Taiji Quan (tai chi chuan)
Beginners class now starting
Taijichuan (also spelled T’ai-Chi Chuan or Taijiquan) is one of the three original internal boxing styles (neijia). The Yang school is based upon 13 postures which give rise to 36 fundamental movements, which are themselves based largely upon the concept of Yin and Yang. The idea is to blend these two polarities together and to maintain harmony between them. In this way, students can learn to grasp the essence of the Dao (also, “Tao” which means “Way”).
It is believed that when Yin goes to its most extreme it becomes Yang, and vice-versa. For instance, too much sweet becomes bitter. There are as many examples as there are ideas. In Taijichuan, when one hand or foot becomes Yang the other must become Yin. Otherwise, imbalance may result and movements become awkward and too heavy or too light.
Taiji is usually practiced in slow motion although seniors may exercise the form with speed and celerity from time to time. Slow movement allows practitioners to give free play to chi and students learn to feel it circulating through the body and beyond. They learn to relax and gain fine control over body parts. In time, they’ll be able to maintain this high degree of control even while moving at full speed.
The main tactic involves learning to receive and then return force. It can be compared to a spinning rubber ball. The ball will either deflect an incoming force or bounce it away. Force is never met with force; it is deflected with circular movements. This is known as “deflecting a force of a thousand pounds with a trigger force of four ounces.” This can be done only if the body is relaxed and moves as a single, integrated unit.
To the layman Taijichuan appears slow and weak. This is because they’ve not seen it applied in actual combat where it becomes blindingly fast and very lethal.
Some contemporary Taiji devotees practice “dead Taiji.” There is no life in their movements because they misunderstand the true meaning of relaxation as it is applied to this art. Real Taiji is very much alive and looks like it! The movements are not wooden or stiff, but neither are they dead. One must not be too Yang or too Yin.
Taijichuan is divided into five major styles. The original is the CHEN school, which is named after the village where it was created (most inhabitants of the village are surnamed Chen). It employs sudden, quick movements and some jumping but it is most famous for its use of chansi-jin (silk-reeling power).
The YANG style is named after its founder and is the most popular form of Taiji. Practiced in slow motion, it is known as the “big frame” style because of its expansive postures.
The WU style (also named after its founder) is often called “little frame” because of its use of small, compact movements.
There is a second WU style, which is very much like the YANG style.
The SUN style was created by Sun-Lutang who blended Xingyi and Bagua with Taiji to produce a hybrid form.
Other styles of Taiji include the FU and HAO styles.
Taijiquan training at the school of Chinese martial arts
Beginners and new students will learn the so-called “24-Step” form, which is also known as the “Simplified Form.” This form was developed in the 1970’s in the People’s Republic of China by a group of YANG style masters who were tasked with developing a form that could be practiced by the masses. The standard YANG form was too lengthy and required practitioners to be in fairly good physical condition. The Chinese government wanted a form that everyone could practice to enhance their health.
The Jiju form is quite short, requiring only seven minutes to complete. It presents the most fundamental postures of the YANG style and prepares students for more advanced training. It is excellent as a method of maintaining good overall health if it is practiced daily.
For more advanced students you will have the opportunity to learn the yiliquan taijiquan, which is a composite of yang and sun styles. What is different in this form is the use of angles and that it is actually a way of showing you how to actually apply taijiquan for combat. Done at a faster pace in many spots with different rhythms and the use of explosive power (fajing, or as we call coiling power)
We also offer Chen taijiquan training to advanced students, this is said to be the oldest form of taiji, we teach the 13 section form, the old way. This was often referred to as “13 section boxing.
What class should I join?
We have two main classes for those interested in taijiquan,
The first is for those interested more in the health benefits and art of taijiquan. In this class our main focus will be on qi gong (breathing exercises) standing post or meditation exercises, as well as stance work and then the 24 step taijiquan form.Participates will learn the basics of tui sao (push hands), but our focus will not be on the combat aspect of this art.
This class is held on
Tuesday 10:30 - 11:30
Wednesdays 20:30 -21:30
NO EXPERIENCE IS REQUIRED
The second class is for those interested in the combat aspects of taijiquan. This class is for those whom which to learn the real taijiquan. Just as any martial arts training program this training will require solid basics in striking, kicking, locking and throwing as well as a good physical condition. Therefore all new students wishing to learn taijiquan as a combat art will have to join the yiliquan kungfu class, where you will be built up from solid basic fighting skills before learning taijiquan.
Unfortunately today it is all too often people try make use of taijiquan as a combat art without having any solid basic fighting skills, in fact I would say 90% of taijiquan students can’t even throw a good punch, and they completely neglect body conditioning and cardiovascular workouts. In short they are not in fighting shape and they spend way too much time trying to feel the qi in their form and playing silly little push hands games instead of learning to actually apply their art in a real combat context.ie: at full speed with full power against an opponent who can actually strike correctly.
Some truth's about taijiquan
“Tai chi” people often say, isn’t that the thing that you see old people doing in the park! Isn’t tai chi a form of gentle Chinese exercise, surely it is not a fighting art, how can you fight moving so slow?
No doubt, everything suffers its share of pernicious misconceptions, but taiji seems particularly prone. As with many practices seeming mystical and eastern, taiji has frequently suffered by well-meaning but misinformed people hoping for a new age panacea.
Taiji does have many therapeutic properties, though sadly, most will never realize them by practicing what they call taiji. As for inner harmony, maybe taiji has something to offer, but no more than, say playing the cello, or running triathlons, or painting murals, or doing anything else with all of one’s heart and mind. Any arduous human quest teaches us about ourselves. Tai chi is not precisely about “yielding” or “softness”. Consistent with common sense, taiji avoids opposing force with force, this principle, however, is neither arcane nor unique to Tai chi. most advanced martial arts, including jujitsu, aikido and shaolin do the same. Relaxation is indeed essential to taiji practice, but relaxation in tai chi terms, is not the same as softness. Tai chi employs softness and firmness as the situation demands.
Tai chi is not only slow, unfortunately the version that everyone has seen is slow because it is a tiny fragment of the whole art. As with softness and firmness, any real taiji system includes both fast and slow exercises. In the oldest style of taiji only one form is practiced slowly, so it is equally accurate to say that taiji is fast.
It should be remembered that taijiquan was and is foremost a martial art practiced by warriors and military personal to defeat another person. Most people try denying this fact and are happier thinking it as a soft easy way to become one with the universe and that it is the art of scholars and magical daoists priests searching for enlightenment. Nothing could be further from the truth. With a little bit of historical research you will find that most of its most famous masters were illiterate fighters whom killed opponents frequently in battle either in war or in their jobs as security escorts or bounty hunters.
Due to its great health benefits however, today we have generations of instructors whom know nothing of real combat let alone the combat aspects of the art. While an instructor can cater his training program to suit the students needs as we do with those looking to learn just the health benefits of the art, and instructor should be qualified in the true art of taijiquan and that means he or she should have studied it as a combat art. Without this type of training and knowledge the instructor will be incapable of teaching any real aspects of the art as he or she only knows a very small portion of this art.
