Tai Chi Chuan's Little China Doll Comes to America, Part 2
by Sandy Wong
An impressive display of her talents was viewed when Mark-Yen recently toured the United States with a troupe promoted by master Pui Chan, a chief instructor for many martial arts schools on the East Coast. Her swift and accurate performance of forms and swordsmanship demonstrates that not just anyone can pick up the art in five easy lessons. It is quite obvious in her performance that she has spent many years of self discipline and dedication to master her art. Mark-Yen is indeed a skillful performer, but to achieve such skill she must train constantly and remarks, “You have to practice it all the time. Otherwise if you don’t practice it, you lose it.”
As far as Mark-Yen’s training up to this point, she explains that it has come from formal schooling in five techniques: straight sword (gim), broadsword (do), stick, spear and fist or empty hand. These basics are all essential to the serious student of this art.
With these many years of training behind her, Mark-Yen stressed that although the art can also be studied as a form of self defense, she feels its primary use is to maintain good health. In China both the young and the old can be seen in parks performing the graceful tai chi chuan exercises daily. Mark-Yen, like many practitioners of tai chi chuan, prefers to look at the art as a means of promoting physical and spiritual achievement. “Lost of people think that kung-fu is just for fighting,” she remarks. “But actually they don’t even know that the martial arts are good for your health.”
