Bringing Tai Chi to the World

Publication Date：06/01/2006
Byline：BRIAN KENNEDY AND ELIZABETH GUO

The spectral vision of slow moving human shadows in the early dawn provides a living link to the traditions of tai chi, still highly popular in Taiwan.

On a November morning three years ago, 14,603 of them came together. They were in uniform and arrayed in ranks and files across the main plaza of Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall. They had a common cause and a common goal. Were they protesters, or part of some political rally or perhaps some doomsday cult? They were none of these things; they were tai chi practitioners who had come together to perform their art in unison in order to set a world record for the most people doing tai chi together at one time.

Their strength in numbers that day reflects the thriving tai chi culture in Taiwan. Tai chi is the graceful, slow-moving Chinese martial art that can be seen in parks throughout Taiwan and the world. The art of tai chi, also known by its longer name, tai chi chuan, emphasizes slow gentle movements that improve the practitioner's health. It eschews the more vigorous athletic movements that characterize other martial arts. As a result, tai chi is suitable for men and women, both young and old. Because of this wide appeal, tai chi is the world's most widely practiced martial art.

"Tai Chi Happy"

"Are you tai chi happy?" Chan Te-sheng, one of Taiwan's most prominent tai chi teachers, asks a student. Chan does not fit the traditional stereotype of a Chinese martial arts teacher. Rather than keeping a taciturn distance from his students, "Teacher Chan" is up-close, personal and lively. The classes have a relaxed, friendly feeling to them, which is in keeping with tai chi's overarching philosophy of improving one's health.

Chan's approach in class is a contrast to the harsher traditional training regime he underwent. By way of example, Chan tells the story of how his teacher had the habit of leaving his group of students in a difficult posture and then getting involved in a conversation while the students sweated and strained. Suddenly realizing he had left the students suffering, the teacher then called out the next move. Such rigorous methods are not part of Chan's approach; he tries to make tai chi accessible to all people.

Chan's martial arts credentials are rock solid. He began his training early in life, studying with a number of well-known teachers. He eventually enrolled in the Chinese Culture University's martial arts program, one of the world's few university programs for the subject. In addition to these academic studies, Chan excelled in competition. He competed in the International Tai Chi Chuan Championships in 1980 and 1981, which he won both years. His experience as an international tai chi coach is equally impressive. He served as head coach of the Chinese Taipei Team for the Asian Games where the team won the gold in 1998 and the bronze in 1990. He is also the chairman of the National Tai Chi Chuan Association of Taiwan.

With 160,000 members in over 111 groups practicing all over Taiwan, the National Tai Chi Chuan Association is at the forefront of tai chi development in Taiwan. The association, which was established in 1956, has as its goals the research, development and spread of tai chi both in Taiwan and abroad.

Under Chan Te-sheng's direction, the association is currently involved in a number of projects intended to bring Taiwan's tai chi to the international stage. In November of this year, for example, it will host the First World Cup Tai Chi Chuan Champion ship. The two-day event will be held in the newly constructed Taipei Arena and will draw competitors from all over the globe who will compete in solo, two-person and weapons routines.

Also drawing international attention will be the association's involvement with the International World Games, which will be held in 2009 in Kaohsiung. The association is working to get tai chi introduced into the World Games and will be responsible for putting on demonstrations during the event.

The association's work is grounded in Taiwan's long-standing tai chi culture. While martial arts historians are not sure when tai chi was first brought to Taiwan, it is clear that a major influx of talented tai chi teachers arrived in Taiwan after World War II. These luminaries included Cheng Man-ching, Chen Pan-ling and Wang Yin-nien. Each in their own way helped spread tai chi in Taiwan, and beyond to the Western world. Late in his life, Cheng Man-ching, for example, moved to New York City, where he taught and wrote widely on the art. Although Chen Pan-ling stayed in Taiwan, his form of tai chi is now practiced around the world. In a similar vein, Wang Yin-nien, who was Chan Te-sheng's teacher, never left Taiwan to "go West," but his version of tai chi is practiced throughout North America and Europe.

Tai Chi Combat and Qigong

The art of tai chi is many things at once; it is a martial art, a form of physical exercise, a way to develop qi, and it is a window into Chinese culture and philosophy.

Tai chi was originally a combat art, pure and simple. In the 21st century seeing an old man slowly amble through a tai chi form, it may be hard to imagine that throughout China in the 19th century tai chi enjoyed a well-deserved reputation as an effective system of combat. Yang Lu-chan, a master living in the 1800s, was nicknamed "Yang without enemy" as he was reportedly a peerless fighter. Yang was also famous for his skill with the spear, still in common use in the Chinese military at the time.

Today, the majority of tai chi students pursue the art for other reasons, including improving health, for which Chinese tradition takes a holistic approach. The cultivation of a healthier self includes both things familiar to Western exercise programs --lowering the blood pressure, increasing the flexibility of joints and strengthening the muscles--and some very non-Western ideas, such as qi.

Qi has its basis in Chinese philosophy, metaphysics and medicine, and it is a very ancient and important concept in Chinese culture. Scholars have defined it in a number of different ways, including "material force" or "a psycho-physiological power associated with blood and breath" or "life force." It could be thought of as a kind of élan vital. In Chinese philosophy and metaphysics, qi is the stuff or the energy of all the things in the cosmos.

In traditional Chinese medical theory, the qi circulates throughout the body. If the qi is plentiful and circulates without obstruction, one's health is good. If it is depleted or there are blockages in its flow, poor health and disease follow. The movements of tai chi serve to both generate more qi and help it circulate better throughout the body. Chan places an emphasis on this aspect of tai chi because in his view good health is a necessary prerequisite for using the martial art in combat or more simply for life in general. "Tai chi chuan is qi training," Chan says.

13 Postures: The Heart and Soul

The heart and soul of tai chi can be found in a short training routine that Chan teaches each Saturday morning at Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall plaza called the routine of the 13 postures. As with all Chinese martial arts, the various movements of the 13-posture routine have poetic names, such as "grasping a bird's tail" and "dragon turning its body." The 13-posture form taught by Chan takes only about five minutes to perform, a sharp contrast to some other forms, which can take almost an hour to complete.

Although it is short, the form contains all of the core movements of the art and is the genesis of all the longer practice routines. The 13-posture form includes the four fundamental ways to apply power in tai chi--warding off, rolling back, pressing and pushing. It also includes the four core combat moves--pulling down, splitting, striking with the elbow and striking with the shoulder.

Warding off involves pushing an opponent upward and outward. Rolling back deflects an opponent's attack away from you and off to the side. Pressing and pushing both drive the opponent backward. As to the four combat moves, pulling down yanks the opponent down, splitting gets the opponent's limbs going in opposite directions and unbalances him, striking with the elbow delivers a pinpoint attack to the opponent's torso and striking with the shoulder makes use of the entire body weight to knock an opponent backward.

Training, of course, includes many things beyond the 13-posture routine. Chan and the association also teach such advanced tai chi skills as the straight sword, various two-person drills, including what is known as "pushing hands practice." Pushing hands is a two-person training regime in which the practitioners attempt to unbalance each other from their positions. It is considered a preliminary step to using tai chi in an actual fight. Pushing hands is also a competitive sport.

According to legend, tai chi can lead a practitioner to immortality. In Taoist belief, there exist beings who were once mortal, but through the study and practice of one of various Taoist arts, these earthbound mortals became immortals in a world beyond. According to Taoist teachings, the practice of tai chi was one path to immortality. Modern-day students of tai chi might view such legends with skepticism. Nonetheless, tai chi has a philosophical side. While it might not make one immortal, it can provide a way to face life's ups and downs with a relaxed, tranquil demeanor.

When learning tai chi, an emphasis is placed on being relaxed, moving slowly and having a tranquil mind. Chan tells a story about his teacher that really drives home the central place of relaxation in tai chi practice. "Forty years ago, my teacher used to charge NT$5,000 [US$154] per week for classes, an astronomical amount of money back then," he says. "But all he taught in the classes was four exercises designed to relax the body, because for him the key to tai chi was mental and physical relaxation." Teaching the philosophy of tai chi is an important part of Chan's approach. "Be comfortable and be happy," he says. "Life can be hard, use tai chi to make it easier."

Copyright (C) 2006 by Brian Kennedy and Elizabeth Guo.

Origins of Tai Chi Chuan

High in the mountains, veiled by mist, darkened by the dense foliage of evergreen trees, lived Zhang San-feng. He resembled a living incarnation of a description in the Taoist classic the Chuang Tzu: "His complexion was like snow, and he was gentle and shy like a young girl. He did not eat the five grains, but gained energy from the wind, drank the dew, climbed up on the clouds and mist, rode a flying dragon and wandered beyond the four seas." His practice of Taoism made him immortal.

It is said that Zhang once saw a fight between a snake and a crane, and from the graceful movements of the crane evading the attacks of the snake, he developed the art of tai chi chuan.

If Zhang San-feng is the legendary founder of tai chi, historians are fairly sure that Chen Wang-ting was the real-life originator of the art. He was a general in the latter years of the Ming Dynasty (13681644). After the fall of the Ming, the battle-hardened general returned to the dusty village where he was born and raised. In his retirement, he turned his attention to developing a new system of martial arts based on his many battlefield experiences. The art he developed was tai chi chuan.

After its development in Chen's village, the art spread, splitting into different schools and systems. Yang Lu-chan was accepted as a student by the Chen family in the early 1800s. After mastering the art, Yang modified the original Chen family style and created the Yang style of tai chi, the most popular form practiced in the world today.