A Brief Description of Tai Chi

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An internal Chinese martial art, Tai Chi Chuan enjoys a wide practice extent all over the world. It combines hard and soft techniques which is why lots of people come to practice it as a way to improve their health and bring balance to their lives. Both in China and in the West, it is pretty common to see groups of people practicing slow motion routines in public gardens and parks.

There are five main schools of Tai Chi: Wu/Hao, Yang, Sun, Cheng and Wu, and they are the basis for most other hybrid styles that have emerged over the centuries. Tai Chi would translate as ‘great extremes boxing’, ‘the ultimate or ‘the ultimate fist’. The term Chi here could be easily confused with its homonym that means ‘life force’ or ‘vital energy’. The principles of Tai Chi are the same with those of traditional Chinese philosophy.

As for the health benefits of Tai Chi, they derive from the essence of this martial art. When the mind focuses on the movement alone, it enters a state of calm and clarity. Therefore, Tai Chi is successfully used in stress management. Instead of causing the muscles to contract and accumulate tension, Tai chi relies on relaxation and slow repetitive exercises that enhance the function of the internal organs. Tai Chi is recognized for its positive effects on blood and lymph circulation and breathing.

Through meditation, the Tai Chi student manages to achieve an optimum health level. The essence of this martial art is defensive in nature. Yet, the practitioner learns how to understand the forces that are at work in confrontation, managing to change the way in which the body responds to exterior impact. It takes a great deal of training before one can fully use Tai Chi as a martial art. Even so, there is a common core or essence in the many new and hybrid styles.

The philosophy of Tai Chi here is that one uses hardness to oppose or fight an incoming aggressive force. The idea is to be able to keep physical contact and let the incoming force exhaust itself until it allows for a safe redirecting. The yin-yang balance can grow out of this, because the hard and the strong will not resist to the soft and the pliable, according to Tao Te Ching. Such balance only comes with high training levels and very committed practice; only those who live through Tai Chi can achieve it.

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