The simplification and focus on health aspects have greatly influenced the transmission of Tai Chi’s martial arts and techniques. The more challenging and bias-prone Taoist qigong has been diluted, replaced with the safer, modern practice of push hands.
1. **Background of Traditional Martial Arts Not Evolving into Combat Sports**
Tai Chi, and traditional martial arts as a whole, have encountered significant difficulties in contemporary times. Originally combat-oriented, traditional martial arts have shifted towards sports, fitness, and health in the modern era. However, with the rise of various attractive fitness programs, the market for traditional martial arts has shrunk. In recent years, traditional martial arts have been under scrutiny.
Exploring the essence of traditional martial arts, they were the “kings” of the cold weapon era, focused on combat effectiveness and pursuing higher martial skills and realms beyond martial arts through Taoist practices. Practitioners were typically bodyguards, military officers, law enforcement agents, and figures from the jianghu (the community of martial artists), with the primary purpose of defeating enemies and saving lives. With the advent of firearms, the practical use of traditional martial arts mostly vanished, leaving cultivation and self-defense as minor applications, with the main use being fitness and hobby.
While traditional martial arts in the West and Japan transformed into competitive sports in the 20th century, preserving martial skills and creating a broad market for commercial entertainment and fitness, like boxing, wrestling, fencing, judo, and sumo, Chinese martial arts did not undergo this modern transformation due to various external reasons. The Republic of China, facing severe internal and external troubles in the first half of the 20th century, could not facilitate this transformation for national martial arts.
The early “gymnasticization” of martial arts led to the near loss of superior martial skills and combat techniques over decades. Some areas, due to small markets and limited resources, did not see this modern transformation. The promotion of Sanda (Chinese kickboxing) in the late 1980s was a response to this decline, but it was an imperfect solution.
2. **The Division and Disruption Between Traditional and Modern Tai Chi**
Today, many question whether traditional martial arts are still viable for combat. It’s essential to clarify what “traditional martial arts” means. Undoubtedly a product of the cold weapon era, traditional martial arts encompass Taoist qigong and martial skills, with the latter focused on combat and performance serving merely as a sideline for entertainers. With the arrival of the firearms era, traditional martial arts learners – bodyguards, soldiers, and law enforcement – dwindled, with ordinary citizens becoming the main practitioners for fitness, health, and hobby purposes. These learners, limited by physical capability and unwilling to endure hardship, led to the simplification and health orientation of traditional martial arts, with Tai Chi being a prime example.
The simplification and health orientation significantly impacted the transmission of Tai Chi’s martial arts and techniques. For instance, the popular Yang-style Tai Chi, simplified and popularized by Yang Chengfu, differs significantly from the skills passed down by Yang Luchan by diluting the more challenging Taoist qigong and replacing combat techniques with the safer modern push hands. Similar changes occurred in Chen-style Tai Chi and other schools to adapt to the times, marking a significant difference between modern and traditional Tai Chi.
However, during the Republic of China era on the mainland, the transmission of Taoist qigong and combat skills continued without interruption. It was only after the Communist takeover and the subsequent crackdown on martial arts, coupled with policies of “gymnasticization,” that the genuine skills of Tai Chi were forcibly disrupted. Today, with the rise of Western boxing trends, the future of Chinese martial arts is concerning.
It’s necessary to note that those who praise modern combat sports and criticize Tai Chi, such as Xu Xiaodong and Chen Zhihan, are actually targeting “modern Tai Chi” and “modern martial arts,” not the traditional forms. Their critiques do not accurately reflect the essence of traditional martial arts.
3 The Differences between Traditional Tai Chi and Modern Tai Chi in Terms of Internal Skills and Strength
Daoist qigong and internal strength are considered the pinnacle of traditional martial arts skills. The division of Chinese martial arts into Wudang and Shaolin schools is well recognized, with the “Xin Yi Ba” of Shaolin Temple, known as the “Treasure of the Mountain,” being showcased in recent years. “Xin Yi Ba” is also based on internal cultivation. It can be said that without internal skills and strength, even the best boxing techniques would be powerless. Why do various martial arts schools prefer to trace their origins to Daoist Wudang or Buddhist Shaolin? Because both Buddhism and Daoism emphasize cultivation, and the qigong of cultivation is the source of superior skills, thus, martial arts schools take pride in tracing their roots back to Wudang and Shaolin.
Due to the cultivation of Daoist qigong, superior Chinese martial arts prioritize cultivating the mind and nature. This aspect has been inherited by modern Tai Chi. However, because Daoist qigong is difficult to learn and easy to deviate from, and hard to adapt to the modern mindset, modern Tai Chi has downplayed Daoist qigong. Additionally, the expansion of scientific thought and Western concepts has led to skepticism about Daoist qigong, affecting market demand. Therefore, modern Tai Chi does not emphasize Daoist qigong as much as traditional Tai Chi.
What is Qi? Today, there are various misconceptions about Qi. Daoist cultivation includes qigong, where Qi originates from mental intention, is born from breathing through the Dantian, and becomes a form of energy. Qi flows like water, through the major and minor celestial circuits and opens and closes like a magnetic field, among other phenomena. Qi is also divided into internal and external Qi, initially moving along the surface of the body, and with deep cultivation, permeating the body.
What is the use of Qi? For health cultivation, nurturing the mind and Qi is infinitely wonderful, benefiting both mind and body. For martial artists, sufficient Qi merges with the physical body. Over time, it penetrates from the surface to the inside of the body, existing everywhere. Combined with the cultivation of boxing techniques, it eventually makes the body as strong as sinew, hence developing what is known as internal strength. The process of cultivating Qi is long; it starts with gathering Qi into a “ball” in the Dantian. With further cultivation, the entire abdomen gathers Qi into a “ball”, and with even deeper cultivation, Qi fills the whole body, forming a “ball”.
With continued deep cultivation, combined with the practice of boxing techniques, the body becomes stronger, bones hollow like springs, transforming the body. The pinnacle of Daoist qigong and boxing techniques can be summarized as: “The method of the heart is the method of skill and boxing.” At this stage, Daoist qigong and boxing techniques become one. Therefore, cultivating internal skills and strength starts with cultivating Qi, transforming the physical body, but the leading role is not Qi but the heart method that governs Qi and internal skills and strength, embodying the profound meaning of “The method of the heart is the method of skill and boxing.”
Hence, the cultivation of internal skills and strength in Chinese martial arts differs from external physical exercises. As modern fighters age, their strength diminishes, inversely proportional to their age and skill. In contrast, those who cultivate internal boxing skills, because of the cultivation of Daoist qigong and internal strength, find that the longer they practice, the more abundant their Qi, the more effortless and significant their mental method, the stronger their muscles and sinews, the higher their internal strength. Eventually, the body’s Qi flow and organ breathing become independent, allowing for unrestricted movement and increased endurance.
Therefore, practitioners of superior internal boxing reach their prime in their forties and fifties, while in their twenties and thirties, due to limited achievements in qigong, their skills are not as developed. For instance, Li Cunyi, nearly seventy years old when he founded the Tianjin Martial Arts Association, said in an interview, “Martial arts is Xingyi Boxing,” which led to dissatisfaction among other schools. Many came to challenge him, and Li Cunyi defeated them all, greatly enhancing the reputation of the Martial Arts Association.
Discussing internal strength and using Tai Chi as an example, Yang-style Tai Chi originated from Chen-style Tai Chi. However, before Yang Luchan became famous, he traveled in the martial arts center of Beijing, interacting with various boxing styles and representatives of top schools, undoubtedly learning and reflecting to achieve a higher level of cultivation, leading to the creation of “Yang-style Tai Chi.” This differs from the more isolated Chen-style Tai Chi, with Yang-style Tai Chi having its unique and superior aspects.
For example, Yang-style Tai Chi emphasizes the primary importance of a relaxed and sinking strength, including the silk-reeling energy. This requires the entire body to sink and rotate around the dantian (similar to some aspects of Baguazhang), without the overt qi sensation or distinct silk-reeling energy of Chen-style Tai Chi. The techniques and the forms between Chen and Yang styles thus diverge significantly. Yang-style Tai Chi can be considered an upgraded or “finished” product of Chen-style Tai Chi, possibly benefiting from its central martial arts community compared to a more remote one.
The Boxer Rebellion in 1900 marked the end of China’s cold weapons era and the onset of the hot weapons era, leading to the decline and transformation of traditional martial arts. It was only two decades later that Chen-style Tai Chi was introduced to Beijing, and by then, Yang Chengfu had shifted his teaching towards simplified techniques and forms, aiming for societal dissemination. Chen-style Tai Chi similarly underwent a simplification in its teaching approach.
This process demonstrates how Tai Chi evolved from the cold weapons era to adapt to the loss of most of its applications in the hot weapons era. This adaptation involved three major changes: the simplification of time-consuming and difficult-to-learn Daoist Qi Gong practices; the replacement of practical combat skills with safer modern push hands; and the reduction of traditional Tai Chi’s internal strength and energy, favoring modern push hands’ focus on extending energy over the ancient methods of overcoming opponents with hardness (such as spring-like energy) and softness. This indicates that traditional Tai Chi has transformed into modern Tai Chi to meet contemporary societal needs, yet modern Tai Chi significantly differs from traditional Tai Chi, and the two should not be confused.
In summary, internal strength and energy are the “treasures” of traditional martial arts. Not only do they give rise to various superior techniques, but they also enable the martial arts to exert their power in overcoming opponents, which is where traditional martial arts excel over modern external combat sports. However, if internal strength and energy wane, so do the techniques and their effectiveness, rendering them incapable of combat.
4. The Differences Between Traditional Tai Chi and Modern Tai Chi for Health
Today, individuals like Wang Yongquan and Wei Shuren have proposed concepts such as “Wind Gong” and “Three Qi Rings” (which they claim to have inherited from Yang Jianhou). However, these concepts might not represent the pinnacle of martial arts practice for two reasons. First, Yang-style Tai Chi differs from Chen-style Tai Chi in its emphasis on spring-like energy, which requires the muscles to “hang on the bones.” This necessitates that relaxation and sinking energy be primary, incorporating silk-reeling energy (whereas Chen-style prioritizes silk-reeling energy, but includes relaxation and sinking energy). The result of relaxation and sinking is an integrated shoulder and back, and an integrated waist and hips, both of which are alive and unify internal and external qi. Second, the so-called “Wind Gong” and “Three Qi Rings” focus on external qi, but external qi is insubstantial compared to the substantial nature of internal qi. Moreover, the function of the waist and hips is not disjointed; having two separate qi rings for the waist and hips is redundant. Integrating the waist and hips, along with unifying internal and external qi, is true to the Yang family tradition.
Ultimately, the theories proposed by Wang Yongquan and Wei Shuren may represent their explorations and understandings. Wang Yongquan’s status was not particularly high, and it is unlikely that he was an “indoor disciple” who received secret teachings from Yang Jianhou. Wei Shuren, an author and proponent of modern Tai Chi, focuses on health cultivation and the de-emphasis of martial applications in his practice. By attributing their ideas to previous generations, they deviate from the traditional Tai Chi path, such as emphasizing external qi for health cultivation. But in martial application, internal qi is crucial. Experts know that internal qi is substantial, and external qi is insubstantial, so “Wind Gong” and “Three Qi Rings” could not possibly originate from the secret teachings of the traditional Tai Chi master Yang Jianhou. Instead, they are modern adaptations focused on health cultivation.
Traditional Tai Chi’s health cultivation originates from Daoist practices of nurturing the heart and refining qi, aiming for holistic self-cultivation. This integration of Daoist qi gong and martial arts leads to a high level of internal strength and health benefits. Modern Tai Chi has shifted towards health and exercise, with less emphasis on combat effectiveness, leading to a dilution of internal strength and the transmission of Daoist qi gong practices. This has resulted in a shallower spread of such practices, with many people mistaking physical Tai Chi forms as the essence of health cultivation. Overall, the level of health cultivation in modern Tai Chi is not high.
5. The Differences Between Traditional and Modern Tai Chi Push Hands
Today’s popular push hands are either for health or for competition, which significantly differs from the original purpose, method, and effects of traditional Tai Chi push hands. Traditional push hands were preparation for sparring and actual combat, focusing on the art of sticking and adhering with an emphasis on soft strength, which is difficult to master and requires a deep foundation in internal work. Its advantage lies in countering fast and aggressive attacks, but soft strength is less effective against slow forces or in close-contact pushing, lacking the ability to overpower an opponent. Thus, soft strength is not a forte in modern push hands, which values long strength, most useful in close contact but slower than hard strength and less applicable in sparring. As a result, modern Tai Chi, which focuses on long strength, is at a disadvantage in modern combat sports with rules, leading figures like Xu Xiaodong and Chen Zhihan to gain notoriety.
Modern push hands have become an end in themselves, with specific rules and applications, losing the essence of traditional push hands that developed soft strength for defense and sparring. This has led to a limitation of the interplay between hardness and softness, turning into a contest of force. Modern push hands, therefore, lack the original value of developing soft strength for combat, serving only for health or specialized sports.
Regarding internal strength, taking relaxation and power generation as examples, modern push hands emphasize total relaxation and grounding, pursuing standing postures and stretching. Over time, this practice leads to heaviness and stability, making it difficult to be pushed and facilitating the use of long strength to push opponents or neutralize incoming forces, thus considered a “secret weapon” in modern push hands. However, such training can make boxing footwork less agile, and in sparring, lack of agility leads to defeat, highlighting a trade-off between strengths and weaknesses.
The ancient method of push hands in traditional Tai Chi focuses on the use of relaxation techniques to develop internal strength and soft power. When the internal strength is profound, it turns the whole body into a “spring ball,” staying grounded without sticking to the ground, neither heavy nor sluggish. Then, it uses soft power and sticking techniques to counteract the opponent’s fast attacks, making it highly effective for grappling and striking. The skills of Tai Chi’s free-hand fighting come from this. However, under the rules of modern push hands, the ancient methods of soft power and relaxation might not have much advantage. The soft power of ancient methods might not effectively push the opponent, and the rules prohibit strikes with hard power. Traditional relaxation techniques that do not emphasize heavy grounding can’t prevent being pushed by the opponent. This shows that traditional and modern Tai Chi have different goals, leading to significant differences in their push hands skills, usage, advantages, and strengths.
6 Can Tai Chi still fight ?
What is the future of Tai Chi facing the advantages of modern combat sports? Modern Tai Chi cannot compete. However, it has adapted to the needs of modern society, exploring new paths and fields such as health cultivation, sports (push hands), lifestyle, and entertainment. Yet, it also faces competition from many other appealing fitness and entertainment activities, leading to its decline. Although modern Tai Chi is a variation of traditional Tai Chi, it has gradually lost its essence due to internal and external factors. It is now hard to find someone proficient in the superior internal strength and martial arts skills, and it’s true that many traditional martial arts have lost their authentic transmission.
Therefore, Tai Chi needs to return to its traditional ancient methods, promoting the true teachings of the ancestral masters. What the ancestral masters regarded as “treasures” were primarily internal strength and practical combat skills. It’s time to reclaim the true teachings. Even if focusing on health cultivation, modern Tai Chi’s neglect of Daoist practices and Qi Gong means it cannot reach a higher level. To face the challenge of modern combat sports, only traditional Tai Chi can prevail. To avoid further decline in the fitness and sports market and regain the younger demographic, it is essential to revive traditional Tai Chi. Tai Chi needs to return to its roots, embracing both the literary and martial aspects, and not “promote literature at the expense of martial valor.” (Author: Li Ming)
