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Tai Chi Chuan
Tai Chi is an ancient Chinese martial art
practiced with as much softness in the musculature as possible. It is a
slow-motion, moving meditative exercise for relaxation, health and
self-defense. Originally from China,
Tai Chi has gained enormous
popularity in America and throughout the rest of the world for its
health benefits. People play
Tai Chi Chuan to improve one's well being
both mentally and physically and so embrace the spirit of good living.
When correctly practiced on a regular basis, Tai Chi Chuan can restore
vigorous health, improve digestion and raises ones spirits. Perhaps
because of its value Tai Chi grows to be a regular practice for millions
of people worldwide.
If you really want to learn Tai Chi Chuan then you must really learn to
become calm mentally by adjusting oneself emotionally to the task of
"settling the breath with the body". In conception Tai Chi Chuan for
health was created through Taoist visions of the flowing and formless
harmony of nature. The Taoist appreciation of health development was in
pursuit of restoring and rejuvenating body strength, mind and will. The
player practices an inner exercise and deep breathing to produce Chi
which is a nourishing restorative inner force which promotes health.
Central to Tai Chi Chuan is the belief in the life, or Qi which flows
through invisible channels or meridians in the body. The ancient Chinese
proposed that all living things are sustained by an energy force called
Qi. When the flow of Qi is disrupted, illness is the result. The type of
illness that develops depends on which meridian is suffering from an
imbalance. And the movements of Tai Chi Chuan open and close to mirror
the Chinese philosophical concept of an endless cycle of Yang to Yin
while Qi circulates around the body to maintain the balance of yin and
yang. Perhaps it is more accessible to regard yin and yang as the
foundations of the art of Tai Chi Chuan because of the alternation of
harmoniously opening and closing movements.
Yin and Yang are the complete polar opposite of each other: the softer,
more pliant and yielding, more feminine and more negative aspects in
anything are viewed as Yin while the more masculine, harder, more rigid
and more positive aspects are seen as Yang. Both sides complement each
other completely and together form a perfect whole. Things in the world,
which are perfectly balanced and in harmony, will be at peaceful state.
Half of certain organs and meridians are governed by Yin and the other
half by Yang. The ultimate purpose of Tai Chi Chuan training is to
strengthen Qi and maintain its smooth flow, thus Tai Chi Cuan can
prevent as well as cure some illness.
When practicing Tai Chi Chuan, one must be calmly energetic
concentrating within to develop the swirling and turning of the torso.
In so doing you will encourage the balance of muscle, sinew, blood and
inner strength. These energetic and physical techniques are difficult to
master in their entirety. To succeed, one must learn to become a dynamic
expression of Yin and Yang in developing both sensitive acceptances
(Yin) within expressive action (Yang). In performing Tai Chi Chuan if
one uses hardness to resist violent force, then both sides are certain
to be injured at least to some degree.
Such injury, according to Tai Chi theory, is a natural consequence of
meeting brute force with brute force. Instead, practitioners are taught
not to directly fight or resist an incoming force, but to meet it in
softness and follow its motion while remaining in physical contact until
the incoming force of attack exhausts itself or can be safely
redirected, meeting yang with yin. Done correctly, this yin and yang or
yang and yin balance in combat, which means the goal of Tai Chi Chuan
training is achieved.
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