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Background
Tai Chi Chuan
The history of martial arts in China is long and diverse. Modern Chinese martial arts are generally traced back to Bodhidharma, an Indian monk who traveled to the Shaolin temple in the 6th century AD and introduced martial exercises and Zen Buddhism to China. Tai Chi Chuan is generally believed to have been founded by Chang San-feng (~1400) at Wudang Mountain. However, there is a very ancient history in China of systems of movement associated with healing and philosophy, and many of the principles on which Tai Chi Chuan are based stem from the writings of Lao Tsu in the sixth century BC. Today Tai Chi Chuan is practiced worldwide for it's hard and soft martial techniques and it's many health benefits. True martial arts contain an odd juxtaposition of ideas and ideologies. It contains lethal and apparently violent techniques with a philosophy of compassion and peace.Dressage/Equestrian arts
Horses have been used by humans for thousands of years primarily for the purposes of transportation, agricultural work, and warfare. Classical dressage evolved from cavalry training. The movements in dressage were used for attack and defence on the battlefield much like traditional martial arts. The earliest surviving work on the principles of classical dressage was written by Xenophon, a Greek from around 430-335 BCE. Xenophon urged his readers to know and understand the horse's "psyche" and encouraged a mutual respect between man and horse. Much of the art of riding was lost during the Dark and Middle Ages, when soldiers resorted to very heavy armour for protection, and rode thick-set, heavy, cold-blooded horses. During the Renaissance period, the advent of firearms brought back the need for agility and speed on the battlefield. This lead to the in-depth study of dressage and the rediscovery of Xenophon’s writings. Many riding schools were founded at this time in an effort to study how to gain maximum obedience and performance from the horse.Sherrilyn Walters
Sherrilyn Walters is an avid horse rider and martial artist with a passion for seeing her students and horses improve through proper training. Sherrilyn has always loved animals, and horses in particular. She began horse riding lessons when she was 9 years old and started training young horses at the age of 13. She has learnt from many great horse people over the years in her search for knowledge and understanding about horse riding and training. This search led her to complete her Bachelor's Degree in Animal Studies (Equine Studies), during which time she trained under renowned author and trainer Karin Blignault (view her books here), who helped to develop Sherrilyn's great love for the art of Dressage. While undergoing her studies, Sherrilyn married, and her husband encouraged her to start training in martial arts. She began training in Yang Style Tai Chi Chuan at the Chinese Martial Arts and Health Centre in South Africa. Soon after, she expanded into training in the harder traditional northern and southern Kung Fu systems offered by the CMAHC. After beginning her career as a martial artist, Sherrilyn began to realize the similarities between her martial arts and dressage training. She also noticed that improvements in her martial arts lead to improvements in her riding. Martial arts gave her improved control of her own body and mind which translated into improved control and connection with the horse. She began experimenting with using the principles learned in martial arts while riding and found that her connection with the horse became much stronger. The conviction of a living connection between her two arts grew from merely thinking about the similarities into actual experimentation with training methods. Over the years it has progressed into a full system. Tai Ji Ma is a powerful integration of martial arts and horse-riding which takes horse-riding to a higher level of physical application.