Originally posted by Scott R. Brown
[B]Gentlemen,
This is a very fascinating subject. I guess I will throw my two cents into the fray.
It is my understanding that Tai Chi’s main purpose is to develop one’s internal energy for the purpose of personal development first and self-defense secondly. Why is this? By developing our character and by extension our spirit we transcend the need for violent actions. This occurs as a consequence of the development of maturity and the expansion of our understanding and awareness. Understanding provides the individual with the knowledge of how and why conflicts occur and how they can be AVOIDED. Awareness provides the ability to perceive when circumstances are developing towards conflict. The superior student then intervenes before conflict acquires enough momentum to spiral into violence. Maturity provides us with motivation for applying our understanding and awareness in a violence avoiding manner.
By accommodating ourselves to the Tao we are able to flow through life and its phenomena like water. That is, in a responsive, flexible and flowing manner. The violent actions and intents of others are not interpreted by us as violence against us, but as actions that carry the potential of harm to us or others, therefore we have no ego-centric need to retaliate or return violence for violence. We then choose to redirect the violence in a manner that causes the least amount of injury to ourselves and the aggressor while still neutralizing the attack. Our actions are a result of objective observation and not of subjective emotional motivations. (i.e. “How dare he attack me” or “I’ll teach him not to mess with me” etc.)
The question is less a matter of what is functionally effective in combat and more a matter of how one can perceive the possibility of violence ahead of time and avoid conflict all together. This occurs as a consequence of maturity and wisdom, not skill. It is possible to “only” develop one’s character and spirit and be an effective martial artist. This person will have the ability to perceive potential violence prior to its eruption and intervene in a manner that dissipates the energy more productively or in circumstances that do not allow for the avoidance of violence provide the individual with the insight to leave the vicinity.
One may be effective in the physical aspects of Tai Chi or other internal styles and still not understand or develop the aforementioned abilities. This person only has a superficial understanding of Tai Chi and Taoism and has not understood the deeper meanings and goals.
The most effective physical martial skills to develop are also the easiest to learn. They are simply the body movements necessary to empty space and avoid being struck. It is not necessary to learn how to kick and strike if our goal is merely to avoid injury. If we want to quickly and effectively neutralize an attack it is much simpler to purchase some pepper spray, avoid the attack through body movements, then spray the attacker in the eyes, so much for 50 years of training for hours and hours everyday.
If our purpose is to defeat an opponent with greater skill, we can use strategy and tactics effectively to take him out. Stealth and or overpowering odds are the most effective means here. I can sneak up on my adversary and bash him in the head with a baseball bat. I can slit his throat with a straight razor. I can shoot him from 50 feet away with my .357. All these have been done to experienced martial artists, so much for years and years of training.
If we are training in the martial arts in this modern world for the sole purpose of being a “bad ass” or to protect ourselves from assault and not for some other, higher, purpose we are being foolish. There are much more effective and less time consuming ways to effectively defend ourselves than spending hours a day in martial arts training.
The question was posed, “How many Tai Chi schools do you know of to field fighters in MMA?” I would ask how many schools care about producing field fighters? It is not the inherent purpose of Tai Chi to produce fighters, but superior individuals with the collateral skill of being able to defend themselves in many, but certainly not all circumstances. Fighting is a last resort. Running away is always more effective and the more morally, ethically and legally preferable choice. It is ego-centeredness that motivates most people to stand and fight. This is immature and not a goal Tai Chi.
The purpose of the Taoist is to accommodate ourselves to the patterns of life in order to live a more successful, happier life. Training to perpetrate violence or to be a “bad ass” does not accomplish this. Training to avoid conflict and violence does. The Tao does teach us that there is violence in the world. The Tao teaches us to use the most effective and least energy consuming means to transform violent intent into a more productive form of energy. Tai Chi provides a framework for developing these skills. Running away and/or pepper spray are more economical and effective means of reducing the risk of injury from an assailant however, and therefore more in accord with the Tao.
Tai Chi is primarily an attitude acquired through the understanding and proper application of Tai Chi principles. One could conceivably apply these principles and attitudes to any other system of martial arts and still be performing Tai Chi. It is not the action performed, but the attitude behind the action that gives it meaning.
One last thought. I have seen the term “Humanistic Taoist” or something of the like used a number of times. One can not be a Humanist and a Taoist at the same time, at least not without redefining the terms, which in and of itself is a humanistic act. Humanism believes that man is the measure of all things. Man defines and determines right and wrong, good and bad, value and insignificance. The Humanist is a pragamatist and seeks to perform actions that benefit the greatest numbers of individuals or his own purposes. The Humanist disregards the higher concepts of good and bad, right and wrong or the greater consequences of his actions. The Nazi’s were humanists. They determined that the highest good was the elimination of the Jews. They redefined good and bad, right and wrong according to their own principles and thus justified their actions in their own minds.
The Taoist recognizes that there is a higher intelligence/consciousness and that we are to understand and bring ourselves into accord with this intelligence. A Taoist accepts that there is something greater than himself and seeks to understand the principles/patterns of this Greatness and accommodate himself to its principles rather than his own principles.
The Taoist conforms himself to the patterns of Nature, the Humanist attempts to conform Nature to himself. The Humanist is a fool because he cannot perceive the flaws of his thinking and cannot see beyond the boundaries created by his own ego. A Humanist would not allow anything other than his own system of measure to determine his actions. A humanist is eternally bound by his ego, because his ego is the measure of all things to him. The Taoist recognizes that his ego is merely a portion of his greater identity and does not allow it to rule his actions, but relegates it to areas of life for which it was designed. The Taoist recognizes that Life is greater than he and it is us who are to conform to the patterns of Life, not Life to us. The Taoist does this not because he is compelled to by the Tao, but because he has come to recognize that it is in his best interest to do so. Life is greater than the individual and Life will always win. The Taoist chooses to be on the winning team, so to speak, because he recognizes this is where a successful life resides. [/B]
I think I am seeing a little unclear about Tao and Taichi in here. Tao is the final goal of what Taichi aim to achieve. But being qualified as Taichi don’t have to be at the final destination of Tao.
however, you have explained why there is no high level internal martial artists in tournament, it is vitally against the Tao that they are followed.
But nowadays, just look at all the people in the MA world, who believed that only pains would gain, brutal force would win, only fight and keep save and being who they are, believed in donmination rather than harmonation.
I see the tounament as a so call “yan”, and it is a good yan if you have the right motive, bad yan if you have the wrong motive.
So as you have said, the ego, the self-pride, to rely on beating others to secure the self confidence…these are all bad yan. People will fall into a bottomless trap by having these.
I am thinking of to find out a higher level of MA knowledge, to physically domostrate the Tao. To make friend and found partners on the journey of aquire Tao. These are good yan.
From the way you wrote, it seems to me that the Humanism is only a incomplete partial Tao of the lower level.
What do you think?