The Origins and Practice Of Tai Chi
What we currently know as Tai Chi is actually an ancient internal martial art truly named Tai Chi Chüan. The last word in the name has been dropped, probably due to our problems with pronunciation. Even those who haven’t the faintest idea what Tai Chi Chüan is comprised of are most likely familiar with the symbol from which it derives its name. What is commonly known in the West as the “yin-yang” symbol is actually the Tai chi t’u symbol, and represents the perfect balance of opposites.
Although most people associate Tai Chi Chüan with slow, graceful and flowing movements, the name itself translates into “Supreme Ultimate Boxing.” Without an understanding of the discipline, it is easy to miss the fact that Tai Chi Chüan was used a lethal martial art for centuries.
The martial arts aspect is one of three core components of the Tai Chi Chüan discipline, with health and meditation being the other two. While many modern schools dismiss with one of these three principles (often, in the West, the martial arts aspect), traditional study requires adherence and training in all three.
Tai Chi Chüan improves the health of the disciple by bringing the movements of the body together, as a cohesive unit, rather than isolating them like most other forms of exercise. Studies have shown that regular Tai Chi Chüan practice improves the activity of the central nervous system, lowers blood pressure, tones muscles without straining them, and lowers and generally aids in the overall health of the disciple.
The overall health attributes of Tai Chi Chüan are, according to the tradition, due to the fact that regular practice channels the internal energy of the body (known as chi) through the meridians of the body. When this flow is unimpeded, a person is healthy; when the flow of chi becomes blocked somewhere, illness soon follows.
Through the focus of concentration on the movements of the body, Tai Chi Chüan is also cultivated as a form of meditation. Common misperception holds that meditation requires a trance state and that a person is less aware during meditation. True meditation is, in fact, the exact opposite: it is a state of hyperawareness. Through cultivation of this hyperaware state, Tai Chi Chüan then becomes useful as a martial art.
During a violent encounter, this hyperawareness allows the Tai Chi Chüan disciple to be keenly tuned into his opponent’s movement and intent. The martial arts style of Tai Chi Chüan is to meet force with softness, avoiding its attack by directing the incoming energy safely away. Watching the ease and agility with which a practiced Tai Chi Chüan disciple can deflect or redirect an incoming attack is amazing to witness.
The slow and graceful style of Tai Chi Chüan that you may be accustomed to seeing is actually only the first step in the training process. Once a student becomes adept at this basic level, they then graduate to faster, higher impact movements which more resemble other martial arts.
Students train alone and during “pushing hands” sparring with a partner. The pushing hands practice should be employed by a disciple even if he or she has no interest in Tai Chi Chüan as a martial art. Allowing the body to actually experience the benefit of the solo motions helps improve the practice of those solo motions.
Overall, Tai Chi Chüan is a deep and rich tradition with varying schools and, truly, a practice to suit the needs of anyone.
