One cannot do the Form much less the application unless the weight transfer to the right foot consists of a proper step back that lands on the heel first.
via YouTube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Rm41J6QBGI
Mr. and Ms. Sifu, a beautiful picture with beautiful people: Here is my wish for today, next year, and years to come: Let us do our "Chuan" as a beacon and as an art of peace in an unsettled world where there are acts and potential acts of violence at every turn. It is true as Master Hwa says that although the old masters went out of their way to test the art by asking for fights. there are still "rules" to be followed in our art. "... and the rules form and follow a logical structure with calculated scientific reasoning behind it...". How fortunate, that in Master Hwa we have had a top-notch scientist to guide us along the road to reason. To quote an ARTICLE by Tim Chan: "We live in a different world today. We are more restrained and much less inclined, for various reasons, to using the same approach as these masters. That said, we should be looking for a less violent and more structured approach to understanding the art. And I find we can achieve this objective by expounding Chinese wisdom through Western science such as relying on the discipline of physiology and mechanics."
"Preparation Form" a video link:
I have rarely seen this move done correctly in
large frame Tai Chi. If you have more questions? Please go to classical-tai-chi.teachable.com and
take the "Health and Strength with Tai Chi" course for $27. To
elucidate further: I would say that one can certainly see how the body is
twisted in this picture with the back foot at a right angle and body turned to the front.
This occurs when you do not follow Wu's edict of 6 harmonies "hand follows
foot, elbow follows knee, shoulder follows hip", Ironically the Tai Chi
Classics is frequently touted by large frame practitioners and
"harmonies" is outlined in the "Holy Writ" of Tai Chi Classics.
Actually, I have rarely seen the edict followed correctly in a large frame. The
catch is that those are "external harmonies" applicable to large
frame and use just the extremities in the reference. A small frame follows the
external harmonies but they originate from the core and not the extremities.
One has the thought that the core is like a centralized drive train that
controls the wheels and not the wheels controlling the drive train.
Learning how to focus your muscle movements within your torso can help in stimulating your blood flow and lymphatic flow. It begins to teach you how to maintain the “springtime of your life”. Student comments echo their questions and difficulties but they need to understand our bodies are stubborn in lifetime habits of using muscles externally but now they are recruiting "new" uses of those same muscles. One needs to understand until those muscles in the process of becoming useful for internal movement, often temporarily turn out to deter the intended purpose of the movement. To resolve this during training, Classical Tai Chi with eminently rational logic has to develop skill in the traditional concepts of yin-yang and it's the delineation of movement and stillness to instill principles of inner balance of muscles in the body.
Video link: Classical Tai Chi walking exercise and Internal Discipline in Tai Chi Walk
A civil conversation about training for Fajin I had with Louis Swaim, a former editor at North Atlantic Books and author of The Essence and Applications of Taijiquan:
At Master Hwa's 75th, 2007, 2 years after becoming the first certified teacher of Classical Tai Chi
Wu's Style Discipleship ceremony, circa the 1980s
Patience can be learned when learning to fight a video link:
Link: When one does external movement, they are not necessarily doing an internal movement.
This is even though you fool yourself into thinking that you are doing internal. Can I get you to think that you can move your arm without moving your arm? Well, you can if you can think outside the box with me for 4 minutes of video. Some things are just too subtle, however. Examples are live classes and even videos where one can repeat even a dozen times. The video however may well be the best "illusion" breaker. You really need to stop thinking in terms that "flashy" means better..."flashy" should be defined as illusionary. It's been hard as a teacher for me to realize Classical Tai Chi movements are just too darn subtle for many folks that can't think outside the box of their previous Tai Chi, Karate, etc. learning. Finally, this video is an illusion buster and hopefully will change everyone's mind about learning from video vs. live classes. Anyhow, who wants to take a live class in these current times?
Link to video of “left hand” round form
The Left-Hand Form
"The movements in the I08 Long Form are mostly non-symmetrical in regard to the right and left side of the body. We generally call the normal Form the "right-hand Form". It is purely a name-not necessarily meaning that the right side of the body is more emphasized. Because of the nonsymmetrical nature of the Form, It results in unbalanced development of the body when one practices this way day in and day out.
When one can play the right-hand Form with ease, it is time to teach oneself to play the mirror image of the Form, so-called "left-hand Form". It is a very beneficial exercise. One can gain considerable insight into ones' Form playing. Students who have gone through this exercise have reported that they sense the weakness on the left-hand Form initially indicating that they have already built up robustness on the right side. Eventually, when one plays the Form, one should alternate between right and left Form to ensure balanced development."
Link to video:
Quarter body move "hard" with no Yin/Yang separation
Video Link:
There is a science to internal strength
12 minute Qi and Internal strength
"The investigation of Neijin (Internal Strength) via its manifestation in body motion forges a theoretical link between Qi and muscle actions in the regulation of motion to comport with the principles of yin and yang. This gives a formulation of neijin in the framework of physics and physiology and provides a pragmatic qi-motion paradigm to train for the strength, as well as a window into Qi at a level of basic science.
The practice of Taijiquan develops a kind of core strength, which by traditional theory is differentiated from regular physical strength, called Internal Strength or Neijin. Neijin is not a well-formulated concept, which is why references to in-depth studies of the subject are hard to find even in the Chinese literature on Taijiquan. There is no clear consensus of what it is or how best to train for it among experts of the various schools Taijiquan. But it is exalted as the mysterious strength that underlies the prowess of Chinese Martial Arts—the stuff that seems to defy one’s sense of speed, strength, and power expected in combat.
The rule of thumb of the uncharacteristic strength is that the more it appears of “physical force” the less it is of neijin. There is a persistent viewpoint that neijin is not associated with the musculature, so much so that it has spawned a cultural disdain of muscles in Taijiquan. This paper seeks to reconcile the musculature with neijin by looking at neijin feats as described in the classics of Taijiquan, such as the skill of “four ounces repelling a thousand pounds.” However, the study does not include the controversial claim of “empty space force,” which purportedly can propel a person by the wave of a hand without physical contact, and notes only that the phenomenon has not withstood scrutiny."
Tai Chi Instructor/Author, USA
Correspondence: C.P. Ong, Tai Chi Instructor/Author, USA
Received: November 26, 2016 | Published: February 6, 2017
Citation: Ong C (2017) A Scientific Perspective of Neijin (Internal Strength). Int J Complement Alt Med 5(3): 00155. DOI: 10.15406/ijcam.2017.05.00155
Why give up several arts & get good at one?
"Passing on the small circle art" I am with Tom Kostusiak at Buffalo State College. Tom recalls my teaching him large circle Wu's Style when I was a disciple of the Wu Family. He also recalls my study of Bagua Zhang. I studied Bagua Zhang with a disciple of Li Zi Ming and his name was Dewei Li. He was also a child psychologist and very versed in several arts. Most notably he was a sword champion on the Mainland. I assisted him in getting residence in the U.S. at one point. When studying Wu's style Master Eddie Wu asked me to give up my Tae Kwon Do and I did just missing the test for Black Belt.
I include some information here on Grandmaster Young Wabu who gave up several martial arts to study with Wu Chien Chuan. To top it off he was at the top of the lineage chart for Master status in Monkey Boxing when he did so.
"When you have something that works well, why complicate it?"
VIDEO FOR INTERNAL You feel you only want a class and can't learn from videos? I am republishing this article, which was initially pub...