T’ai Chi Chih in Switzerland

Letter from John Lash

I met Justin Stone at the Open Mind Book Store through the owner Rick Cramer. I was working on my Master’s degree in religious philosophy at the University of New Mexico and specializing in Taoist philosophy. At that time (1974), I had been a Taoist for six years. Having the philosophy, I decided it was time to begin learning T’ai Chi which I consider the doorway to the sacred female world of the Tao. Justin was offering his course in T’ai Chi Chih so I signed up.

In 1975, I began my study of T’ai Chi Ch’uan with the Sun-Moon Circle of the Northern Shao-lin and continued my T’ai Chi Chih practice. Justin offered a teacher’s course in Albuquerque in October of 1981 and that is when I was certified as a teacher.

My school is the Harmonious Dragon T’ai Chi School in Bern, Switzerland. Last year, we began the first Taoist temple in Switzerland. We are the Sun-Moon Circle of the Northern Shao-lin White Crane Taoists. The purpose of our school, as I described in my book, The T’ai Chi Journey, is to help the student to understand that T’ai Chi is not a hobby but a pathway back to the sacred universe of the Mother Tao that existed before Yang domination destroyed it with aggression competition, and separation. We consider our school the Womb of the Mother Tao where the student comes to be born again into the Oneness of the female way of love and compassion. It is only the return to seeing the love for Mother Earth that can save our planet and continue the great stream of life that flows through the Tao.

T’ai Chi Chih has a special place in our school but is not the only discipline. We teach Taoist meditation, sacred Taoist dance, Chi Gung massage, T’ai Chi Ch’uan, T’ai Chi Saber, T’ai Chi Flute, T’ai Chi Staff, T’ai Chi self-defense, etc. Further, we provide free self-defense lessons to the elderly. Another of our activities is to provide escorts for women who are afraid to walk across the city at nights.

All students in the school learn T’ai Chi Chih. We consider T’ai Chi Chih a great discipline for health (Nei Gung) and spiritual development and an essential part of our teaching. However, T’ai Chi Chih cannot be used for self-defense and cannot replace T’ai Chi Ch’uan as the basic T’ai Chi discipline.

The Swiss are very open to T’ai Chi Chih. When I give Taoist seminars, T’ai Chi Chih movements are one of the most popular aspects of the seminar. I have noticed that Swiss seniors are much more timid about trying physical activity, at least from the oriental disciplines, than American seniors. T’ai Chi Chih is the perfect way to introduce Swiss seniors to T’ai Chi and gives them confidence in their bodies and their ability to learn. I am the official T’ai Chi teacher for the Gray Panthers here in Bern.

Lao Tzu said, “Live close to the land” and so I live on a farm with my wife and four children aged 12, 10, 9 and 5, all of whom are learning T’ai Chi. For the past five years, we have lived in the farming village of Uettligen and our address is: Eunibubel 2, 3043 Uettligen, Switzerland

I raise hay, pigs, ponies, sheep and chickens. I am also an author having written The T’ai Chi Journey and Cowboy Stories from East Texas. My new manuscript, Wu Chi and T’ai Chi: Return to the Sacred Universe, is at the publishers. My next work will be in cooperation with the Swiss theologian, Martin Bieler, and will be a comparison of Taoism and Protestant Christianity.

Please invite T’ai Chi Chih people to come by and visit the school and temple if they are ever in Switzerland and give my love to Justin. My new book mentions him and T’ai Chi Chih in the dedication. May the Mother Tao always be with you!