The film “The Professor: Tai Chi’s Journey West” was interesting to watch. It was nice to know Professor Cheng Man-Ching’s journey and the struggles he faced. I always thought of Tai Chi as a fascinating type of martial arts used for defense and good health. It’s a way to meditate and exercise to maintain a healthy life. In India, people do yoga to relax themselves. I see Tai Chi as a type of yoga that relaxes people. Tai Chi has make people do some extraordinary things like break a wooden board. It can give one powers that otherwise would not be possible.
As Professor Cheng Man-Ching started teaching his students in New York, there was a special bond formed. Despite language barriers, he could connect with his students and teach them well. There are very few things that could be universally understood. Certain body language is understood throughout all cultures, and it was pretty evident in this documentary. Overall, I thought it was a good and an informative documentary to watch.
This documentary looks interesting. It’s too bad I wasn’t able to make any of the Friday night events this semester, otherwise I would have probably gone to seen it. I think it’s neat the point you made about how “certain body language is understood throughout all cultures.” Everyone understands a smile!
I think one of the common misconceptions surrounding Tai Chi is that it’s primarily for “old people”. Where I live, practitioners are typically the elderly in the public parks and they wake up super early to do so! I always thought this way too until my brother, who is only two years older than me, picked up Tai Chi several years ago.
Ever since, he’s always been telling me about the benefits of Tai Chi and the experiences that he has . Coincidentally, my brother actually learned Tai Chi from one of the successors of Professor Cheng Man-Ching in New York though his successor recently passed away from a heart attack. Nonetheless, Tai Chi really requires a body-mind connection and helps to hone in focus from what I’ve heard from my brother.
And though I personally couldn’t make it in time to watch this movie, I’ll certainly rent it out over the summer and watch it with my brother!
Hi Reshma! Thank you for sharing. I’ve been contemplating going to a yoga class for a long time now, however I never knew that Tai Chi could also serve as a type of yoga. I used to practice taekwondo, another form of martial arts, and don’t recall relaxing much, however I was a lot younger and perhaps did not appreciate the martial art as much as I could have. I’ve also heard that Taekwondo and Tai Chi are at opposite ends of the spectrum which might also be why I did not see it as a form of relaxing. Regardless, I’ll definitely look into!