Master Waysun Liao

[orb]

I'm just curious if anybody met him in person also has anybody purchased his DVDs?

Oh also - which Taichi style does he practice/teach?

 

Thank you.

[RiverSnake]

Here is a description of him as well as a list of all his books.

 

http://www.amazon.com/Waysun-Liao/e/B001K8IR56/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_1

[Wells]

I'm just curious if anybody met him in person also has anybody purchased his DVDs?

Oh also - which Taichi style does he practice/teach?

 

Thank you.

I have 17 of his DVD's so far and all 4 books (his book "The Essence of Taichi" is only a cut-down version of his book "Taichi Classics").

 

He teaches temple style taichi....which is supposedly the original form of taichi that was taught by Lao Tzu, of which the family styles (like chen or yang taichi) are branched off.

 

Edit: You can order his DVD's and his books directly from his homepage:

http://taichitaocenter.com/

Edited December 31, 2011 by Dorian Black

[Wells]

TTB member forestofsouls talks about his encounter with Waysun Liao here:

http://www.thetaobums.com/index.php?showtopic=2126

I was perusing the John Chang thread recently, and it made me wonder: how many people out there have actually met some one who could provide a real, demonstrable manifestation of chi or chi-like phenomenon? I think that Mr. Denty is right: once you taste the real thing, there's no doubt whatsoever. Personally, I've met two. The most powerful was Master Waysun Liao.

 

When I met Master Liao, I wanted to "test" him. We've all seen those martial arts demonstrations where the so-called master demonstartes mystical techniques on people of their own choosing. I had this in mind and wanted to test ML. Much to my surprise, he ASKED me to test him. At one point, I had my body wedged between the floor and his arm trying to keep him from lowering it, all to no avail. But the real kicker is when he was demonstrating how chi should feel when one is practicing correctly. Make no mistake, this stuff is as far from imagination as the law of gravity.

 

I'm wondering if anyone has had similar first-hand experiences, and if so, with who.

"Problem is what is 'chi'? How does Master Liao 'demonstrate' how chi should 'feel'? Alot of stuff that some people call 'chi', because they don't understand what is going on, is actually body mechanics, conditioning, etc.

So I think we should put some context around the examples.

Good thread, btw, not trying to poo poo it right off the bat.

T"

 

Sorry, I haven't gotten the quote thing figured out.

 

What we did was we all gathered in a circle. Master Liao had us put our hands out in the tai chi ball stance, which is standing shoulder width apart, with our palms facing one another, perpendicular to the floor. Sort of like holding a beach ball in front of you. He placed his hands around my hands, without touching. Then he said, let me know when you feel something.

 

Mind you, I was a chi skeptic at this time. I could feel vague light buzzings, but nothing substantial.

 

What I did was try to keep an open, empty mind and a relaxed body. I was curious, but quite sceptical. What happened was it felt like suddenly I was hooked up to a power generator. When I was younger, I once grabbed a refrigerator that wasn't fully grounded, and was mildly electocuted. It was similar, but it felt good. It started out vague, then I felt a lot of pressure as though I was submerged under water. I said nothing, and the feelings got very strong. Then the pressure gave way and it felt like liquid electicity was flowing throughout my body, and it felt as real and vivid as an oak table. I also felt my lower dan tien and upper dan tien swelling and opening, and it was ecstatic. It also felt like there was a fine electrical wire connecting the two dan tiens. I felt giddy and high, and couldn't stop smiling. It also felt there was an actual ball between my hands.

 

The main thought I had was "Oh my God I can't beleive this is real!"

 

Master Liao said that the object was to cultivate oneself so that one could feel that way without a master "charging you up".

 

To some extent, we all feel chi: when we are well rested and feel alive. But this was magnified many times over. I would say chi is energy, much like electrical energy. I've been told that some people can hear it, some people can see it, but most feel it. When talking about chi, I mean feeling electrical energy with no technological source that feels as vivid as physical objects.

 

I agree with what you say, T. I firmly believe that most of the stuff on chi out there is imagined, wrong, or mistaken. Which is why I wanted to start a thread, to try to separate out the phonies. Now I'm not saying that Master Liao is the ONLY possible source of authentic chi exercises, just one. I think Wong Kiew Kit may be another, but I don't have direct experience and so I can't say. I hear Yan Xin does some amazing things, but once again, I don't have direct experience of it.

[h.uriahr]

I'm just curious if anybody met him in person also has anybody purchased his DVDs?

Oh also - which Taichi style does he practice/teach?

 

Thank you.

 

Orb,

 

Where do you live?

 

What are you looking for with this system? The answer to that question will help with the DVD selection.

[orb]

Orb,

 

Where do you live?

 

What are you looking for with this system? The answer to that question will help with the DVD selection.

 

I live in VA and I'm getting old and wanna learn Taichi.

When I was young (15-17) I practiced the Yang style for like 2 years. We used to practice just one move for a week or more and also practice started with 5 min and extended up to an hour of low (shaolin style) ma-bu stance.

We got to do push hands only after 1 year of practice and only if you were lucky enough for the teacher to pay attention to you. But that teacher moved to a different country and then I moved to the other side of the planet and that was that.

 

Recently I went to a Chen style Taichi seminar with some famous chinese dude in NC and it was good (the guy definitely knows his Taichi) but - at the same time I didn't learn enough for me to practice alone.

and in 3 days we covered the short 18 form version and the long version (I forget how many forms in that one)

and push hands and most of us were beginners. So....needless to say basically a big clusterfuck.

 

The problem is - I am still going to learn Taichi one way or another, it's just not clear to me from where or from who.

 

Those guys from NC are at 4 hrs distance from me .

 

So I'm trying to learn from DVDs and so far I hate it.

 

 

So I'm just looking at other styles and methods of studying it... I am not interested in the Yang style anymore(nothing against it - but since I've done it in the past I want smth different).

 

So that's my situation in a few words.

[dwai]

I live in VA and I'm getting old and wanna learn Taichi.

When I was young (15-17) I practiced the Yang style for like 2 years. We used to practice just one move for a week or more and also practice started with 5 min and extended up to an hour of low (shaolin style) ma-bu stance.

We got to do push hands only after 1 year of practice and only if you were lucky enough for the teacher to pay attention to you. But that teacher moved to a different country and then I moved to the other side of the planet and that was that.

 

Recently I went to a Chen style Taichi seminar with some famous chinese dude in NC and it was good (the guy definitely knows his Taichi) but - at the same time I didn't learn enough for me to practice alone.

and in 3 days we covered the short 18 form version and the long version (I forget how many forms in that one)

and push hands and most of us were beginners. So....needless to say basically a big clusterfuck.

 

The problem is - I am still going to learn Taichi one way or another, it's just not clear to me from where or from who.

 

Those guys from NC are at 4 hrs distance from me .

 

So I'm trying to learn from DVDs and so far I hate it.

 

 

So I'm just looking at other styles and methods of studying it... I am not interested in the Yang style anymore(nothing against it - but since I've done it in the past I want smth different).

 

So that's my situation in a few words.

 

Master Liao is definitely the "real deal". I've been studying with a direct student of his for past 9 years. And my teacher studied with Master Liao since the 1980s (over 20 years). One thing I'd like to mention here is that AFAIK, Master Liao doesn't teach any more (only the Teacher-level folks) although he does conduct 1-2 seminars each year. From what I've heard, there are chances that he will stop teaching and go off the proverbial grid very soon. So any opportunity to train with someone like him is a once in a life-time experience. I missed the Florida seminar this year. Next year I am definitely going to attend (if there is a seminar i.e.).

 

I hadn't studied any of his DVDs since my teacher teaches pretty much the same thing. I recently got one of his DVDs (How to make your Taichi Ball substantial) and I can tell you that it's almost as good as getting the training from him. Although I think it'll be most useful for students who have learnt his style...

 

Best of Luck,

 

Dwai

[h.uriahr]

I live in VA and I'm getting old and wanna learn Taichi.

When I was young (15-17) I practiced the Yang style for like 2 years. We used to practice just one move for a week or more and also practice started with 5 min and extended up to an hour of low (shaolin style) ma-bu stance.

We got to do push hands only after 1 year of practice and only if you were lucky enough for the teacher to pay attention to you. But that teacher moved to a different country and then I moved to the other side of the planet and that was that.

 

Recently I went to a Chen style Taichi seminar with some famous chinese dude in NC and it was good (the guy definitely knows his Taichi) but - at the same time I didn't learn enough for me to practice alone.

and in 3 days we covered the short 18 form version and the long version (I forget how many forms in that one)

and push hands and most of us were beginners. So....needless to say basically a big clusterfuck.

 

The problem is - I am still going to learn Taichi one way or another, it's just not clear to me from where or from who.

 

Those guys from NC are at 4 hrs distance from me .

 

So I'm trying to learn from DVDs and so far I hate it.

 

 

So I'm just looking at other styles and methods of studying it... I am not interested in the Yang style anymore(nothing against it - but since I've done it in the past I want smth different).

 

So that's my situation in a few words.

 

So the physical form or spiritual work? Either way Master Liao is great.

[Lao Tzu]

 

He teaches temple style taichi....which is supposedly the original form of taichi that was taught by Lao Tzu, ...

http://taichitaocenter.com/

 

Lao Tzu can not perform Taichi KongFu.

In general opinion, Taichi Kongfu is invented by Zhangsanfeng.

[Wells]

Lao Tzu can not perform Taichi KongFu.

In general opinion, Taichi Kongfu is invented by Zhangsanfeng.

The "general opinion" means the opinion of the fools with an IQ of 85-115.

Taichi was not Taichi Chuan back then. It was a pure spiritual system, not a martial art. However, temple style taichi today includes a martial arts way..but it's an "internal system" and it's goal is to develop "internal power" and it's martial arts application.

 

EDIT: What Waysun Liao is teaching today, is in fact the original spiritual way. When he came to the USA in the 70's he first teached the "lesser" martial arts way.

Edited January 1, 2012 by Dorian Black

[orb]

I have 17 of his DVD's so far and all 4 books (his book "The Essence of Taichi" is only a cut-down version of his book "Taichi Classics").

 

He teaches temple style taichi....which is supposedly the original form of taichi that was taught by Lao Tzu, of which the family styles (like chen or yang taichi) are branched off.

 

Edit: You can order his DVD's and his books directly from his homepage:

http://taichitaocenter.com/

 

Did you have any success with his books/DVDs so far?

Do you believe it's possible to learn it from his DVDs without having to learn it directly from him?

Or better said - could you elaborate a little bit on your personal practice?

 

The reason I'm asking is because I spend a lot of money on things like that (DVDs/books/seminars etc) and I would like to avoid it if it doesn't work.

 

Thank you.

[Lao Tzu]

The "general opinion" means the opinion of the fools with an IQ of 85-115.

Taichi was not Taichi Chuan back then. It was a pure spiritual system, not a martial art. However, temple style taichi today includes a martial arts way..but it's an "internal system" and it's goal is to develop "internal power" and it's martial arts application.

 

EDIT: What Waysun Liao is teaching today, is in fact the original spiritual way. When he came to the USA in the 70's he first teached the "lesser" martial arts way.

Taiji was just a term in Taoism.

If you connect "Taiji" with sports, it should refer to Taiji Quan.

[h.uriahr]

Taiji was just a term in Taoism.

If you connect "Taiji" with sports, it should refer to Taiji Quan.

You are correct. It did become Tai Chi Chuan after it turned martial. The original Tai Chi was referred to as Tao Gong, because that's what it was, working the Tao.

 

The entire Yang Form is like a kata anyhow. Martial applications are possible without any actual internal power. Spiritually, if memory serves, Tai Chi, as moving meditation, started with 8 forms. 8 essential forms.

 

This was the first DVD I purchased from Master Liao.

8 Forms 6 Essential Components. As you progress you can gain access to his Private Library. My Sifu resides in Florida. I've had nothing but great success with the system. You have to go beyond the name. If you'd like a basic system intro then get either

DVD. TE

BOOK. Tao:The Way of God.

[voidisyinyang]

So what happened to Waysun Liao? Does he live in Hawaii now? Just guessing.

 

 

 

Waysun Liao continues:

“Master Yang knew that if the royal family learned of his unwillingness to teach them, and of his modifications, the emperor would take retribution for this offense and appease his anger by murdering not only him, but his entire family. Since Master Yang felt he could trust no one except his own sons, it was to them and to no one else that he taught the genuine art of T’ai Chi... [Yang’s modified tai chi] soon became the fad of the leisure class throughout China, and it remained so until the end of the Ch’ing Dynasty. When the revolution of 1900-1910 succeeded in overthrowing the corrupt rulers, the noble families, deprived of their power, scattered throughout the country. T’ai Chi, of course, traveled with them. Practitioners claimed the authenticity of their art, stating that it had been taught to them by masters of the Yang family, or other T’ai Chi families, and the public naturally accepted their claims. In this way, the modified form of T’ai Chi became today’s T’ai Chi Ch’uan, or the so-called T’ai Chi Exercise. This is the T’ai Chi practiced publicly in China today... In other words, most of the T’ai Chi practiced today is not the original T’ai Chi, and it is devoid of meaning.”

The Essence of T’ai Chi, Waysun Liao, Shambhala, Boston & London, 1995.

Edited May 20, 2013 by pythagoreanfulllotus

[voidisyinyang]

http://books.google.com/books?id=m81Bg4E_y_IC&pg=PA313&lpg=PA313&dq=Waysun+Liao+Hawaii&source=bl&ots=6ojTDY_fIe&sig=VdGuj3KWOEszMzArkjsuzXyHTPA&hl=en&sa=X&ei=Z3uZUbGTNpPwqQGc-oHgCg&ved=0CE8Q6AEwBzgK#v=onepage&q=qi&f=false

 

Googlebooks - Lucasfilms cites Waysun Liao!!!

 

Star Wars was based on the qigong masters.

[voidisyinyang]

This train of thought and storytelling would not be complete without going back to Rick Barrett. In his book, he describes meeting taijiquan master Waysun Liao for the first time and being the recipient of Liao’s internal power:

He asked me to stand and relax about three feet in front of a wall. He lightly placed his fingertips on my chest. With no movement of his body, I was suddenly slammed into the wall behind me and fell to the floor. More remarkable, I had no sense of time having elapsed. There was just a simultaneous “touch-wall-floor.” My subjective experience was of time having been compressed into a single moment.

And again:

>>

…he just placed his fingertips on my forearm, and again, without movement by him, I was instantly on the floor. There had only been the slightest touch on my arm. My subjective experience was that the floor sucked me down in a single moment. Resistance was not just futile; it was incomprehensible. Space and time had collapsed. Something dramatically beyond my normal experience had just happened. I knew I did not yet have the language to explain it.

 

http://suntaichiboston.com/blog/?p=161

 

In Rick Barrett’s book, Taijiquan: Through the Western Gate

Edited May 20, 2013 by pythagoreanfulllotus

[voidisyinyang]

http://books.google.com/books?id=3WiHlNR2bekC&pg=PR4&lpg=PR4&dq=Waysun+Liao+conference&source=bl&ots=or69gYMriC&sig=_khzbj1jDuYTIfrY57jC8h3yJSU&hl=en&sa=X&ei=cnyZUePqI8TKrgGKuoHYBQ&ved=0CFIQ6AEwBg#v=onepage&q=Waysun%20Liao%20conference&f=false

 

googlebooks on Waysun Liao - review!

[Vmarco]

 

Master Liao is definitely the "real deal".

 

Hmmm...how is someome who teaches how to connect with god, "the real deal?" No doubt Master Liao can regurgitate all he learned of Tai Chi,...amd although there are tidbits of truths in his works,...they seem happenstance.

 

For those who wish to learn Tai Chi as an exercize, without the underlying spiritual significance of Tai Chi,...then Master Liao is as good as others. Personally, I prefer the Tai Chi Chih method from Justin Stone to connect with Earth energy.

 

I saw no indication that Master Liao is even aware of the 3 balance points,...let alone the still Wu Chi beyond all energy.

 

The bottom line is this,...no one,...ever,...never,...will realize truth through a belief in a god.

 

Lao Tzu said, "To attain pure Tao you must understand and integrate within yourself the three main energies of the universe:

 

The first is the Earth energy. Centered in the belly, it expresses itself as sexuality. Those who cultivate and master the physical energy attain partial purity;

 

Second is the Heaven energy. Centered in the mind, it expresses itself as knowledge and wisdom. Those whose minds merge with the Universal Mind also attain partial purity.

 

Third is the Harmonized energy. Centered in the heart, it expresses itself as spiritual insight. Those who develop spiritual insight also attain partial purity.

 

Only when you attain all three - mastery of physical energy, universal mindedness, and spiritual insight - and express them in a virturous integral life, can you attain pure Tao."

 

As Osho said,...Anyone who gives you a belief system is your enemy.

 

[Vmarco]

googlebooks on Waysun Liao - review!

 

This is a good link showing Master Liao's incompetency. He begins,...What is Chi,...and announces it is a "force."

Chi is NOT a "force." All force arises from Chi. Chi is not energy. All energy arises from Chi.

 

If someone insinutes that Chi is anything other than a still fulcrum, upon which energy effects its motion,....that person is NOT Truth Realized.

[h.uriahr]

This is a good link showing Master Liao's incompetency. He begins,...What is Chi,...and announces it is a "force."

Chi is NOT a "force." All force arises from Chi. Chi is not energy. All energy arises from Chi.

 

If someone insinutes that Chi is anything other than a still fulcrum, upon which energy effects its motion,....that person is NOT Truth Realized.

 

Teaching someone to connect to God is certainly possible and yes, Liao is the real deal. I know this to be true because I believe everything that Master Hoffman has told me about him. Why do I believe Hoffman? I flew out to train with him for a few days and he demonstrated a few things. I wrote about one of them here on the forum. I was able to experience things that are really almost indescribable. Liao teaches you how to connect to the true inner piece of God that is in all of us. Calling Liao incompetent is almost hurtful to me if it weren't so funny.

[voidisyinyang]

yeah the testimonials demonstrate Liao is the REAL DEAL!! haha.

 

But his description of CHI is definitely unique - and that's why it's so fascinating!! Obviously people are going to have to think it over several times. That's what makes it so worth reading imo.

 

I personally think Liao went out of his way to describe CHI differently precisely because he's the real deal and so he's trying to get the secret out.

[Jetsun]

I read his latest book "Restoring your life energy" recently and I thought it was very good, most of the content and explanations are very basic and for beginners but as he says the Tao is simple, and many of the best masters can explain things in very simple ways and feel no need to put fancy elaborations on things for ego sake. But his meditations included in the book are very powerful and a few of them are appropriate for advanced students also.

 

My main gripe with him is that his dvds are far too expensive and it is incredibly confusing trying to work out which ones are good or appropriate for yourself to use or buy, which is a shame.

[Vmarco]

Teaching someone to connect to God is certainly possible and yes, Liao is the real deal. I know this to be true because I believe everything that Master Hoffman has told me about him. Why do I believe Hoffman? I flew out to train with him for a few days and he demonstrated a few things. I wrote about one of them here on the forum. I was able to experience things that are really almost indescribable. Liao teaches you how to connect to the true inner piece of God that is in all of us. Calling Liao incompetent is almost hurtful to me if it weren't so funny.

 

No,...the supposed connecting (or in Master Liao's case, reconnecting) someone with a god is 100% dishonest,...because there is no god to connect to. Anyone who promotes the false, is false,...even if they believe the false is true. Falsity will never awaken,...how it works is this,...you let go of falsity, which includes theism,...and the truth is there.

 

People who talk about god,...write books about god,...fully imagining they know god,...are dishonest.

 

When honest people don't know, they sau I don't know.

 

 

“Start knowing what you really know, and stop believing what you really don’t know. Somebody asks you. “Is there a God?” and you say, “Yes, God is.” Remember: Do you really know? If you don’t know, please don’t say that you do. Say, “I don’t know.”. . . False knowing is the enemy of true knowledge. All beliefs are false knowledge.”

[Vmarco]

I read his latest book "Restoring your life energy" recently and I thought it was very good, most of the content and explanations are very basic and for beginners but as he says the Tao is simple,

 

Master Liao says that the Tao is simple, but goes on discussing it from the same complicated traditional, theist viewpoints of others. You'll know when you come upon a "real deal" teacher not by their theistic views or worship of the phenomena called energy,...but by their contradiction of everything you believe, including your beliefs about gods and energy.

 

Although energy arises from the Tao,...The Tao has no energy. Anyone who says Chi is energy, is fully asleep to the essence of Chi.

[Antares]

As I far as I know he teaches Yang style taichi. Yang style was derived from Chen style as taichi for laymen.

How can anybody call it Lao Tzu' taichi? Why we did not know anything of temple style taichi?

If I am not mistaken they consider Wuji Primordial qigong as most relevant to what Lao Tzu was practicing.

 

But this stuff could be good anyway. I know this Yang style form but I was not taught anything about qi there 9 (just form).

 

Another option is to get Stuart Olsons' book and DVD on Taichi Yang style qigong which as believed is for qi cultivation. But Liao may be very good in form explanation. I am thinking to get couple of his books and DVD on the form. May be it good for details but it is quite pricey. Does he explain form from the perspective of qi cultivation?

Edited May 20, 2013 by Eugene