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The Tai Chi Chuan Learning Process
Tai chi chuan is radically different from the majority of other Chinese martial arts in both its principles and also its training methods. It seems to attract a different kind of student from other arts. One of the major factors that differentiates this method from other systems is the initial emphasis on soft, slow movements. This often confuses beginners when their teacher emphasises that first and foremost tai chi chuan is a martial art.
Novices may expect to learn a series of punches, blocks, attacks and defences, and then to train steadily for both speed and power. However, this is not, in fact, what the beginner will see when he first enters a class. A group of people will be practicing a slow-motion sequence of dance-like movements. The truth is that the new student must be educated to understand the learning and training process, and exactly how the curriculum works. Based on the theory and philosophy of Yin and Yang, tai chi chuan stresses that the hard arises from the soft and the fast from the slow. Therefore, the curriculum starts with soft, slow movements.
• Mental training
If one makes a close examination of all martial arts systems, the key factor at a high level of skill always seems to be the mind and the way, ultimately, in which the system trains the mind. Most systems, however, do not start on specific mental training until a high level is reached. Tai chi chuan, in contrast, trains the mind from the very first lesson. After only one or two sessions the novice student will soon realise that not only are great demands made upon the body of the practitioner but also on his mind.
• Imagery
Teachers make extensive use of colourful imager)' when explaining their art, and these images are specifically designed to help students internalise and come to grips with the mental aspect of tai chi chuan. For example, the student may be exhorted to 'move like a tiger' and to 'stare like a hawk gazing at its prey' or to 'exert force as if drawing silk from a cocoon'. Indeed, very often, the beginner has so many things to think of, as well as attempting to grasp the purely physical complexities of the art, that he is advised to concentrate on only one image at a time.
• Mental attitude
Having learned a slow form, whether short or long, the student is equipped with the basic tools needed to develop calmness, relaxation, and even unimpeded movement. By relaxing all the major muscles of the body he can move either fast or slow without tension. In addition, constant practice of the form enables him to develop the tai chi chuan mental attitude. This attitude is one of relaxation, calmness and awareness, and it mirrors the body's lack of tension. Thus one trains oneself not to respond to external stimuli with fear or anxiety, but rather to accept and resolve any situation as it arises.
• Exercises
As the student progresses in his study of the slow, solo form, he also begins to study the two-person pushing hands exercises. Initially based on set patterns of movement, these ultimately lead to a free-style exercise with fewer restrictions. The purpose of pushing hands is to teach the student the skills necessary to engage an opponent at close range. A practitioner of tai chi chuan seeks to apply his skill at a moment when he has detected his opponent's weakness and loss of balance, thereby delivering his attack from the strongest possible position. The emphasis on close-quarter fighting results in two-person training that more closely resembles wrestling than boxing.
At this stage of the training process, the student builds upon the knowledge of balance and equilibrium he has gained from practice of the solo form. He now learns how to deal with attempts to disrupt his stability.
As well as learning the pushing hands exercises, the practitioner will also train in other sensitivity exercises with the aid of a partner.
• Fast forms
The next step is learning the tai chi chuan fast forms, of which the Yang style has two. These forms build upon the foundation established through intensive prac¬tice of the slow form and enable the student to move faster and with a more combative emphasis, while still retaining the vital elements of calmness and relaxation. When these two forms have been learned they can then be put together as a two-person prearranged sparring form, allowing both partners to practice the key elements of distance, timing, and control.
The final component of the tai chi chuan training curriculum is the study of traditional weapons, usually the sword, broadsword, and spear or staff. These weapons teach the student how to apply force at a greater range and also serve as a form of purpose-designed weight-training.
One of the most interesting aspects of tai chi chuan is that all of the various components of its curriculum are interrelated and practice of any one of these areas enables the student to gain not only a greater in-depth knowledge of the other parts of the art, but also the art as a whole.