You are at: > Articles > Chinese Martial Arts Articles > Interview with Raymond Towers

Interview with Raymond Towers

Founder of the United Kingdom Taiji Qigong Foundation This interview was conducted by a student with Raymond Towers in October 2005 to gain some insight into what had kept him so involved with the Chinese Internal Martial Arts Systems for so many years.

Question: What have you gained from all your years of practice?

Raymond: I have gained a greater understanding of myself, of my own internal needs and aspirations and ways of evolving. This has not been an easy process and I have had to hold closely to the maxims of practice, perseverance and patience, not to mention the many personal sacrifices along the way.

Q: What encouraged you to continue your practice?

R: I never made and still have not made any direct decision to concentrate my life on the search for the ‘meaning of life’ – I suspect I do not believe it has any one inherent meaning. However I was after leaving the forces, and spending some time in the leisure industry looking for something that one could do in depth. I had boxed in the Navy, practised Karate from a young age, and experienced from an even earlier age the art of fighting in the streets all of which left me feeling empty in some way or another. With my first experience of Taijiquan in 1971 I realised here was something which had considerable depth.

Later with Professor Chee Soo, Master Ji Jian Cheng, Master Guo Bisong, Master Tony Swanson and more recently with Sifu Park as well as many others who have given me advice and guidance I began to perceive a greater understanding of the arts and how they help in the process of simplifying this increasingly complicated world.

Q: What particular aspects of Taiji really interest you most today?

R: For me personally the more I practice the greater the feeling of growing closer to a source, it is a process with no goals or objectives.

In terms of my teaching I do not have any thoughts about controlling the body or the mind, I believe in the classical statement ‘that where the mind is so is the body’ and for me that makes things very simple. So I see Taijiquan and the other arts as being tools to aid the mind, but not to control it – the concept of controlling has created many difficulties if not all the difficulties we face as human beings. If the mind is happy then you will be healthy, confident and secure.

Q: Have your thoughts on the Arts changed much over the pastthirty fouryears?

R: When I first practiced I only had the very faintest of ideas of what the arts could offer to me and to others, now experience has shown me that Chinese Internal Arts have a lot to offer people of all ages and backgrounds. The arts have helped me simplify my philosophy to three principles Breath, Posture and Intent within these three principles I am beginning to find me.

Q: What is your personal teaching philosophy?

R: In the first instance it is important to respect the experiences of everyone you teach, this is fundamental to the process of evolution in life. It is important to encourage students to persevere, to extend their own limits in both the external and internal spheres of their lives and their practice.

It is important to ensure students understand why they are practising certain exercises and what the purpose of the practice is. Giving them the tools to assess themselves and those they come into contact with, so they become independent human beings developing their own ‘style’.

One should not take becoming a teacher lightly, for it is a serious business with many responsibilities. While teaching is to help others, one has a moral responsibility to continue to practise and ensure continued self-development. In turn this continuing development should enable people to help others further.

Q: What do you feel is the relevance of the arts in society today?

R: If being centred is important, then I believe the arts are as relevant today if not more so than ever before. In today’s society the winds of change have never been stronger and many people are blown here and there whilst trying to find some contentment. Being aware at a deeper level of yourself allows you to step out of the turmoil for a time and reassess who you are and what you want, the practice of the arts is a physical/mental tool, the how of getting to the point of why.

On a more practical level we are at a juncture in the UK where our Health Systems is under a lot of pressure. In my opinion the arts, as they did in China in the fifties, can help support people. Encouraging them to take responsibility for their own health for as long as physically and mentally possible, thereby allowing society to aid those most in need. In this respect I believe the arts have much to offer on an individual and societal level.

Q: What advice can you give about personal development in the arts?

R: Without getting too esoteric there are three levels, these being the Body, the Mind and the Spirit. Within each of these areas there are many different levels of learning.

I believe that we should begin at the experiential level. Starting with the body, at a very basic level knowing where your feet are, how your body is aligned and your particular styles techniques are your starting point – Laba Soo called these stance, posture and technique.

Once you have some understanding of your body then the mind and spiritual aspects can be introduced based upon a strong, earthed foundation. Too many people in the West start from the intellectual level resulting in them becoming unearthed, strong foundations are what the arts have been built upon and this is how we should continue to learn and teach them.

A strong foundation can lead to the unification of the Body, Mind and Spirit, this is the basis of the evolutionary process. The unification process can take many years to fulfil, however, for me the joy is in the process itself.

Q: Why do we pay so much attention to the correct stance, posture and technique in the forms?

R: The initial training is process is one of self-discipline, this self-discipline is achieved through the accurate execution of the movement, and initiating the action/intent process, over time the body will internalise the movement thereby hardwiring if you will the intent as well as the movement. When we first start this process it is often the case that the mind and the body do not have the required communication to create a coordinated whole body mind movement.

Only through repeated practice of accurate movements will you be able to evolve your practice, the forms are a tool utilised for this purpose. Once you have moved on then you can in the words of one of my teachers ‘shed the skin of the forms’.

Q: You often refer to how important good posture through correct body alignment is, can you explain a little more?

R: Good body alignment is fundamental to your progress. Alignment creates a line of connection from the earth to the point of technique, correct alignment in lay terms means efficiency, effectiveness and economy of movement. Aligning the spine for instance becomes increasingly more important as we get older, for the spine is the super highway for our information processing and the protection of our immune system, therefore an aligned and flexible spine is a prerequisite for good health, as well as the ability to apply our practice.

I would point readers to Yang Cheng Fu’s Principles of practice study these well and you will reap the rewards.

Q: What is the importance of forming a stable and rooted posture?

R: Internal forces work in a vertical way - up and down from the ground. Without a stable and rooted posture you cannot utilise these forces effectively and you will find yourself using upper body strength which is known as obvious force, rather than using the more subtle energetic forces which can come through correct body alignment.

Only when the posture is stable can you be centred, only when you are centred can you be truly relaxed, only when you are truly relaxed can you carry out your action with intention.

Q: Why is it important for the body to be Soft?

R: The process of learning softness ‘sung’ begins with learning to release, we are all pretty good at contracting, holding on, but we find it more difficult to release, to let go for this means having faith in ourselves and our environment. Through practice the body begins the slow and at times emotionally difficult practice of releasing oneself from the habits of holding on, these habits in Traditional Chinese Medicine terms create blockages in the energetic systems which can lead to physical and mental health problems.

Learning to be soft externally and internally, being gentle with our environment and with ourselves, aids the unblocking of the energetic systems thereby creating more freedom of movement at all levels of our lives.

Q: Can you give more information on your teachers?

R: First and foremost I should say that not all of those who have influenced me have actually practiced the arts, I have been influenced by people from all walks of life and continue to be so, I think that if we become caught up on the idea that any one school of thought or teacher can help us evolve then we are indeed lost.

My real beginning, after many years of studying was with Laba Chee Soo he taught me the process of dealing with my disappointment, this was and remains a very important lesson. I also learnt the need for self-discipline, in his words ‘whether you train or not is not important to me because I will be training’.

The next important influence was Master Ji Jian Cheng, he taught me the importance of not becoming self-important, many teachers/masters/guru’s see themselves above their students, we are just teachers, when teaching their should be a mutual respect between student and teacher, when the process of teaching is over there should be a feeling of mutual respect between human’s.

My Qigong Master Guo Bisong, who through her honest and pragmatic approach was able to bring me into the spiritual realm. Her teachings are pure gold; if it is good health that you search for then her practices are extremely accessible.

There are many others but I would not like to leave this subject without mentioning Master Tony Swanson, he was Laba Chee Soo’s senior student during my practice years with him, Tony introduced me to the finer points of the arts. There is a saying that all you search for is just around the corner, Tony Swanson is based in London, many fly out of Heathrow looking for Enlightenment in China when all they needed to do was go around the corner.

Q: What are your plans for the future?

R: To continue learning, and teaching. The body and mind must be cared for, for that is where we are now, from the fine tuning of the body mind connection one can move on to the spiritual aspects of our own lives. Thearts I have been taught can be passed on again and again, I know that peoplegain a great deal from what they practice. The teaching of The United Kingdom Taiji Qigong Foundation will be open to all, and I will continue to teach everyone who wishes to be taught in the hope they will experience the benefits and enjoyment I have during my practice as a student and a teacher.