Why learning a weapon in the 21st century can still have meaning
If one element appears anachronistic to a 21st century urban warrior, then it surely is the training in sword that Tai Chi practitioners across the world love to promote: broad-sword, staff, fan, ruler, compass, ice-cube, poppadom, tortilla, fish-finger…the list of Tai Chi weapons is as endless as the spelling of Tai Chi, or is that Tai ji, or perhaps Taijiquan or…
So how useful are these weapons for street defence? Or is this, like so much of conversation around the martial arts, just an obsession with application? How big is your weapon?
Well, some would argue that the Tai Chi sword form skills are always very useful if, for example, the supermarket cheese slicing machine has broken down and the assistant is asking if anyone should be carrying a large slicing implement on their person, then the trusty sword tai chi practitioner is always there to help. Others, however, argue that such weapons are merely metaphors fulfilling an interesting function at this crossroads in our Tai Chi evolution. Sword play takes us outside the old dusty arena of martial monologues and into a new space where we learn once more about rhythm, adaptation and yielding.
But then, there are those that claim swords are inherently offensive articles and should be banned from even being mentioned. These people have obviously never attended a teapotmOnk sword class, in which all age groups wield wooden swords, mops, French baguettes (though sadly they rarely survive), bamboo walking sticks or plastic Darth Vader light beams.
We are not a precious bunch of practitioners and tend to use only what is at hand, for Sword play encourages the all important notion of “play”. And it is precisely when we relax in “play” that we learn the important stuff. Unlike the traditional taught Tai Chi Form applications — that always spark off ludicrous arguments about martial prowess and street defence practicalities — sword exercises side-step such nonsense, promoting a collective intrigue, experimentation and a fresh approach to learning and acquiring new skills. Rarely does the class degenerate into debates around energy projection from the tip of the blade, or best sword defences against an oncoming cruise missile.
And when we let go of the non-sense in Tai Chi — taught without egos or gurus — we find something that really has the capacity to become a revolutionary practice: For when the teacher steps aside, and engages rather than directs, something new is born. Out of this the art breathes not the dusty atmosphere of sweaty training halls from the 19th century, but fresh new air arising from the very place of practice and the very people that are practising.
This way of teaching a class creates its own agenda, and if this is something new to your martial background, then, in all honesty, it’s time to let go of the control switch, put down the reins of power and watch what happens when we learn from one another, rather than from the dusty tomes of past decades.
The mOnk has put together an entire training course for the 21st century sword player. No background experience necessary nor even the possession of a sword — such are the marvels of the online learning world. Pledging to wash away the dusty cobwebs of the past, sword training with the mOnk promises a new direction for learning and applying Tai Chi to your life.
Learn to leap tall buildings, run faster than a speeding bullet and become more powerful than a locomotive in this fascinating, beautiful and unforgettable new course.
Watch the 2 minute videos and find out more about learning this very special art at home.
Originally published at www.teapotmonk.com.
