08/19/2025
IN TAIJIQUAN, AS IN LIFE, EVERY DETAIL IS IMPORTANT
A beginner joined the martial arts class I attend. I was participating in a Taijiquan set while the master tutored the beginner on the side. I heard her explain how each move had a martial function—hitting, punching, kicking. He murmured, “These details aren’t important are they?”
OMG, if only he knew how long the rest of us have been pursuing this information. If only he knew that every detail is important. If only he knew that the martial content of Taijiquan was a way of knowledge and not a way of violence. If only he knew that there is no complete understanding of Taijiquan until one pursues every aspect for decades to come.
If only he knew that the Oneness in Dao means that there are no details that can be ignored. Leave any part out and you can’t have a whole.
When class was over, I heard him say to another classmate, “Oh, when I start something, I really go all in.”
I hope he means it.