Subject: The Tai Chi Chuan Classic Author: Chang San-Fang Upload time: 2007-1120 16:14:10 Content: Whenever

you move or raise hands or legs, all motions should be relaxed and agil e and every movements of the body should be connected together continuously. The flow of the chi inside the body should set in motion the corresponding flow of movements, while the spirit and will should be brought inside the body and down to tan-tien. The whole body should move in a controlled and harmonious fashion w ith the internal and external unified. Keep the movements of the solo exercise from having any omissions, flaws, or def ects. The movements should be free of any protrusions and pits or imbalances. The start of each movement should root from the foot and use the waist as a pivo t for control and balance in the transferring of the internal force to the finge rs. In brief, the, the generation of the internal force in Tai Chi Chuan should start from the sole, pass through the leg, the waist and then trunk. The whole p rocess should be integral with no flaws. So, we can have balance and confidence of being able to stabilize ourselves when advancing and retreating and so we can get right timing and advantage in meeting with opponents. If some one can not g et a good opportunity and a superior position in the movement, he should fell hi s body frame disordered, unguided and not harmonized. When this happens, the one should find troubles from the waist and legs and the perfection and integration of movements. Whether coordination the upper and lower parts of the body, the front and rear p arts, or the left and right parts, give yourself the best advantage, maintain th e superior position, and thus you will not fall into a losing situation. All of this is more a matter of inner consciousness than of actual physical position. S o, as the upper body engages in attack, one should be aware of the rooted intern al force in the rear. One must balance a defensive yielding on the left with an attacking advance from the right. When intending an attack to the upper parts, o ne must be aware of the lower parts, namely the solid leg of the opponent. If yo u want to lift and move an object, use a certain amount of force to 'break it lo ose'. When the rooted chin of the object has been broken, take the opportunity t hat its imbalance presents and push it away without hesitation. When advancing or retreating, the substantiality and insubstantiality of the two legs must be clearly differentiated. Although the body, hands, and legs have th eir own substantiality and insubstantiality, in application one should follow th e diagonal fa chin and use the waist as the pivot for the whole bodys substantiali ty and insubstantiality. To summarize, every substantial motion, whether or insu bstantial, should be continuously treaded throughout the whole body, the upper, lower and peripheral parts. There should be no sign of a break. An earlier name for Tai Chi Chuan was 'thirteen postures Long Boxing'. 'Long Box ing' refers to the similarity of the solo exercise movements to the flow of Long River, or the waves of a vast ocean, which roll smoothly and endlessly. 'thirte en Postures' refers to the pa-kua (eight trigrams), which represents the eight b asic techniques of movements, and the wu hsing (the Five Elements according to C hinese alchemical philosophy, i.e. gold, wood, water, fire, earth), which symbol ize the bive basic ways of stepings. The eight hand techniques are Peng(Ward-Off ), Lu(Roll-back), Chi(Press), An(Push), Tsai(Pull), Lieh(Quick Reaction), Chou(E lbowing), and Kao(Shouldering). The five ways of stepping are Chin Pu (Step Forw ard), Tui Pu (Step Backwards), Tso Ku (Turning to the left), Yu Pan (Turn to the Right), and Chung Ting (Central Equilibrium). The correspondence between the techniques of the use of the body and hands and p a kua is as follows: corresponding to the four cardinal directions (or front, ba ck, left, and right) are Chien(Ward-Off), Kun(Roll-Back), Li(elbowing), Kan(Pull

). Corresponding to the four corners (or right rear, left front, left rear, righ t front) are Ken (Pull), Tui(Quick Reaction), Chen (Press), and Sun (Shouldering ). Symbolizing the five basic ways of using the legs with the Five elements we h ave: Water (Step Forward), Fire(Step Backward), Metal (Turn to the Left), Wood ( Turn to the Right). Earth (Central Equilbrium). The eight hand techniques togeth er with the five ways of using the legs are called the 'Thirteen Postures'.