Waist turns, hips do not! Most who do this are surprised when they are told how much their hips are moving...unless trained one simply does not feel such extraneous movement.Doing the Lions share of repairing the hole where logical reasoning disappeared, "righting the ship" and saving Tai Chi.

from Instagram

Junction of movement has to be in torso to be "internal"

Starting at 1:15 you hear Master Hwa address "hips vs. waist" and ask "...some of you were here last time, I want to see...turning movement, how do you turn...". The fellow behind (who I recall from the previous year at this same workshop) turns at the hips and turning his whole body.  You know it is very interesting that 

Did you know that the ability to turn from the waist, not turning the hips is considered the “second stage” of learning in Tai Chi. Did you know that if you don’t reach this stage you are not truly practicing Tai Chi? Did you know that THE TAO OF TAI-CHI CHUAN: Way to Rejuvenation" Jou Tsung Hwa,  Tai Chi Foundation, 1991, page A31, stated that "The Second Stage. The hallmark of the second stage is the use of torso method. Torso method is characterized by use of the body, specifically the waist and spine, to initiate and empower the movements of the arms and legs . Only those who reach this stage can truly be said to be practicing Tai Chi, yet these are few indeed."  Master Hwa once told me that he would have liked to meet Master Jou “…he was someone that really was searching for the truth about Tai Chi…”

Hips a fulcrum powered by the waist

The waist turns the hips, not vice versa (video link)

Waist turns, hips do not! Most who do this are surprised when they are told how much their hips are moving...unless trained, one simply does not feel such extraneous movement. An "oldie but a goodie" classic video that includes hips vs. waist instruction at the video link. Hips v. Waist continued: Keep the hips still, even sit on a chair to do this, turn the waist and then try another experiment, standing or sitting where you turn the hip "first" (you will find it impossible but you can turn the waist to turn the hip) and you can readily see the difference in the "generation" of power. What exactly is the mechanism that is used to move in and of itself when one is urged erroneously to "turn your hip"? The hips are a major joint in the body and like any joint, there is no such self-perpetuating mechanism in the hips wherein one can "generate movement". Your hips "permit", "allow", "tolerate", "provide for" movement, but they do not "generate" movement.

Sitback and Lean

Dear Master Hwa:  Now as to the "sitback" as shown in Wu's posture my student Tom Kostusiak says: "When I first started Classical Tai Chi, I experienced back pain while playing the form. My teacher pointed out (as Master Hwa points out in the video) that I was not sitting back and stretching down the tailbone. As I progressed with this correction, my back pain subsided. I saw that incorrect posture was the cause of pain as I was not properly aligned for the moves."

A student some time ago asked me via email: "How does the second generation of Wu's family change the posture from the original upright posture of Yang's Tai Chi to a straight lean?"  Perhaps one answer is to ask why ask this question before you practice instead of practicing and finding the answer for yourself?  I was thinking about what you said on "lean" in the forward posture.  As we know very well, there is indeed much commentary as you say along with youtube video. I decided to look up exact definitions of English "lean". Then I said why not look up what Chinese translation of "lean is" and so...I find it ironic that other Tai Chi has so much commentary from allegedly reading the Tai Chi Classics and interpretation of Chang San Feng's edict to not "lean". Yet the simplified Chinese translation is 靠 or kào which in English is translated as "Lean" using a striking force with shoulder or body. The irony is "lean" is one of the 8 postures that Tai Chi is noted for. Also, the very same postures that they tout as needing to be done in the "perpendicular".

Hi Jim: "We just have to continually plug at it. To change the preconceived thinking of such a large portion of the tai chi practitioner is a herculean effort!"

One is external self defense, the other is self defense of the self through internal discipline

from Instagram

Folding

The folding move involves one entire side of the body; arm, torso, and leg, moving as a unit. In the example shown in the video left side then the right side of the body are folding and unfolding by keeping the other side of the body stationary.  The stationary part provides support, some of the power for the move and grounding. The left side of the body is yang, the right side yin, then it alternates with right sidy yang and left side yin, etc. The Yin-yang Internal Discipline of the Tai Chi junction is at the spine. One can visualize that the spine is a hinge, so each side of the body, like a door, can fold or unfold using that hinge. This is also a half-body move, right side vs. left  This move in Tai Chi Classics is described as "upper and lower body following each other" Another classical description is, "hand follows the foot, elbow follows the knee, and shoulder follows the hip". This is an important example of how to make a move but still keep each side of the body's alignment intact. This move can be achieved only when the turning power comes from the waist and the entire back's muscles. If one uses the upper body power for this move, the lower body will not likely be able to follow the upper body's move. The left foot will likely be lagging behind the move to form a twisted structure on the left side of the body greatly reducing the power of the move. see https://www.facebook.com/classicaltaichijimroach/

Liked on YouTube: PUSH HANDS "Jade Girl Works at the Shuttles"

PUSH HANDS "Jade Girl Works at the Shuttles"

via YouTube https://youtu.be/3v8S3nawap8

Yin and Yang is more than "cosmological"

The video of Stephen Hwa shows him doing a 1/4 body move.  It requires 3/4 of the body to be Yin (not moving) while 1/4 is Yang (moving). 

In "The Harvard Medical School Guide to Tai Chi" one of the statements is "This book is audacious".  I would agree.  Where I disagree is with the author's "audacious" statement that Yin and Yang are "cosmological notions".  This smacks of having a kind of "belief in the right mental state of mind as the precursor which makes almost any movement a Tai Chi movement. The result of that has given us an unbelievable number of Tai Chi varieties.

Stephen Hwa's teacher Yeung Wabu said that his own teacher Wu Chien Chuan told him: "Every movement in Tai Chi Form has to have two complementary parts of the body, a moving part (called the yang part) and a stationary part (called yin part). When the yin-yang junction is located in the torso of the body, it is an internal move. When it is outside of the torso, it is an external move."

I won't go into the health or martial benefits of disregarding those previous discussed "right mental state" notions at this point.  I will simply say that Yin and Yang are indeed an "...ology", not a "cosmology" but a "methodology". As my own teacher says in "Uncovering the Treasure": One (contribution) is that this statement by my teacher Yeung Wabu is the key to a methodology that enables Tai Chi practitioners to mobilize the powerful core of the body for Tai Chi movements, to generate internal energy and internal energy circulation in the body.

Martial Art and/or Good for Health?

"Don't argue with students over doing Long Form or Short Form". Those were the words that Master Stephen Hwa spoke to me. I mentioned the statements of a student on the ultimate utility of doing short form instead of the Long Form. The student had learned a short form from a former teacher and rather more loyal than pragmatic was holding to their previous learning.

This is but one example of the work of saving Classical Tai Chi that Master Hwa has taken on. Through study with him, I have come to an understanding of why. In my professional opinion the art has been dying, simply put it has degenerated into something that is barely recognizable. As to what one is up against: "As a disciple of Wu Chian-Chuan,(Young Wabu) was faithful to the art he was taught by Wu. He could not understand why so many tai chi practitioners were so feckless with the art that resulted in the rapid degeneration of the art during his lifetime."

Largely, the Tai Chi is divided into what seems like 2 camps. Those who insist that it is only a martial art, pure and simple. Don't argue with them on Youtube or anywhere else, they have been calling for Jihad for some time now. Then there is the other camp. Those who insist that it is not a martial art, pure and simple. Don't argue with them anywhere either. Take your pick...what they seem to define it as is anyone's guess.

The martial arts crew will say "if someone gives you the finger, give them the finger back". The other side will say much what was said by a beginner at one of my classes. "Tai Chi did not originate in China, it was developed in San Francisco".  No doubt at the same time as "Rice a Roni". Kind of like what a local restaurant owner said to a couple at the next table to us when they asked for Chow Mein and said they sure hoped it tasted like the "good stuff they bought at the supermarket". The proprietor responded with: "would you like it served in the can or out?"

It might be helpful to remember that what is necessary for a fight is called good health and what is conducive to good health is good in a fight. However, if one takes their 8 bones of the wrist and 19 of the hands and fingers and punches someone on the 1 bone of their head (hence the term "bonehead")consider the odds of breaking at least one of them. How the purist martial art camp considers that to be healthy really escapes me?

On the other hand (no pun here)if one takes the 1 bony head and applies it with vigor to notions, expectations, preconceptions, media misrepresentations and misinformation about the art...the head does not break. New Age Tai Chi, Tai Chi is only for the old, Really Easy Tai Chi, Tai Chi while swimming, Tai Chi for what ails ya, Short and really short Tai Chi, Tai Chi without all that troublesome discipline, Tai Chi while running, Tai Chi for beating people up, and on and on...

The head does not break under the constant infusion of such notions, it instead fills up and rises to be full of itself. This is the flight of the kite under the influence of hot air. To wit, we have the wordy mathematical expression: The definition of Tai Chi is directly proportional to the amount of hot air that it receives and rises appropriately.

Elements follow certain rules, rules form a logical structure

Forward lean posture & movement (video)

Although we only show one posture, that posture is central to the Classical Tai Chi experience. It is important to remember that doing this or any posture badly will always override what we call "wishful thinking" or the right mental state. An excerpt from "Uncovering the Treasure" by Stephen Hwa Ph.D.  "Those early Masters who developed Classical Tai Chi Form must have had in-depth knowledge about body mechanics and its effect on joint health and energy transmission and generation in the body. They meticulously incorporated their knowledge into every move in the Tai Chi Form. After all, a bad posture will stop internal energy generation and qi flow."

"No mental state or wishful thinking can overcome that. At first glance, it (Classical Tai Chi) appears to be very complex, but gradually it becomes simpler because every element in it, no matter how minor it is, follows certain rules and these rules form a logical structure with calculated, scientific reasoning behind it. Every element is optimized toward two objectives; martial art applications and health benefits. As a result, every element is tightly coupled with other elements even though they may appear to be unrelated. The entire structure is rooted in Chinese philosophy. It is truly a world heritage treasure."

Tai Chi for the most part is "Square Form"

How to not be "square" and reduce momentum

MOMENTUM FORCE VS. INTERNAL ENERGY

If one pushes back with the forward foot as an opponent is pushing you does it not stand to reason that you are aiding them? As much as we would like to believe it not true when a Karate punch or kick reaches its endpoint, the momentum of the movement has to be absorbed by the shoulder or hip joint to stop the movement. This could cause hyperextension of the tendon in that joint. This to some degree also takes place in some Tai Chi particularly where there is much emphasis on sparring and to a lesser degree, it shows in their "forms". Not readily seen by untrained observers but a finer analysis shows "stops" and "starts" instead of conclusively continuous movement.

Master Stephen Hwa told me when I first met him that the "stops/starts" of Yang Style, Wu Style forms I learned were "square form" and used some considerable "momentum force" as their source of energy. I had no idea. External martial arts such as Karate use even more momentum force. Here's that square form in operation: You decide to drive down the highway alternately and indiscriminately pressing on the accelerator and the brake You would be using your engine to give the vehicle kinetic energy/momentum then throw the energy away by hitting the brake, over and over. You would consume much less fuel if you only drove steadily.

Master Stephen Hwa, a Ph.D. Engineer, talks a great deal about varieties of momentum force, aka pushing forward with the back foot, pushing back with the front foot. As much as one may not wish to admit, Wu, Yang, Chen all are Square form, etc. All of these contribute to a movement that has "stops and starts" in it, one way or the other. When it comes to ClassicalTai Chi "round form" using a "pulling" coupled with internal energy and a considerable minimum of momentum that difference is a really big deal. One might say that Tai Chi relying on "pushing with a foot" is extravagant of energy, whereas "pulling" truly stores it and releases only when needed.

Doing the Lions share of repairing the hole where logical reasoning disappeared, "righting the ship" and saving Tai Chi.

from Instagram