Taijiquan Archive
Sometimes, when I say “I teach Taiji,” embarrassment haunts me. Other-times, reluctance fills me because I know the common misconceptions grating my sense of the Supreme, Ultimate Fist Form. Oftentimes, I disrupt some common misconceptions about Tai Chi Chuan.
Some are ridiculous, some are silly; all of them radiate from a lack of martial training. Martial training is a requirement in Tai Chi Chuan. Do it. Fighting and combat skills set the spiritual stage, the mental mood, and the physical atmosphere for proper confidence, clarity, and calm. Martial training tunes the body, mind, and spirit. Most misconceptions manifest in popular culture (and in pseudo-Tai Chi Schools) because instructors teach wrongly, poorly, incompetently, or deceptively. Get the truth. Don’t believe me. Read it, test it, know it.
The Intense Third and Final Section of the Yang Chen Fu Long Form
The third section delivers deeper body movements and challenges our stretch reflex. Movements like Snake Creeps Down pound spring into your legs. Complex coiling in Lady-Weaves-at-Shuttles wrap the mind around four corners, and wild, whipping motions from Lotus Kick pop and lock energies in tight circles.
This third section is the final section. Thirds in the Yang Chen Fu Long Form are not thirds in terms of number of movements, but in terms of internal energy work. As such, this is the longest third, motion by motion. Each third demonstrates growth in stamina and development of inner body resources; in this one we go down and up from Snake Creeps Down into Rooster Stands on One Leg!
The Vital Second Section of the Yang Chen Fu Long Form
This second third delivers vitality, unleashes kicking, coiling, and twisting powers of Taijiquan, and revs your fa-jing engine. The kicking movements of Separate-Legs and Heel-Kick drive us to deepen our balance. Cloud-Hands tightens Sung. Turn-around-and-Chop-with-Fist and Punch-Tiger-Left-and-Right wind us into hurricane intensity.
If every motion in your short form is the exact same speed, put down your Yin! This section contains the peak of the Yang Chen Fu Form: the crescendo, the climax, the potent spot. It’s subtle, but the motions feel sped up just a bit. It winds tight in the midst of Punching Tigers; it’s a whirlwind of delight. Funny, at it’s basic level, it’s still slow, calm, and meditative. But inside—it’s wrapped tight.
This second section is another complete energy cycle inside your body. These thirds are not thirds in terms of number of movements, but in terms of internal energy work. As such, this is a long third, motion by motion.
The First Complete Energetic Third of the Yang Chen Fu Long Form
The first third is an energetic warm-up. Warming the colon and lungs, energizing the stomach, liver, and heart, and revitalizing the central nervous system, this energetic first third introduces repetitive, refrain-like concepts of Grasp Swallow’s Tail, Single Whip, and Step-Parry-Punch.
This is an early Yang Chen Fu form: it maintains martial integrity. For example, Brush Knee Twist Step, in this version, utilizes weighted turning rather than removing weight from the turning leg. In various ways and for many reasons, an unweighted turn invites contortion at the knee joint. This form, by maintaining martial integrity, creates opportunities, unheard of in shorter “easy” forms, for fitness and joint health and mobility.
This early version also contains many motions unknown to many Yang Stylists: like Fishes in Eight! It’s a great form. After learning it, you’ll know why a long form is superior to a short form in many, many ways. Plus —learn this one and your transition into learning Grandpa Lu-chen’s form will be smooth and explosive.
Five Fundamentals
In Real Taiji we focus on fundamentals of T’ai Chi Chuan. Imagine big bricks and build the Tai Chi System of Fighting and Healing with
- form
- applications
- natural motions
- partner drills
- striking methods
While 5 physical fundamentals firmly found the fundamental foundation, advanced Tai Chi Chuan refines the fundamentals with finer points, fun, and finesse — c-back, explosive energy, eagle vision, dragon mind, death-point striking, healing energy, internal energy circulation, meditation, silk reeling, and weapon training, just to name a few. We focus on the fundamental foundation and we fine tune this subtle internal art by flirting with advanced training method of T’ai Chi Chuan.
Motility, Long Form, Applications, Pushing-Hands, Striking!
The system of Tai Chi Chuan begins and evolves through five methods: light, sensitive body exploration, properly executed form practice, amplified and visualized self-defense and/or healing scenarios, precise push-hands training, and coiling striking motions. Real Taiji classes include
- exploring natural joint motions
- form practice (and some Qi-gong)
- application visualizations
- push-hands training (structural, not spaghetti-style)
- striking practices
Classes and class components evolve and compound upon one another.
Tai Chi Chuan promises great martial and healing powers by developing soft skills. Tai Chi teaches relaxation and grounding. As we explore relaxation, we learn to reduce excess stress and release residual tension. We notice that too much tension drains strength, upsets balance, slows our wit, and seems silly.
We own a number of methods, in the internal arts, that examine and develop soft skills.
- We practice Forms.
- We stand in Qigong Pose.
- We join in Push-Hands.
- We play Sticky-Hands.
- We do Da-Lu.
We combine these practices: by applying Qigong’s stillness to slow down our forms, or by pressing and pushing on Qigong or Tai Chi postures, we go deeper. We learn more about excessive tensions, and release them. We discover relaxed, sinking balance. We notice easy, winding motions.
Tai Chi Chuan, a.k.a. Taiji-Quan, is fairly famous. By offering this powerful martial art to sick, unhealthy folks, people with marketing skills have raised people’s awareness about Tai Chi worldwide. Many folks have heard of this Supreme-Ultimate Fist Form, and passersby often refer to this once potent art as that-yoga-like thing. (Aside: if your master-teacher-prophet combines yoga and Taiji, (s)he may not know enough Taiji to fill a class.) Marketing schemes and unskilled teachers continue to drum up magical feats of Qi, while withering Tai Chi’s reputation into flowery fantasies and geriatric routines. I seek to expose Taiji to ruthless truth, and by so doing, bring realistic self-defense and real healing back into this powerful martial art.
I appreciate your support. Thanks.
—Steven Smith
