An Interview from Wushu Jian Shen Magazine
By Zhang Xinhua, September 1992, Beijing
“I’m Lou Si Xiu, from Washington, DC.” Scott M. Rodell introduces himself in Chinese. Although we have an interpreter. He suggests not mentioning his English name in this article.
I wonder whether this 32-year-old American understand the deep meaning of his Chinese name or not. However, I get a definite answer after the 20-minute interview.
He is very energetic. He started to learn various kinds of Gong Fu at the age of nine, such as Western Wresting, Japanese Karate, Judo, Fencing, Archery and etc. But he wasn’t strong enough, and he doubted whether all these sports fit him or not. He learned, by chance, from his friend that one Chinese martial arts, that is Taiji Quan, is a kind of Nei Gong which doesn’t need intense muscle movement. He was very surprised and attended a Taiji Quan class.
He learned several forms at the first class. He moved back and forth in front of the mirror in the classroom. He did a Dan Bian, looking at himself from the mirror, the front hand pushing, while the back one hooks, the muscle growing strong. He had a very good sense of his muscle strength. At this moment, his teacher came to him. He shook his head and said,’No. No.’ Patting on his hard and muscle, he wanted his student to fang sung, and use mind instead of muscle strength.
He thought there was something wrong with his teacher. He couldn’t understand how to do the form while one’s muscle were soft. He tried to find the answer. After a period of hard practice, he found that Taiji, the soft Gong is more powerful than hard Gong. He became stronger than before. And his right leg, hurt in Wresting, was cured by Taiji.
“So, you find the most suitable sport to you finally.” I asked him. “No. Taiji is not a kind of sports. It is a way of meditation, a kind of Wen Wu Xing (Cultural-Martial Method of Self Cultivation). Some sports make your muscle strong, but without spirit and Qi. They can’t complete the human being. I practice Taiji not only for my body, but for my whole life. For instance, you can’t see the Qi in Taiji, but you can feel it. It is very interesting. There are some mysterious things in the world. Chinese try to learn it by their own ways. Taiji Quan is an outstanding way. The United States has advanced science, rich knowledge, but without the real way to understand Dao. This way is in China. If philosophy is just written in the book, or oral language, it would be meaningless.”
I have to admit all he said was very thoughtful. But Scott said he is only a beginner in Taiji Quan. He points to dozens of Americans who are following Master Yang Zhen Duo, and says, “It is not easy for all these Americans to come to China. Though there are many books about Taiji Quan in America, they come to China because they worry about Taiji Quan in the States being western style.” He hopes China will keep Taiji Quan’s traditional form. He even worries China will forget her own tradition after the current reforms. He says Yang Zhen Dou and other masters deserve to be called China’s priceless treasure.
Rodell has practiced Taiji Quan for 15 years, and is a professional Taiji Quan teacher. He has two centers in Washington D.C. and Baltimore, and three centers in Russia. But he still says he is a beginner in Taiji Quan. He will never show off himself. He tells me many people in the U.S. try to make money by Taiji Quan, but he thinks it is shameful. He will try his best to teach his students who love Taiji all he learns. I think he has a humble and generous personality.
After the Taiji Quan training class, Scott will visit Lao Mountain and Tai Mountain, get some Dao spirit. He writes down his address on my note book ‘Great River Taoist Center’, and especially explains in Chinese.
I consider the deep meaning of ‘Great River’, and also the American’s Chinese name ‘Si Xiu’.