Yang Family Tai Chi Discussion Board

Hi Everyone, What a fascinating topic! There are so many possible considerations. So far, it looks like people have been leaning towards a more “absolute” composition wherein each application (or movement or whatever) is assigned particular musical combination of notes. Of course, there are infinite...

Yuri, I too like the Yang emphasis on not showing everything you are capable of (this may be a general principle throughout tai chi or martial arts--I don't know that it's specific to Yang style). Jamie, thanks for sharing those clips. Really powerful to watch and his movements seem so effortless--a...

Hi Jamie, Hmm, I like what you said about keeping the form "clean" and free of extraneous movements. It has a quality of efficiency about it. I wish I could see more Chen stylists practice. I saw some students once, but I think they were mostly beginners because their fa jing had a forced ...

Hi Yuri, I'm not saying that the head must always be horizontal, only that it follows the angle of the spine. If this was what you meant, then we agree, but because I can't see you, I’m not sure. Luckily, I have Wolfe Lowenthal's book at my desk this week. I had a look, but it's hard to tell what hi...

Hi Gene, Thanks for your reply. Yes, the south side, because it brings chi to the site, can exacerbate pain (which is probably what most magnet users are trying them for) through increased inflamation (IIRC). The south side must never be used with open wounds b/c the increase of chi is also good for...

Hi All, At the risk of sounding nutty myself, I find that I am quite sensitive to electromagnetic fields. I think this can be developed with listening energy. For example, if I close my eyes and shift around, I can line myself up with magnetic north by “listening” to which direction feels right (mos...

Hi Yuri, My sense of things is that the neck should generally be a “straight” extension of the spine. I say “straight” in quotation marks because the spine has natural curves but when you look at the form from the outside, it should look like the head is an extension of the back and not be tilted fo...

Thanks for the link. Good food for contemplation.

Kal

Hi David,

Only balance: hey, thanks, I'm sure you're right. Every once in awhile I get lucky and it works like that. Must work on staying calm though, as that's the only time it happens.

Kal

Hi David, <BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR><font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2"><B>(the school I go to tries to teach us to be soft before becoming hard) I feel this is a misconception. There is no hard, only balance. Things th...

Hi Chris, I see what you’re saying now. Thanks for the link. You asked: “How do you know when you're being baited, misled, or are simply mistaken in your assessment of the opponent's weakness, if you do not push them?” Well, you’re right, it’s not until after I push people that I find out whether I’...

Hi Chris,

Forgive me, I don't quite understand. What is shi li and can you tell me a little more about what you meant?

Respectfully,
Kal

Hi David, Thanks. I’m really glad that I’m _not_ in a school that advocates hard style push hands, if that’s what you mean by combat training. The words can be so slippery! After all, we really are learning how to use tai chi as a style of combat, but the training does not include sudden and hard pu...

Hi Audi, <BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR><font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2"> <B> In Taijiquan, we should not pay any attention to either guarding or attacking, but only on the flow of energy between yourself and the opponent...

Hi Zeuglodon, Thanks for posting the dictionary definition. Was that from a Chinese to English dictionary? Or one of the American English dictionaries? I don't know Chinese, but from my experience each and every one of the definitions you listed applies to this art at one time or another. I'd be int...