A Tribute to T.T. Liang

by Paul B. Gallagher

Grandmaster Liang Tung Tsai  (T.T. Liang), a modern "Taiji Immortal,"  was born in 1900, during the time of China's last Emperor, and passed away peacefully in August of 2002, fulfilling a prediction he had made decades earlier, that he would leave this world in a state of tranquility and harmony.

     Liang was a Confucian in his respect for scholarship, a Taoist in his approach to people and his puckish good humor, and a Buddhist in his understanding of change and realization that ultimately "all is emptiness."

     In fact, he used to admonish his students to be "Confucian" till age 60--go to school, get a university degree, marry, acquire a good job and good income, and have children and grandchildren. All this Liang considered "raising Rank" in the Confucian sense.

     Be a Taoist from age 60-80--cultivate qi and Spirit for ageless vitality. And after 80, become a "Buddhist," seeing into the vacuity of all things.

     Liang studied some martial arts in his youth, then gradually worked his way up to becoming the chief Chinese customs official on the Shanghai waterfront in the 1930's and early 1940's.

     He loved to regale his students with tales of his "bad old days" in the great port city; his adventures in opium dens and back street gun battles, harrowing moments confronting drug lords, gangsters, and the Japanese invaders.

     One of his favorite topics of conversation was how he had cultivated the "Five Vices," only to lose his health to liver cirrhosis and opium addiction. Around the age of 40, his doctors told him he had at best three months to live.

     At that point, he decided to change his life completely. He began the vigorous, dedicated practice of Taiji, and abandoned all connection to his "Five Vices."

     Liang’s martial arts lineage was like a who’s who of 20^th century Chinese martial arts legends. He was the First Disciple of Cheng Man-Ch’ing, and studied with such greats as  Xiong Yang He (student of Yang Jian Hou), Li Shou Qian and Chen Pan Ling (students of Yang Shao Hou), Wang Nien Yen (student of Zhang Qin Lin), Master Huang (student of Yang Ch’eng Fu), Qi Qing Zi (student of Chen Wei Ming), as well as Han Qin Tang (Shaolin and chin-na), Wei Xiao Tang (Praying Mantis), and others.

                     T.T.  Liang, March 1900-August 2002  in his home studio

     The real significance of Liang’s life and teaching, however, is not in his stories or his lineage, but the profound effect he had upon his students. He was absolutely generous in his teaching.

     Often students of other teachers would visit and mention "secrets" they had either learned from their teachers, or wanted to learn. Liang would chuckle and tell them that he was willing to teach them everything he knew without holding anything back. The only "secret" was--could they "get" it?

     Pressed to reveal his "ultimate secret," he would usually say one of two things:  "Make one thousand friends; do not make one enemy."  Or, "My secret is to change my students' temperament,"--from bellicose to peaceful, from uncentered to abiding in the dan tian, from self-absorbed to responsive and spontaneous.

     Liang taught by the very example of who he was. And he was a master teacher. More often than not his teaching would come in the ordinary moments of life and frequently by his apparent teasing and bantering, which was his way of testing his student's mental "root."

     He had an uncanny sense of his students' energy, hang ups and "hot buttons," and taught by stories, jokes, and parables. He invariably knew just which hot buttons to push to see if his students could remain centered emotionally and energetically, as well as physically.

     Liang "retired" several times during the period he taught in the U.S. Each time, he would talk about being fed up with "drug addicts and alcoholics," and with the stressful pace of life and teaching here.

     His students would give him a huge farewell party, and he would "retire" to Taiwan. A few months later, the phone would start to ring--"The Old Man is back..." the voice on the phone would say. Sure enough, Master Liang would once again establish a studio and begin teaching.

     When we asked him why he had come back, he would look just a bit sheepish and say, "If I don't go to Hell, who will go?"  This was a reference to Buddha's descending to the deepest hells to teach those most in need of instruction.

     Invariably, he would also have learned some new martial arts during his retirement, and would share his new discoveries with his students--discoveries such as the Double Sword with Tassel, Man Jiang Hung Sword Dance, and six entire Praying Mantis sets.

     Liang always encouraged his students to learn from many teachers and to develop their own way and flavor in the martial arts When students would come back to Liang after learning forms from other teachers, Liang would request that they demonstrate what they had learned, and then he would "put it to music," so that it could  be performed to a musical piece with regular beats.

      Liang's final "retirement" came at age 95, when he decided to return to Mainland China. He packed up and we saw him off at Newark Airport, fully expecting that we would never see him again. True to pattern, he surprised us by returning (alone) some weeks later.

     Liang was quite vigorous at age 95 and could still acquit himself well in push hands and chin-na. He was very energetic and alert at his 100th birthday celebrations. His health gradually declined after age 101 and he remained at a care facility until his passing.

     I truly believe Master Liang has changed numerous lives (perhaps hundreds, or even thousands) for the better.  He was a rare and authentic teacher and his most profound teaching could reach the center of someone's being--going far, far beyond forms and exercises.

     All of this was done in a kind of nonchalant way with his  frequent joking, teasing, or seemingly irrelevant observations whose real meaning and profound applications to one's life would only be discovered much later.

     If you take into account the "ripple effect" through  which some of the essence of Master Liang's spirit and teaching influenced his students, their students, and now a third generation of students, plus all of their families and the people they encounter in everyday life, Liang's influence is truly incalculable. He was truly a rare and special "Taiji Immortal."

     Though he taught a whole panoply of forms, embracing the entire Yang Style Taiji system--including Spear and San Shou, I think his real gift was the way in which he truly did change his students' temperament. Liang was particularly fascinated by Bob Hope and one of his two disciples, Sifu Ray Hayward, described Liang as a combination of Bob Hope and Yoda.

     No one who spent any serious time with Master Liang could remain unchanged. He seemed to emanate a certain magnetism and absolute authenticity which was transforming in and of itself. And in a kind of magical alchemy, Liang catalyzed hundreds of people to become not only good Taiji players, but also fundamentally better human beings.

     Liang often admonished his students to practice sincerely and to make sure they kept their commitments--to the art, as well as to their loved ones, and to society at large. He would sometimes refer to students who had "bounced a check"--or failed to meet their commitments. Conversely, one sign of high praise from Liang was when he referred to someone as "no bounced check."

     Looking at the life, longevity, and contribution of T.T. Liang, his students could surely say of him, "No bounced check."

       T.T. Liang Explains the Taijiquan Classics, 1987

  This article originally appeared in T'ai Chi Magazine, Vol 26, No 6. It is modified slightly in this edition.

   (C)   Copyright Paul B. Gallagher, 2009