Tai Chi, a brief summary

Tai Chi and QiGong
a brief summary by Dorothy Case

Here is some basic information I have learned about Tai Chi (pronounced Tai Ji) and Qi Gong (Pronounced Chi Gung) to get you started. There are books written just about what Tai Chi is and why it is good for you and don’t even show how to do it! So this is very basic.

This practice comes from Taoism (pronounced Daoism), a religion over 5,000 years old. It is known for its emphasis on nature, harmony, balance, chi energy, etc. There are no Taoist priests. To implement these basic tenets, you do Tai Chi and Qi Gong. There is a lot more to it than this, however, and many books of course are written about it. The main bibles for Taoism are the I Ching and the Tao Te Ching. The latter is like a book of poems, quite beautiful, with wisdom of the Tao.

When we begin standing in Wu Chi, this is the state of possibility. Wu chi is an undifferentiated void. However for creation to exist, there needed to be a creative force which is Tai Chi.

Tai Chi is complete as it is, but it always manifests itself by separating and differentiating into the opposites of yin and yang (night/day, man/woman, matter/spirit, etc.). These pairs are opposites and complimentary. There is a little bit of yin in yang and a little bit of yang in yin.

Chuan literally means fist or boxing, ie. martial arts. Tai Chi Chuan then is a form of Tai Chi used for martial arts. The Tai Chi we are doing is not Chuan. However it has basic Chuan roots. Ward off is a defensive posture, roll back is a way of deflecting, and push is an offensive move. These basic moves are in all of Tai Chi, but the purpose is to develop inner power. Thus it is a form of moving yoga. If you only practice the self defense aspects, you are doing Chuan. There are lots of Chinese martial arts styles that end with the word Chuan.

Chi: Tai Chi and Qi Gong are for bringing forth your chi. Chi is defined in many ways: subtle energy, life force, or that which differentiates a corpse from a live person. The stronger your chi, the more alive you are, and thus healthier in mind, body and spirit. The mind guides the chi, the chi is on the breath.

Another principle of Tai Chi that I particularly like is Song (pronounced sung). This is relaxed awareness. We practice Tai Chi and Qi Gong with this principle.

Another principle you will like about Tai Chi is that you practice it using the 70% rule. In other words, you do 70% of the maximum you could do for each movement. It is not meant to be a contest to see how deep you can lunge or far you can stretch. It allows you to challenge your capabilities and progressively increase them without over-exhaustion, damage to your nervous system or physical injury.

We do Tai Chi in slow motion to enable you to consciously and deliberately access how your mind, body, and energy work. You still get a range of motion in the joints, a good leg workout, and overall stimulation of your internal organs. My knees were easily exhausted after an hour session, but now, over time, about six months for me, I am able to go two or three hours and my knees are okay. Regular practice builds strength and endurance.

Remembering the moves in sequence exercises your mind.