10 Essential Key Principles Of Taijiquan (part 2)

Ten Essential Principles of Taijiquan

Dictated by Yang Chengfu. Recorded by Chen Weiming.

1. Xu Ling Ding Jin (Clear – Quickly Effective – Crown of Head –  Energetic Power).

The mind should be clear, alert, and naturally at ease. Do not use physical exertion which would stiffen the neck and constrict the flow of qi and blood. Instead use your inner energetic power to effortlessly press the head and neck upward (it feels like the top of the head was being pulled up by an attached string). Without this, the dynamic vital spirit cannot be raised.

Comments:  Qi here refers to “life energy.” Physical exertion is li.  Energetic power is jin. Dynamic vital spirit is jing-shen.

 

2.  Han Xiong Ba Bei (Sink Chest – Raise Back)

Slightly draw in the chest and let the qi sink to the lower abdomen the dantian. Do not stick out the chest; that would cause the qi to get stuck there. If that happens the upper body becomes too heavy, the lower body too light, and the feet too easily uprooted.  (Then you could easily be pushed over.) Raise and straighten the back—(sinking the chest will help straighten the back) and then the qi will adhere to the back and spine. Sinking the chest and raising the back in this manner grants the ability to project the energetic force needed to defeat any opponent.

Comments:  Don’t force this: “You see some tai chi practitioners who almost look like hunchbacks because they take this point (raising the back) to an extreme. This will cause long-term blockages in the qi. Don’t make that mistake.”

• Sifu Anthony Korahais.

 

3.  Song Yao (Relax Waist)

The waist commands the entire body. Relax the waist and the feet will have power and one’s foundation will be steady and firm. The changes between empty or full (insubstantial or substantial; yin or yang; weak or solid) originate in the way the waist is turned.  And so it is said, The source of life and thought is located in the waist.

If there is a lack of strength in your form [body shape or movement] seek out what is wrong in the waist and legs.

Comments: “Relax” means loose, not limp. “Waist” (yao) here refers to the body from the hips to the navel. It includes the hips, pelvic area, lower abdomen, groin, and lumbar spine.

“The waist is like a steering wheel of a car. When the wheel is loose and easy to operate, you can direct the car in any direction you wish. However if the steering wheel is stuck, you will have difficulty moving safely and changing direction.”

– Dr. Yang Jwing-Ming.

 

4. Fen Xu Shi  (Differentiate Empty Full)

Differentiating between empty and full is the first principle of taijiquan. If the weight of the body sits over the right leg, then the right leg becomes full (also called solid, or substantial) and the left leg becomes empty (weak, insubstantial). If the weight of the body is over the left leg, then the reverse is true. Only after empty and full are recognized, understood and used, will movements become agile and effortless. If not, movements will be heavy and sluggish, and standing postures unsteady. If that happens it will be easy for an opponent to control you and push you over.

Comments:  About understanding empty-weak-insubstantial/full-sold-substantial. “When you walk, there is a moment when one leg is 100% empty, and the other is 100% full.  If you can walk slowly, carefully placing the foot down rather than letting it drop, and if you can change direction gracefully, then you are differentiating between empty and solid.”

–  Sifu Anthony Korahais.

“A basic method to understand and successfully practice taijiquan is to alternate back and forth from yin (empty – insubstantial) to yang (solid – substantial). As an example, if attacked on the left side, neutralize the attacker by simultaneously turning to the left and withdrawing your body as you shift your weight back. Your left becomes insubstantial while you counterattack with your right hand which becomes substantial.”

– T.T. Liang

 

5. Chen Jian Zhui Zhou (Sink Shoulders – Drop Elbows)

The shoulders should be loose and hang down. Without such relaxation the shoulders will rise and become tense and qi-energy will rise up with them, therefore the entire body will be deprived of power. “Drop elbows” means the elbows are relaxed and loose (not limp) and naturally dangle downward. If the elbows are raised the shoulders are unable to sink.  Then an opponent will not be pushed far (by your attempted discharge of energy). This imperfection is similar to the broken, snapped off energetic-strength so often seen in the external martial arts.

 

6. Yong Yi Bu Yong Li (Use Mind Not Strength)

The Taijiquan Classics say “This is about the use of focused mental intention, not simply about the use of physical exertion.” When practicing taijiquan the whole body is loose and relaxed. Do not use the slightest bit of brute strength or there will be sluggish blockages in the flow of qi and blood in the muscles, tendons, bones, veins and arteries making you feel that you are all tied up in knots.  

Avoiding the use of brute strength (li) will allow the energetic capabilities of quick and skillful change, circular turns, and unconstrained, unobstructed freedom of action to freely take place with ease and without any physical exertion.

Some question how can anyone be strong without using muscular strength? This is because the human body has meridians (qi-energy pathways) similar to the way the earth has channels and ditches. If there are no obstructions in the earth’s channels then water can flow freely. Similarly, if there are no obstructions in the meridians the qi can flow easily. If the whole body has a stiff (deadlocked) muscular force then the meridians clog up and qi and blood become blocked and stagnant. Turning movements will be ineffective. An opponent can pull just one hair and your entire body can be lead about like an docile animal with a rope around its neck. However if strength (li) is not used, but rather a mental focused intention (yi), wherever the intention goes, qi will immediately follow.  

Every day at any time and without interruption, you must circulate your qi and blood throughout the entire body. Persist with this: practice it for a very long time and true internal qi-power (jin) same inner link will be yours. Accordingly in the Taijiquan Classics there is the sentence, Within extreme softness appears extreme unyielding hardness. Those who are highly skilled in taijiquan kung fu will have arms that feel like soft silk wrapped around hard steel, and the arms and fists will seem to be extremely heavy.

When practitioners of external martial arts use muscular strength [li] they obviously appear powerful. But when not using their li they are light and unstable. Clearly their strength is external and therefore superficial. It is only a qi-power floating on the surface.

By not using focused mental intention (yi) same inner link and instead only using external muscular strength (li), someone can easily be physically controlled, and have their attacks deflected. Such kung fu is inadequate and without any value.

 

7. Shang Xia Xiang Sui (Upper and Lower Mutually Follow)

The coordination of the upper and lower body is mentioned in the Taijiquan Classic where it says, “Qi-power should be rooted in the feet, generated through the legs, directed by the waist (yao), and expressed through the fingers.” The combined movements of hands, waist, and feet—even those of the alert gazing eyes—all come from the integration of the body to the one qi. It is in this manner the upper and lower parts of the body mutually follow each other. If one part becomes motionless and loses the flow of qi, immediately there is disorder and chaos.

Comments: Yao – (腰)  is simply translated as “waist” but it also refers to the lower torso, and the pelvic region including hips, loins, and lower spine; also to the body’s center of gravity; and the dantian, the qi-energy storage area in the lower abdomen.

“Ch’i [qi] carries tremendous amounts of vibration, requiring a high degree of coordination of the entire body. Your torso and limbs, your hands and legs, must be coordinated both physically and mentally with every other part of the body. All the parts should relate to each other as one inseparable unit, especially when you transfer your ch’i [qi] from the root upward. Success in this will allow you to maneuver your entire body – forward, backward, upward, downward – at will. You will be able to control any situation.”

• Waysun Liao

 

8.  Nei Wai Xiang He  (Internal External Mutually United)

Taijiquan is about training the mind. That is why it is said, “The mind is the commander-in-chief, the body carries out the orders.” When the vital-spirit is raised, actions and movements naturally become quick and light. The forms are nothing more than enacting out empty [insubstantial] and full [substantial], and open and closed. “Open” means not only extending the hands and feet outward. “Closed” means not only do the hands withdraw inward. For both actions, mental intention needs to be part of the movements. When that is realized, the internal and the external are one qi, undivided, even indistinguishable, from each other.

 

9. Xiang Lian Bu Duan (Mutually Connected Without Interruptions)

In the external martial arts, power is the result of acquired brute muscular strength. With it there are starts and stops; continuations and cut offs. Strength becomes worn out, exhausted, and new strength has yet to be born. During times like this it is easy to take advantage of such an opponent.

In the internal martial art of taijiquan, mental intention [yi], and not brute physical exertion [li] is used. From start to finish all is continuous and without interruption, unceasing and endless.  When a cycle is completed it begins again; it is boundless and inexhaustible. In the Taijiquan Classic it is written In Long Boxing [an early name for taijiquan] the body moves like water flowing in a great river, or like the rolling waves of a large ocean. And also, move your inner-energy [jin] like you were spinning silk thread from a cocoon: smoothly and without stopping—or it most likely will break.

Both of these comparisons suggest an interrelationship, as well as a unity, of one qi.

Comments: The river referred to is the Yangtze (3,915  miles long). It is the longest river in Asia and the third-longest in the world.

 

10.  Shi Dong Zhong Qiu Jing (Within Movement Seek Stillness)

Chinese external martial artists jump, hop, skip and bounce all about thinking they are showing off how superior they are; but in fact all they’re really doing is depleting their energetic-strength (qi-li), leaving them exhausted.  After such performances you see them gasping for breath [chuan qi]. In contrast, Taijiquan uses a calm stillness to control and manage movement; so even in movement it is as if one were still and unmoving. Therefore when practicing the forms, the slower the better. With long deep breathing the qi sinks to the dantian. In these natural ways, the blood vessels are not injured, and any emotional excesses such as anger or resentment are reduced or eliminated. By practicing carefully and attentively over time, a serious student should be able to grasp the meaning of the ideas presented here.

The title of Yang Chengfu’s essay is variously translated into English as The Ten Essentials or Ten Important Points, or The Ten Basic Principles, etc. The title in Traditional Chinese script is 太極拳術十要, in Simplified script 太极拳 术十要.

In pinyin it is Tàijí quánshù shí yào. It first appeared in 1925 in the book  The Art of Taijiquan (Taijiquan shu) compiled by Chen Weiming and published in Shanghai, 1925.
Chinese Words Defined in the Context of Taijiquan:

Qi  (氣 / 气) – “life energy.”  Dr. Yang, Jwing-Ming writes: “[Qi] is the Chinese word for ‘energy’, and pertains to all forms of energy in the universe. In martial arts and qigong, it specifically refers to human Qi, the bioenergy or life-force within every cell of the human body.”

Also within the specific context of martial arts practice, Qi is a reference to optimally efficient body mechanics to express and absorb force.   

Dantian (丹田) – “energy cultivation center.”  This is below and behind the navel in the lower abdomen. It is the physical center of the body and the area of the center of gravity. All efficient movement should originate from this area.

Jin (勁劲) – “energetic power.” Qi and muscular strength (li) used together to create an inner power that can be projected outward as a pure martial arts force.  From Dr. Yang, Jwing-Ming: “In general, the higher the level of Jin, the more Qi and the less muscular strength is used.”

Jing-shen(精神)– literally “spirit mind” or consciousness. But in taijiquan it more often means a “spirit of vigor, vitality and drive.” Colloquially it refers to a person’s “spirits” or “energy level.”

Li (力) – “physical muscular strength.”

Shen (神) – “spirit” or “consciousness” or “conscious energy.”

Yi  (意) – (sounds like “ee”) – Mental intention; a state of silent mindfulness of the will.

 

10 Essential Key Principles Of Taijiquan (part 1)

Introduction to the Essentials of Taijiquan Practice

Together, the 10 Essentials and the 13 Kinetic Concepts can be seen as encompassing the totality of Taijiquan practice. The 10 principles govern the movements of Taijiquan. The practice of any of the composed forms of movement is limited. The movements are predetermined and finite. There is no way a form can include all the ways of movement that can be manifested through the principles of Taijiquan. To reach true expertise, the student will have to (at the appropriate point) transcend the limitations of the prescribed forms and drills, and enter the realm of spontaneous and intuitive movement.

Each of the various styles (such as the Yang which I practice) all have their own external, physical style, but it is nothing more than that; simply a style or flavor of movement developed and promoted by that style’s founding teacher. The true test of what is and is not Taijiquan movement is determined by whether or not it harmonizes with and manifests the principles of taijiquan. If it does, it can be said to be skillful taijiquan, regardless of whether or not that movement appears in any of the forms; if it does not, it is not taijiquan movement, regardless of whether or not it conforms to the external parameters of the form of that particular tradition.

The codified practice of Taijiquan is fairly recent. The principles of movement utilized in the practice of Taijiquan are older than the practice of Taijiquan itself, and each style is really a different master’s interpretation of how to manifest these principles into the physical world. There is a larger body of classical Chinese texts, collectively known as the Taijiquan Classics (太極拳經; Tàijíquán Jīng). As is common with works like these, tracing them historically can be difficult. Rather than being a single work, written at one time, they were really, most likely, authored by many people over centuries.

According to the oral traditions, the original Taiji Classic was composed sometime between the 12th and 14th centuries by an ascetic Daoist monk named Zhang Sanfeng. Zhang lived in Daoist mountain centers on Mount Hua and later Wudang, which in later times both became widely known for the martial arts practices found there. Whether or not Taijiquan practice can be traced to Zhang as a matter of historical lineage, all schools of Taijiquan consider Zhang to be the original founder of their methods of practice.

On the most basic level, these 10 Essentials can be considered a distillation of the critical points of the Classic, as determined, interpreted and passed through the teachers of the Yang Style of Taijiquan. Once a student has a basic command of a particular movement, technique or sequence, one should focus on cultivating the Essentials in each part of the movement. It can often be best to focus on one or two of the principles at a time, rather than attempting to force yourself to perform all of them at the same time, all at once. When learning, if we focus on too much at one time, often we will end up doing none of it at all. These principles can continually grow deeper and more subtle as our awareness of our body and movements become more refined. Yet, we should also understand there is no real ending point of this type of learning, and the more we understand, the more we will see what we do not yet know, and where we can be even more skillful. Finally, we must practice and study diligently, but also be gentle with ourselves and remember we are only human, and not a machine. Each time we perform a movement it will be different, no two movements can ever be exactly the same, and no one is capable of fully expressing or manifesting all of the principles one-hundred percent of the time.

When studying the Essentials, it can be very informative and more accurate to look at multiple translations. Translation work is very difficult. There is inherently a lot of interpretation that occurs, particularly with converting Chinese to English. For a more rounded and balanced understanding of the Essentials, one should read more than one translation of them, and it is good practice to study them periodically throughout your Taijiquan practice career.

Although they are numbered, you cannot necessarily put them in a numerical order of importance. Having stated that, I do recommend focusing on the first three, which cover body alignment and central stability, which is critical in Taijiquan development, before concentrating on the others.

The first Essentials cover how to hold the body structurally, and to relax unnecessary tension in the body which is not required for the particular movement or posture you are performing. It is not correct to say that Taijiquan is primarily about relaxing, but rather the appropriate balance between tension and slack in the muscles, and between movement and stillness. However, the simple fact is that most people are far too tense in how they hold and move their bodies, and often engage muscles that are unnecessary, and may not even assist, in the particular action. Due to this, many teachers will encourage students to let all this tension go, even having them hold their bodies excessively loose and move the limbs like a wet noodle. However, it should be understood this is simply a training device to counteract excessive tension and regain a more balanced physical and mental state. Relaxing also helps us become more aware of our patterns of holding tension in our bodies. Excessive relaxation is not, ultimately, any more desirable than tension; we seek a balance. Very quickly in the study of the Essentials one can see we need a balance of muscular and connective tissue engagement and relaxation.

The First Two Essential Principles of Taijiquan

Before looking at the full 10 Essential Principles, it is useful to make a deeper examination of the first two. The first two principles are the foundation upon which all the other principles (and therefore all your Taijiquan movements) are built. If a practitioner is not mindful of these two essentials it will have a detrimental effect on all of one’s Taijiquan practice.

1. Xū Líng Dǐng Jìn (虚领顶劲), or ‘Suspend from the Crown of the Head’

This properly aligns your head, neck and spine, which creates the necessary conditions for your muscles to relax naturally within the body’s structure, and to sink the body weight straight down through the skeleton, into the feet, and then into the ground.

2. Hán Xiōng Bá Bèi (含胸拔背), or ‘Hollow the Chest, Round the Back’ –

releases tension from the chest and back, which frees your ability to breathe more deeply and allows for better connectivity of the upper body to the spine. Recognizing tension is the first step to releasing it. When your body is aligned, you can become fully relaxed and develop more efficient motion, faster reaction time and greater ability to deliver power.
Looking at the first two Principles more deeply

Suspending the head means to have a feeling and intention that the head, and more importantly the spine, is elongating and expanding. As is reflected in the first of the 13 Concepts, Peng, or expanding energy, is the primary feeling in Taijiquan movement. You want to feel as if the body is being suspended by a string from the crown of the head, and this feeling and intention should be maintained in every movement and posture.

Again, expanding and elongating are the primary qualities of Taijiquan practice. It is the first step in letting go of unproductive muscular contraction in the body. Correct, neutral spinal alignment is crucial in being centrally stable and should be the bodies natural structure, however it often is not due to our patterns of unnecessary muscular contraction. Proper structural alignment will allow you to develop greater mobility, flexibility, strength and ease of motion.

The base of the skull is the origin of the spinal column, and its alignment (or misalignment) is perhaps the single greatest factor in affecting the posture of the rest of the body. By lifting the head upwards with intent, the rest of the spinal column beneath can fall into natural alignment as it is pulled downward by gravity. In the Taijiquan Classics, the metaphor used is that of pearls on a string. By holding up the tip of the string, the pearls will stack together vertically as you lift upward on the string, and gravity pulls downward on the pearl beads.

The practitioner should feel as if their spine is getting longer and straighter, without any feeling of stiffness or forced straightening. The space between each vertebra expands and relieves the pressure between them. The brain communicates with the entire body via the nerves; these are the communication pathways. When the vertebrae are compressed and muscles around the vertebrae chronically tensed, this can entrap and impinge on the smooth conduction of the nerve’s function. The result can be decreased organ function, decreased reflexive response, numbness, pain, etc.

This feeling of expanding should not be only on the top end. The tailbone should feel like it is being gently pulled down towards the ground by gravity, resulting in both an upwards and downwards feeling of elongation. If the spine does not have proper position and function, the movements that you make with your arms and legs are not important.

The neutral alignment of the spine allows the skeletal structure to support the body’s weight, just like the frame of a building or house, rather than overusing the muscles to maintain position. As previously stated this aids in alleviating unnecessary muscle tension which can cause fatigue and pain. Spinal posture also improves the free flow of and smooth circulation of blood and qi.

For the martial artist, this alignment also results in more power. Not only are you more directly connected to the ground through structural lines of force, but starting from a place of relaxation results in more strength. In the body, an individual muscle fiber cannot partially contract, it is either “on” or “off”; it is either fully engaged and contracted or it is relaxed. Therefore, if I carry unnecessary habitual tension in my muscles, I have decreased the available power I can potentially express. For example, if a given muscle has 50% of the muscle fibers engaged before I start a movement, then I only have half of the total possible power of that muscle available for use. This is of course assuming that I have complete use of total potential of that muscle, however, no human being has ever been 100% efficient.

In review, your head lifts up like it is being pulled up by a string. The tailbone gently drives down toward the ground, allowing the space between each vertebra to expand. Feel the back of your neck touch the collar of your shirt as it gets longer and straighter. The chin will tuck in slightly but not forcibly. Maintain this feeling by imagining you are balancing an object on your head. This can be practiced not only in our formal training time, but also while walking or sitting during the rest of our activities.

Lifting the head, if one is not mindful, can cause the chest to stick out. Sinking the chest means to empty or hollow the chest inward slightly and round the upper back, resulting in a slightly arched circular shape. This is the body’s natural position and is optimal for muscular relaxation. It is also important for helping to release tension in the chest and connect and integrate the chest and shoulders with the spine, which will allow for greater structural integrity, power and fluidity of motion. By releasing the pressure on the chest, we can also increase the lungs’ capacity and breathe more deeply into the abdomen.

The many habits of our modern life take a toll on our healthy posture. This is reflected in the two types of extreme (and therefore imbalanced) posture that most people in our society display. One manifests with the chest pushed outward in a military style posture. This breaks the alignment of the spine and produces tension in the chest, back and shoulder areas. The feeling of the body in this position is that it becomes top heavy and unbalanced. On the other side is a slouching posture, where the back is completely arched forward and chest collapsed inward. Just as before, the spine’s alignment is broken, but now the torso becomes compressed which results in shallow, inefficient breathing. Neither one of these postures are better than the other. They are at opposite extremes, but both equally far away from balance, which is found in the middle.

“Sinking the chest” seeks the natural point of balance between these two extreme positions. It connects the chest to the spine, the spine becomes straighter and the muscles of the torso can fully relax. This proper position should feel as if you’ve just breathed out a huge sigh of relief (but don’t slouch!). You should feel like your spine is sticking to the back of your shirt. The shoulder blades should feel like they are moving apart and down, but not forcefully with tension. One of the classical visuals for conveying this feeling is to imagine yourself as a turtle being protected by a strong shell on your back. This will help your upper body feel more rounded and connected.

When sinking the chest and rounding the upper back, be sure to keep the head lifted. These two points are the most important in your Taijiquan posture and are directly related. It is often easy to let the chest stick out when elevating the head, or to let the head come forward when emptying the chest, therefore be aware.

Proper posture in the head, neck chest, shoulders and upper back areas relaxes the muscles of the chest, back and neck, allowing for a natural torso position with less tension. It also gives the lungs more space to expand, allowing for deeper and smoother breathing into the abdomen, which will allow us to release unneeded tension more fully. Finally, it connects the chest with the spine, improving the body’s structural integrity and, for martial arts practice, increases your ability to express outward force on an object or brace against incoming force.