Modern Mandarin is not a problem. The problem is that most of these daoist or MA terms come from the classics and the ancient Chinese used a very complicated language to express them. sometimes without comparing many interpretations and using the help of authentic teachers it's impossible to know what they were talking about.
Perhaps I miss read you. Although my canto is only conversational, I personally find the chinese language refreshingly direct. No past future tense, no account for how many etc. To me that kinda still sounds abit strange. Like saying it in reverse: " Chinese have a hard time with western medicine and science because of their lack of depth of understanding of the english language...See, It kinda sound wrong when you say it that way. It is true that even in China there is a problem with improper hei gong practice. According to the government, the main reason is self instruction through the thousands of manuals there are. Over 5000 diferent interpretations of the methods. Daunting at best.I'm sorry I misunderstood your post. Thomas Reichert
I am a white guy and there was nothing racist in my post. However the complexity of the Chinese language and traditional culture are big obstacles for westerners and even the modern westernized Chinese who want to understand and learn the traditional concepts and knowledge.