TAI CHI is one of the three orthodox internal styles of Chinese martial art (the other two being Xingyiquan and Baguazhang). The term Taiji 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/Chuan literally means fist and denotes an unarmed method of combat. Taijiquan as a martial art is based on the principle of the soft overcoming the hard.

HISTORY
The origins of Taijiquan are often attributed to one Zhang Sanfeng (Chang San Fung) a Taoist of either the 12th or 15th century (depending on the source) who created the art after witnessing a fight between a snake and a crane. These stories were popularised 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 Taijiquan in existence today can be traced back to a single man, Chen Wangding, a general of the latter years of the Ming Dynasty. After the fall of the Ming and the establishment of the Qing Dynasty (1644), Chen Wangding returned to the Chen village and created his forms of boxing. Originally containing up to seven forms, only two forms of Chen Style Taijiquan have survived into the present.

The Art was only taught to members of the Chen clan until a promising young outsider named Yang Luchan was accepted as a student in the early part of the 19th century. Yang Luchan (nicknamed Yang without enemy as he was reportedly a peerless fighter) modified the original Chen style and created the Yang style of Taijiquan, the most popular form practised in the world today.

Wu Yuxiang learned the Art from Yang Luchan and a variation of the original Chen form from Chen Jingbing (who taught the small frame version of Chen Taijiquan) and created the Wu style. A man named Hao Weizhen learned the Wu style from Wu Yuxiang's nephew and taught the style to Sun Ludang, who in turn created the Sun style (Sun was already an established master of Xingyiquan and Baguazhang when he learned Taijiquan. He combined his knowledge of the other arts when creating his style).

Yang Luchan had another student, a Manchu named Chuan You (or Quan You), who in turned taught the Art to his son, Wu Jianchuan (or Jianquan). Wu Jianchuan popularised his variation of the Yang style, which is commonly referred to as the Wu Jianchuan (or Jianquan) style. In recent times (this century) there have been many other variations and modifications of the Art, but all may be traced back through the above masters to the original Chen family form.

TRAINING
Complete Taijiquan arts include basic exercises, Chi Kung (Zhanzhuang), 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), and various two-person exercises and drills (including push-hands and sensitivity drills). A hallmark of most styles of Taijiquan is that the movements in the forms are done quite slowly, with one posture flowing into the next without interruption. Some forms 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.

A beginner will usually begin training with very basic exercises designed to teach proper structural alignment and correct methods of moving the body, shifting the weight, stepping, etc. All of the Taijiquan arts have at their very foundation the necessity of complete physical relaxation and the idea that the intent leads and controls the motion of the body. The student will also be taught various stance keeping postures, which serve as basic exercises in alignment and relaxation as well as a kind of mind calming standing meditation. A basic tenet of all internal martial arts is that correct motion is born of absolute stillness. Once the basics are understood, the student will progress to learning the formal patterns of movement (forms), which contain the specific movement patterns and techniques inherent in the style.

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. 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 hips serve as the seat of power. Using the strength of the relatively weaker arms and upper body is not emphasised. 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.

The Taijiquan 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 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 when the opponent is most vulnerable. One must cultivate the ability to stick to the opponent, smothering the others' power and destroying their balance. Finally, the formal combat techniques must be trained until they become a reflexive reaction.

Modified forms of Taijiquan for health (such as Taoist Tai-chi and the official Beijing/simplified forms promoted by the Chinese government) have become popular world-wide 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. Traditionally, a beginning student of Taijiquan was first required to practice stance keeping/Chi Kung in a few basic postures. After the basic body alignments had settled in, the student would progress to performing single movements from the form. These were performed repetitively on a line. After a sufficient degree of mastery had been obtained in the single movements, the student was taught to link the movements together in the familiar long form. Now, it is not uncommon for a student to be taught the long form immediately, with no time being spent on stance keeping or on basic movement exercises. Since the Long Form trains all of the qualities developed in the basic exercises, this does not really produce a dilution of resulting martial art. It does however make it more difficult for beginner to learn. The duration of the basic training depends on the student and the instructor; however, it would not be unusual for a relatively talented student, with good instruction, to be able to defend themselves effectively with Taiji after as little as a year of training.

SUB-STYLES
Chen Wangding's original form of Chen style Taijiquan is often referred to as the Old Frame (Laojia) and its second form as Cannon Fist (Paochui). In the latter part of the 18th century, a fifth generation descendant of Chen Wangding, Chen Youben simplified the original forms into sets which have come to be known as the New Style (Xinjia). Chen Youben's nephew, Chen Jingbing, created a variation of the New Style which is known as the Small Frame (Xiaojia) form. All of these styles have survived to the present. The Yang style of Taijiquan is a variation of the original Chen style. The forms which were passed down from the Yang style founder, Yang Luchan, have undergone many modifications since his time. Yang Luchan's sons were very proficient martial artists and each, in turn, modified their father's art. The most commonly seen variation of the form found today comes from the version taught by Yang Luchan's grandson, Yang Chengfu. It was Yang Chengfu who first popularised his family's Art and taught it openly. Yang Chengfu's form is characterised by open and extended postures. Most of the modern variations of the Yang style, as well as the standardised Mainland Chinese and Taoist versions of Taijiquan are based on his variation of the Yang form. Yang Luchan's student, Wu Yuxiang combined Yang's form with the Zhaobao form which he learned from Chen Jingping to create the Wu style. This style features higher stances and compact, circular movements. His nephew's student, Hao Weizhen was a famous practitioner of the style, so the style is sometimes refered to as the Hao Style. Hao Weizhen taught his style to Sun Ludang, who combined his knowledge of Xingyiquan and Baguazhang to create his own. Yang Luchan had another student named Zhuan You (or Juan You), who in turn taught the style to his son Wu Jianchuan (or Jianquan). This modification of the Yang style is usually referred to as the Wu Jianchuan (or Jianquan) style. This form's movements are smaller and the stance is higher than the popular Yang style. In summary, the major styles of traditional Taijiquan are the Chen, Yang, Wu, Wu Jianchuan (or Jianquan) and Sun. All other styles are variations of the above.

Non-martial Taiji variants: There are modified forms of Taiji, which are devoted mostly to health enhancement and relaxation. The movements retain the flavour of Taijiquan, but not the principles, and are often highly simplified. For complete beginners these are often good starting points but if your pursuit of Taiji becomes more serious then they often prove empty and disappointing at which point you should pursue a traditional style.

Richard Dunn

Richard teaches Traditional Yang Style Tai Chi in parts of Bedfordshire, Herfordshire and Essex.