Here are a few books that I've found helpful:
The Tao of Tai-Chi Chuan - Way to Rejuvenation by Tsung Hwa Jou (ISBN 0-8048-1357-4)
The Tao of Meditation - Way to Enlightenment by Tsung Hwa Jou (ISBN 0-8048-1465-1)
T'ai Chi Ch'uan - The Basic Exercises by Shing Yen-Ling (ISBN 087040-942-5)
Tai Chi Chuan by Marshall Ho'o (ISBN 089750-109-8)
Wednesday, May 30, 2007
Tai Chi Books
Thursday, May 10, 2007
Taijiquan - 24 step form
This looks pretty close to what we do. Don't ask me why there are 28 figures in a 24 step form!
Sunday, May 6, 2007
Body Basics
The body has 4 major groups: legs, torso, arms and head. A discussion of each of them & how they relate to Taijiquan follows.
Legs: Keep knees bent. Don't put your knee past your ankles. Your knee has a dynamic range. Constant placement of the knee will lead to knee injuries. Even worse - you will not be balanced!
Torso: Also known as the "center" and different from the "waist". Should be thought of like the trunk of a tree. The powerhouse of the body & holder of the chi. Visualizing your pelvis as a bowl of chi (chi-tos?), try to keep it level & don't let the chi spill out. All movement arises from here. This will become easier as you progress.
Arms: With your arms down at your side, notice that they don't hang just straight down like stiff iron rods. They have a bit of curvature and are supple and more rope-like.
A quick mention about the shoulders is in order here especially since they connect your arms to your body. The shoulders should stay loose and relaxed, not stiff.
Head: Look straight ahead with your nose pointed straight out. Imagine a string connecting the top of your head to the heavens.
Body: Look at yourself in the mirror. Do you notice a nice rounded shape when your arms hand down? What do you see? If you are standing as instructed above, with your arms hanging naturally at your side, you should see a rounded shape for your body. The body should not be stiff & straight. Avoid harsh lines - stay circular.
Legs: Keep knees bent. Don't put your knee past your ankles. Your knee has a dynamic range. Constant placement of the knee will lead to knee injuries. Even worse - you will not be balanced!
Torso: Also known as the "center" and different from the "waist". Should be thought of like the trunk of a tree. The powerhouse of the body & holder of the chi. Visualizing your pelvis as a bowl of chi (chi-tos?), try to keep it level & don't let the chi spill out. All movement arises from here. This will become easier as you progress.
Arms: With your arms down at your side, notice that they don't hang just straight down like stiff iron rods. They have a bit of curvature and are supple and more rope-like.
A quick mention about the shoulders is in order here especially since they connect your arms to your body. The shoulders should stay loose and relaxed, not stiff.
Head: Look straight ahead with your nose pointed straight out. Imagine a string connecting the top of your head to the heavens.
Body: Look at yourself in the mirror. Do you notice a nice rounded shape when your arms hand down? What do you see? If you are standing as instructed above, with your arms hanging naturally at your side, you should see a rounded shape for your body. The body should not be stiff & straight. Avoid harsh lines - stay circular.
Saturday, May 5, 2007
Circles & Swirls
Taijiquan is very circular in nature. The arms and legs move circularly. Even the knees and elbows are perceived to be moving in smaller circles. The next time you're out walking and your arms are swinging at your side, bring them up a bit and move them in small circles along with your elbows. Have your knees make small circles too.
You can practice this all day as you move about. Feel free to concentrate on leg movement sometimes and then on arm movement at others.
When you feel ready or adventurous - do them together!
Swirls: What about swirls? Well for example, take a look at the yin yang diagram and follow the red dashed line upwards.
It is full yin, so if you trace this pattern out, you should be in full yin too (back weighted). At the top is full yang and again, you should be at full yang (front weighted). Continue following the line and at the center of the diagram, the line becomes solid. Follow it until you "end at the beginning". Now try it the opposite way and start by going up the right hand side.
This yin yang you see is just a two-dimensional object. Now just think about doing this in 3-dimensions. Many of the skills needed to play taichi are encompassed by traversing the diagram.
You can practice this all day as you move about. Feel free to concentrate on leg movement sometimes and then on arm movement at others.
When you feel ready or adventurous - do them together!
Swirls: What about swirls? Well for example, take a look at the yin yang diagram and follow the red dashed line upwards.
It is full yin, so if you trace this pattern out, you should be in full yin too (back weighted). At the top is full yang and again, you should be at full yang (front weighted). Continue following the line and at the center of the diagram, the line becomes solid. Follow it until you "end at the beginning". Now try it the opposite way and start by going up the right hand side.
This yin yang you see is just a two-dimensional object. Now just think about doing this in 3-dimensions. Many of the skills needed to play taichi are encompassed by traversing the diagram.
Things to keep in mind
This list is just a few of the of the things that should be considered when you play taijiquan.
- To move left, start by moving to the right.
- To move right, start out by moving to the left.
- To go forwards, you have to retreat and vice-versa.
- Sometimes in tai-chi, as in life, you have to advance other times you have to retreat. But it's important to always stay balanced.
Think about these. How can you apply their meaning to your daily life?
To be continued...
- To move left, start by moving to the right.
- To move right, start out by moving to the left.
- To go forwards, you have to retreat and vice-versa.
- Sometimes in tai-chi, as in life, you have to advance other times you have to retreat. But it's important to always stay balanced.
Think about these. How can you apply their meaning to your daily life?
To be continued...
Thoughts on arms...
I've noticed that intro students have some confusion on placement of the arms, which way they should hold the ball, etc.. I have a new idea for finding the correct arm placement.
As taijiquan is supposed to be about movement from the center, try this:
Start all movement from the dantien (your center).
Keep your arms fixed in space & do not move them at ALL!
See where your body wants to put your arms.
Then think about the picture of the technique in your mind's eye and see how close you are.
Once again, a typical non-intuitive zen-like answer. I expect to see more. :)
As taijiquan is supposed to be about movement from the center, try this:
Start all movement from the dantien (your center).
Keep your arms fixed in space & do not move them at ALL!
See where your body wants to put your arms.
Then think about the picture of the technique in your mind's eye and see how close you are.
Once again, a typical non-intuitive zen-like answer. I expect to see more. :)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)