The early Ti or Toudi Instructor

During the time when the art was Toudi of Ti, the role of the instructor was a very different thing than what instructor has become. Certainly the instructor passed along the art to be taught, but there probably little relationship to what the instructor has become.

 

First the instructor most likely had to have been a member  of the families that their art, Toudi or Ti, was developed for. They were trained themselves, and did not shop around for an instructor, as they were directed towards the instructor of their family. When they learnt their art, they would have proceeded to begin to function in their family role where the art was but a fraction of their adult role. They would have served along side their fathers, cousins, etc. all with their Toudi or Ti at their beck and call. As functioning members of their family as they progressed they also would have married, started families of their own and in turn directed their eldest son toward the same training.

 

Likely they would have retired after service, and having been successful their other family members would eventually selected them to become an instructor. Knowing their art, and knowing that they knew exactly what new students needed to be trained for.

 

The young students would have had no say in the selection of an instructor. That they would suffer the trials of a new student, waiting, service and/on intense training, their own fathers and other family members would be counseling them to stick it out. Then the training would not be random, but each task along the way was to prepare them to be successful. And eventually they would be prepared to the extent they were ready to move into whatever their family role was. Likely that was the end of the training period. I find it inconceivable that their family would not have been involved, even if indirectly. They would have had access to their friend the instructor and would follow their progress.

 

Most likely at that point they would enter the training other members of their family underwent to keep themselves in shape as required, any other skills probably was a result of being surrounded by others, older and more experienced, as their role evolved in life.

 

The instructors most likely would get together to discuss what they had seen and where they saw their art developing over time.

 

All in all quite different from the role of instructor this day.\