Summer Course 2008

The Taoist Arts Summer Course for 2008 will be held at the St Just Sports centre which is on the Cape Cornwall road half a mile west out of St Just next to Cape Cornwall secondary school.

£35 per day or £140 per week, £400 for all three weeks. (Accommodation £150 per week.)

T'ai Chi Week
Monday 28th July - Friday 1st August 2008

Feng Shou Ch'uan Shu week
Monday 4th - Friday 8th August 2008

Anmo, Health & Massage Week
Monday 11th - Friday 15th August 2008

10.30 - 4.30pm each day

This will be a residential course for three weeks and there will be a limited amount of holiday cottage accommodation available locally. The accommodation will £150 per week for each person and preference will be given to people who book in advance and also for those booking the entire three weeks course, we will not be accepting bookings for accommodation for less than one week. Please book early to avoid disappointment if you want to stay in the cottages, but there is plenty of alternative accommodation available in the local area including cottages, camping, and caravan sites.

The residential Summer Course is an ideal environment for beginners and advanced students alike to further their studies. Instructors and senior students from the different areas will be on hand to offer high quality help and advice on all aspects of the Lee style Arts, and it's an ideal opportunity to get to know the other members of the group in a relaxed environment free from external distractions in an area well known for it's outstanding natural beauty. Each week of the Summer Course is equivalent to six months of training.

Bookings

Please let us know if you are interested in attending the course in advance, but you can pay on the day you attend. However accommodation must be booked and paid for in advance.

We need to know who is coming as soon as possible to book the rooms etc. Log onto the ORB bulletin board before you leave to find out directions to where you are staying. We have plenty of double rooms left but single rooms are in short supply now so please let us know if you are prepared to share. If you want to book your own accommodation please let us know and we can provide you with a list of local caravan and camping sites and holiday cottages.

If you wish to attend please fill in the booking form:

Summer Course 2008 Booking Form

You can download the booking form here (152kb pdf, adobe acrobat reader required), print it out and hand it in to your teacher or send it to us at the address below.
Alternatively fill in the online form below (* denotes a required field):

T'ai Chi Week:

Monday 28th July - Friday 1st August 2008

The Course begins with five days of T'ai Chi and K'ai Men chi gung, it is suitable for beginners but also is a good chance for more advanced students to work more intensively with some of the other senior teachers and students from various classes within the Association. In fact the T'ai Chi Summer Course is equivalent to six months of training. On these intensive courses there is a chance to explore aspects of the Arts in more depth which is not always possible within the time restrictions of an evening course. Also it's a good way for beginners to get a boost at the start of their training, even though the training is more intensive and comprehensive it's still a relaxed and non competitive environment so people will always be able to work at their own pace.

Feng Shou, Kung Fu Week:

Monday 4th - Friday 8th August 2008

Although T'ai Chi Ch'uan is within itself the most powerful method of self-defence it is not always practical for everyone to wait the ten or more years necessary to develop the required level of skills. Feng Shou self defence is much more orientated around just learning a soft style self defence method in it's essence. It is a practrical method but does not require the kind of brute physical strength or demanding physical exercise regime more commonly assovciated with Martial Arts training because it utilizes the dynamic power of Chi or what the Chinese know as 'internal energy'. This week long course will give the beginner a thorough grounding in the basics of the Art and for the more advanced students there will be plenty of opportunity to practise what you have been learning at the weekend and evening courses in your area as well as learning the advanced forms, evasion sets, foot-flow patterns, rollaway techniques and so on and so forth. There will be a grading for those who wish to be assessed at the end of the week.

Anmo, Health & Massage Week:

Monday 11th - Friday 15th August 2008

'Anmo' or Chinese Massage is based upon entirely different concepts and principles to the view of massage and therapy which we are commonly familiar with in the West.

The course consists in some practical work with partners under the supervision of a teacher to practise and learn the basic massage techniques. There will also be a chance to participate in daily seminar type discussions about the basic concepts of Chinese medicine as outlined below. The course is essential for anyone who is interested in taking their T'ai Chi onto an advanced level, but is also suitable for anyone who is looking at alternative ways to aid the bodies defences and ability to regenerate itself and recover from diseases as well as build a stronger immune system.

Even Western anatomy and physiology is fundamentally different to the theory of Chinese Medicine, because the Chinese view of the internal organs was not developed from dissection of dead bodies. The Chinese theory of internal organs or 'Zhang Fu' was developed from research and studies conducted by Taoists from early times and is based upon the flow of energy around the body which interconnects the organs according to a series of functions which is unique to Traditional Chinese Medicine. Each organ is not just an anatomical unit but also includes an energy meridian or channel and is linked to other functions in the body including emotions.

Massage.

Over this five day course you will spend each day learning one of the ten basic massage techniques which are designed to stimulate or sedate the flow of life-force or 'Chi' around the body.

Diagnosis.

We will also be looking at diagnosis methods based on the system 'the five methods of examination': asking, looking, touch, listening, olfactory. This is a traditional method based around the five elements and the five senses, and involves a variety of ways to observe the illness and get better feedback before proceeding with treatments including pulse examination.

Treatments.

We will be looking at some typical examples of ways to treat common diseases based on the following principles:

Diet: Chang Ming or Taoist Long Life diet is a time tested approach to nutrition which has been researched by Taoist Masters since before recorded history. The diet is highly effective in boosting the store of 'Chi' or life-force within the body and is based around the Taoist principles of respect for Nature. This means eating natural foods which are unprocessed and avoiding any chemical additives and colourings etc as well as cutting down on red meat and dairy products.
Herbal therapy: Herbs are a large part of Chinese Medicine and thousands of herbs have been catalogued over the centuries, each herb can have varying yin or yang effects. We have mainly applied these principles to common western herbs because even though Chinese Herbs are now more widely available we follow the Taoist principle of using locally grown substances for treatment.
Meridian massage: Located throughout the body are special pathways through which the life-force flows including eight special meridians which act as storage vessels similar to the streams, rivers and reservoirs which supply the landscape with water. The meridian massage can be used to stimulate or sedate the flow of energy depending on the elemental imbalance and is also a good way to open up the channels to free blockages and improve the flow of Chi much like the sap in a tree.
Breathing exercises: Deep breathing is essential for stimulating the production of Chi in the lower abdomen but there are also many specific exercises which can not only help with the process of Chi cultivation but help with a variety of specific diseases.
Contact thermogenesis: Moxa or Ginger Compress is similar to acupuncture but uses heat to stimulate the energy, the body fluids and the regeneration of body tissues. It is very good for removing stagnation in the system and helps to focus the repair process for example with bruising or injuries.

Traditional Chinese Medicine.

Locating the meridians.

We will be learning practical exercises to help us locating the eight extra meridians as well as the ten organ meridians in the body and their associated important energy centres and points related to acupressure.

Understanding the five elements theory.

To begin with we will be having a look at how the five elements are related to the way energy is balanced between the internal organs as well as relating this to emotional as well as physical factors of disease.

Understanding the eight principles of disease classification.

Eight principles is a major form of disease classification used in modern Chinese medicine to differentiate syndromes according to Yin or Yang factors.

Travel details

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By Car

It's a straightforward trip north from the Coventry area on the M40 then M42 West to the M5 then head south to Exeter then A30 to Penzance and stay on the A30 to St Just. Some people will be offering or requesting lifts, contact the bulletin board for details closer to the time you're thinking of leaving.

By Train

It might be an idea to consider travelling by train, if you book tickets early enough you can find fares as low as ten pounds from the Midlands to Penzance station return. Penzance Station, then Taxi or Bus to Grumbla. Buses are operated by Sunset Coaches tel.: 01736 810 428, traveline.org.uk

By Aircraft

You can fly Ryan Air ryanair.com from Stanstead to Newquay for as little as £20. You can also fly to Newquay from different destinations with airsouthwest.co.uk or bmibaby.com.