.The
author of this article,Tim Cartmell,
is a martial arts instructor who runs the Shen
Wu Academy of Martial Arts.
Tai Ji Quan (aka T'ai Chi Chuan) is a martial
art is based on the principle of the soft overcoming the hard. Direct opposition
of another's force is strictly discouraged, and great emphasis is placed
upon borrowing the force of the opponent and using it to one's own advantage.
Belonging to the schools of the so-called "soft" martial arts, Tai Ji Quan
training is designed to cultivate a relaxed, flexible and sensitive body
along with a calm and focused intent. The Tai Ji Quan fighter is trained
to absorb and neutralize incoming force, join with the opponent by sticking
to his center, and issue force at the appropriate time and angle with the
power of the entire body. By following the principle of giving up the self
and following others, the Tai Ji Quan fighter is able to use an opponent's
own strength against him, thereby allowing the weaker and slower to overcome
the stronger and faster opponent.
Another hallmark of Tai Ji Quan as a combat
art is that it has, as its foundation, the principle of natural movement.
All the movements and techniques of the Tai Ji Quan Arts are based upon
natural strengths and reactions. Because training is less a matter of conditioning
new responses as refining inborn abilities, real fighting ability can be
cultivated in the Tai Ji Quan arts faster than most other styles of martial
arts. The diligent student of Tai Ji Quan, properly trained, will have
acquired real self defense ability in a matter of months, as opposed to
the years of training required in many other martial systems.
The primary combat strategy of Tai Ji Quan
can be summed up in the phrase "Entice (the opponent) to advance, (cause
the opponent to) fall into emptiness, unite (with the opponent) then throw
(the opponent) out" [Yin jin, luo kong, he ji chu]. Enticing the opponent
to advance (advance refers to the opponent's aggressive forward momentum)
can be as simple as standing in front, presenting an open target or launching
a preemptive attack designed to draw a reaction. Enticing the opponent
into aggressive forward momentum has several advantages. Firstly, just
like the arrow released from the bow, a committed attack cannot change
direction until its momentum is spent. Such an attack affords the Tai Ji
Quan fighter time and opportunity to gain the superior position for effective
counter attack. Secondly, a powerful, committed attack almost invariably
requires whole body motion. Once the opponent's whole body is in motion
(and his center of balance is in flux) it becomes possible to unbalance
him with a relatively small force (correctly applied). For example, it
requires a relatively large force to foot-sweep an upright and stationary
opponent to the ground. However once the opponent moves his center of mass
forward as he takes a step, a sweep to the stepping foot just before it
touches the ground will send the opponent crashing to the ground with a
very slight effort. This type of technique is referred to as "Moving a
thousand pounds with a force of four ounces." Finally, enticing an opponent
into aggressive forward motion locks his mentality into the attack mode.
With committed focus on attacking, the opponent will be slow in changing
to the defensive mind set as the Tai Ji Quan fighter counterattacks. The
opponent's reaction time is delayed, further increasing the counterattacks
odds of success; this allows the Tai Ji Quan fighter to "leave after yet
arrive first" [hou fa xian zhi].
"Falling into emptiness" is analogous to the
principle of never using force against force. The Tai Ji Quan Classics
state "Some have practiced tens of years but are still defeated by others:
this is because they have not recognized their illness of double."
What is the method that makes it possible to
entice the opponent to enter, cause him to fall into emptiness, unite with
him and then throw him out? For that matter, what separates Tai Ji Quan
(or the internal/soft style) techniques from all other types of techniques?
The answer lies in one underlying skill; namely, the ability to "stick
& adhere, continue and follow" [Zhan, nien, lian, sui]. Stick and Adhere
refer to connecting with the opponent in a soft and nonconfrontational
manner and maintaining this connection as you both move (blocking an opponent's
incoming force inevitably results in the opponent being knocked away. This
makes it impossible to join with the opponent and one is doomed to remaining
double weighted). Continue and Follow refer to "giving up oneself and following
the other" by continuously following the opponent's movement and changes
in order to maintain your connection. In this Situation, you may constantly
monitor the opponent's actions and intent while seeking the time and opportunity
to join with and lead his center, thereby bringing him under your control.
One may ask, "what exactly are we sticking
to and following?" Do we stick to the opponent's arms? His torso? The answer
is we stick to the opponent's center of gravity (his pelvic region). In
Tai Ji Quan technique this is rarely achieved by direct contact (a useful
example to help understand the concept of sticking to and controlling an
opponent's center is the wrestler, who routinely sticks to his opponent's
center directly, as when applying the popular bear hug). Most often, the
Tai Ji Quan fighter will seek to stick to and control the opponent's center
through contact with his arms and/or upper torso, using these regions as
handles to the opponent's center. In order to maintain control of the opponent’s
center, the point of contact with the opponent will often change in the
course of an exchange. The ability to stick, follow and control an opponent's
center in the midst of motion is cultivated in the various push hands drills
found in all styles of Tai Ji Quan.
The Techniques of Tai Ji Quan are primarily
grappling oriented. Although practitioners are trained to strike with all
parts of the body, purely percussive techniques (strikes designed to cause
local tissue damage) are far less common than the grappling oriented techniques
which include pushing, pulling, twisting, sweeping, locking, throwing and
knocking. Techniques such as these are designed to control the opponent's
center and displace him in space.
All Tai Ji Quan techniques are combinations
of the energies of the Eight Techniques: ward off, roll back, press, push,
pluck, split, elbow and body stroke [peng, lu, ji, an, cai, lie, zhou,
kao]. In its broadest sense, ward off energy can be applied to the whole
body. It is the energy resulting from proper alignment and relaxation which
gives the Tai Ji Quan fighter the elasticity and springiness necessary
to fight. In a stricter, technical sense, ward off is the energy which
supplies buoyancy and supports weight (as soft and flexible water is able
to support a massive ship). Roll back is energy which moves incoming force
past one's body toward the rear (as a revolving door gives way and pivots
around its center). Press is the force which rebounds from the ground up
in a pulse and bounces the opponent away from the body (as a rock bounces
off the taught head of a drum). Push is a force which puts pressure downward
(like the force used when you lift your body out of a pool by pressing
the palms down on the outside deck). Pluck is a sudden, downward jerking
force towards the rear of one's own body (like the force used to pluck
an apple from a tree). Split is the energy of coupling (force applied in
parallel but opposite directions which causes a rotation around their center
point); it is the force generated when you turn a steering wheel with both
hands on the sides of the wheel. Elbow is whole body ward off power focused
through the elbow (think of closing a car door with your elbow when your
hands are full). Body stroke is whole body ward off power channeled through
some part of the torso, usually the shoulder (think of breaking a door
down by leaning into it with your shoulder). All the various techniques
of Tai Ji Quan, including throwing, locking, kicking and striking, are
combinations of these eight energies.
The author and copyright owner,
Tim
Cartmell, is a martial arts instructor who
runs the Shen Wu Academy of Martial Arts.
.
See my 03 Feb post titled, "MMA
has never been so sexy... or painful".
.
Ip Man 1 & 2 (Donnie
Yen)
Ip Man - The Legend is Born (Dennis
To)
Ip
Man 2 (video)
Ip
Man : The Legend is Born (video)
My comments on Ip Chun's (real-life son of Ip
Man) comments on Donnie Yen as Ip Man.
Ip Chun said, “Donnie
Yen excelled and trained extremely hard in Wing Chun for his movies. To
the untrained eye it looks fantastic, but a real Wing Chun master would
take one look at his moves and know that it wasn’t pure Wing Chun. Donnie
did not have his foundation in Wing Chun, so no matter how hard he trained,
some of his non-Wing Chun fighting style would be noticeable!”
I'll have to go with Donnie on this one. Ip Chun
(real-life son of Ip Man) of course knows what he's talking about, in his
criticism of Donnie Yen's martial arts not being 'pure Wing Chun'. But
here's the thing : Donnie Yen, having a wider exposure and experience with
different martial arts, including training in the cross-disciplinary tactics
and strategies of Mixed Martial Arts, would make a 'better' overall martial
artist than a 'pure' Wing Chun practitioner, not only in terms of a real
fight, but more importantly in terms of the real, highest, non-dogmatic,
soul and spirit of true Martial Arts.
Indeed, this was the reason why Bruce Lee broke
away from Wing Chun. Bruce was enlightened enough to realize that the true
spirit of martial arts went beyond the confines of dogma and egotistical
pride (eg. of belonging to "School of Wing Chun", or this or that school
of martial arts), and Bruce Lee deliberately set out to learn Mixed Martial
Arts in his own way.
So Ip Chun may be right in his criticism about
Donnie Yen, but in my opinion, this only serves as a compliment to Donnie,
rather than an insult.
Regardless and notwithstanding, Ip Chun seems
a genuinely warm and clear-headed person, not overtly egotistical or dogmatic.
In an interview (here),
Ip Chun advocates Wing Chun for health over violence, and says, "People
who use Wing Chun or any martial arts for violence, aren't helping society's
problems."
.
Bas Rutten's "Street
Defence"
a.k.a. Infamous Quotes of the
Bas Rutten.
.
.
.
A lesson in calm
An actual real-life confrontation resulting in fistcuffs, with a lesson
in calm.
.
.Genuine
Martial
Arts Anime
Kenichi -
History's
Strongest Disciple
(English subtitles) available for online purchase
fromZoomMovie.com
.
