Tai Chi provides some peace

With final exams and papers looming on the horizon, it was clear to the more than 30 people who attended Tuesday night's Tai Chi lesson that a class on relaxation could not have come at a better time. A diverse group of students and faculty members gathered in the auditorium of the Christian Association building for their last Yan Xin Qigong Tai Chi class of the year. Sponsored by the Office of the Vice Provost for University Life and Student Health Services, the extracurricular class met this past semester for formal Tuesday classes and three informal weekly review sessions. Yan Xin Qigong Tai Chi combines two elements: the ancient Chinese martial art of Tai Chi, and Yan Xin Qigong, a form of traditional internal Qigong methods taught by Yan Xin, a world-renowned Tai Chi and Qigong master. Xin's goal, he said, is to help others incorporate his methods into Tai Chi training in order to develop a connection between the mind, body and soul. Tai Chi is also used as an aid to relieve stress and pain. Long Gao, a long-time Tai Chi instructor and practitioner who, with Xin, taught the course for the entire semester, said, "Our goal is not just martial arts. It is mainly for health and the improvement of the efficiency of body and mind." Gao is also the president of the Health Institute of Martial Arts in Malvern, a Philadelphia suburb. That's not to say that these goals are easily achieved. In fact, serious daily practice and occasional pain are necessary to achieve this connection. "A student in Tai Chi needs to practice to keep the energy going. That is key," Gao said. During its last meeting, the class practiced various Qigong Tai Chi forms, a series of continuous flowing movements aimed at promoting agility, calmness and patience. "More importantly the classes were about the internal energy, what people call the 'Qi,'" Gao said. "People can feel the energy around them." Jenette Wheeler, a physician with SHS and faculty co-sponsor of the sessions along with SHS colleagues Max King, Marjeanne Collins and Barry Kneally, said, "I feel more like a whole and integrated person when I practice Tai Chi." Added Julio Gonzalez-Atavales, a post-doctorate student in Neurology and longtime practitioner, "The class allows me to experience Yan Xin more deeply. I have already improved my Tai Chi skills and have experienced Qi." Even first-time students show evidence of improvement. Wen-Chi Wu, a doctoral candidate in the Dancing Department at Temple University and one of the class' teaching assistants, said, "Just by teaching the review sessions I see that they feel more concentrated? that their energy has developed a great deal." There has been such positive feedback that Kneally said he hopes to continue the class in the future. Collins agreed: "We have an active interest in keeping the program next year. We'd like to see it become a viable program at the University."