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The two Force within Tai Chi

    In Tai Chi Chuan, there are many techniques, among which "Smooth Force" and "Touch Force" are important. "Smooth Force" is about experiencing the circulation of one's own strength and mastering the formation of force circles in different body parts. This practice, traditionally referred to as "circle drawing" by the old masters, is essential for improving one's Tai Chi skills and physical fitness. In Tai Chi, "Smooth Force" is a technique that aligns the body's various parts. The power developed through this technique has unique meanings and content, differing from the usual ways of exerting force in daily life or work. Generally, innate force is called "natural strength," while the force obtained through martial arts training is called "acquired strength" or "internal strength." This acquired strength enhances the technical quality and various attributes of Tai Chi Chuan, making the body relaxed, supple, and coordinated.       "Smooth Force" is first experienced during form practice and stance training, using the mind to guide and harmonize spirit, mind, qi, and strength. This coordination balances the body's upper and lower, left and right, front and back. For example, when both hands rise in "peng," the body should have a downward intention, incorporating chest containment, back expansion, and sinking qi to the dantian. When pressing down with both hands, the body should have an upward intention, coordinating with shoulder relaxation, elbow sinking, head lifting, and sinking qi to the dantian. When pushing forward with the hands, the mingmen (life gate) should have a backward stretching intention. This duality of movement allows the practitioner to feel the internal force's extension and balance, creating a state of support in all directions, achieving a balance between movement and stillness, and preventing physical ailments from improper posture.

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Tai Chi and Traditional Chinese Medicine

       Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) believes that the human body is an interconnected whole, centered around the internal organs, connected through the meridians that circulate qi and blood, linking to other bodily structures like the sense organs. Within this whole, the internal organs, meridians, and qi and blood are interrelated and mutually restrictive. Under the leadership and coordination of the "Heart - the Monarch's Palace" (the cerebral cortex and central nervous system), they perform various physiological activities, maintaining the balance of yin and yang.       Tai Chi Chuan, created based on the theories of yin and yang, internal organs, meridians, and qi and blood, can be summarized in one phrase: "Intention and qi as the ruler, bones and flesh as the ministers." The three adjustments are: adjusting the heart, adjusting the qi, and adjusting the body. The nine essentials are: stillness, concentration, connection, smoothness, sinking, fluency, relaxation, correctness, and integration. During practice, one must achieve tranquility of the mind and spirit, relax both internally and externally, move qi with the mind, move the body with qi, and unify spirit and form, intention and qi. Long-term and consistent practice will thus achieve the goal of strengthening the body.  1. Strengthening the Heart             "The heart is the master of the five internal organs and the six hollow organs." Tai Chi Chuan particularly emphasizes "calming the mind and using intention," using the mind to guide movements, thus achieving tranquility of the mind and spirit, concentration of thoughts, and relaxation of the body. This allows the internal organs to function normally and achieve relative balance. A calm mind results in quick thinking and fluent speech. Smooth circulation of heart qi enhances its function of governing blood circulation, reducing and eliminating internal blood stasis. With smooth and abundant blood flow, the complexion naturally becomes rosy.

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What is Tai Chi

Nowadays, there are many people practicing traditional Tai Chi worldwide—reportedly several hundred million. As a representative of Chinese cultural heritage, Tai Chi has also been honored as an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. Such large numbers and market scale are indeed gratifying. It's certainly a good thing that the valuable practices left by our ancestors benefit more people.     From a health and wellness perspective, the value of Tai Chi is unquestionable. However, as a martial art, today's Tai Chi has strayed from its martial roots, becoming unrecognizable and far from authentic. With the widespread promotion of Tai Chi, there are very few who can truly be said to practice "traditional Tai Chi." Those who master the traditional skills are even rarer. The reason for this is simple: although many people practice Tai Chi, very few truly study what "Tai Chi" is. Many believe that knowing a few routines constitutes Tai Chi. Because of this, today's Tai Chi is often ridiculed as "Tai Chi exercises."

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How to enhance Tai chi in real life combact

    Tai Chi consists of thirteen postures that encompass the trajectories of human movement. As people move, their inherent balance is disrupted, and their center of gravity shifts continually with the direction of motion. The body must constantly adjust to establish a new equilibrium during movement. This balance involves a dynamic interaction between the active and passive movements of the limbs and the overall direction and force of the body, expressed as "sticking is moving, and moving is sticking, where yin does not leave yang and yang does not leave yin."

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How Tai Chi Breathing

      Regarding relaxation techniques, each school provides detailed descriptions, generally approaching it from two aspects. The first is "mental relaxation," which involves relaxing the mind to achieve tranquility. This encompasses clearing the mind of distractions and maintaining a state of calm and detachment, as described in the ancient text "Huangdi Neijing" which speaks of a state of serene emptiness and natural simplicity.

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I Ching and Tai Chi

    The I Ching states, "One yin and one yang are the Tao," and "it is the mother of all things under heaven." Tai Chi embodies the way of yin and yang, originating from the Infinite (Wuji), which generates the Supreme Ultimate (Taiji), and from Taiji arise the two forms, yin and yang. The "Inner Canon of the Yellow Emperor" says, "Yin and yang are the ways of heaven and earth, the guidelines of all creatures, the parents of change, the origin of life and death, and the house of divine intelligence. To cure diseases, one must seek their root in the fundamental principles of nature." Yin and yang are the fundamental laws of unity and duality in nature, governing all changes and transformations; thus, they are where life and destruction begin.

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relaxing is the basic of Tai Chi

   Tai Chi is about overcoming strength with softness and using intention rather than force. Softness and relaxation are fundamental to Tai Chi, without which it cannot be considered an internal martial art. No matter the style, all sects of Tai Chi advocate for softness and relaxation. It is said that Tai Chi requires three years of practice to achieve softness. In reality, achieving ultimate softness and relaxation is a long-term pursuit, where the softer you become, the higher the quality of internal strength you develop. The greater your skill in softness, the more profound your Tai Chi becomes, and this correlation is directly proportional. Thus, each Tai Chi sect has its own secrets for mastering softness, accumulating a wealth of experience. Methods for achieving softness are thoroughly discussed within these sects, typically from two aspects.

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Why Tai Chi tendons stretch so Important

Traditional Chinese medicine emphasizes Qi and blood but seldom mentions tendons, which are secrets kept within Taoist or martial arts communities. The human body has twelve major meridians and also twelve major tendon channels. Qi moves the blood, and where there are meridians, there are blood vessels, and I must add: where there are blood vessels, there are tendons, and where there are tendons, there are meridians. Because tendons nourish Qi, Qi nourishes blood, and blood nourishes tendons. If tendons grow an inch, life expectancy increases by ten years. Whether for martial arts or health cultivation, training tendons is crucial.

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