About Becoming Accredited to Teach T’ai Chi Chih

[Teachers may photocopy the following letter for students who are interested in becoming accredited T’ai Chi Chih teachers.]

Dear Teacher Candidate:

Thank you for your interest in becoming an accredited T’ai Chi Chih instructor. T’ai Chi Chih is growing and new teachers are needed internationally. The value of T’ai Chi Chih as a powerful yet gentle self-help method of reducing stress, aiding health and healing, and accelerating evolution of consciousness is just beginning to be recognized, and we are happy that you have discovered T’ai Chi Chih.

Teacher training courses are sponsored in various places by accredited T’ai Chi Chih instructors and are scheduled whenever a group of 10 or more candidates in one locale are preparing to become certified. The cost is currently $355 for a six-day training, excluding lodging, meals, or transportation. A calendar of upcoming training locations, dates, and contact people appears in each issue of The Vital Force quarterly journal, available from Satori Resources for a $10 annual subscription.

The following are prerequisites for enrolling in a teacher accreditation course:

Required preparation:

1) Recommendation in writing by an accredited T’ai Chi Chih instructor.

2) Knowledge of all 20 T’ai Chi Chih movements (and look good doing them).

3) Understanding–and embodiment while moving–of the principles behind and within the postures and movements. Indeed, if you have internalized the principles, your life will embody this integrity!

4) A personal understanding of the power and depth of T’ai Chi Chih. If you have been practicing regularly for a period of time, this deeper understanding will surely have evidenced itself to you in significant ways.

5) You must have the order of movements memorized so that you are comfortable announcing and leading the movements before a group.

Recommended preparation:

1) Completion of T’ai Chi Chih course, intermediate or continuing courses if available, plus consistent daily practice.

2) Individual teacher preparation coaching with an accredited T’ai Chi Chih instructor. Some teachers offer “teacher preparation courses,” which have been extremely valuable and successful for helping candidates to prepare for accreditation.

3) Books and tapes by Justin Stone (available through your teacher or from Satori Resources):

T’ai Chi Chih! Joy Through Movement ($10.95)

T’ai Chi Chih! Joy Through Movement videotape ($39.95)

Justin Stone Speaks on T’ai Chi Chih ($9.95)

Meditation for Healing ($11.95)

4) Subscription to The Vital Force journal.

Satori Resources maintains a list of individuals who are interested in becoming accredited instructors. If you wish to be placed on this list, your name will be kept on file and forwarded to teachers who sponsor teacher training courses.

We are anxious to have accredited T’ai Chi Chih instructors in every part of the country–and there are teaching opportunities in every community. However, the success of T’ai Chi Chih depends upon the quality of its teachers. Each teacher candidate must examine his or her own readiness and sense of integrity with the form. At the training course, you want to be able to focus all your energies on learning how to teach rather than just to practice.

The six-day teacher training course, taught by T’ai Chi Chih Master Steve Ridley, includes the opportunity to meet and work with top certified instructors. Accredited teachers often audit teacher training courses (free of charge) in order to receive corrections and additional in-depth instruction from the master teacher. If all candidates are well-prepared, the class can truly pursue the subtle, deeper aspects of the practice and mature together during this six-day initiation. Please do not shortchange yourself or the other teacher candidates. Take the time necessary to become thoroughly grounded in T’ai Chi Chih before you pursue the teacher training process. You will be a more successful teacher for it.

A continuing commitment to T’ai Chi Chih practice and the deepening of your own personal practice is the first and foremost goal of a T’ai Chi Chih teacher.

Best wishes in your preparation (with softness and continuity!) for teaching T’ai Chi Chih!

Sincerely,

– Corinn Codye
T’ai Chi Chih Teacher Training Coordinator
Publisher, Satori Resources
Santa Barbara CA