"...our search for personal independence and individuality has taken almost all the meaning out of life. Those aspects of our societies that have traditionally given our lives meaning - religion, family, patriotism, etc. - have been steadily weakened in our search to be free. We have become people without roots, seeking gratification of our personal desires with no concept of responsibility to others or to the rest of the universe. We have rejected meaning in our lives because meaning implies responsibility. We want amusement and entertainment, not duties and responsibilities." -- John Lash, in "The Tai Chi Journey" (Element Books,1989).
At first I take up T'ai Chi as a hobby,
Gradually I become addicted to it,
Finally I can no longer get rid of it.
I must keep on practicing for my whole life-
its the only way to preserve health.
The more I practice, the more I want to learn from teachers and books.
The more I learn, the less I feel I know.
The theory and philosophy of T'ai Chi is so profound and abtruse!
I must continue studying forever and ever...
It is the only way to improve and better myself.
-- T. T. Liang
1. Overcoming hardness with softness
A saying in the taichichuan classics states: 'rou overcomes gan'. Rou means soft and flexible, gan means hard and energetic. Rou as the negative force belongs to yin, and gan as positive force belongs to yang. If in tuishou, the force you use is antagonistic to that of your opponent. we call it the gan force, regardless of its quality, that is, whether it is heavy or light. On the other hand, if your force does not resist or oppose the other's, we call it the rou force. The dexterous and quick interweaving action of these two different forces are the fundamentals of the martial art of taichichuan.
T'ai Chi Ch'uan Book Recommendations by Lee Scheele and see also The Tai Chi Classics by Lee Scheele are "based initially on The Essence of T'ai Chi Ch'uan: The Literary Tradition by Lo, Inn, Amacker, and Foe."
The Master said, "Is it not pleasant to learn with a constant perseverance and application? Is it not delightful to have friends coming from distant quarters?"
Confucius (551-479 BCE), Legge, James (trans.), 1971, Confucius: Confucian Analects, The Great Learning and The Doctrine of the Mean"
The Song of Chi What is the meaning of Chi energy? There are two aspects to its functional use: The direct way is to go to meet the opponent and attach gently in one movement. The indirect way is to use the reaction force like the rebound of a ball bouncing off a wall, or a coin thrown on a drumhead, bouncing off with a ringing sound.
Last edited 2005-01-18