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The Chinese characters for Tai Chi Chuan can be translated as the 'Supreme
Ultimate Force'. The notion of 'supreme ultimate' is often associated with the
Chinese concept of yin-yang, the notion that one can see a dynamic duality
(male/female, active/passive, dark/light, forceful/yielding, etc.) in all things.
'Force' (or, more literally, 'fist') can be thought of here as the means or way of
achieving this ying-yang, or 'supreme-ultimate' discipline.
Tai Chi, as it is practiced in the west today, can perhaps best be thought of as
a moving form of yoga and meditation combined. There are a number of so-
called forms (sometimes also called 'sets') which consist of a sequence of
movements. Many of these movements are originally derived from the martial
arts (and perhaps even more ancestrally than that, from the natural
movements of animals and birds) although the way they are performed in Tai
Chi is slowly, softly and gracefully with smooth and even transitions between
them.
For many practicioners the focus in doing them is not, first and foremost,
martial, but as a meditative exercise for the body. For others the combat
aspects of Tai Chi are of considerable interest. In Chinese philosophy and
medicine there exists the concept of 'chi', a vital force that animates the body.
One of the avowed aims of Tai Chi is to foster the circulation of this 'chi' within
the body, the belief being that by doing so the health and vitality of the person
are enhanced. This 'chi' circulates in patterns that are close related to the
nervous and vascular system and thus the notion is closely connected with
that of the practice of acupuncture and other oriental healing arts.
Another aim of Tai Chi is to foster a calm and tranquil mind, focused on the
precise execution of these exercises. Learning to do them correctly provides a
practical avenue for learning about such things as balance, alignment,
fine-scale motor control, rhythm of movement, the genesis of movement from
the body's vital center, and so on. Thus the practice of Tai Chi can in some
measure contribute to being able to better stand, walk, move, run, etc. in other
spheres of life as well. Many practitioners notice benefits in terms of correcting
poor postural, alignment or movement patterns which can contribute to tension
or injury. Furthermore the meditative nature of the exercises is calming and
relaxing in and of itself.
Because the Tai Chi movements have their origins in the martial arts,
practicing them does have some martial applications. In a two-person exercise
called 'push-hands' Tai Chi principles are developed in terms of being sensitive
to and responsive of another person's 'chi' or vital energy. It is also an
opportunity to employ some of the martial aspects of Tai Chi in a kind of
slow-tempo combat. Long-time practitioners of Tai Chi who are so-inclined can
become very adept at martial arts. The emphasis in Tai Chi is on being able to
channel potentially destructive energy (in the form of a kick or a punch) away
from one in a manner that will dissipate the energy or send it in a direction
where it is no longer a danger.
The practical exercises of Tai Chi are also situated in a wider philosophical
context of Taoism. This is a reflective, mystical Chinese tradition first
associated with the scholar and mystic Lao Tsu, an older contemporary of
Confucius. He wrote and taught in the province of Honan in the 6th century
B.C. and authored the seminal work of Taoism, the Tao Te Ching. As a
philosophy, Taoism has many elements but fundamentally it espouses a calm,
reflective and mystic view of the world steeped in the beauty and tranquillity of
nature.
Tai Chi also has, particularly amongst eastern practitioners, a long connection
with the I Ching a Chinese system of divination. There are associations between
the 8 basic I Ching trigrams plus the five elements of Chinese alchemy
(metal, wood, fire, water and earth) with the thirteen basic postures of
Tai Chi . There are also other associations with the full 64
trigrams of the I Ching and other movements in the Tai Chi form.
第一式起势Commencing form ,Qishi
第二式左右野马分鬃Part the Wild Horse's Mane on Both Side ,Zuoyouyemafenzong
第三式白鹤亮翅 White Crane Spreads its Wings,Baiheliangchi
第四式左右搂膝拗步Brush Knee and Twist Step on Both Side ,Zuoyoulouqiaobu
第五式手挥琵琶Play Pipa,Shouhuipipa
第六式倒卷肱Repulse Monkey,Daojuanhong
第七式左揽雀尾Grasp the Bird's Tail,zuolanquewei
第八式右揽雀尾Grasp the Bird's Tail,youlanquewei
第九式单鞭Single Whip ,Danbian
第十式云手Wave Hands Like Clou0ds,Yunshou
第十一式单鞭Single Whip ,Danbian
第十二式高探马High Pat on Horse ,Gaotanma
第十三式右蹬脚Kick with Right Heel ,Youdengjiao
第十四式双峰贯耳Strike Opponent's Ears with Both Fists,Shuanfengguaner
第十五式转身左蹬脚Turn and Kick with Left Heel,Zhuanshenzuodengjiao
第十六式左下独立式Snake Creeps Down,Zuoxiadulishi
第十七式右下独立式Snake Creeps Down ,Youxiadulishi
第十八式左右穿梭Jade Lady Weaves Shuttles ,zuoyouchuansuo
第十九式海底针Needle at Sea Bottom ,haidizhen
第二十式闪通臂Flash the Arm ,shantongbi
第二十一式转身搬拦捶Turn, Deflect Downward, Parry and Punch,zhuanshenbanlanchui
第二十二式 如封似闭 Appar0ent Close up,rufengsibi
第二十三式 十字手 Cross Hands ,shizishou
第二十四式 收势 Closing Form ,shoushi
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