ATTENTION! Did you know the Guang Ping Yang Tai Chi As- sociation offers Lifetime Memberships? The cost for a Lifetime Membership is $750, which can be paid in quarterly installments during the calendar year. If you are interested in becoming a Lifetime Member, contact our Membership Coordinator Julie Boddorf at membership@guangpingyang.org for more details.
Nonprofit Organization Volume 15 Issue 1 February 2012
The Universal Post GUANG PING YANG T’AI CHI ASSOCIATION
WHAT’S INSIDE
T’ai Chi Application 3
Donations/Attention Members 4
Farewell From Past President Randy Elia 8
First, I would like to
take this opportunity to
thank Randy for his
service to the GPYTCA
Member and as Board
nately, as Randy steps
down from being Board
President he will con-
2012 Conference Chair-
person, and has work-
ing very hard to secure a location for this year's conference
at Squaw Creek Resort. Thank you, Randy!
As I take the reins as Board President, I'm hoping that I will
serve as well as Randy and all the past Presidents have (or
at least not make a mess of things).
I would like to introduce myself with a brief history of my
involvement in martial arts.
I began my studies in martial arts back in 1973 with five
introductory lessons at Ki Mind and Body, a school of Ka-
rate on the east side of Milwaukee. For whatever reason, I
can't remember why, I did not continue to study there. Not
long after that, I took American Kempo Karate classes at
American Karate and Yoga Studio, also in Milwaukee. I
studied there for about one and one half years, never acquir-
ing any rank; I felt that the competition of this system was
too aggressive for me. I later learned about T'ai Chi and
tried to learn it from a book, but, as we all know, that does-
n't work well.
In 1980, I moved to Berkeley, California where I found
Wen Wu School. I began to study T'ai Chi with Master
Y.C. Chiang in the summer of 1981. I've been studying
Guang Ping Yang T'ai Chi ever since. I moved back to
Wisconsin in 1988 and began to teaching T'ai Chi in 1989.
In 1990, I founded Wisconsin Wen Wu School in Wausau,
Wisconsin. I also began to study Dayan (Wild Goose)
Qigong with Master Hui Liu in 1996 while Master Chiang
and Master Liu where visiting my home and students in
Wisconsin. (And, yes, they did buy some cheese!)
I've been an active member of the Guang Ping Yang T’ai
Chi Association since 1996 and have been to every confer-
ence except the first one. I
joined the Board in 2002 and served as
the Vice-President from 2003 until this
year. I've also been a member of the Teachers Certifica-
tion Committee since 2003 and Chairperson since 2009.
Since being back in Wisconsin I’ve made friends with
martial artists from other styles and am part of North
Central Instructors Black Belt Federation. Along the
way I’ve played a little Judo (very little) and I studied
Aikido for a few years, off and on, with Sensei Kennan
Purdy (the first Caucasian to receive a black belt in Ai-
kido) and Sensei Marcelo Coscio here in the Wausau
area.
I continue to study and practice Guang Ping Yang T'ai
Chi and Dayan Qigong daily and of course I never do
enough Standing.
I hope to serve the Association well during my term as
President and look forward to seeing all of you at this
year’s conference.
Guang Ping Yang T’ai Chi By Grandmaster Henry Look
Guang Ping Yang Tai Chi was
originated by the great Tai Chi
Master, Yang Lu-Chan, with
(1st and 2nd Generations).
age was passed down to only
three disciples. One of the
three was Wang Jiao-Yu (3rd
Generation). Wang in turn
was Kuo Lien Ying (4th Generation), who brought this
style to the United States in 1965. All the students who
studied directly from Kuo are considered 5th Generation.
As a young boy, Yang Ban Hou was exceptionally tal-
ented in martial arts with outstanding natural athletic
abilities. However, he hated the tough training that was
forced upon him by his proud father, Yang Lu-Chan, and
would often run away from home. Each time his father
would find him and drag him back home.
Although Ban-Hou hated his daily training, his natural
abilities helped him, and his martial arts improved very
rapidly. In a few short years when he became a grown
man, his martial arts abilities were unequaled, even more
superior than his own father's. Thus, his name became
famous and known throughout the Country.
In the 17th Century, when the Manchu from the north
invaded China, the Emperor put out a command to find
the best martial artist to teach his Royal Family and his
Imperial Guards. Yang Ban-Hou was considered the best
at that time and was ordered by the Emperor to serve as a
Royal Coach in the martial arts for the Imperial Court.
Ban-Hou did not like the Manchu, but knew that any re-
fusal to the Emperor's command would mean death (he
would be beheaded).
Ban-Hou did not wish to teach the true secrets of Guang
Ping forms to the Manchu invaders, so he deliberately
altered the movements into soft forms later known as Bei-
jing Style. The nightly Tai Chi sessions for the Royal
Family were conducted behind high brick garden walls
and closed high wooden gates.
One day, Ban-Hou, on his way to the Imperial Court
walking past the Royal Horse Stable, observed a young
stable boy practicing the same Tai Chi forms he was
teaching nightly in the Royal Garden. He confronted the
boy as to how he could know this style of Tai Chi so well.
The stable boy, named Wang Jiao-Yu, confessed that he
had learned the forms by spying on his teaching nightly.
Ban-Hou learned the boy was Chinese, not a Manchu,
and that they both came from the same city of Guang
Ping. He asked the boy if he was serious about learning
Kung-Fu from him. The boy immediately said yes and
dropped to his knees to pay respect and appreciation by
bowing to Ban-Hou one hundred times and with each
bow hitting his forehead against the hard stone pavement.
When Wang finished bowing. his forehead red and
bruised. Ban-Hou said to him. "If you really want to learn
real Kung-Fu from me, you have to bend down to touch
your chin to toe within 100 days." Wang Jiao-Yu prac-
ticed very hard daily and succeeded in touching his chin
to toe way before the 100 days passed and thereby be-
came one of the only three disciples accepted by Yang
Ban-Hou.
"After him! After him!" The town sheriff shouted com-
mands to his group of nine deputized pursuers. "Don't let
him get away! Chi-Li was known as the most elusive and
clever burglar in the Shantung area. He possessed great
talent and was trained in a very high skill of Chinese
Martial Arts. He could easily leap across a canal over
twenty feet wide or just as easily jump up eight feet to
roof tops to escape capture. On many moonlit nights, vil-
lagers would watch in awe this agile, nimble, dark silhou-
ette accentuated by the giant moon shining high above in
the sky as he skipped from roof top to roof top with a bag
of loot tied around his shoulder.
On this night, the sheriff and his deputies chased Chi-Li
into a dead-end alley, which lead to an ancient temple.
When the pursuers rounded the corner into the alley lead-
ing to the temple, they saw Chi-Li's figure lying on the
ground, knocked out cold with no sign of movement. The
sheriff and his men were amazed and puzzled as to what
had happened to this lifeless figure lying on the ground
before them. As they looked about the ground for some
explanation to this puzzlement, they saw an old man sit-
ting on the granite steps leading to the main entrance of
the old temple.
This old man was known to the town's people as "The old
man selling tea at the old temple." He dressed in dark
blue cotton clothing. He wore loosely fitted trousers with
the pant legs tied firmly around his ankles. He wore
(Continued on page 4)
T’AI CHI APPLICATION
There are many possibilities for the application of “Wave Hands Like Clouds.” I will present two: One attacking below the arm and on page 5 above the arm.
17) Wave Hands Like Clouds by Sifu Tom Carney
1
Sifu Tom Carney (left) blocks a punch from Pete (right) and grabs his wrist. At this point deciding to strike below or above (page 5) Pete’s arm.
Sifu Tom while pulling on Pete’s arm, strikes with an elbow to his floating rib, just below the sternum, or...
…to Pete’s face if Sifu Tom lets go of the arm. (See 4b on page 5 to continue from here)
2 3
4
Sifu Tom continues the as- sault by striking the groin and/or...
grabbing under Pete’s arm, pulling him forward and off balance (This is the transition in Wave Hands Like Clouds). Finally, Sifu Tom may strike Pete across the back of the head as he moves past him.
5
6
7
brown socks with black slippers. His loosely fitted jacket
had a straight row of cloth loops around cloth buttons
(what the modern age calls "Frog Buttons") up to his
neck. He demeanor was calm as he sat cross-legged with
palms resting gently on top of his knees. He sat behind a
dilapidated make-shift wooden stand, very much worn by
the weather. On top of the stand were many varieties of
dried tea leaves in dark and light-colored bamboo woven
baskets, which filled the summer breeze with a variety of
fragrant aromas.
As the sheriff questioned the old man, his eyes were
slightly closed and his head with short cropped hair rested
on a relaxed erect posture. He calmly denied having any
knowledge of what had happened to the burglar, Chi-Li.
When the sheriff and his men paraded through town
proudly with Chi-Li in tow and bound by ropes, words
were buzzing through the town that "The old man selling
tea at the old temple" possessed great skill in Kung-Fu.
From that day on the townspeople, young and old, went
to the temple grounds daily hoping to get a glimpse of the
old man practicing kung-fu. Some begged and begged to
become his disciple and learn from him. However, the old
man always denied that he knew anything about martial
arts, but was just an ordinary person selling tea to support
his life.
As the days and weeks passed people who had waited
from morning to night hoping to see kung-fu gave up and
slowly disappeared from the temple grounds. Eventually,
everyone had given up, except for one persistent young
(Continued from page 2) man. This young man changed his sleeping habit to dur-
ing the day so that he could observe the old man at night.
Night after night, he would go to the temple after dark
and wait until dawn before going home to sleep.
After three fruitless nights, half an hour after hearing the
town's time keeper bong! bong! bong! bong! the sound of
four beats (representing 4 am), which came from a stick
banging against a hollowed piece of bamboo, as he was
about to doze off, all of a sudden a dark figure appeared
amongst a group of young trees waving his arms and
hands in total coordination of his body and legs, like a
slow dance. Whenever he would push forward with his
palms, the nearby tree branches would bend with leaves
rustling as though they were being blown by a strong
wind. The dark figure moved slowly and smoothly like
gentle clouds floating in the sky. With each step, going to
and fro, his feet were placed on the ground very gently
and precisely. Yet, even with each movement being per-
formed very slowly, he could see and feel the great power
projecting out.
When the news of the "Tea Seller" having such great
Kung Fu abilities got out, everyone who could walk
wanted to study with him. Finally the "Tea Seller", Wang
Jiao Yu accepted four disciples. One of the four was Kuo
Lien Ying, who in 1965, brought the unique style of
Guang Ping Yang Tai Chi to San Francisco's Chinatown.
By Grandmaster Henry Look
(Edited by Matthew Peters)
E d i t o r ’ s C o r n e r Editor:
Sifu Thomas Carney Email:
members & especially teachers.
any material or article submitted for
publication.
The Universal Post and/or Universal Post, title of the Guang Ping Yang T’ai Chi Association’s newsletter, copyright 2007 by Guang Ping Yang T’ai Chi Association. All rights reserved. Non Profit Organization.
Donations
Nina Deerfield Jillian Phillips
Ira Esformes Jo Presbury-Smith
Donald Hediger JoAnna Schoon
Donor Member: Steve Karpen
Patron Member: Larry Wallman
Attention Members!
Your 2012 membership renewals were due in January. Go to: http://guangpingyang.org/ membership.htm to renew online or print out a renewal form and mail it to:
GPYTCA c/o Julie Boddorf 268 Kinderkamack Road Emerson, NJ 07630
Page 5 The Universal Post / Feb. 2012
T’AI CHI APPLICATION (CONT.)
2b
Sifu Tom (after grabbing Pete’s arm) pulls the arm slightly down, and strikes with an elbow to Pete’s face.
Sifu Tom can than wrap his arm around Pete’s head and strike him in the groin. Note (not shown) If Sifu Tom steps to his right and follows through with the transition of Wave Hands Like Clouds… well I will leave that to your imagination.
3b
4b 5b
Remember, 2012 is a Board Election year. The “Board Nomination Form” is available on our website. If you
would like to be considered for, or nominate someone to be considered as a candidate, please submit one fully
completed form for each nominee. If you are not able to complete the form for someone you know is willing
to be nominated, you may send suggestions via email to: Board_Nom@guangpingyang.org and the Nomi-
nating Committee will seek additional information. For questions and clarifications, send an email to:
Board_Nom@guangpingyang.org
March 24, 2012: Nominating Committee processes nominees.
May 13, 2012 (Sunday): 1st Draft: Slate of Candidates to Full Board for Action.
June 10, 2012: Full slate of Candidates to Board for Final Approval.
July 9, 2012: Ballot/Election go in mail to all active members.
August 24, 2012 (Friday): All Ballots must be postmarked by this date.
Sept 1, 2012: Election results tallied & Ready for announcement.
September 9, 2012: Election results certified & approved by Full Board.
September 10, 2012: Results published: GPYTCA Website & Universal Post.
October 14, 2012: New Board Member Terms Begin w/October Board Meeting;
Outgoing Board Members’ Final Meeting
November 3, 2012: New Board Members Officially Installed at Annual Conference.
CALENDAR OF EVENTS Honorary Chairmen Y. C. Chiang, CA
Henry Look, CA
Past Presidents Randy Elia, NJ Nina Sugawara, CA October 2005-December 2011 March 2000-October 2001
Dominick Ruggieri, NJ Donald Rubbo, CA October 2003-October 2005 October 1998-March 2000
Nick D’Antoni, WA Henry Look, CA October 2001-October 2003 February 1996-October 1998
Board Members President:
Other Members:
Jo Presbury-Smith, CA Jo@GuangPingYang.org
JoAnna Gee Schoon, Laguna Beach, CA
Daniel Lee, Duarte, CA
Jonathon Shear, Richmond, VA
Membership Coordinator Julie Boddorf
Web www.guangpingyang.org
www.kungfuchampionship.com Phone: 727-734-8222 | Fax: 727-734-2414
ICMAC Calendar 2nd Annual “Emerald City” Wushu Championship…. Seattle, WA | May 19, 2012 2nd Annual “Mile High” Chinese Martial Arts Championship..Denver, CO | June 23, 2012 14th Annual ICMAC North American Finals….Orlando, FL | July 13-15, 2012
UC Berkeley 20th Annual Chinese Martial Arts Tournament
March 24, 2012 115 Haas Pavilion, Berkley, CA, 94720 Contact: CMAT 20 Publicity Committee
Cmat.publicity@ucmap.org / http://cmat.ucmap.org
Workshop with China Qigong Association
April 13, 2012 (Every weekend 4-13 to 5-13) 4 Oxford Road, Building F, Milford, CT, 06460
Contact: Master Aiping Cheng Phone: 203-795-0203 www.aiping-taichi.com
14th World Tai Chi & Qigong Day
April 28, 2012
Disclaimer: The events listed are provided as a resource. They may/may not be sponsored or endorsed by the GPYTCA
You Are Invited… Celebrating Shifu YC Chiang’s 90th Birthday on June 9th, 2012 Saturday and the 40th anniversary of Wen Wu School in El Cerrito, California
Taiji Intensive will be held on June 10th, Sunday at Wen Wu School with Shifu YC Chiang, Futung Cheng, Paul Taylor, Roger Ramey, Larry and Kathleen Giustino
7:00 am to 1:00 pm
Strengthen your Guang Ping practice with more stretching, push hands, move-
ment details with the masters. Mark your calendar NOW
Contact information: info@wenwuschool.com or (510) 524-1057
Mark Your Calendar...
November 2nd to 4th, 2012
Squaw Creek Resort in Lake Tahoe, California
Page 7 The Universal Post / Feb. 2012
California Norma Austin
JoAnna Gee Schoon jschoon@ivc.edu
Randall K. Sugawara rsugawara@yahoo.com
streetsurvival@optonline.net
Rhode Island
Lynn L. Sharp lynn@villasditalia.com
Wisconsin Joy L. Foye
Lawrence L. Riddle wiswenwuschool@frontier.com
C ert
ifi ed
Hall of Fame dinner in Janu-
ary. Dug was awarded a
'Lifetime Achievement Award'
'Goodwill Ambassador for
Martial Arts.' Congratulations,
Dug and Hank!
“Tai Chi Chuan in Theory and Practice”
By: Kuo Lien Ying
Movement 17
Wa v e H a n d s L i k e C l o u d s Yun Shou
FAREWELL FROM PAST PRESIDENT RANDY ELIA
c/o Peter Kwok’s Kung Fu Academy
268 Kinderkamack Road
Emerson, NJ 07630
(See Inside for Application)
Mission Statement Guang Ping Yang T’ai Chi Association
To promote, perpetuate, develop interest in, and preserve the quality of Guang Ping Yang style T’ai Chi Chuan throughout the
world, and to provide support for research and education in Guang Ping Yang T’ai Chi in honor of the memory of Sifu Kuo Lien
Ying, who brought Guang Ping to the United States, and in commemoration of his unselfish sharing of his many skills.
We strive to develop and honor the life-enhancing qualities of respect, humility, integrity, honesty, loyalty, and kindness. We
manifest our commitment to this process by honoring our teachers, students, each other, and the practice of Internal Arts.
Happy New Year everyone! 2012 is the year of the Water Dragon. In Chinese astrology,
the Dragon is truly special and they tend to stand out from the crowd; there is a certain
aura about them. They are powerful and wise. They are certainly not shy—they demand
attention and respect. Furthermore, the person born under the sign of the Dragon tends
to be a "doer"—they achieve power by getting things done!
I believe our organization will certainly feel the influence of the Dragon this year as I
hand over the position of President of our Association to our former Vice President
Larry Riddle! I also want to thank all of our members for their support during my tenure
as President and would like to remind everyone that my job was eased by the continuous
efforts of my fellow Board members. So I would like to take this opportunity to thank
all the Board members for their dedication and hard work throughout the years of my
presidency. Rest assured we will continue this tradition of working together on behalf of