Master TT Liang: Golden Pheasant Stands On One Leg

The first book we were told to read by John R. Kells when I was learning Yang Family taijiquan back in the day was TT Liang’s T’ai Ch Chuan for Health & Self Defence. It’s one of the few books on the arts that seems to have vanished from my little library… however, I recall it provided an excellent way into the art. TT Liang was quite a character, a senior student of Master Cheng Man Ching and thanks to recent post by Bruce Franzis (Energy Arts) here’s a few inspiring words from one of his books:

At first I take up T’ai Chi as a hobby,
Gradually I become addicted to it,
Finally I can no longer get rid of it.
I must keep on practicing for my whole life-
It is the only way to preserve health.
The more I practice, the more I want to learn
from teachers and books.
The more I learn, the less I feel I know.
The theory and philosophy of T’ai Chi is so
profound and abstruse!
I must continue studying forever and ever . . .
It is the only way to improve and better myself.
-T. T. Liang