Articole Taiji

7/29/2019 Articole Taiji

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TAIJIOUAN is a major dlv,sion ofthe traditional Chinese martial artof wushu. It derived its name fromthe philosophical term "taiji" that firstappeared in The Book of Changeswritten anonymously during the ZhouDynasty (11thcentury - 221 BC):"In all changes exists taiji, whichcauses the two opposites in all things.The two opposites cause the fourseasons, and the four seasons causethe eight natural phenomena." Herethe eight phenomena denote theheaven, the earth, thunder, wind,water, fire, mountains and lakes.(1) Chen Wangting, Father ofTaijiquanThere are different assertions as to

who was the father of taijiquan. Butit is generally believed that the honourshould go to Chen Wangting wholived in the 16th century. Althoughnothing was known about the exactdate of his birth and death, it hasbeen confirmed that he belonged tothe ninth generation of a Chen familyin Wenxian County, Henan Province.According to the local chronicles, heserved as a royal guard in his homevillage in 1641 and retired after thefall of the Ming Dynasty three yearslater. In an essay written in hisdeclining years he said, "Now I ampining away in old age, my onlycompanion being a book written byHuang Ting. I study the martial artwhen I am in the doldrums and dosome farm work in busy seasons.Sometimes I beguile my leisure withteaching my disciples and my childrenand grandchildren, no matter whatthey will become - dragons ortigers."It was in the 1770s that Chenevolved five taijiquan routines, achangquan (long-range boxing) routinein 108 forms and a paochui (cannonboxing) routine.In creating taijiquan, Chen Wangtingwas greatly influenced by Oi Jiguang(1528-1587), a famous general in

the imperial army, who compiled 16popular routines in his Boxing in 32Forms as a textbook for militarytraining. Out of these forms Chenassimilated 29 into his taijiquan sets,in a style distinctively his own. Heexpounded the essential points in aballad composed by himself for easymemory, laying down the basic theoriesthat are still generally accepted today.In the following three centuries, thesecond, third and fourth taijiquanroutines and the changquan setin 108 forms worked out by ChenWangting gradually fell into disuse,while the cannon routine became thesecond routine of the present-day

Chen school of taijiquan. The firsttaij iquan routine branched into the"old frame" and "new frame" duringthe 14th generation and later on, intothe Yang, Wu (Jfl:), Sun and Wu(~)schools.(2) Yang Luchan (1799-1872),Founder of the Yang SchoolBorn into an impoverished family

in Yongnian County, Hebei Province,Yang Luchan left his home at ten andworked as an indentured servant inthe Chen family in Wenxian County.His master Chen Dehu, a fellow ofthe Imperial Academy, was fond ofmartial arts and employed ChenChangxing of the 14th generation toteach the young men in the evenings.Yang Luchan would watch attentivelywhile waiting upon the wushu master,who readily accepted him as one ofhis disciples. Yang trained very hardand distinguished himself as a wushuartist.Yang returned to Yongnian at 40and lodged at a pharmacy owned byhis late master Chen Dehu, making

a living by teaching taijiquan. Thepremises of the drugstore belongedto a landlord named Wu Yuxiang who .and hiS two brothers were all wushu

lovers and took lessons in taijiquanfrom Yang.Not long after, Yang left Yongnianfor Beijing to teach taijiquan there.Drawing on his years of experience,he adapted his routine to suit peoplewhose main object in learning it wasto keep fit. Later, it was revised andfurther improved by his third sonYang Jianhou, who changed its styleinto a "medium frame" with moderatepostures and slow, steady andflowing movements. These were laterrepeatedly revised by Tianhou's thirdson Chengfu and developed into the"big frame," which is the presentform of the Yang school of taijiquan.

(3) Wu Yuxiang (1812-1880),Founder of the Wu (JR)School

Wu Yuxiang came from a family ofwushu lovers and profited from his .brief association with Yang Luchanfrom whom he learned taijiquan.In order to get the hang of theChen style, he paid a visit to ChenChangxing in 1852, only to find himtoo old and feeble to give instructions.So he found one of his distantnephews, Chen Qingping, who taughtWu the new-frame taijiquan asdistinguished from Chen Changxing'sold-frame style. After more than onemonth of hard training, Wu acquiredits essential points, as shown bywhat he said to his brother: "Now thatI have obtained a deep understandingof the Chen school, all that needs tobe done is persistent practice."Meanwhile his brother had bychance obtained a copy of Manualof Taijiquan written by Wang Zongyue,which was of great enlightenment toWu. It was on the basis of this bookthat he wrote two of his own, namely,Important Points for a Wushu Masterand, ironically enough, Four-CharacterSecret Formulas Not to Be Passed


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to Anybody. Concise and to theoint, they laid down the foundationf the unique Wu school of taijiquan,hich is characterized by quick andort-range movements.While his brothers served as off icials

in different parts of the country, Wuuxiang lived a secluded life in hishome village studying and teachingthe martial art. Even at his deathbed, he was still discussing taijiquanwith his attendants.Wu's most outstanding disciple washis sister's son Li Jinglun (1832-1892),who in turn passed on his skills tohis fellow townsman Hao He (18491920). It was said that Hao was so

strong that, in practising the pushhand exercise, he could lift his partnerand hurl him to settle securely in achair ten feet avvay. It was one of hispupils who founded the Sun schoolo.f taijiquan.(4) Sun Lutang (1861-1932),Founder of the Sun SchoolSun Lutang was a native of Wanxian

County in Hebei Province. He firstlearned xingyiquan (form-and-willboxing) under Li Kuiyuan and thenbaguaquan (eight-diagram boxing)under Cheng Tinghua. As a masterof both, he enjoyed a high reputationin Beijing and was nicknamed "LivingMonkey King," a legendary hero inChinese mythology.In 1912, Sun happened to meetHao He at an inn in Beijing. Haohad come to the capital to visit hisrelatives and friends and fallen ill.Sun took good care of him and gotthe best doctor to treat him. Gratefulfor Sun's kindness and help, Haolater taught him taijiquan, which heincorporated into the routines he hadlearned, thus creating the Sun schoolcharacterized by a smooth andcoherent sequence of movementsin advance and retreat. When the

whole set is performed, it is like theclouds drifting in the sky or waterflowing down a stream.Sun has left behind him manybooks on different wushu routineshe was versed in.(5) Wu Jianquan (1870-1943),Founder of the Wu (~)SchoolWu Jianquan was of Manchunationality and a native of DaxingCounty, Hebei Province. His fatherlearned taijiquan from Yang Luchanwhen the latter was teaching it inBeijing, and then from Yang Luchan's

second son Yang Banhou (1837-1892),who had in his childhood studied thesmall-frame routine from Wu Yuxiang.Shortly after the overthrow of theQing Dynasty in 1911, Xu Yushengfounded the Society of PhysicalCulture in Beijing, where YangShaohou was engaged to teach the

big-frame and Wu Jianquan to teachthe small-frame taijiquan of the Yangschool. After repeated improvementsin the years that followed, the Yangstyle gradually developed into one ofslow and gentle movements withoutjumps and leaps, thus making itincreasingly popular among thepeople. Later members of the Yangfamily stopped teaching the smallframe routine completely, but WuJianquan continued his research andmade it more and more popular untilit was finally recognized as a distinctstyle known as the WU school oftaijiquan. In 1928 Wu was invited toteach as a professor in the ShanghaiWushu Society and the Jingwu SportsSociety. In 1935 he himself foundedthe Jianquan Taijiquan Society, whichplayed an important role in furtherpromoting the WU School. The WUstyle is a combination of the big andsmall frames, with movements thatare both compact and unrestrained.

(6) Chen Xin (1849-1929),Exponent of the ChenSchoolTaijiquan was invented by ChenWangting and passed down to latergenerations of his family by word ofmouth. There were little or no writingsabout it. Chen Xin, who belonged tothe 16th generation, was both a manof letters and wushu expert. Hedecided to record the movements

and explain them in written formas an authentic document for futurefollowers.In his childhood Chen Xin tooka great interest in the new-frametaijiquan, invented by his grandfather'sbrother Chen Youben. But he did notachieve much as his father intendedhim to be a scholar. Neither did hego far in his academic pursuits; hewas just a gongsheng, almost ontr-,e bottom rung of the literary ladder.It was in his later years that he'devoted himself toa serious study oftaijiquan. He spent 12 years writingTaijiquan of the Chen School withIllustrations in which he describedthe correct postures and movementsand explained: from the philosophicaland medical points of view, how togovern "external forceWwith "internalforce."The manuscripts, in more thanI 200,000 words, were completed in 1919,when Chen Xin's health was sinkingrapidly. Having no son to inheritthem, he called in his nephew andsaid to him, "Pass these on if they'reworth passing on; burn them up ifthey aren't." It was not until 1932that the manuscripts came to light,and they were published next year infour volumes - as the' most originaland complete book on the orthodoxschool of tai jiquan.After Chen Xin, the most outstanding

exponent of the Chen school wasChen Fake (1887-1957). He was invitedto Beijing in .1928 and lived thereuntil his death, teaching the old-frameroutine handed down from his greatgrandfather Chen Changxing.The "Taijiquan in 48 Forms" beingpublished in instalments in ourmagazine was compiled in the 1950sby the State Commission for PhysicalCulture and Sports. Based mainlyon the Yang style, the routine hasabsorbed the fundamentals of otherschools. Over the three decades orso it has been widely adopted as aself-study course for the beginners. 0'----------------------------------------------


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by Wang Heng

INhe course of its developmentver the past 300 years and more,taijiquan has shifted its emphasis fromthe art of attack and defense tohealing and health building. It hasbeen proved in practice that taij iquanis effective in treating chronicdiseases. When used together withproper medication, it aids therecovery from chronic hepatitis,arthritis, hi3art disease, high bloodpressure, gastrointestinal disorders,etc. But these effects can be achievedonly by acquiring the "five energies,"namely, mian (silk-like), lian(continuous), yuan (circular), guan(absorption) and quan (complete).1. Mian: Silk-likeWe often say that to do taijiquanone must move softly and be relaxed.But this does not adequately express

what is meant by "silk-like energy,"which in the full sense of the worddenotes the eight qualities of beingeven, steady, unconstrained, smooth,light, effortless, relaxed and resilient.Throughout the whole routine, youshould not rise or fall abruptly butwith an even, natural upward ordownward movement. Your positionshould basically remain at the samelevel. In the early stage the highposture should be used. After aperiod of practice you may attemptthe middle posture. For the lowposture, you must have acquiredsufficient skill and physical fitness.Usually, persons in their late 40s orolder do not use the low posture.By "steady" we mean that youshould maintain an unhurried tempofrom start to finish, without doing one

WANG HENG, a professor at the NortheastUniversi ty of Technology in Shenyang, hascontributed this article with gratefulacknowledgment to Prof. F'dward C. Hutchinson(He Qil in) of Appalachian State University, USA

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movement slowly and another fast. Ofcourse, "unhurried tempo" does notmean that the slower the better, whichwould only make the movementssluggish. The average length of timeis about five minutes for the simplif iedset in 24 forms, 10 minutes for the 48forms, and 20 minutes for the 88forms. The pace should bedetermined by individual physicalconditions. Although group practice inunison is often adopted in teaching,taijiquan is essentially an individualperformance."Unconstrained" means that themotions should not be tight or stiff, sothat all the bones, joints, tendons andmuscles will receive ample exercise.When you do a stretching movement,do it with poise and reserve."Light" means using awarenessrather than strength. Only when youremain light can your movements besmooth, effortless and relaxed."Resilience" In taijiquan may belikened to a silk thread, which is bothsupple and tenacious. A movementwill be rigid without suppleness andslack without tenacity. ,"'fter doing aset of taijiquan, an experiencedpractit ioner wil l feel the effects of thissilk-like energy, with his body relaxedand refreshed, warm and evensweaty, yet without the slightestfeeling of fatigue or shortness ofbreath. For this reason'taijiquan isespecially suitable for elderly peopleand those in weak constitution orduring convalescence.2. Lian: ContinuousContinuous energy means that itshould "run in a continuous flow from

beginning to end, with mind andbreath unobstructed." The first part ofthis principle is easy to understand,and to do. All movements are joinedtogether without a break. Thepreceding action is the next action's

preparation, and the next action is thepreceding action's continuation. Thus,each movement may be said to be aconnecting link between two actions.The flow of movement must not stopand the mian-Iian (silk-like integrity)must not be broken. The principleapplies not only to the movementswithin every form, but also to all formsof the whole set. A most appropriatedescription of taijiquan is that it is like"tioating clouds and running water."Awareness is essential to doingtaij iquan. You should use it to guidestrength. Every action, whether raisingor lowering, contracting or stretching,is to be executed by exerting strengthunder the guidance of awareness.In doing taijiquan, it is important touse diaphragmatic breathing, which is

quite different from the deepbreathirlg used in other forms'ofexercise to replace the large quantityof oxygen consumed. As taijiquanmovements are slow and relaxed,there is no need for deep breathingto restore the oxygen. The basicpattern is:raising - inhale lowering-exhaleretracting-inhale extending-exhaleThis pattern should be your goal. Ifyou feel that your breathing is notsmooth and easy, or that your breathsupply is not adequate, this patterncan be adjusted. Small breath cyclescan be done in between the usualexhalation-Inhalation. This small chestbreathing will not interfere with thegreater diaphragmatic breathing.During the early stage of learningtaijiquan, it is difficult to avoid addingthese small breaths for adjustment. Atany rate, do not let the breath supplygrow short or try to hold your breath.Breathe through the nose, with themouth closed or only slightly opened.Inhaling and exhaling must be doneslowly and evenly, each phase takingabout the same duration of time: Thisbreathing method leaves some


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The energy used in every movementsis "reflected" in the fingers, and thatis why it is essential for your fingers tohave the sensation of qi, showing thatyour vital energy has been mobilized,that your movements are guided byawareness.In taijiquan the "empty" movementsare clearly distinguished from "solid"ones. You also have opening andclosing movements, which alternatewith one another. Then you haveupper moves of the hands and lowermoves of the legs, there are exteriormoves and interior moves. All these

opposites complement one another.When the whole set of exercises isdone, the entire body has beenexercised - exteriorly in regard tomuscles, bones and joints, as well asinteriorly in regard to the nervous,respiratory, circulatory, digestive andexcretory systems. That's why everytaij;quan movement is said to be amovement of the whole body. It is thiswholeness or "complete energy" thatforms the essence of taij iquan.There is a common saying:"Flowing water is never stagnant, anda door-hinge never gets worm-eaten."That is to say, it is best to do thoseexercises which train the whole body.There are few exercises which cancompare with taijiquan in exercisingthe body both exteriorly and interiorlyand in coordinating breathing with thebodily movement.It is absolutely necessary to realizeand acquire the above-mentioned fiveenergies in the practice of taijiquan.When you begin to learn taijiquan,you must first of all practise themovements. This is called "practisingthe scheme" or "putting up thestructure." Afterwards, you must lea'rnto practise the five energies. Thescheme is easy to learn, but theenergies are difficult to master. Even ifyou can do the scheme correctly, youcan only benefit from physicalexertion, but it is far more importantto learn the five energies. Once youhave learned them, you will have 'afull gain of the health-giving effects.This will in turn stimulate your interestand confidence in taijiquan and youwill form.a habit of doing it regularly,even to the pqint of addiction. 0

In taijiquan every movementinvolves the entire body. As thesaying goes, "When one part ismoving, the while body moves; whenone part is still, the while body is still."

5. Quan: Complete

concentratel Although you may knowall the movements perfectly, you mustbe totally absorbed in andconcentrate all your attention on theexercise. Only by following this"absorption" theory from beginning toend will you be able to regulate andtemper your cerebral cortex and getthe desired results from taijiquan.How can this absorption theory bemastered? Let's return to the

commencing form again. When youare relaxed and absorbed in themovement, your fingers will feelswollen and numb. This indicates thatyou have summoned your qi (vitalenergy) into your fingers. This feeling. of qi should be kept all through theexercise. If your movements are notcontinuous, smooth and curved, theabsorption will stop automatically andyour feeling of qi will disappear.As mentioned before, you must letyour consciousness guide youraction. Otherwise, you will neverreach a state of complete absorption,even if you can do the movementsskillfully.Absorption is not shown; it is astate of mind, and the sensation of qican only be felt. On the other hand,smoothness, continuousness andcurved movements can be seen. If wedon't see these things in movements,we can tell with certainty that theperformer has failed to attainabsorption. At most we can say thathe is doing the exercise mechanically,without absorbing the essence oftaijiquan

When you do talJlquan you must4. Guan: Absorption

In doing taijiquan it is necessary to"move with agility and in a circularmotion." This applies to allmovements without exception Thearms and hands must move in agraceful circular, arc-shaped. orcurved movements instead of instraight l ines. This is essential toavoiding stiffness and rigidity andbecoming more agile and precise. Ifthis is accomplished, it will be mucheasier to make the movements tight,relaxed and resilient. The legs shouldalso advance and retreat in a curvewithout turning sharp corners.For example, in the commencingform both hands should describe anarc when they are pressed downward.Another example is the "Single Whip- Left Style" in which you arerequired to move both hands in ahorizontal semi-circle while taking theright bow step and to push the righthand in a curve before forming the"hook hand." Similarly, in the "Turn toStrike, Parry and Punch - Left Style,"the right hand should be moved in acircle to the front or right shoulderwhile the left hand moves down in anarc to ribs before punching forward.As a matter of fact, almost all thelines in the illustrations showing thepath of the next movement arecurved.

Prof Wang teaching taijiquan to foreign disciples. Behind him isProf Hutchinson.

3. Yuan: Circular

reserve air in the lungs: inhalationdoes not completely fill the lungs,while exhalation does not completelyempty them. In trying to determine1,0W much volume of air to inhale orexhale, you should follow nature, thatis, you should breathe naturally


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Ge Chunyan performing the Chen style taiji boxing.

How toby Xue Ami

least energy-consuming kind ofwushu exercise.Some people have got the wrongimpression that taijiquan is just like"catching fish and shrimps in astream." This is because many

performers merely regard it asa series of soft movements,doing it carelessly withoutproper guidance andinstructions and fail ing to bringout the essence of the art.2. Which is the best style?There are five major styles oftaijiquan, namely, Chen, Yang,Wu, Sun and WU.Then wehave the routines in 24, 48 and88 forms promulgated by theState Commission for PhysicalCulture and Sports, basedmainly on the Yang style.Coming from the same origin,the five styles are similar to oneanother in the methods oftraining, with identical namesfor the basic movements andtheir forms arranged in more orless the same order. There aresome forms with differentnames but they are actually thesame in content. It is hard tosay which style is the best, forthis is rather a question ofpersonal taste and persons ofdifferent physical conditionsmay give different answers.Generally speaking, the Chenstyle calls for a greater exertionof strength and is performed

with a lower position and with agreater amplitude for the movements.It is therefore suitable for youngpeople with a large and strong buildand a sanguine temperament. TheYang' style is characterized by flowingease, natural gracefulness and acombination of "hardness" and"softness". It isalso favoured by big"energetic persons. The mediumframed Wu style with its gentle,

n~'. '. ,

asked me to teach him some basicforms of taijiquan. When he cameto "Separating the Wild Horse'sMane" and had to maintain a lowposture while I corrected hismovements, he complained that itwas too much for him. Then he

realized that taijiquan isby no means theeasiest and

coordinate his movements, but to ano lesser degree in his physicalattributes for good technicalexecution. One day a practitioner ofchangquan (long-range boxing)

Taijiqu.@ctlseI have received many letters frompractitioners of taijiquan, some frombroad, asking how to do theexercise. Their questions may besummed up into three and here aremy replies to them.1. Is taijiquan only suitable toold people and those in weakconstitution?Taijiquan is one of the majordivisions of wushu. It consistsof basic barehand exercises.exercises with long and shortweapons, tuishou (push-hand)and sanshou (free hand)exercises. A whole set oftheories has been built up forit. Facts have shown thatregular practice helps toprevent and cure chronicdiseases. That's why it hasfound great favour with elderlypeople and those who are notin good health. But this doesnot mean that it doesn't suityounger people. Actually, itdoes, especially when it isdone with a low posture, or alowered centre of gravity.Taijiquan exercises are slowin tempo. It is exactly becauseof this that it's not so easy to

attain a perfect harmonybetween the upper and lowerlimbs, between bodymovements and footwork, andbetween form and will. As amatter of fact, one is apt toreveal one's shortcomings inslow movements. So taijiquan makeseven higher demands on a performerthan other schools of

wushu, not only inthe ability to


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know a thing about its essentials.They should learn how todistinguish between the solid andempty, between form and will andbetween mobility and immobility, howto guide the exercise withconsciousness and the body with themind, how to coordinate respirationwith exertion of strength, how to maKethe movements circular, continuous, 'graceful and harmonious. Whataccounts is quality rather thanquantity. A little knowledge is adangerous thing.I don't think only the traditionalstyles can help raise your standard.Every style has its own specialfeatures and its own primary andadvanced courses for training. It isimproper to say that this style is only

Photos Tang Yumin

for primary training and that style isfor advanced training. Whatever styleyou may take up, the importantthingis to work hard and use your brains;o

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