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An Interview with Qigong Great, Master Randy K. Li

The following article on Master Li was published in the March 29, 2001 issue of the Kansas City Chinese Journal and is translated here in English.

Fists and Gong to strengthen the body and the heart, peaches and plums all over Kansas City -- means training in martial arts, including boxing (chuan) and internal work (gong) will improve one's health and strengthen one's physical and mental condition. Peaches and plums indicate a lot of students are branching out around Kansas City.

Over three years ago, I heard the name Randy from my neighbor, psychologist and professor Scott Temple. Professor Temple did Taiji Chuan very well, and Randy was his teacher. Scott even wanted to attend tournaments in China. Not too long ago, I realized what Professor Temple respected. Master Li is the President of the U.S.A. National Traditional Wushu Federation. He is the fifth generation disciple of the Yang family Taiji. Not only does he specialize in Yang style Taiji Chuan, he is also skillful in Wing Chun Chuan, Southern Shaolin, and Qigong. He is an internationally ranked 7th degree master and a Qigong master. Sifu Li has learned Chinese martial arts over 37 years. He came from Macau. After moving to the United States, he obtained his Master's degree in Business Administration. Over ten years ago, he settled down in Kansas City and gave up his career and business opportunities related to his degree in order to focus on teaching Chinese martial arts.

Every Saturday around noon, Master Li is at the Overland Park Community Center where there is a three-hour class. At noon on one of the Saturdays, I had the honor of visiting the class. In a large, gymnastic room there were about thirty students practicing Chinese martial arts. Over 90% are non-Chinese. There were people doing Taiji Chuan, Taiji Sword, Wing Chun Chuan, and people doing two-person sets such as Push Hands. The atmosphere is very intense, and they don't just train for one's self. The senior students teach the new students. There was an older student, Scott, teaching a new student from Taiwan named Eric Chow who was attending class for the second time. Eric's father told me that his son has been shopping for books, looking at the Internet, trying anxiously to learn Chinese martial arts. He brought his son to study formally under Master Li. I talked to other students of Master Li's. Roger can play a real good Taiji Sword. He practiced Chinese martial arts for ten years. Every day he insisted on practicing for one hour. Over ten years he did it every day and benefited a lot from doing that. These benefits cannot be obtained from other martial arts or sports. Another person, Steve, added that the training has helped his body and mind. They all told me why they practice martial arts. They could feel qi inside their bodies moving around. What is qi: energy - like electricity. At the same time, you can relax.

Another student, Doc, has learned Wing Chun from Master Li for over three years. Every day he insists on practicing for one hour. He works at a hospital in respiratory therapy. There are a lot of patients, and work is very intense and demanding. But since he started practicing Wing Chun, he never feels tired and is happy, full of energy, and is always in a good mood. I asked him to explain and I realized that this is what we talk about in Chinese - the stage of harmony, relaxation, and feeling refreshed. Doc's co-workers envy him and ask for the secret as to why he feels good all the time. His answer insists on practicing Wing Chun.

Central Missouri State University Mathematics Professor Shing So has driven from Warrensburg, Missouri to Kansas City every Saturday for eight years to learn Chinese martial arts from Master Li. Professor So looks very healthy, and he is one of Master Li's favorite students. Master Li told me that Professor So is not only good in Taiji and Wing Chun Chuan, he is also a Qigong master. According to what I know now, there are a lot of people teaching Taiji today, but why does Professor So drive over two hours to come to study from Master Li? Dr. So smiled and said, "Nowadays, there are a lot of people teaching Taiji Chuan, but most of them teach only the movements, like exercise and sports. They don't teach the internal content. Master Li not only teaches the movements, he also illustrates every reason and every application of each movement, and makes the student understand the movements from all angles." In Warrensburg there are people asking Professor So for knowledge. He always does his best to help. There is a retired professor is over eighty years old who, after learning Taiji Chuan from Professor So, overcame his physical problems.

For females learning Wing Chun Chuan, the system can help defend oneself. It appears the Chinese martial arts have their own special features. No wonder there are a lot of people learning from Master Li. Over ten years, Master Li has taught over a thousand people in Kansas City. Master Li said, "To teach and to learn go together." Teaching and learning will co-exist. During teaching, he gains a lot of new ideas, experiences, and understanding. He has been invited from different communities, government, and universities to be their guest speaker. His students are teaching other people who want to learn. Master Li has become fruitful in this land, and that is hard to achieve.

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