“In search of the truth”

Round and Square: a Classical Tai Chi video

Block Printing and Cursive related to Classical Tai Chi:  a video

My own teacher, Stephen Hwa, Ph.D., did seminars for Jou Tsung-Hwa's students and he told me in an email that Jou Tsung-Hwa was “…someone who was in search of the truth in Tai Chi, and I would like to meet him…”. Master Jou was the author of The Tao of Tai-Chi Chuan.  He used the analogy of a film to explain the movement of Tai Chi. He stated that when viewed as individual, static poses, the movements make no sense. The proper motion and meaning are only perceived when the "frames" are put together and performed fluidly as a continuous sequence. The "Film" analogy teaches several core concepts of Tai Chi practice that can aptly be applied to Classical Tai Chi. 

In the numerous styles, there is really only one that has a “round” form and a “square” (fang) form. The Wu Style, with all its own derivatives, often surprises people with the direct opposite requirement between Square and Round.

The direct opposite requirement is not unique, however:

I am echoing Master Hwa as I relate my own experience. Just think how one learns the art of calligraphy. My own teacher echoes this in the video link. My own experience had me learning Chinese Calligraphy, how to write in print form (brush and ink, of course). Then I studied a smidgen of cursive calligraphy. The differences between these two writing forms are analogous to the differences between those two Tai Chi Forms.

Square Form is analogous to the block printing of (pinyin) Kai Style, or what is called “Kai Shu”. The round form is analogous to Tsao Style or "Tsao Shu/Cao Shu" or the cursive script.

In Square Form, as in calligraphy, movements occur along relatively straight lines between points (the start and end points of inflection). The Round Form, with its curves, has the curves passing through those points. The Square Form is like a template for the Round Form. As you see, the curves go through the points where the lines meet.

Again, merely echoing my teacher, who was a Ph.D. engineer and scientist at Xerox Corporation.  Like the Calculus of Mathematics; however, I would point out that the Round Form is like the calculus, which integrates a tiny segment of a curved motion as a straight line to form the curved motion. A Square Form is like taking one of the small straight lines and expanding it into a straight movement. The way of the universe uses principles that govern everything that appears unrelated.

To reiterate, it is in Jou Tsung Hwa’s book, The Tao of Tai Chi, where he states that movement is like individual frames in a movie. Taken separately or even 2 or 3, it makes no sense, and one sees no motion. Only when one puts all the frames together do we have the illusion of motion. In Classical Tai Chi Square Form, we see movement that indeed looks like individual frames in a film. When put together in the Round Form, we see motion. 

Regarding the square form and perhaps to the critics: Although the primary purpose is to teach students to delineate what moves and what does not in "Yin and Yang", there are many, many individual “points”, “stops”, “pauses”, etc. As it was said, “changes of direction occur at those points”. It would seem, then, that, much like the individual frames in a film, many frames produce a fine product that gives us the illusion of motion.

The more “points” are present in something, such as a square form, the more capacity there is for those points to join and produce a round form. If I only have 2 or 3 points, it would be hard to see the round if I join them with straight lines. If I put 10 points in that same situation and join them, one begins to see the round very clearly. Much as in the eight straight lines joining and changing direction in the I Ching diagram *ABOVE*, and one can draw a circle around those 8 points where the lines join. It would seem as well that lines joining thusly form angles at the joints. Ideally, one would think a good place to mount an attack would be at those angles, or what are “tangents,” as well.

The points where one changes direction are referred to as "Dingdian" or fixed points; they are actually inflection points. Those starting and ending points define the curved movement in the round form. Of course, nothing ever begins or ends in Tai Chi — like ocean waves, breathing — each has its own peak and trough.

When I was learning calligraphy, I appreciated the stop-and-go of Kai Shu's strokes. It allowed me to reflect on the stroke I just did and to prepare for the next movement. The Square Form of Tai Chi will enable us to gather energy, align the joints, and gather strength at the “points”. I can prepare for the next move by gathering my energy. The pause is why the moves in the Square seem abrupt. Although it looks "robotic" in its abruptness, it is not robotic enough. Based on this, I would say that Tai Chi is not only very analogous to calligraphy, but also very scientific. In light of the Calculus, one can appreciate the mathematics as well.

Thanks

James Roach

p.s. Read about calligraphy and art at the link below.  They were both outstanding artists, calligraphers, and Tai Chi teachers. They both learned from Grandmaster Young Wabu, who taught Stephen Hwa, Ph.D., who is my teacher and a Master instructor.

Rendering Nature: Paintings by Chow Chian-chiu and Chow Leung Chen-ying

Patience =Ting Jin 聽勁

With their fingers lightly touching the inside of his arm, Tom and Al are sensing both the presence on the outside forearm and lack of tension on the inside forearm in Master Hwas arm as it is pushed. Clench your own fist as tight as possible and notice the tension in your arm. Make both of your fists tight. Now push down your tight arm with your other tight  hand. Difficult right?   The student in red shirt is not aware that he is tight.  In fact, he is so tight in the arm, he does not notice his posture is leaning the wrong way.  Now make a loose fist like Master Hwa and repeat the push with the other loose hand. Easy right? Do you see how easy it is to sense the movement when excessive force is not in the picture?

In both cases the arms had Ting Jin. On a percentage scale Master Hwa had more “sensitivity” to touch however, much as your own loose fist did.  Yes, one can literally force someone's arm down with excessive tension but with sensitivity that force can be redirected. Ting Jin literally translates to “listening energy,” but this “listening” occurs through tactile and kinesthetic awareness during physical contact. As described in the principles of Classical Tai Chi, it is the ability to sense an opponent’s force, direction, balance, and even intent before movement becomes visible. This is achieved through relaxed, connected body structure and mental focus—conditions that allow minute changes in pressure to be detected and interpreted.Now let’s talk about how to develop “Ting Jin”but it takes patience. Oh and by the way, Master Hwa was using internal discipline from the core not “ordinary force” in the arm to fend off the students push.

My first Tai Chi teacher in 1976 was a Clinical Psychologist who frequently told me he was looking for another line of work. In my opinion, his comments on beginners were pretty indicative of impatience. "I'm not going to teach that guy Jim, but you can", "Well, you did a good job teaching him, at least now he's walking like a human being", etc. 

On the other hand, he was very knowledgeable about Tai Chi and quite articulate in teaching it; he just had no patience for teaching.  When I first started with him, he wore a T Shirt that said "Patience?", "Patience, my ass, I want to kill something".  It was a graphic of 2 buzzards talking to one another in a tree while they gazed on some grazing animals.  Out of 7 students that started, I ended up being the only one left in his class. There was a lot of impatience back then, but I think there is even more today, as I see the revolving door firsthand.

Regarding joining, un-joining, aka revolving door:cc

The quote, "The man who moves a mountain begins by carrying away small stones," is attributed to Confucius. 

Mountain = Large Tasks, 

Small Stones = Manageable Tasks. 

Patience + Continuous Effort = Achievement; Still feeling paralyzed? Focus on the first “small stone”, e.g., Turn Your waist as the first internal discipline (9-minute video, done by Master Hwa in the previous post 

https://classicaltaichi.blogspot.com/2025/10/part-2-videos-teach-internal-discipline.html

A small start builds momentum for learning, and some success makes “Mountain” (overall goal) seem attainable. 

Caveat: Do not keep your eye on the Mountain, keep your eye on the Small Stone. One might well say students with an eye on external signs of success rarely have the patience to succeed. 

Being the first stone, it will still teach the practitioner patience. In that 9-minute video, it not only teaches patience by teaching “LISTENING”, but the practice itself teaches patience by requiring individuals to listen to their bodies, let go of tension, and move with intention rather than force. “Listening" in the context of Tai Chi firstly applies to your movements, and you learn it for yourself before : 

** Ting Jin (聽勁)**, which translates to "listening energy" or "listening force". This refers to the practice of developing heightened sensitivity to sense an opponent's energy and intentions through physical contact, a skill refined in (Pushing Hands) exercises.  It's about being present and accepting the process, even when mistakes occur or progress feels slow. 

I believe Master Hwa is right in thinking that his desire to shorten the learning curve might be viewed with a disapproving eye by old masters.  After all, they believed in diligent practice and self-discovery. Master Hwa is well aware of this concern and relates it to Mencius story about a farmer who was impatient watching his seedlings grow so slowly that he went to the field and pulled the seedlings up to help their growth.

My understanding of the story is that the pulling up to see the results resulted in the plants dying. Intuitively I think that Mencius wanted to illustrate that successful cultivation of personal virtue was a long term process.  It is a satirical thought indeed that anyone can be impatient for success yet act to destroy the very conditions upon which success depends, or hastens growth yet hopes for success. 

Here is one discovery that I have made:  The desire for success is a self imposed obstacle to success. As a Westerner, I think I have self imposed things standing in my way that make living Tai Chi very difficult.  I know that I am not immune to the many feelings wherein one needs success and needs it in a hurry - in things other than Tai Chi as well.  So the question of what Tai Chi can mean to me particularly in light of these self imposed roadblocks is ever more important. 

 Although Master Hwa feels the need to shorten the learning curve, I don't think he should ever regret it.  I hope I am not being too bold when I say that Tai Chi has had a difficult time in the West. For one thing the ground that he planted Tai Chi "seedlings" in is as I say,  in the West.  One might also say that it is needed very much in the West, but the ground is not the most fertile considering the obstacles, albeit self-imposed . If anything I think his efforts to shorten the curve were necessitated by forces that may well be difficult to control as I state above.  

I have encountered no other Tai Chi learning  as he teaches where students are taught to zero in on the correct sensation of a movement.  I have found that this is truly the best tool for achieving self-improvement.  One learns to sense the gradual discoveries of their own body which have been "under ground" for perhaps their entire life - how can this be called "pulling up"?  The health implications of this are incredible for the sensing of gradual discoveries is a direct pointer to how well the nervous system becomes both healthy and well "tuned".  One doesn't have to look for results, one can feel them.

As one practitioner noted, "There is no point in pulling on a tree or a flower as they will not grow faster. It is better to give them the right conditions for development and to observe them grow peacefully".  This is a mirror of Mencius. The obvious question here is : If you cannot have sensitivity to your own movement, how then to an opponents?

https://greatnewspodcast.com/36-quotes-on-taking-action/

Small v Large Circle Tai Chi

SMALL V LARGE VIDEO 

Classical Tai Chi is Small Circle/Frame Tai Chi. I once asked my teacher: “Master Hwa, my own students have asked me why their Yang Style or Wu Style, Large Circle/Frame Tai Chi, could not integrate 'internal discipline' into their 'Large Circle' Tai Chi? He was very succinct and said, “No, it cannot because of the mechanics.”

I will explain the mechanics:

Classical Tai Chi emphasizes "Internal Discipline”, where movements originate from the internal core—the abdomen and back—rather than from the limbs, which distinguishes it from external/large circle styles of Tai Chi. 

This distinction is analogous to a tree swaying in the wind: In Classical Tai Chi, the movement comes from the trunk (core), causing the branches (limbs) to move as a result, whereas in external styles, the branches move independently, without a deep connection to the trunk.

In external styles, actions like pushing forward in “Brush Knee & Push” are initiated by the arm and shoulder, making the shoulder the junction of the segmented or yin-yang—essentially, an external movement. 

In contrast, Classical Tai Chi uses the abdomen and back to move the entire upper body, placing the yin-yang junction within the torso, which defines an internal movement. 

Similarly, when one takes any step in external Tai Chi, the reliance is always on the legs, and the hips provide a junction. When one takes a step in a (external) large circle, it is in a Large Frame. It is a large frame, which means a large step size. Internal Discipline will not work with large steps and arm movements. 

Classical Tai Chi delivers the mechanics that only the core of the body can offer. Taking any step is a mechanical asset controlled by the Torso. Internal discipline of the Torso (Core) provides energy to lift the pelvis. Movement of the pelvis is driven by the core lifting the pelvis, which then lifts the leg, keeping the upper body still and maintaining the junction in the lower torso. One could not take a larger step using those “mechanics” of the body.

This internal approach requires segmented movement—moving one part of the body while keeping another still—much like a pianist who moves one finger while maintaining the others relaxed, illustrating the importance of segmented motion. Ask yourself this question: How can you keep something still in the body when taking a large step that naturally moves the whole body? 

In fact, in speaking of the large circle, the Tai Chi Classics state that "when one part of the body moves, every part moves, and when one part is still, every part is still." My teacher told me “…the classics are considered holy writ yet they have some grievous errors…”.  The “…when one part moves, every part moves…” is one of those errors. 

Large Circle styles often employ the coinciding movement of several body parts. People move, even swing their arms in large arcs, while they push with their legs. This will hinder the flow of internal energy at the joints. 

In Classical Tai Chi, minimizing external motion allows internal energy to circulate unimpeded through the torso, enhancing both health and martial effectiveness.