The Heritage Of Tai Chi

[ChangWuJi]

"Tai Ji Quan is considered to be one of the internal styles of Chinese martial art, and is the most widely practiced martial art in the world today. The term "Tai Ji" refers to the ancient Chinese cosmological concept of the interplay between two opposite yet complementary forces (Yin and Yang) as being the foundation of creation. "Quan" literally means, "fist" and denotes an unarmed method of combat. Tai Ji Quan as a martial art is based on the principle of the soft overcoming the hard.

 

The origins of Tai Ji Quan are often attributed to one Zhang San Feng (a Daoist of either the Twelfth or Fifteenth century depending on the source) who created the Art after witnessing a fight between a snake and a crane. Although there is evidence that Zhang San Feng actually existed, there is no historical evidence to support the claim that he had anything to do with the creation or practice of Tai Ji Quan. These stories were popularized in the early part of this century and were the result of misinformation and the desire to connect the Art with a more famous and ancient personage. All of the various styles of Tai Ji Quan which are in existence today can be traced back to a single man, Chen Wang Ting, a general of the latter years of the Ming Dynasty. Chen was a native of Chen Jia Gou, Wen County, in Henan Province. After the fall of the Ming and the establishment of the Ching Dynasty (1644), Chen Wang Ting returned to the Chen village and created his forms of boxing. Originally containing up to seven sets, only two sets of Chen Style Tai Ji Quan have survived to the present.

 

Tai chi came into prominence in the eighteenth century when Yang Lu-ch'an introduced it in Beijing. Prior to this, tai chi was reported to have been taught only to members of the Chen family living in a small village in Hopeh Province. Yang Lu-ch'an was the first non-member of the Chen family to be taught this most secret art. The following version of how this occurred was related by our teachers. We cannot vouch for its authenticity but nonetheless have recorded it as it gives an insight into and forms an interesting background for this ancient and rich art.

 

Yang Lu-ch'an was a pugilistic enthusiast. He studied the 'hard' schools of martial art from many tutors. One day, he had a heated discussion with a Chen and was beaten up for his pains. Yang was very frustrated as he realized his skill in martial art was very inferior to Chen's. He requested a return bout. During the interim he practiced assiduously. In the return bout, he was again handled like a babe and thrashed so soundly by Chen that he forswore the practice of all other forms of martial art. He was determined to learn Chen's system.

 

He soon discovered that it was taught only to members of the Chen family and then only if the Chen stayed in a particular village - the Chen Chia Kou village. The Chen who defeated him was the nephew of the grandmaster. Yang wished to learn from the grandmaster but realized that a direct approach would be unsuccessful. He decided to 'steal' the art from the family. First he disguised himself as a beggar, then he made himself temporarily dumb by swallowing some hot charcoal. He hoped that the sight of a poor, suffering beggar outside his home would evoke the grandmaster's sympathy.

 

The ruse worked. Yang gained entry and was eventually employed as a servant in the grandmaster's household. He soon became a trusted servant and was given access to the inner courtyards of the family household. Here he spied on the Chen family as they practiced. Religiously, he copied their moves and practiced them in secret. He was able to benefit from this activity as he already had a good grounding in the martial art.

 

One night, as Yang was practicing secretly, he suddenly found the grandmaster observing him. He was terrified. In those days in China, the price one paid for spying on other martial art systems was either one's head or right hand! The grandmaster, surprisingly, demanded neither. He merely said, 'Do you think I did not realize you were spying on us when we were practicing? I allowed you to watch because I wanted to see how serious you were and how well you would benefit from the instruction. If you had shown neither interest nor skill, I would have killed you myself.'

 

On saying that, he tapped Yang three times on the head and walked away, leaving a puzzled but very relieved man. From that day, Yang went to the grandmaster's quarters every morning at 3 a.m. for personalized instruction in tai chi. During the day he did his chores as usual and no one in the family realized he was receiving secret instruction from the grandmaster.

 

One day the grandmaster explained why he had broken one of the strongest family traditions by teaching an outsider the secrets of the art. He had realized that by restricting the art to family members, tai chi would eventually decline in vitality. Family members would not have any incentive to practice well or to introduce new techniques since even those with less than perfect mastery of the art were far better than most practitioners from other schools of martial art. He reasoned that if he taught a talented and skilled outsider, like Yang, he would ensure that the essence of tai chi would not be lost to the world. Further, tai chi would remain a vigorous and vital art as not only would it be practiced by many but also the family members would have to practice hard in order to avoid being beaten by their own art.

 

The tradition of selecting hardworking and dedicated students to pass on the knowledge of the art began with Yang and has persisted. Often masters would not accept payment from such students, whose only obligation was to learn the art well and, in turn, pass on their knowledge to other deserving students.

 

Thus Yang Lu-ch'an fulfilled his greatest desire and was personally instructed by the grandmaster for several long years. This grandmaster remained critical of the standard of the art practiced by members of the family. At one of the annual competitions held among members of the Chen family, he noted that none of the younger members was able to defeat an old man like himself. It was pointed out that this was because he had so much more experience and practice. Since the proficiency of an exponent was related to the amount of practice and as age did not impair one's ability in the art, they were confident that when they reached his age they would equal or better his skill.

 

Then the grandmaster dropped his bombshell: 'If I can produce someone younger than myself, who has acquired sufficient skill through thoughtful and diligent practice, to defeat all of you, what would you all have to say then?'

 

This statement was received with much laughter. The grandmaster's claim was treated with some derision when the family discovered that this superman was none other than their servant, Yang Lu-ch'an. Laughter turned to disbelief as, one after another, members of the Chen family were beaten by Yang. Gradually, their feelings hardened into anger as they realized that not only had their grandmaster trained an outsider, he had done it so well that he could defeat all members of the family. They felt cheated and betrayed.

 

'Yang Lu-ch'an will go forth and teach the world tai chi. If you all do not practice well enough, you will soon find that others will be better than you in your own art. Although I have broken our family tradition by teaching an outsider, I have ensured that the knowledge of the art will not die but will blossom and develop over the years.'

 

With those words, the grandmaster personally escorted Yang out of the village and gave him his blessings to spread the knowledge of tai chi. Yang lost no time in fulfilling his teacher's wishes. He had to establish tai chi as an effective martial art system before he could attract any good students to his school. In order to do this, he wandered all over Hopeh Province, taking on all challengers. In his first year he carried a flag that proclaimed he was the best martial art exponent and challenged anyone who disputed this claim. The flag was displayed in taverns, marketplaces and other public places. It soon attracted many challengers for all serious martial art practitioners are proud of displaying their skill. Furthermore, a proven martial art exponent in those days could earn an honorable and comfortable living by providing escort service for the richer merchants and travelers or by teaching his art.

 

Yang Lu-ch'an was never defeated in any of his bouts. He continued in his travels for a total of three years. His flag, by this time, recorded all his past victories and he called himself the 'Unbeatable Yang'. He also claimed that he practiced the martial art system, tai chi chuan - 'grand ultimate fist'. Despite all these claims, the number of challengers dropped. So Yang went to Beijing and started a school of tai chi. Here he teamed up with two other 'soft' or 'infernal' martial art schools (Hsing I and Pa Kua) and together they challenged, defeated and expelled all other martial art schools from Beijing. For a very long time afterwards, only these three schools of martial art were taught in Beijing.

 

Following Yang's death, his version of tai chi, now known as Yang tai chi, was taught mainly by members of his family. His grandson, Yang Cheng-fu, formalized the teaching of tai chi into a set of 81 moves which took a student some time to learn and about 15-20 minutes to complete. One of his better students, Cheng Mun-ch'ng, updated this version by weeding out the more repetitive and impractical moves. He retained the essence of the art by neither introducing any new moves nor attempting to change Yang Cheng-fu's interpretation of the art. Thus the basics of Yang tai chi as taught by the originator Yang Lu-ch'an were preserved, and today, this version of tai chi is the one which most closely resembles the original form. It is this version which was taught to Chia Siew Pang by Cheng Mun-ch'ng and which is presented in this manual. (Tai Chi - Ten Minutes to Health)

 

Yang style Tai Ji Quan is characterized by soft, smooth and flowing movements, which are relatively, even in tempo. The alternations of slow and quick movements that are found in the Chen style sets have been separated in the Yang style. Yang style Tai Ji Quan includes a 'long' or slow set in which all movements flow together at an even pace, and a separate 'fast' form which includes quick and explosive movements. Technically, the Yang styles include a great number of projections and takedowns. The vast majority of Chin Na techniques practiced in the Chen style have been removed from the Yang style.

 

We have described briefly the evolution and development of one of the more popular forms of tai chi. This version has stood the test of time. Today, it is still widely practiced in many parts of the world. However, it is not the only version of tai chi that has developed over the years. In attempts to improve upon what they have learnt, several have introduced their interpretations of the art; the result has been the development of many schools of tai chi. Among the better known versions are Chen tai chi, Wu tai chi and Sun tai chi. Many later versions introduced modifications to the original system. Sun tai chi, for example, incorporates some of the techniques of other 'soft' martial art systems. All this reflects the rich heritage and versatility of the ancient art.

 

Complete Tai ji Quan arts include basic exercises, stance keeping (Zhan Zhuang), repetitive single movement training, linked form training, power training (exercises which train the ability to issue energy in a ballistic pulse), weapons training (which includes straight sword, broadsword, staff and spear), technique training and various two person exercises and drills (including "pushhands" sensitivity drills). A hallmark of most styles of Tai Ji Quan is that the movements in the forms are done quite slowly, with one posture flowing into the next without interruption. Some forms (the old Chen forms for example) alternate between slow motion and explosive movements. Other styles divide the training into forms which are done slowly at an even tempo and separate forms which are performed at a more vigorous pace. The goal of moving slowly is to insure correct attention is paid to proper body mechanics and the maintenance of the prerequisite relaxation. Training exercises can be divided into two broad categories: solo exercises, and drills which require a partner.

 

Traditionally, single patterns of movement were learned and repeated over and over until mastered, only then was the next pattern taught. Once the student had mastered an entire sequence of movements individually, the movements were taught in a linked sequence (a 'set'). The goal of training is to cultivate a kind of 'whole body' power. This refers to the ability to generate power with the entire body, making full use of one's whole body mass in every movement. Power is always generated from "the bottom up, meaning the powerful muscles of the legs and hip serve as the seat of power. Using the strength of the relatively weaker arms and upper body is not emphasized. The entire body is held in a state of dynamic relaxation which allows the power of the whole body to flow out of the hands and into the opponent without obstruction. This is described in the Tai Ji Quan Classics as "being rooted in the feet, developed by the legs, directed by the waist transferred through the back and expressed in the hands."The Tai Ji Quan arts have a variety of two person drills and exercises designed to cultivate a high degree of sensitivity in the practitioner. Using brute force or opposing another's power with power directly (double weighting) is strictly discouraged. The goal of two person training is to develop sensitivity to the point that one may avoid the opponent's power and apply one's own whole body power where the opponent is most vulnerable. One must cultivate the ability to 'stick to the opponent, smothering the others' power and destroying their balance.

 

The ability to "stick, adhere, continue and follow (zhan, nian, lian, sui)" is vital to the application of Tai Ji Quan combat techniques, the majority of which are grappling oriented. Techniques that include pushing, pulling, wrapping, bumping, sweeping, locking, knocking down and throwing (grappling arts) far outnumber striking and kicking techniques. Solo forms training is designed to develop the ability to control oneself; paired practice trains the practitioner to apply the power developed during solo training to another in the most efficient manner.

 

Modified forms of Tai Ji Quan for health have become popular worldwide in recent times because the benefits of training have been found to be very conducive to calming the mind, relaxing the body, relieving stress, and improving one's health in general. However, it is important to realize that all traditional systems of Tai Ji Quan were originally created for a single purpose, training the practitioner to fight.

 

TAIJI QUAN COMBAT

 

Tai Ji Quan is a martial art is based on the principle of the soft overcoming the hard. Direct opposition of another's force is strictly discouraged, and great emphasis is placed upon borrowing the force of the opponent and using it to one's own advantage. Belonging to the schools of the so-called "soft" martial arts, Tai Ji Quan training is designed to cultivate a relaxed, flexible and sensitive body along with a calm and focused intent. The Tai Ji Quan fighter is trained to absorb and neutralize incoming force, join with the opponent by sticking to his center, and issue force at the appropriate time and angle with the power of the entire body. By following the principle of giving up the self and following others, the Tai Ji Quan fighter is able to use an opponent's own strength against him, thereby allowing the weaker and slower to overcome the stronger and faster opponent.

 

Another hallmark of Tai Ji Quan as a combat art is that it has, as its foundation, the principle of natural movement. All the movements and techniques of the Tai Ji Quan Arts are based upon natural strengths and reactions. Because training is less a matter of conditioning new responses as refining inborn abilities, real fighting ability can be cultivated in the Tai Ji Quan arts faster than most other styles of martial arts. The diligent student of Tai Ji Quan, properly trained, will have acquired real self defense ability in a matter of months, as opposed to the years of training required in many other martial systems.

 

The primary combat strategy of Tai Ji Quan can be summed up in the phrase "Entice (the opponent) to advance, (cause the opponent to) fall into emptiness, unite (with the opponent) then throw (the opponent) out" [Yin jin, luo kong, he ji chu]. Enticing the opponent to advance (advance refers to the opponent's aggressive forward momentum) can be as simple as standing in front, presenting an open target or launching a preemptive attack designed to draw a reaction. Enticing the opponent into aggressive forward momentum has several advantages. Firstly, just like the arrow released from the bow, a committed attack cannot change direction until its momentum is spent. Such an attack affords the Tai Ji Quan fighter time and opportunity to gain the superior position for effective counter attack. Secondly, a powerful, committed attack almost invariably requires whole body motion. Once the opponent's whole body is in motion (and his center of balance is in flux) it becomes possible to unbalance him with a relatively small force (correctly applied). For example, it requires a relatively large force to foot-sweep an upright and stationary opponent to the ground. However once the opponent moves his center of mass forward as he takes a step, a sweep to the stepping foot just before it touches the ground will send the opponent crashing to the ground with a very slight effort. This type of technique is referred to as "Moving a thousand pounds with a force of four ounces." Finally, enticing an opponent into aggressive forward motion locks his mentality into the attack mode. With committed focus on attacking, the opponent will be slow in changing to the defensive mind set as the Tai Ji Quan fighter counterattacks. The opponent's reaction time is delayed, further increasing the counterattacks odds of success; this allows the Tai Ji Quan fighter to "leave after yet arrive first."

 

[ This Message was edited by: ChangWuJi on 2002-04-11 01:44 ]

[dtstiachi]

great post ChangWuJi

[The Hammer]

Great post!

[solar_kid]

Thank you. I enjoyed your post, and it answered some questions I had about the art.