Comments on: How to Spot Bad Qigong and Tai Chi Teachers

By: Lovely Liz

Lovely Liz — Fri, 02 Aug 2019 09:44:13 +0000

We don’t all start life with the same hand of cards. Some of us are recovering from illnesses that we’ve had from early childhood. Our posture might not be great, but it’s improving. Our skin tone might not glow compared to yours, but we feel better than we have ever felt before.
Qi Gong opens us to kindness, compassion, flow and non-judgment of others.
That’s the sort of teacher I have, and the teacher that I intend to keep. He glows from the inside.

By: Sifu Anthony Korahais

Sifu Anthony Korahais — Mon, 17 Jun 2019 10:08:36 +0000

In reply to Just a guy.

Dear Just a Guy,

First of all, it’s “there”, not “their”. Since you quoted Shakespeare, I feel that it’s fair game to correct your grammar.

Secondly, many students arrive on this page precisely because of their negative experience with bad qigong or tai chi teachers. In other words, a bad teacher led them to find a better teacher (me!). Interesting, no?

Third, it’s not just inexperience. Some teachers are VERY experienced, but they are bad because of their unethical or immoral behavior.

And fourth, many of us, myself included, look to good teachers for extra inspiration. This doesn’t mean that the teacher is the sole source of inspiration. It means that many of us struggle along the path and it’s often nice to get a helping hand.

By: Just a guy

Just a guy — Mon, 17 Jun 2019 04:45:04 +0000

I think it's funny that you think their are ''bad'' teachers. It's interesting that you use the word bad instead of inexperienced. What if these so-called Bad Teachers are the Catalyst you needed to bring you to the understanding of what a ''good''teacher is? Is it really up to the teacher to ''inspire'' you? Is that where inspiration comes from.. The teacher? Not for me. Nothing is good or bad, but thinking makes it so.

By: Sifu Anthony Korahais

Sifu Anthony Korahais — Wed, 17 Apr 2019 22:46:54 +0000

In reply to Matt Broomfield. I don't really need to explain that kind of to people. It's not my mission to "correct" other teachers. I prefer to spread my own message rather than criticize others. People won't listen anyway.

By: jose pomales nakai

jose pomales nakai — Fri, 15 Mar 2019 02:41:46 +0000

In reply to Sifu Anthony. the only teacher Ihad was my grandfather.He taught me my uncles and my sister. never told us that he was a master or anything like that. he only said he learn from his father. grandpa was born in japan. And the system was base on Japanese martial arts and sun style tai chi chuan. only train in his house everyday that was 54 years ago and I still train with my dauther and son my grandchildren have start to show interest in training now too.

By: Matt Broomfield

Matt Broomfield — Fri, 01 Mar 2019 14:37:20 +0000

How do you explain to beginners that what people like “Master” Jake Mace are calling tai chi is just a made up dance without any substance or tai chi principles?

By: Sifu Anthony Korahais

Sifu Anthony Korahais — Sat, 28 Apr 2018 13:15:15 +0000

In reply to Randall. Hi Randall. I agree that you can get great results even if the teacher is a jerk. I don't know how much you know about my own personal story, but this idea sums up a lot of my own learning in these arts.

By: Randall

Randall — Sat, 28 Apr 2018 02:37:13 +0000

Unfortunately, in the realm of a lot of these types of practices, the teacher may never live up to a person’s standards of excellence.

There is a series of qigong practices, originating from a particular school/system, where the teacher is more or less a jerk, but if one practices daily, the system does work. (There’s no point in bad mouthing the school so I’ll keep that person’s name to myself).

And yes, this teacher eats too many rich foods along with a hefty dose of alcohol, so he clearly doesn’t look all that great.

In my experience, the key is to separate the teachings from the persona of the teacher himself. Over a few short years, I’ve had some great success with qigong, with increased energy, ability to ward off colds/flus, lack of knee/back aches, and everyone has mentioned that I look younger than before I had started.

At the same time, I don’t spend any time with the founder of the system. I do the work on my own.

By: Karen Glotzer

Karen Glotzer — Sun, 04 Feb 2018 00:37:42 +0000

I have luckily had two very good Tai Chi teachers, and they were as yin and yang as possible. I learned a lot from both and have been practicing for twenty years. At the present time, I am publishing a book called Tai Chi: Poetry in Motion. It is not a how to do tai chi book. It is poetry that flows with the tai chi postures, and explains the philosophy of the art. There are also poems that honor some great artists like Bruce Lee. Some of the poems are ballads that are infused with tai chi fundamentals. I AM A RETIRED English teacher, who trained to be a teacher, with a Masters in Teaching degree.
In a nutshell, most schools are not taught by martial artist teachers. They are often taught by people who know little if nothing about educational theories of learning. Due to my motivation and persistence, I learned in spite of their weaknesses. I think an organization needs to be created to keep an eye on Martial Arts Schools. When my son took Karate, a substutute was put in place for Sensei, who was late. She, the substitute, was fourteen years old with about 35 little seven year old boys, unsupervised. Most parents didn’t know. They drop off their child and come back to pick them up. In conclusion, I think lack of teaching methodology is the problem. Sincerely, Karen

By: Sifu Anthony Korahais

Sifu Anthony Korahais — Mon, 22 Jan 2018 14:31:18 +0000

In reply to Carrie Cullen. I'm sorry you had that experience, Carrie. Unfortunately, I've had similar experiences myself. Unfortunately, you've put your finger on the pulse of a larger problem, not just in the qigong community, but in the entire mindfulness community worldwide.