusual way. We were told to put our punching hand at our hip in a fist, and extend
our other hand in front of us. The unusual part came when we were told to squeeze our whole body as hard as we could. Then,
when we released the tension, we were to punch forward. The next time we tensed our body was for the next punch, and not like
most people learn, to tense at the moment of hitting the target, which karate proponents call KIME, or focus or power.
Our sensei never just gave us something with no way to test to see if it worked. With the punch, we were told to do a normal
punch with KIME, and pause for testing. The testing was simply to have a partner push back against the punching fist. We found
that because of tension in the arm and torso from the KIME, the punch was very easy to collapse, unbalancing the puncher. This
meant that if you hit someone with that punch, it would break under the pressure of the attack, and end up not being effective. By
using the Tense Release method, we found that the punch was more solid. The puncher was able to absorb a hit to the fist,
which indicates that the transfer of force would be more successful. It is my belief that one of the reasons that old time karate
teachers advocated the use of the makiwara. Hitting the makiwara repeatedly taught the body to relax and absorb the pressure
that was exerted by the practitioner. I believe that my teacher taught us this method because most people dont have regular
access to a makiwara, and he wanted us to get similar benefits. In the 13 years I was a part of that school, I never saw him do it,
but I have heard from my seniors that our teacher broke makiwara with one punch.
The beauty of learning a principle is that it applies to everything you do. In this case, it works with ALL techniques! When you
SET for a technique, TENSE, then relax your body fully and do the technique. It takes time to retrain your body to do this, so
take your time!
If this was only good for martial arts, it would be enough as it will transform a tremendous amount of stuff for a student.
However, it goes deeper than just karate!
When you tense, you are allowing your mind, body, and spirit to settle. Then with relaxation, you are able to respond more
rapidly, allowing you to move better overall.
How many of you have been stopped at a red light, and the driver next to you is inching forward? Watch for these jokers! I love
watching them try to beat the light! They rarely, if ever can time it right. Why? Because they are too busy outside themselves,
trying to guess a light change, that they miss how to be really fast! To worry about what THEY are doing!
When these folks are beside me, I simply hold the brake and relax. This is what we could call the TENSE part (pressure on brake
pedal). When the light changes, you ONLY have to worry about pressing on the gas! They timer has to now worry about NOT
hitting the brake, where his foot is, and where the gas is. Because of his movement, he has actually slowed himself up.
It is so humorous to be of the way down the block while they are still crossing the intersection! Ok, that I am exaggerating, but
not by much!
This is the story of my taiji training
In taiji, the last thing we want to do is to start tensing our muscles to do every posture, although, for an exercise, this may help a
person learn about the posture. But DONT overdo it! That said, there is a more effective way to use the tense release principle
in an internal martial art, and in my experience, when you get this sort of tension correct, it literally makes the postures do
themselves.
[52]

The most popular sequence in taiji is Grasp Swallows Tail. I

will use the movement Rollback to Chee, well, both of them
in the Old Yang style form as it repeats a similar movement
twice and doing one Chee is found in all Yang taiji styles.

Wallys
Corner

When you watch this movement done by many people, you

start to notice that they want to rush the change over from Lu
to Chee. I know, because I was guilty of this for a long time!
When we learn this movement properly, we learn that the
movement called Lu, or Rollback, is done so that the hands
point almost to the North. That means that the torso twists
90 degrees from East to North. This is the same in the
movements preceding Chee and Lower Chee in the Old Yang
style.
When you watch the Old Yang style performed, we noticed
that this rollback movement is shortened a great deal. I am
not sure exactly why that is, but if I take me as an example, I
thought I could be Erle Montaigue! I saw that that was how
he did it when he did his form in the advanced way, so it
must be the correct way! And to be truthful, that IS correct
for him! But for the person who isnt at that level, the basic
way of moving to 90 degrees is a much better deal. Heres
why.

This question was posted in our facebook group.

By twisting the body to the north, while keeping the lower

body and hips mostly to the east, we store tension in our
waist. As we release this tension to the east, all we then have
to do is raise our hands slightly into position and the posture
that is expressed is Chee. The movement becomes a simple
raising of the arms with the release of the twisting tension in
the waist.

Wally: How much Mucus? Is your Stool formed?

Are there visible food particles other than seeds in
your stool? How is you appetite, do you eat because
you are hungry or because it is meal time? How are
your energy levels? Do you wake up feeling good or
does it take a little while to get moving in the
mornings? If damp in the body is a problem then you
could try the following. Do stork spreads wings and
wave hands like clouds as a Qigong to tonify the
Spleen Qi.

PM: I have a health problem. Since childhood I have

had mucus appear in my stools. Im a bit
underweight, over thinking not on taiji but other stuff
in life, though otherwise healthy. no weakness in
constitution, eating good foods... this has been with
me a long time and I want to get over it.

It is even more important in the next group to Lower Chee!

For some reason, I find that the twist is even greater in this
posture!

Ginger both dried and fresh helps eliminate damp rice - barley - yellow vegetables & fruit as long as
they are warmed can be helpful.

So, in taiji, we arent tightening up our body, but we ARE

twisting our body on the Yin phase (yes, I am aware that the
above is not that way, but I am simplifying here), the Yang
phase just happens with the release of that tension.

PM: Mucus not much but still quite visible and

distinguishable.Yes, my stool is formed it used to be
loose but now its becoming, I think, as it should be.
No, none visible food particle. I eat because Im
hungry, energy levels seem a bit down it can be
improved upon because I have had days where Im
more energetic than usual. It takes a while to get
moving in morning (its quite disturbing as Im only
23!)....how long for stork spreads its wing on each
side and wave hands?

When I practice my forms, I am always looking for these

built in tension spots. That way, I dont have to think about
the postures, I just worry about getting the twists correct.
I hope you play around with this idea. It is something that
can literally make the art simple (but not easy!) I thank you
for taking the time.

Wally: Try for 3 minutes per side and do 9 repeats of

both sides. Make sure you are breathing into your
Dan tien. Dont try to do reverse breathing. Just as
you breathing in, the lower abdomen goes out and as
you are breathing out the lower abdomen goes in.
Keep it simple and try to empty your mind - this is
where healing begins in a no mind state. Same as
Wave Hands like clouds do it as a series of static
Qigongs holding each pose for 3 breaths before
moving to the next pose.
Health and happiness.

[53]

New guidelines for WTBA

Instructors
Due to recent happenings in the WTBA,

Maybe you do other styles as well, youre

welcome to incorporate other things
I am going to be putting down new youve learnt into your classes, so long as
guidelines for WTBA instructors.
you tell your students what they are
learning.
I get many complaints from students
around the world, who have been learning All the main Taiji and Bagua forms
from one of our instructors somewhere, should be taught as I teach them, you can
by where they have put a lot of time and do them how you like. But when you
effort into learning a form, then to find t e a c h
a
beginner,
out from me or the DVDs, that their they are
teacher was teaching them the form
wrong.
This is for two reasons.

WTBA NEWS &

EVENTS

1, people get their level 1 instructors

degree, and then think they can go and
start teaching and not come to classes
anymore. And then over time, fall into
bad habits. There is no excuse for this, as
all you have to do is check up on the
DVDs, or come to a class every now and
expecting
then. I travel to most places, so there to learn from
s o m e o n e
really is no excuse for most people to not representing me, and therefore, the way I
come to a class once a year to be checked would teach.
out.
Of course you can put in your own ways
Some of our most advanced instructors of getting the information across etc,
still come to camps to check they are teach how you want. But what I mean is,
doing things right, so if they feel its if I say you should be doing the strike
needed, then all level 1s should be seen along the circumference of the circle, and
on a regular basis.
youre teaching your students to strike
into the centre, thats wrong!
2, people think they know better, and
start doing it their own way.
I recommend to all instructors, but in
particular those of Level 1 to 3, to get my
I f y o u t h i n k y o u h a v e a b e t t e r new online lessons on the YLC form, and
understanding of the Internal arts than Small San Sau. I will also be doing the
Erle Montaigue, then start up your own same thing with the Bagua forms.
school! But dont claim to teach for the These will teach you everything you need
WTBA if youre teaching your own thing. to know about how you should be
This is simply confusing for students, if teaching these forms.
you are teaching for the WTBA, a student
is expecting to learn what I teach, the way The New Guidelines.
I teach it.
Very simple, come to a class once a year.
I dont mean this to the effect of running
your classes exactly like I do, you can do Its really not much to ask, come on guys,
it how you like. But with regard to a form, show some support to the school youre
or a specific training drill like Push hands meant to be teaching for. I simply cannot
etc, these things should be taught the have people out there teaching stuff
same by all instructors.
wrong. Its my job to make sure that
students are getting good quality teaches.

Eli Montaigue

[54]

And I cant do that if I dont see you. So

come to a class, or set up a workshop for
your own club and Ill come down there.
There is really no excuse, like family
commitments, or lack of money etc.
Its one day out of 365, and 30 for a day
workshop, thats less than 9 pence per
day.
And if you really really just cant make it,
well then film your form and send it to
me. But it will still cost you 30.
Of course this does not apply to everyone,
people in places that I do not visit, like
India, and south America etc.
And some of our instructors that have
been with us for decades, and are of a
higher level, and have already done so
much to support the WTBA. Of course I
would still love to see you as well, but if
you have settled down and spending time
with your grandchildren etc, I dont
expect people to keep coming for the rest
of their lives. And I trust that you have
been doing it long enough to keep doing it
right anyway.
This message is more so aimed at those
basic instructors and Level 1s.
I will contact those in question personally.
But you know who you are, you slackers!
Come on down to a class, we miss you!

[55]

OTHER DATES
FOR YOUR
DIARY IN 2013
Norway
March
3/4th
2013
Goirle
holland
March
9/10th
2013
Usa may
2013
Dates tba
France,
Montaigu
June 15/16th
2013

UK summer camp 2013

July 26-28 (Friday-Sunday)
Venue: Unit 36 Second Floor, Faircharm Trading
Estate, Evelyn Drive, Leicester LE3 2BU.
Cost:

150 training only

All participants must secure their own food & accommodation

arrangements this year. There are several local B&Bs as well as a premier
inn nearby to meet everyones needs. Food can be purchased conveniently
and can be consumed at the school. Please contact Nasser if you need any
further local details.
Camp this year will be shorter to allow for more flexibility and budgetary
controls in order to help everyone tailor it for their own needs.
Please forward all your deposits (75, non-refundable) to Eli by no
later than 30th June 2013 to register for the camp.
This camp we will be covering a very special and interesting subject, the 12
Qi Development Tools Medical Applications.
Anyone who has already learnt these tools will know what powerful
qigong's they are.
For myself personally they did more for my internal training than anything
else.
After learning these, my form jumped several steps forward. I finally started
to feel what I had seen in Dad all these years. So I am very excited about
teaching their medical applications (meaning doing it to someone else as a
treatment).
Helping others is our primary goal in the WTBA, so these will give you that
ability. And will enhance any other treatment work that you might already
be practicing.
Dad was very excited about finally teaching these to the world, but sadly
never got the chance. So I will now do that for him and take you through
these amazing healing methods at the 2013 UK summer camp.

Canada
september
2013
Dates tba

We will, also, be going through YLC's form, working on one third each
day.

More to come.
Check taiji world
For updates!

To get the most of of any camp, you should look at what will be taught,
and learnt it before you come. That way you can actually learn something
at camp, rather than just trying to remember moves.

It is hoped that most people will have learnt the basic shell of the form by
now, so I do not have to teach it right from scratch. This way we can get
through more.
Plus Push Hands and other training methods of course.

See you there!

[56]

[57]

I took this picture when I went to see Sandy & the

kids on Erles passing. He was asleep on his
blanket next to Erles chair.

Passed away a few weeks ago to once again go

walking with his master.

Erles beloved dog, Blue...

Nasser Butt

USEFUL CONTACTS
Erle Montaigue
www.taichiworld.com
Moontagu Books & Video Ltd
PO Box 35
Gwynfe, Llangadog
SA19 9SY
Wales UK.
+44 (0) 1550 740136: Ph:
07868361519 MOB

Eli Montaigue
Head of WTBA &
Chief Instructor WTBA
eli@taiji-bagua.co.uk

WTBA Vice-President &

Senior Instructor
Editor Combat & Healing
http://www.fajing-chuan.co.uk
CombatandHealing@gmail.com
explosivefist@googlemail.com
07792242150

Peter Smith
Senior Instructor
WTBA Representative for the
United Kingdom
Email C/O Georgina Smith:
bussysmith777@yahoo.co.uk

Al Krych
Chief Instructor USA
wtbausa@comast.net or
wtbausa@hotmail.net
(908)303-2941.

[58]

COMBAT&HEALING
83, THE FAIRWAY
OADBY
LEICESTER
LE2 2HP
ENGLAND
UK.

MOONTAGU BOOKS &

VIDEO WALES, UK

the longest running & largest series of the highest

quality content on the internal fighting/healing
systems of china
by

erle montaigue
(master degree, china)

PO Box 35
Gwynfe, Llangadog SA19 9WR
Wales UK
www.taijiworld.com
[59]

[60]