FREE MAN

The good teacher that I was about to be presented by Chen Mao Sen, as promised, was not less than the direct son of the Illustrous Master Chen Fa Ke: Chen Zhao Kui. First let's return to 1928, when Chen Fa Ke accepted Chen Zhao Pi's invitation to Beijing. He lived in Bejing Xuanwumen Luoma Shi (Rome City) , Guozigang Hu tong, Henan Hall, as

a professional teacher of Tai Chi Chuan. He will be rapidly recognized as "Beijing's Top Ranking Number One Tai Chi Expert". We can say that in some ways, Chen Zhao Pi has opened the doors of Beijing to the Taichi Chuan of Chen Jiagou village.

In 1933, Chen Fa Ke will bring his son Chen Zhao Kui to Beijing too as to reunite all his family in the same city.

In 1973, Chen Jiagou administration invited Chen Mao Sen to teach Tai Chi Chuan. But Mao answered: " I cannot teach (Tai Chi Chuan) anymore and (Chen) Zhao Pi has left this world. So if you, new generation of youngsters, want to really learn Tai Chi, you'd better go to Beijing and asked (Chen) Zhao Kui." Following these words, Wen County Administration representatives went to Beijing and brought back Chen Zhao Kui.

Back in Chen Jiagou Village, Zhao Kui was sharing the home of Mao Sen, this was quite normal as members of the same family but also of the same boxing clan. At that time Mao Sen was in charge of anything regarding Zhao Gui.

One thing I'll be eternally grateful to Mao Sen is the telegram he sent me asking to come in Chen Jiagou. This travel from Zhenzhou city to ou Chen Jia Gou village, I did it already seven times. So in Chen Jiagou, I have been many times with this famous Chen Mao Sen, at many occasions I was hoping that he would teach me boxing, but until this moment, he did not. Now he want to present me directly to Master Chen Zhao Kui. When I received his telegram, I felt so grateful and so excited. I felt getting the reward of my efforts and perseverance in striving to learn the real Tai Chi Chuan: a goal which never left me.

Was it predestination? Fate? Anyway from than on my life was tied with Tai Chi Chuan.

The meeting with Chen Zhao Kui, was for me the real moment when I entered the door of Tai Chi Chuan.

The telegram of Chen Mao Sen sent in May 1973 was saying: "8 may, Chen Zhao Kui will make a demonstration in Kai Feng, come and see."

I took a leave of absence from his work in the factory. On May 8 in Kaifeng city I came to attend the performance of Chen Zhao Kui. In myself I was thinking:"He is so famous and his level should be very high, with so much skills, this should be outstanding!" But than came the real performance and as Zhao Kui was finishing his Taolu I was quite embarrased and I would confess a bit disappointed as I did not see anything special in his routine. Why was I thinking this? Because all these years I'm used to gaze in any park watching tai chi pratitioners, including last year in Chenjiagou: I did not much difference, it was almost the same kind of routine.

And so this was how as a first time I met my future master of Chen Tai Chi Chuan Zhao Kui. I was filled with some strange thoughts and even making me feel very uncomfortable. But due to all respects to his high status and fame, all these thoughts: I could only keep them for me silently as I could not dare saying anything about it.

Then as planned, we invited Chen Zhao Kui in Zhengzhou for further lectures adressed to many local Tai Chi Chuan enthusiasts, this eventually took us to the evening of May 8, in fact, it was already the morning of May 9, at 3 o'clock. So late and so hot too. We landed in the garage of the pharmaceutical factory of Zhengzhou City. All window curtains closed,it was very hot and we had borrow just one fixed electric fan. Zhao Kui was very corpulent, I remember that there was Zhang Qilin, Zhang Maozhen, Zhang Fuju, Chen Zhen Lei, Wei Caishou... totaling about a dozen people. All were expecting to train and get some advises from Zhao Kui. In the same time everyone was not daring to demonstrate and get criticized. At that time Chen Zhenlei showed up and said: “Zhang Zhijun, there‘s quite a long time we did not see you practicing, I ‘d really like to see your skills, please come and show us.”At this moment, I was thinking: “I was been practicing for several years, this should be too bad, so why not performing a bit.”

After a few postures Master Chen Zhao Kui grabbed me. From these few movements he started to teach us. First he said that I was too stiff and too fast. He said also many other things that I cannot remember now. The only things that I recorded was four points: 1) Too fast 2) Too rigid 3) Center of gravity should move horizontally 4) shoulder and elbow should not sink. Then I turned towards me and said very solemnly: “For someone who trained just a few years, this is not bad, but honestly speaking, none of your forms are right.”Then he continued his lessons, taking me as an example, explaining then how to perform correctly “shoulder sinking, elbow dropping” and “how important was to have -roots- under one’s foot”.

Just after this, he placed his hands very lightly on Zhang Fuju then with a gentle slap Zhang jumped up immediately, very frightened. Having followed this scene very closely, I felt immediately like an electric shock, unable to understand at all. “How can he make Zhang jump with such a gentle force?” This was meaning for me that I did not understand anything in Tai Chi until now. This explains how confused I after seeing his performance. Moreover I just added that none of my forms were correct.

This night I was not able to sleep thinking incessantly about Zhao Kui’s four points.

Next day morning as we accompanied him to the train station, he told to me very solemnly: “Zhijun. Practice very diligently, you have potential”. These words moved me deeply. After all why did he say so? Was it a simple encouragement? Or maybe polite words? Inspiration? This made me confused for very long time but it has definitively modified my vision (of Tai Chi Chuan). Once back home, I immediately took a piece of paper and wrote on it these following words: “Stable and smooth performance, slowly and flexible, drop elbow and sink shoulder.”

After finishing writing this commandment, I stlicked it on the wall. These are the lines of my new training program.

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