Pamela Hultgren / 2025.02
For those of us who do not speak or read Chinese, finding appropriate study material can be a challenge. Fortunately, three of Master Wu’s books have been translated into English: Tao Tai-Chi Health; The Application of Tai-Chi Philosophy; and The Thirteen Forms of Exercises of Tai-Chi Chuan. These books have been the bibles for our Taiji Quan practices since they were published.
In addition to Master Wu’s works, many of Grandmaster Zheng Manqing’s books have been translated and there are countless books written by English authors. However, earlier publications that were translated or written before the adoption of the new Pinyin romanization added a level of confusion. Names and Taiji-specific terms written in the Wade-Giles romanization are now more commonly written in Pinyin. We now understand that these are two different systems of transliteration and we can switch between them easily identify them by apostrophes or accent marks. But there was a learning curve. The everyday written language of Taiji Quan changed: T’ai Chi Ch’uan became Tàijí Quán; Wu Kuo Chung became Wu Guózhōng; Cheng Man Ch’ing became Zhèng Mànqīng; Tan T’ien became Dāntián; Chin became Jìn; Ching became Jing, etc.
In 2006, Master Wu addressed our challenges by embracing the growth of the internet, authorizing a Shenlong website called T’ai Chi Forum. He saw the need for all of us to be connected in our study by providing access to Shenlong articles and videos.
Six years later, Shenlong joined Facebook, with posts written and guided by Professor Wang Qunchao. We were excited when Facebook introduced a translate feature, however, the early translations were frequently awkward, unreadable, frustrating, or simply repeated a word or phrase, sometimes for 5 or 6 lines of the same text: –“The heart of the heart of the heart of the heart. . .” One memorable translation example was from August 25, 2022, when Facebook translated this 從太極拳之周而復始談大乘法的練法 as “Reviving the practice of expanding cannabis for Jewish week.” Clearly not correct but we all had a good laugh. Google Translate did a better job but ultimately, we emailed Professor Wang, who helped with clarification, “I tried to explain the back and forth without breaking is very critical in application of Taichi and Da Cheng Fa is designed for this purpose.”We frequently go to Professor Wang for clarifications.
In May of 2023, Professor Wang introduced us to ChatGPT opening a whole new world for us, Like Master Wu, he understood our challenges and found a way for us to stay connected. Now not only are the weekly posts are translated for us, but with the aid of ChatGPT we can go back and translate earlier posts. With clarifications from Professor Wang and Stephen Frost from Australia, we were able to compile a working copy of the Five 100-day Practices, amounting to 187 pages in English. A real treasure for us.
“Read and study more” were words we frequently heard from Master Wu and we now hear from Professor Wang. The translation tools and resources are getting better and better and our ability to translate Chinese to English has sparked new curiosity and exploration, presenting the wonderful challenge of deciding what to read/study next. There is a “Files” tab on the Facebook page with a collection of Professor Wang’s articles dating back to 2012. Using the Google Translate feature on the Taiwan Shenlong website[1], we have access to a collection of conference articles dating back to 2013 where we can read the writings of Master Wu, Professor Wang, Brother Low, Stephen Frost, and brothers and sisters from around the world writing of their Taiji experiences.
Access is, of course, only the first step, as the translations are only as good as our understandings. So, we go back to fill in the gaps and broaden our basic understandings, to deepen our Shenlong filters. We read and study individually and in groups. We continue to ask questions and to get clarifications and you, the Shenlong community, via email, WhatsApp, Facebook, Zoom, and most certainly in person, to we learn all that we have misunderstood or misinterpreted.
Below is an excerpt from an article written by Master Wu on the 10th anniversary of Shenlong Lodge. [2]
The primary mission must be kept in mind,
Development requires change, and within change, development,
The vast universe is an eternal river,
Life’s years are but a few.A clear stream of Taiji remains,
Extremely refined, beautiful, good, and true,
Delving deeply, grasping subtleties,
Practicing diligently with caution,
Extending life and health without deceit,
Integrating body and usage to perfect martial arts.
“Delving deeply, grasping subtleties,” his words encourage us and challenge us to continue to read and study together.
* * * * * *
閱讀與學習——深入研究，掌握微妙之處
Pamela Hultgren
(translated from English into traditional Chinese characters by ChatGPT)
對於我們這些不會說或讀中文的人來說，找到合適的學習材料可能是一個挑戰。幸運的是，吳師父的三本書已經翻譯成英文：《道．太極．健康》、《太極哲學的應用》和《太極運動十三式》。自出版以來，這些書一直是我們練習太極拳的聖經。
除了吳師父的著作外，許多鄭曼青大師的書籍也已經翻譯成英文，還有無數其他英語作者的著作。然而，在採用新的拼音羅馬化之前翻譯或撰寫的早期出版物，增加了一定程度的混淆。以威妥瑪拼音書寫的名稱和太極特定術語，現在更常見的是用拼音書寫。現在我們明白這是兩種不同的音譯系統，我們可以通過撇號或重音符輕鬆地在它們之間切換並識別它們。但是，這是一個學習曲線。日常的太極拳書面用語發生了變化：T’ai Chi Ch’uan 變成了 Tàijí Quán，Wu Kuo Chung 變成了 Wu Guózhōng，Cheng Man Ch’ing變成了 Zhèng Mànqīng，Tan T’ien 變成了Dāntián，Chin 變成了 Jìn，Ching 變成了 Jing⋯⋯等等。
2006 年，吳師父面對我們所遇到的挑戰，於是擁抱了網際網路的發展，授權建立了一個名為「太極論壇」的神龍網站。他認識到我們在學習中需要保持聯繫，於是提供了讀取神龍文章和影片的途徑。
六年後，神龍加入了 Facebook，帖子由汪群超教授撰寫和指導。我們對於 Facebook 引入翻譯功能感到興奮，然而，早期的翻譯經常是拗口的、難以閱讀的、令人沮喪的，或者只是重複了一個詞或短語，有時同一段文字重複 5 到 6 行：「⋯⋯心的心的心的心的……」。一個令人難忘的翻譯例子是 2022 年 8 月 25 日，當時 Facebook 將這句話「從太極拳之周而復始談大乘法的練法」翻譯成 “Reviving the practice of expanding cannabis for Jewish week.” 顯然不正確，但我們都大笑一場。Google 翻譯做得更好，但最終，我們給汪教授發了電子郵件，他幫忙做了澄清：「我試圖解釋不間斷的來回在太極應用中非常關鍵，而大乘法就是為此設計的。」我們經常向汪教授尋求澄清。
2023 年 5月，汪教授向我們介紹了 ChatGPT，為我們開闢了一個全新的世界。像吳師父一樣，他理解我們面臨的挑戰，並找到了讓我們保持聯繫的方法。現在不僅每週的帖子為我們翻譯，而且在 ChatGPT 的幫助下，我們可以回頭翻譯早期的帖子。在汪教授和來自澳大利亞的 Stephen Frost 的校閱下，我們能夠編寫出「五個 100 天練習」的工作副本，共 187 頁英文。這對我們來說是一個真正的寶藏。
「多讀多學」是我們經常聽到吳師父說的話，現在我們也從汪教授那裡聽到。翻譯工具和資源越來越好，我們將中文翻譯成英文的能力激發了新的好奇心和探索，提出決定接下來閱讀／學習內容的美好挑戰。在 Facebook 頁面上有一個「文件」選項，裡面收集了汪教授自 2012 年以來的文章。使用台灣神龍網站上的 Google 翻譯功能，我們可以查閱自 2013 年以來的會議文章合集，在那裡我們可以閱讀吳師父、汪教授、羅師兄、Stephen Frost 以及來自世界各地的兄弟姐妹們撰寫的太極經驗。
當然，獲取資訊只是第一步，因為翻譯的質量取決於我們的理解。因此，我們回過頭來填補空白，拓寬我們的基本認識，深化我們的神龍過濾器。我們個別閱讀和學習，也以小組形式進行。我們繼續提出問題並尋求澄清，也透過電子郵件、WhatsApp、Facebook、Zoom，當然還有面對面的方式，向你們——神龍社群學習所有我們誤解或誤譯的內容。
以下摘錄吳師父在神龍會所十週年紀念時所撰寫的一篇文章：
使命首要放心中，發展之中要變化，變化之中求發展，茫茫宇宙是長河，
人生歲月有幾何，一股清流存太極，至精至微美善真，研幾極深握幾微，
謹慎仔細多勤練，延年益壽不欺人，體用相兼拳藝成。
「深入研究，掌握微妙之處」，他的話鼓勵我們並挑戰我們繼續一起閱讀和學習。
刊登於 2025 年《原幾》雜誌第八期
[1] https://shenlong-taiwan.org/papers/
[2] https://shenlong-taiwan.org/2013/11/29/%e7%a5%9e%e9%be%8d%e8%b3%a6-2/
中華神龍太極學會 