Taijiquan-Lilun 1

Taijiquan-Lilun� Journal of the Theory of Wu Style Taijiquan

Focus:

Understanding basic philosophical terms inTaijiquan:

� Ziran� Taiji� Shen� Xin� Qi

Issue 1 · Price 5,50 E

Forum for traditional Wu Tai Chi Chuan

Forum for Traditional Wu Tai Chi Chuan

Kontakt:

Martin Boedicker Zum Schickerhof 1847877 Willich/Germany Phone: +49-2154-885780

Email:[email protected] Website:www.wu-taichi.com

Taijiquan-LilunCopyright 2012 by Martin Boedicker Original Issue published in 2003 in German and English.In this journal (also in the citations) the official short characters and the pinyin of the PR of China are used.Cover picture: Ma Jiangbao and Michel Peeters

Graphic design: Martina Schughart and Monika Ozdarska

Translations: Martin Boedicker

Taijiquan-Lilun · Issue 1 3

Introduction/Contents

Dear Reader,

Welcome to the first edition of Taijiquan-Lilun. We are delighted that we have turned our project intoreality. It was Ma Jiangbao who suggested that we should concentrate not only on the movements ofTaijiquan but also on the theory. The journal is therefore named after the Chinese word for theory - lilun.The contents will include the theory of Taiji quan, translation from the Chinese and com mentary. Wewould like to thank Martina Schughart for the layout, Manos Meisen and Michael Busch for photosas well as Dr Michael Wenzel, Dr Harry Iman and Dr Nina Wagner for their support.

Special thanks to Dr Susanne Tietze for the trans-lation, who made the Edi tion possible. Finally,Rachel and David Barrow and Kit Gerould editedthe Journal and finished the adventure.

We hope you all enjoy our magazine.

Freya and Martin Bödicker

Imprint . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

Introduction and Contents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

Focus: Yema fen zong . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

Focus: Ziran . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

Portrait: Zhou Dunyi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

Focus: Taiji . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Learning to write Taijiquan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

The names of the spear form . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

The song of striking hands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

Principles: Skilfulness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

Focus: Xin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

Focus: Shen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

Focus: Qi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

Susanne Tietze, David Barrow, Rachel Barrow

Taijiquan-Lilun · Issue 14

Focus

Taijiquan is an ancient martial art whose rootsare in Chinese philosophy and medicine. Accor -dingly, it has developed its own technical voca-bulary. This vocabulary includes concepts andterms that describe specific bodily parts, positionsand movements as well as other terms that havea psychological dimension and – typically forChinese thinking – which unite the bodily andpsychological dimensions. With regard to theteaching of Taijiquan in the West, it is thereforeabsolutely necessary to translate the exact mean -ing of this technical vocabulary as completely aspossible.

It is possible either to translate such technicalterms directly into English or to use the originalChinese term, but to include comments on it.One advantage of the direct translation of aChinese term is that it is easier for Westerners topronounce such directly translated terms; however,difficulties in translation occur:

1. The technical terms of Taijiquan often takea sentence-like structure. In order to translatethem one must have mastered the Chinese lang -u age. For example, yema fen zong is a movementtaken from the Taijiquan form. In the literatureon Taijiquan one finds the following translations:

� The wild horse shakes its mane� Separate the horse’s mane evenly� Parting the wild horse’s mane� Pat the horse’s neck

Apparently, translators agree on the horse or wildhorse, respectively (ye means wild and ma meanshorse). However, they disagree about whe thershaking, parting or patting takes place, and aboutwho shakes, parts or pats the mane of the horse.Usually, it is the person practising Taijiquan whois parting the wild horse’s mane. However, ta kingChinese grammar into account, this parti culartrans lation is questionable. The structure of yemafen zong is a typical grammatical Chinese con-struction: Yema, the wild horse, is the subject,which does fen zong. Fen means to part and zongis the mane. Therefore fen zong is the typicalmove ment of a horse that “shakes its mane”. Inthis case an optimal translation is only possible byreferring back to Chinese grammar (see Tai ChiMagazine, p. 38): “The wild horse shakes its mane”.

2. Taijiquan technical terms may sometimesbe words which are impossible to translate direct-ly because there is no English equivalent. Forexample, the term yao is central to Taijiquan. Inthe literature on Taijiquan there are two possible

Yema fen zong – on the difficulty in translating Taijiquan technical vocabulary

Ma Jiangbao


Focus

translations: hip and waist. In dictiona -ries yao is listed as waist, hip, waist-band and middle. In the illustrateddic tionary, “Concise Chinese-GermanIllus trated Dictionary”, p. 14, is a pictureof a human being with an arrow stuck in thepart between hip-bone and the lowest costal arch.It is accompanied by the following explanation:“hip”. In English, however, this part is more likelyto be referred to as waist. If one asks a Chineseperson about yao they usually refer to the partwith out bones between the hip and ribs. Yao,therefore, refers to a much larger part than our“waist”, and for which no directly equivalentterm exists in English. The notion of waist comesquite near the Chinese conception of yao, so thatthe word waist can be used once the Chinese termhas been explained.

3. Taijiquan technical vocabulary quite oftenuses ancient words which describe particular qua-lities about movements or perceptions. Only aTaijiquan expert can fully appreciate these. In theseinstances, translating becomes particularlydifficult and one can only use a word thatmay hint at the particular quality.For example, lü is one of the eight basictechniques of Tuishou. In the Taiji -quan literature one often finds lü trans-lated as “pulling”. But what is meantby this? It may be some help to considerthat lü should be practised in a way thatresembles the pulling of a thread of silk out of acocoon in order to spin it afterwards.

Unfortunately, most Europeans have little expe-rience of pulling threads of silk, but neverthelessthis image demonstrates that one must not pulltoo quickly, otherwise the thread will tear, andneither must one pull too slowly, otherwise it willget into a tangle.

Another translation for lü is “to divert”. That meansthat a force coming from a particular direction isdiverted into a different direction through the useof a less strong force. This is a more concrete image,which can help the Taijiquan learner to practice lü.

4. Taijiquan’s technical vocabulary may derivefrom Chinese philosophy or from traditional Chi -nese medicine. These fields of science have de ve-

loped over a long time and contain aplethora of thoughts. “It is high time toabandon all backwoods ideas and to

accept, even in Europe, that traditionalChinese thought is based on experience –

as all thinking is. Furthermore, ’Chinese think-ing’, like ’European thinking’, is an equally over-generalised term that stands for a vast body oftaught traditional knowledge. Hence this termshould be interpreted as referring to a geogra-phical line rather than to collective patterns ofthought that make Chinese people think in radi-cally different patterns from European people.The Eurocentric perspective, with its insistenceon viewing Chinese culture as unitary, gives riseto a denial of the richness of that culture.”(Borges, p.14)

The meaning of technical terms can differ fromschool to school in both philosophy and medicine.In Taijiquan the meaning of a term is often notstrictly identical to its meaning in philosophyand medicine. The translator of Taijiquan’s tech-

nical vocabulary will even find some Wes ternterms used, but their meanings only part ly

overlap with the original terms. A trans-lation into English can potentially bequite misleading. In these cases it isbetter to use the original terms and to

add some explanation.For example, in this edition of Taijiquan-

Lilun the terms ziran, shen, xin and qi areintroduced and explained.

· Borges, Harald, “Drache, Einhorn, Phönix - Über altchinesisches Denken”, Metzler, Stuttgart 1993(“Dragon, Unicorn, Phoenix – on Traditional Chinese Thinking”).

· Illustriertes Chinesisch-Deutsches Kurzwörterbuch, Hai Feng,Hong Kong 1989. (Concise Illustrated Chinese-German Dictionary).

· Tai Chi Magazine, vol 20, Los Angeles 1996.


Focus

An essential concept of Taijiquan, whose impor-tance is repeatedly stressed, is naturalness. Thisconcept is often used when referring to the exe-cution of movements. For example, Wu Yinghuasays: “Whether in the form or in pushhands allmovements should be natural.” (Ma, p. 24) It isalso used to stress the naturalness of breathing.In an interview with the journal “Martial Arts”,(p. 8), Ma Yueliang answers the question ofwhe ther the study of Taijiquan is associated withany particular technique of breathing: “No, onlybreathe naturally.” Ma Jiangbao expounds thatinstead of controlling the breath or adjusting themovements to the breathing, one should breatheas usual when learning the form. A deep and fullbreathing is achieved through regular practice,and “breathing will adjust quite naturally to themovements.” (Ma, p. 53)

In general, everyone understands and agrees thatthe movements and breathing in Taijiquan shouldbe natural. However, students of Taijiquan – par-ticularly Western students – react with a mixtureof amusement and helplessness when they meetwith difficulties in the execution of movements,and are advised to conduct them, “completelynaturally”. This is usually attributable to a mis un -der standing based on ignorance about the back-ground meaning of the Chinese concept of ziran.In Taijiquan, ziran is translated as “naturalness”.But ziran is a concept that has both a colloquialand a philosophical meaning.

Ziran is a two-character word that consists ofthe characters zi and ran. A simple translationwould understand the word as a combination ofits single components. The dictionary (The NewChinese-German Dictionary) translates the sign ziwith “self” and ran with “so”. Combining its singlecomponents would thus render ziran: “self-so”.

This is quite a simple translation, and it does in di -cate the original idea that informs the ziran con-cept. In an expanded entry in the same dictionary,we find under ziran: “nature, naturally, by itself,to let something take its [natural] course”. Zirancan simply be equated with nature, but it also in-dicates the inner nature of all beings and things,which are self-so.

If one studies the history of Chinese philosophy,one finds the first usage of the concept of ziranin Laozi, in Zhuangzi, in the mohistic canon, andalso in Xunzi (see also Röllike).

Ziran – the Chinese concept of naturalness

Ma Yueliang


Focus

The concept of ziran was developed as an answerto the question, ‘what is dao?’ In Laozi, verse 25says, “Human beings follow the law of earth,earth follows the law of heaven, heaven followsthe law of dao, and dao follows the law of ziran.”

Bauer explains: “the expression ziran literally means“to be so by itself”. It is first used in the Daodejingand refers to the structure of Tao, which cannotbe referred back to anything else.” (Bauer, p. 202)

Within daoist tradition all of this implied thatthrough retreating back to nature, one could benearer to dao. In observing and imitating nature,and through rejecting human culture, one couldperfect one’s own character. In the 2nd and 3rdcenturies AD these ideas changed. It was no longerabsolutely necessary to search for dao in na ture,but rather one’s own self became the mirror of dao.Bauer says that, “it is the sole acknowledge mentof the own self in all expressions and acti vitiesof life which is the decisive feature of ‘natu ral ness’and ‘freedom’ , which can be found in nature anddao as well as in the ideal/perfected human being.”(Bauer, p. 203)

According to Wu Yinghua the demand for natu-ralness can be explained by referring to the originof many movements of Taijiquan in traditional Chi -nese martial arts. These movements were deve-loped in accordance with human physiology andthe laws of nature.

In Taijiquan one says: “Shen xin ziran – body andheart/mind are natural.” Through calmness ofmove ment and stillness in xin (heart/mind) stu-dents/practitioners of Taijiquan shall find andcherish their naturalness.

This form of naturalness refers to body and mindand is not assumed to be automatically there, butneeds to be worked for and maintained in a con-tinuous process. This becomes apparent when MaJiang bao (Ma, p. 53) says about the prac tice ofbreathing in Taijiquan, “Although breathing shouldnot be consciously directed, the correct breathingcan only be achieved if the body’s pos ture is cor-rect: upright position of the head, upright coccyx,up right back, lowered shoulders, elbows and pel -vic hips.” These are the very preconditions, whichfor most people are not given as matter-of-fact,but need to be achieved and sustained throughre gular Taijiquan practice.

· Bauer Wolfgang, China und die Hoffnung auf Glück, DTV,Munich1989 (China and the Hope for Happiness).

· Das neue chinesisch-deutsche Wörterbuch, The Commercial Press, Kong Kong 1989 (The New Chinese-German Dictionary).

· Ma Jiangbao, Tai Chi Chuan, Mach: Art, Ratingen 1998.

· Martial Arts, Heft No. 8, Martial Arts Verlag, Stelle-Wittenwurth 1986.

· Rollike Hermann-Josef, Der Ursprung des Ziran-Gedankens in der chinesischen Philosophie des 4. und 3. Jh. v. Chr. Europäiche Hochschulschriften: Reihe 27, Asiatische undAfrikanische Studien, Bd 51, Heidelberg, 1994.(The Origin of the Ziran Idea in Chinese Philosophy in the 4th and 3rd Century B.C).


Portrait

Zhou Dunyi (1017-1073 AD) lived during the timeof the Song Dynasty (960-1279 AD). His contri -bution was essential in turning this time into awatershed for the history of Chinese philosophy.Before the Song Dynasty, from the second untilthe 9th century AD, but in particular during thetime of the Tang Dynasty (618-906 AD), Chinahad been a cosmopolitan country with a strongreligious orientation. Both Buddhism and Daoismhad long been appreciated and were supportedby the state. The beginning of the Song Dynastysaw the in flu ence of both Buddhism and Daoismdeclining. Confucianism again became the mostdominant philosophy, but it did not correspondwith the original Confucianism.

Joseph Needham writes: “Yet there was no sense in returning to antiqueConfucianism, for its lack of cosmology and philo-sophy meant that it could no longer satisfy a ma-turer age. There was, in fact, only one way out,and this was taken by the Neo-Confucians: touse a prodigious effort of philosophical insightand imagination to set the highest ethical idealsof man in their proper place against the back-ground of non-human Nature, or rather withinthe vast framework of Nature as a whole. Insuch a view the nature of the universe is in onesense moral, not because a moral personal deityexists somewhere outside space and time direc-ting it all, but because the universe has the pro-perty of bringing forth moral values and moralbehaviour when the appropriate level of organi-sation has been reached.” (Needham, p. 228)

The Neoconfucian School emerged through achain of different philosophers whose approacheswere to dominate China’s scientific and philoso-phical thinking for more than 700 years. One ofthe main issues was the theory of a deep lystructured concept of the world. Drawing onsystems or concepts such as taiji, li (principle of

structure), xin (heart/mind) and xing (nature) theytried to form a concept of the world, which –according to the knowledge of the time – wasable to explain the structure of the universe. Oneof the outstanding achievements in this processwas the integration of Daoist and Buddhist con-cepts into the Confucian way of thinking, whichresulted in a unique synthesis of these three phi-losophies.

The Neoconfucianists saw the value of Daoism inits naturalness, but its weakness in the lack ofinterest in human society. Daoism did not offerany explanation of how the highest human idealswere to be connected with those of the non-human world. With the increasing assertion ofNeoconfucianist ideas, interest began to focus oncosmic ideas as well as their connection with Con-fucian ideas and virtues. A central concept in thisthinking was cheng, the ideal of the sage, whichcan be translated as loyalty or sincerity to one-self. Later on, cheng was supplemented and thensubstituted by zheng, sincerity towards others. Thisdemonstrates the development from individualsincerity towards social responsibility ex pressedin sincerity towards others. (see Bauer, p. 295)

The architect of Neoconfucianism is generallyacknowledged to be the philosopher Zhou Dunyi.He was born in 1017 AD in the province of Hunaninto a family of scholars (see Adler). After his fa -t her had died, his uncle Zheng Xiang, who provi -ded him with his first public office, adopted him.Even though Zhou was frequently praised for hiswork as a civil servant, he never achieved a high -er position. Similarly, he was hardly known as aphilosopher during his lifetime. Other than hisnephews Cheng Yi and Cheng Hao he had fewpupils. In 1073 AD he died of a fever. He was re -membered as a kind man with high moral stan-dards, who had a close relationship with natureand deep insight into the dao, the right way.

Zhou Dunyi, the first thinker of Neoconfucianism


Portrait

He lies buried in a valley near the mountain Lushan.After his death he was awarded the title YuanGong and in 1241 he was given the name of Earlof Yunan.

Despite this inconspicuous life story, Zhou Dunyi’s“Explanations of the taiji-diagram (Taijitu shuo)laid the foundation for Neoconfucianist cosmo-logy and the basis for a structured conception ofthe world (see the article on “Taiji, or the supremeultimate” in this edition). In his se cond main work, the “Penetra tingthe Clas sic of Change (Tongshu)”,Zhou inter prets the Yijing and fo -cuses on the na ture of the sage.According to Zhou the ideal of thesage is sincerity (cheng). It formsthe basis for the five virtues (wude)hu ma nity (ren), justice (yi), ritualdecency (li ), wisdom (zhi) andtrust worthiness (xin) and thusforms the basis for all impeccablemoral conduct.

The following paragraph 20 fromthe Tong shu exemplifies the suc-cessful syn thesis of Confucianethics and the Dao ist worldview.

[Someone asked]: “Can sagehood be learned?”Reply: It can.“Are there essentials (yao)?”Reply: There are.“I beg to hear them.”Reply: To be unified (yi) isessential. To be unified is tohave no desire. With out desireone is va cuous when still anddirect in activity. Beingvacuous when still, one will beclear (ming); be ing clear onewill be penetrating (tong).Being direct in activity onewill be impartial; be ing im par -tial one will be all-em bracing.Being clear and penetrating,impartial and all-em bracing, one isalmost [a sage]. (Adler)

· Adler Joseph A.www2.kenyon.edu/dets/religion/facAdler/Rein471/TSChou.htm.

· Bauer Wolfgang, China und die Hoffnung auf Glück, DTV, Munich 1989 (China and the Hope for Happiness).

· Needham Joseph, The Shorter Science and Civilisation in China,Cambridge University Press, Cambridge 1978.

9

Focus

10

Taiji, or the supreme ultimate

Taijiquan is the name of an ancient Chinese mar-tial art. But what does this name mean? In Chi -nese it consists of three characters.

The characters tai and ji form an independentterm, viz. taiji. Taijiquan is a combination of twosub-units taiji and quan. The character quan canbe translated simply as “fist” or “fistfight”. It ismore difficult to explain the meaning of taiji, be -cause taiji is a technical term taken from Chinesephilosophy. Since ancient times, the sign ji intaiji has meant both “ridge” and “beam”, or respec -tively “pole”, “extreme” or “ultimate”. In the words“beiji” and “nanji” it is translated as pole – asNorth and South Pole, respectively. Chinese usesthe character tai as the prefix for the superlativecase. Taiji could therefore be translated as “thehighest ridge or beam”, the “highest pole”, the“supreme ultimate”. Taijiquan is therefore themartial art of the supreme ultimate. But what ismeant by the supreme ultimate taiji?

The term taiji can be found in many Chinesephilosophical texts, which are frequently, but notalways, of Daoist origin. An important part of themeaning of taiji can be found in the appendicesof the Book of Changes (Yijing): “The changes arebased on Taiji. Out of it [taiji] rise both in stru -ments [yin and yang ].” (Kubny, p. 298)

Although the term taiji can be found in pre-Christian texts, it only became a key philosophi-cal term during the Song Dynasty (960 - 1279 AD).At that time Confucian scholars endeavoured tounite the streams of Confucian and Daoist think-ing. This resulted in the school of the Neo con -fucians. Zhou Dunyi (1017 - 1073 AD) was the firstNeoconfucian scholar and became famous for his“Explanations of the taiji-diagram (Taijitu shuo)” ,which became the basis for Neoconfucian cos-mology, but it also found its way into the Daoistcanon (Daozhang).

Zhou Dunyi’s teaching and his taiji-diagram(taijitu) are based in all likelihood on the systemof the Daoist master Chen Tuan (-989 AD). (seeBohn, p. 310) The taiji-diagram consists of fivesingle images, which are arranged vertically. It isassumed that originally Daoists read the dia-gram from the bottom to the top. The diagramdescribes the way back to the wuji. Drawing onspiritual and physical techniques one was to be -come a Daoist immortal. (see Kubny, p. 300)

According to Zhou Duny the diagram is to beread from the top to the bottom. It describes thegenesis and the structure of the universe. Thetaiji-diagram and the its explanation are availablein the form set out by Zhu Xi (1130 - 1200 AD).


Focus


The first circle symbolises the connection between wuji and taiji.

The taiji-diagram according to Zhou Dunyi

Next (left, top) to the second circle is the wordyang, below it is the word dong (movement),at the top right is the word, yin, below it is

the word jing (stillness)

Next to the third circle the words “The dao ofqian will be the male” are printed and to theright: “The dao of kun will be the female.”

Below the last circle one reads: “Creation andtransformation of the 10 000 things”.

Below this, the five phases are set out as follows:

Fire Water

Earth

Wood Metal

Focus

A central part of the “Explanations of thetaiji-diagram” is the description of the highestpicture, the one of the simple circle. In the Chi -nese original is written: “wuji er taiji ” . Wuji is aterm taken from daoist philosophy. It translatesdirectly into “without ji”, therefore “without apole” or “without any ultimate”. In earlier Daoisttexts it is translated simply as “unlimited” or “in -finite”. Later on, however, it was translated with“original (primordial) chaos”, “the nothingness”or “before the coming into being of yin and yang”.Sometimes it was used as the equivalent of the

term dao. Er means “and nevertheless” or “andyet”. Thus, “wuji er taiji ” can be translated as“wuji and yet taiji” and wuji and taiji are the same.This is based on the association that the universeand its immanent power and structure in thewuji have no cardinal point. However, throughthe term taiji it is acknowledged that everywherein the universe there is an immanent power andstructure and the centre of organisation of thispower and structures is the same as the very powerand structure itself. (see Needham, p. 236)


The literal explanation of the taiji-diagram is:

Wuji and then (respectively and yet) taiji. In movement taiji creates yang. When the movementhas reached its limit there is stillness. When still, taiji creates yin. When stillness has reached itslimits, there is a return to movement. Movement and stillness alternate. Each is the root of theother. The two instruments rose out of the differentiation between yin and yang.

Yang changes and yin connects. This is how water, fire, wood, metal and earth come into being.Then the five qi [phases] spread out and the four seasons emerge. The five phases are simply yinand yang. Yin and yang are simply taiji. Taiji is in origin wuji. As soon as the five phases havebeen created, each has its own nature. The truthfulness of wuji and the essence of the two [yinand yang] and the five [phases] unite in a miraculous way and consolidations ensue. The dao of[trigram] qian leads to the male [principle]. The dao of [trigram] kun leads to the female [prin-ciple]. The two qi react with each other. They transform and generate the 10 000 things.

The 10 000 things continue to generate and there is no end to their transformation. Only humanbeings receive the finest. They are spiritual beings. Their form emerges, their spirit [shen] deve-lops knowledge. When their five agents are stimulated and move, good and evil become distin-guishable and the 10 000 things occur. The sages ordered their lives by centrality, correctness,humanity and rightness and always stress stillness. Sages establish the ultimate of humanity.Therefore the virtue of the sage equals that of heaven and earth, his clarity equals that of sunand moon, his timelessness equals that of the four seasons and his good fortune and bad fortuneequals those of ghosts and spirits. The noble [person] cultivates this and has good fortune.Lesser people reject this and have bad fortune.

Therefore it is said: The establishment of the dao of heaven means yin and yang. The establish-ment of the dao of earth means softness and hardness. The establishment of the dao of humanbeings is called humanity and rightness. It is also said: Investigate the beginning and follow itto the end. Thus will you know about death and life. The [book of] changes [Yijing] is great! It isthe most perfect.


Focus

A second possible interpretation is based ona different tradition, which might even be in linewith Zhou Dunyi’s original: “The wuji creates(sheng) the taiji.” (see Bohn, p. 312) The wuji isstructured by taiji during the genesis of the uni-verse. The universe developed from a chaoticstate wuji via the taiji towards a state in whichyin and yang are separated. A parallel to the con-cept of a gradual development of the universecan be found in one of the ancient Chinese mythsof creation, for example in the Huainanzi, recor-ded 2 AD:

“Long ago, before Heaven and earth existed,there were only images but no forms, and all wasdark and obscure, a vast desolation, a misty ex -panse, and nothing knew where its own portalswere. There were two gods born out of chaoswho wove the skies and designed the earth. Soprofound were they that no one knew their low -est deeps, and so exalted were they that no oneknew where they came to rest. Then they dividedinto yin and yang and separated into the EightPoles. The hard and the soft formed, and the myriadliving things took shape.” (Birell, p. 32)

Zhou Dunyi has achieved two great things here:

1. In acknowledging this process he has in tro -duced Daoist terminology such as wuji into Con -fucianism:“In bringing this largely Daoist terminology intoConfucian discourse (chaos was generally frown-ed upon by Confucians), Zhou may have beenattempting to show that the Confucian view ofhumanity´s role in the cosmos was not really op -posed to the fundamentals of the Daoist world-view, in which human categories and values werethought to alienate human beings from the dao.In effect, he was co-opting Daoist terminologyto show that the Confucian worldview was actu-ally more inclusive than the Daoistic: it could accepta primordial chaos while still affirming the realityof the differentiated, phenomenal world.” (Adler)

2. Not only has Zhou introduced these terms,but he also placed them in a new relationship toeach other. For example, he was the first to con -nect wuji and taiji. Also, the emergence of move-ment and stillness out of taiji goes back to him.

“Zhou Dunyi also explained for the first time therelationship between taiji and the two instru-ments of movement and stillness (yin and yang).This connection had never happened in the ex -planation Yijing of the Han and Tang time. Heintroduced the thesis that movement createsyang, stillness creates yin, because he assumedthat the taiji or the yuanqi respectively can bemoved by itself or that it is still by itself, whichproduces the two qi.” (Bohn, p. 318)

Zhou Dunyi’s “Explanations of the taiji-dia-gram” brought to the fore of philosophical dis-cussion the theory of taiji. The theory of the mar -tial art Taijiquan follows Zhou’s ideas. In the im -por tant Taijiquan classic “Taijiquan treatise” it issaid – almost in line with Zhou: “The taiji has beencreated out of the wuji. It is the origin of move-ment and stillness. It is the mother of yin andyang.” (Wu, Ma, p. 89)

· Adler, Joseph A.http//www2.kenyon.edu/depts/religion/facAdler/Rein471/TSChou.htm

· Birell Anne, Chinese Myth, The Johns Hopkins University Press,Baltimore 1993.

· Bohn G. Hermann, Die Rezeption des Zhouyi in der ChinesischenPhilosophie, von den Anfängen bis zur Song-Dynastie, Herbert Utz Verlag, München 1998(The Reception of Zhouyi in Chinese Philosophy, from Its Beginnings to the Song Dynasty).

· Kubny Manfred, Qi, Lebenskraftkonzepte in China, Haug-Verlag,Heidelberg 1995 (Qi, Concepts for Vitality in China).

· Needham Joseph, The Shorter Science and Civilisation in China,Cambridge University Press, Cambridge 1978.

· Wu Yinghua, Ma Yueliang, Wu Shi Tai Ji Quan, Huanqiu TushuZazhi Chubanshi, Hong Kong 1986.


Writing Chinese

The numbers on the lines give the sequence and the directions of the lines. Position the brush or pencilat the end of the line, where the number is.

Learning to write Taijiquan

2

13

4

2

1

3 47

6 5

5

12

3

4 67

10

8

9


Spear form

1) Begin with the hand, to the middle andlevel; that’s the “royal” way.

2) Brush the knee, push with the spear andstand proud and firm.

3) Push the spear into the crotch, then alongthe knee and hit the head.

4) Push the spear into the crotch, then alongthe knee and split the head.

5) Push the spear into the step and hit thehead, then turn and stab.

6) The golden child with jade-coloured armsoffers a book.

7) The wind shakes the plum blossoms, then close the throat.

8) Turn, kick with heel and spit the snakewith the spear.

9) The golden dragon whips its tail; turn continuously.

10) Hung on a hook, then middle and level;that’s the best method.

11) The wind sways the lotus leaves, to turn continuously.

12) The golden cockerel stands on one leg andthe reckless one is calmed.

13) Pass the horse on one side, press down andthe middle, level form.

14) Brush the knee, hit the head and sweep the floor.

15) The wild tiger vaults the mountain stream; circle above the head.

16) The flood dragon rises from the water; this is the best method.

17) Push the spear into the crotch, hit thehead, and the tiger whips its tail.

18) Left, right, into the middle; keep busychanging steps.

19) A snake on the ground obstructs the wayand the hiding form.

20) The phoenix spreads its wings to the sun.

21) Circle over the head most skilfully.

22) The bird returns to sleep in the forest and then a counter-thrust.

23) The golden dragon whips its tail and return to the sea.

24) Embrace the pipa and return to your birthplace

The names of the spear form

Ma Jiangbao


The song of striking handsPeng, lü, ji, an have to be practised conscientiously.

When up and down follow each other,it is difficult for the other to advance.No matter how strong he attacks me,

with the use of four ouncesone can easily deflect one thousand pounds.

Divert the attack into emptiness,the counter-attack follows immediately.

Adhere, connect, stick, follow,do not lose contact or resist.

It is also said:If he does not move,

I do not move.If he moves imperceptibly,

I move first.The power appears to be relaxed, but it is not relaxed;

the power is ready to open, but it does not open.Even when one’s own power breaks off,

the idea continues to exist.

Taijiquan Classics


Principles

In the Wu style of Taijiquanthere are, besides the slow form,a series of weapon forms and thefast form. These forms are con-ducted dynamically with manychanges in pace.

According to Wu Yinghua andMa Yueliang, in the slow formthe aspects stillness (jing), light-ness (qing), slowness (man), con-scientiousness (qie) and perse-verance (heng) need to be takeninto account. The dynamic formsare different from the slow formwith regard to the third aspect,slowness. Slowness means thatthe movements are conductedin a controlled manner, yet lightly, evenly andflowing smoothly without any interruptions. (see Ma Jiangbao, p. 41)

In the dynamic forms the aspect of slowness issubstituted by skilfulness (ling). Skilfulness mani-fests itself in four different characteristics, whichmust be taken into account during training. Onlythen can the qualities of the slow form translateinto the mastery of fast movements. Wu Ying huaand Ma Yueliang write:

“In order to develop lightness (qing), skilfulness(ling), suppleness (yuanhua) and dexterity (ziru),one has to heed four characteristics:

1. Break (dun) and turn (cuo) alternate (duncuo xiangjian)

2. Hard (gang) and soft (rou) support eachother (gangrou xiangji)

3. Fast (kuai) and slow (man) are in harmony(kuaiman xianghe)

4. The front (qian) and the back (hou) areconnected. (qianhou xianglian)”(Wu, Ma, p. 2)

For Wu Yinghua and Ma Yue -li ang the break, dun, manifestsit self in central equilibrium(zhong ding) and cuo, the turn,in the movements of jumping.Ma Jiangbao explains thatmost movements in the dynamicforms end with a quick move-ment, which are accentuatedby a brief break after them.

The next movement always be -gins with a change in direction,which is often accompanied bya jump (which can also be a longsliding step). A jump or changeof direction is cuo, the turn.Expounding on their explanation

of the four characteristics, Wu Yinghua and MaYueliang write:

“The hard power (gangjin) uses strong fajin. Theprinciple of softness (rouze) uses soft movements.This means that the hard power (gangjin) is fol-lowed by softness. The turn (cuo) has to be quick(kuai). As far as the quickness (kuai) is concerned:in it lies the turn (cuo). In the slowness (man) isthe stretching. The positions of the form have tobe exact. From its very beginning all of the formhas to be conducted naturally, the last move-ments have to be calm. They must not be neg -lected. This is the connection of the front (qian)and the back (hou).”(Wu, Ma, p. 2)

Ma Jiangbao explains that in the dynamic forms,individual positions are more stretched than inthe slow form. Quite often this leads to a lowerposition. In spite of that, skilfulness must not suffer.

· Ma Jiangbao, Tai Chi Chuan, Mach:Art, Ratingen 1998.

· Wu Yinghua, Ma Yueliang, Wushi Taijikuaiquan, Henan KexueJishu Chubanshi 1988.

Skilfulness

Ma Yueliang


Focus

When reading the classical texts of Taijiquanone will come across the word xin time and timeagain. For example, it is said in the “Mental expla-nation of the 13 basic movements”:

Xin is the commander, the qi is the flag andthe waist is the banner” or “first in the xin,then in the body”. (Wu, Ma, p. 90)

In everyday Chinese, xin means heart or feeling(the New Chinese-German Dictionary). Within traditional Chinese medicine the heart is the mostimportant of all internal organs. It carries a va rietyof functions: it controls the blood and the ves-sels. (see Maciocia, p. 71) It is also the locationwhere the human spirit (shen) lives. The state ofthe heart (xin) influences the spirit (shen) andvice versa. In particular, five functions are con-cerned: mental activity (including emotions), con-sciousness, memory, thinking, sleep.

It is said that if the heart is strong, mental acti -vities are normal and the emotional life is balan-ced. If the mind is clear, the intellect is sharp andsleep is deep.

In both Chinese philosophy and Taijiquan theo-ry the use of the term xin is linked to the mean -ing of the mind so often that xin can be under-stood to mean mind. The preconditions for thefunctioning of xin are described as follows inGuanzi (a book dated 330 BC that is intended toexplain the ideas of the philosopher Guan Zhongfrom the 7th century BC): “The heart is the rulerof the body. The bodily openings [sensory organs]are the executing servants for purposes of diffe-rentiation [of perception]. If the heart [accordingto] its dao is empty, then the nine openings [sen-sory organs] [function] according to their purpose.”(Kubny, p. 128)

The empty heart is here to be understood asa psychic phenomenon, viz. as an empty mind.An empty heart is the ideal state of the humanmind and expresses the emotional stability of thepsyche. In this state it is possible for human be -ings to avoid stress and to live life without fearand with equanimity. Emptiness is generally spea -king also a symbol for calmness, which is ex -pressed in a human being through the calm heart:

Guanzi: “If one calms the heart in the inside,then the qi becomes stronger. If one strengthens one’s heart, then the [perceptions] of ears and eyes are clear,and the four limbs are hard and firm.” (Kubny, p. 129)

The notion that emptiness or calmness is theideal state of xin and thereby of the whole humanbeing (body and psyche) is an important part ofChinese philosophical thinking, and can be foundin many authors’ writings. The development ofthe heart towards an ideal state leads, accordingto Daoists as well as Confucianists, to physicalhealth and to a kind of ideal personality.

For example, Mengzi expresses the idea of theunmoved heart (bu dong zhi xin), which is thebasis for a firm personality of a high moral nature.A person of this kind can achieve courage becauseof their unmoved heart. This leads to fearless ness,which is the basis for sincerity.

In the Taijiquan one finds the demand for acalm or quiet heart. It is said: “Calm xin, quiet qi(ping xin jing qi).” This saying describes as a wholethe demands that are put upon the personality

Xin, the Heart

19

Focus

of the student of Taijiquan. The ideal here is, quiteas it is with the Chinese philosophers, calm andbalanced human beings. This ideal is achievedthrough continuous work on oneself. Calm nessplays a central part in this. It is part of the fiveessential aspects of Taijiquan – jing (calmness),qing (lightness), man (slowness), qie (conscien-tiousness) and heng (perseverance). Follow ing onfrom Wu Yinghua and Ma Yueliang, it is in par-ticular the development of calmness that posesparticular demands for the student of Taijiquan.

“To calm the thoughts in the mind, which arelike turbulent water of a great river, is never easy,and is the common problem encountered by lear -ners. In our experience, the best way to achievecalmness is to concentrate the thoughts on do -ing the correct postures, and always try to keepthe mind in harmony with the movements ofhands, eyes, body and steps.” (Wu, Ma, p. 15)

Wu Yinghua and Ma Yueliang formulate hereone of the most essential tasks that the studentof Taijiquan has to do. In concen-trating on the conduct ofcalm and even move mentsof Taiji quan, breath ingulti mate ly will be po si ti vely con -trolled and theheart (xin)calmed:

“The respiration is regular,the qi has sunken into dantian.This is called the calmness of the body.The movements are light, dexterous,supple, and flowing, without jerks.This is referred to as the calmness of the heart...”(Ma Yueliang, in Wagner, Klüfer, p. 12)

· Das neue chinesisch-deutsche Worterbuch, The Commercial Press, Hong Kong 1986(The New Chinese-German Dictionary).

· Maciocia Giovanni, The Foundations of Chinese Medicine,Churchill Livingstone, London 1989.

· Wagner Nina, Klufer Werner, Wu-Stil Tai Chi Chuan, Mach:Art, Ratingen 1996.

· Wu Yinghua, Ma Yueliang, Wushi Taijiquan, Huanqiu Tushu Zazhi Zhubanshi, Hong Kong 1986.



Focus

Shen, the spirit

The word shen has many meanings, for example:god, gods, spirit, soul, energy, appearance. (seeNew Chinese-German Dictionary) In Chinese phi -losophy and medicine it is taken to mean all men -tal, emotional and spiritual aspects of hu manbeings. (see Macioca, p. 72) In connection withTaiji quan, shen should be translated as “spirit”;for example, in the classic text “Song of the 13basic movements”:

“With coccyx centered, and spirit rising up.” (Wu, Ma, 1991, p. 156)

In Chinese understanding, human beings consistof body, spirit (shen) and qi, which mediates bet-ween body and spirit. In the Daoist Huainanzi itsays:

“It is like this, that the ’bodily form’ xing is the abode of life.Qi is what fills life.The ’spirit’ shen is whatcontrols life. If [only] one [of these]components loses its position,damage will occur.” (Kubny, p. 154)

Parallel with this concept of human beings, WuYinghua and Ma Yueliang say:

“Taijiquan is a three-in-one exerciseof heart/mind (xin), of qi and of the body.”(Wu, Ma, 1986, p. 22)

The movement of body and the calming of theheart/mind create an ideal unity of the physicaland spiritual aspects of human beings. This unitycreates harmony and strengthens the qi in a na -tural way, without further influence.

It has to be pointed out here that the meaningof xin (heart/mind) in Taijiquan texts closely ap-proaches the meaning of shen. This is easilyunderstood if one considers that the heart (xin)hosts the spirit (shen). So, in translations of Chi -nese Taiji quan texts one finds frequently that xinis trans lated as spirit, not heart/mind, or thatshen is translated as mind.

· Das neue chinesisch-deutsche Wörterbuch, The Commercial Press, Hong Kong 1986 (The New Chinese-German Dictionary).

· Kubny, Manfred, Qi, Lebenskraftkonzepte in China, Haug-Verlag, Heidelberg 1995 (Qi, Concepts of Vitality in China).

· Maciocia Giovanni, The Foundations of Chinese Medicine,Churchill Livingstone, London 1989.

· Wu Yinghua, Ma Yueliang, Wu Shi Tai Jiquan, Huanqiu Tushu Zazhi Zhubanshi, Hong Kong 1986.

· Wu Yinghua, Ma Yueliang, Wu Style Taichichuan, Shanghai Book Co, Hong Kong 1991.


Focus

The meaning of qi in Taijiquan

Qi: energy, vitality, breath ...

There have been many attempts to find an ap pro-priate translation for qi. As early as 1682, AndreasCleyer translated qi into Latin as “spiritus sanctus”.During the 19th century the term “pneuma” (Gr.:breath) was favoured. But none of these transla-tions fully covers the term qi, since qi is a com-plex concept that has been used inconsistentlyin the history of Chinese thought.

A first approach to the understanding of the con-cept of qi can be taken from the etymology ofthe written sign qi (here shown in its long form).

Qi consists of the written signs

Steam, Gas and (raw) rice

This offers images of mist over fields of rice orsteam over boiling rice. These images suggest thatqi can have either a material or an immaterialcomponent, or that qi is the medium between thematerial and the immaterial. A more comprehen-sive etymology of the written sign qi can be foundin Manfred Kubny.Most of the important Chinese philosophies de -scribe the development of the cosmos as a seriesof separations from a unified state.

Focus

For example, Laozi (verse 42) says:

The way begets one;one begets two;two begets three;three begets the myriad creatures.The myriad creaturescarry on their backs the yinand embrace in their arms the yangand are the blending of the generative force [chongqi; flowing qi]of the two.(Lau, p. 63)

In these ideas about a developing cosmos, qi al -most always plays an important role. However,qi bears a different character in each philosophy.Qi can appear in the following forms:

• As substance, which was present at the originof the cosmos and which became differentia-ted from it during the cosmos’s development.(Daodejing, Yijing)

• As the finest matter (Guanzi) • As undifferentiated truth, which precedes all

things (Xunzi)• As the large emptiness, which takes on bodily

forms through compression (Zhong Zai)

Based on a thorough investigation of classicChi nese sources, Manfred Kubny developed

a series of characteristics which areto be associated with qi.

1. Qi is the very epitomeof “unity” in the sense

that there is only“one qi”. Qi has thecharacteristics ofunity and uni -formity re spec -tively.

2. Qi is in its fundamental state “empty” and inits formed state it takes on a “material nature”and becomes visible for human beings. Qi there-fore has the characteristic of emptiness.

3. Qi can be both “unmoving” as well as “moving”.Qi therefore has the characteristic of “movement”and “stillness”.

4. Qi tends towards “cyclic repetition” of move-ment and the alternation between “movement”and “stillness”, as they for example become visi-ble in the seasons, the course of the day and thechanges of the stars.

5. Qi is continuous “transformation” (also calledchange), which has to repeat itself cyclically, sothat life can occur and be sustained.

6. Qi has “penetrability” and “transcendence”.

22 Taijiquan-Lilun · Issue 1


Focus

7. In all its movements and states, qi tends to be“balanced”; in particular within closed systems,for example within living beings.

8. In the visible world qi is a phenomenon thatcontains its opposites (for example, fire and water)and it is therefore paradoxical. The absolute cate-gories of these opposites are presented in yin andyang and in the “diagram of taiji”. (Kubny, p. 422)

In order to understand the meaning of qi in Taiji -quan it is necessary to understand both the breadthof the concept of qi as well as the different func -tions of qi in the human body. In Chinese thinkingand cosmology human beings consist of a bodyand spirit as well as of qi. This qi, which is an in -herent part of human beings, manifests itself indifferent forms, which are in the end only theex pression of the universal qi. For example:

• yuanqi (original qi)• zongqi (essential qi)• yingqi (nourishing qi)• weiqi (defence-qi)

In Taijiquan one uses two forms of qi.(see Wu, Ma p. 20)

1. Qi as breathOne of the aims when practising Taijiquan is thedevelopment of breathing. The evenness of theTaijiquan form and the concentration of the bodyrelax the muscles and calm the spirit (shen) andthe heart/mind (xin). Thus deep breathing isachieved in a natural way. Wu Yinghua and MaYueliang comment:

“If the learner is skilled in taichichuan after a cer -tain period of earnest practice with correct brea-thing method and postures, his vital capacity maybe increased to 4000 c.c and the respiratory ratedecrease to ten times per minute. These effectsare usually attributed to intensified abdominalbreathing which allows the diaphragm to workmore strongly and effectively. It should empha-sized that these effects develop spontaneouslyafter a long time of practising Taijiquan and can-not be made intentionally.” (Wu, Ma, p. 20) See “Ziran – the concept of naturalness” , p. 6.

2. Qi as yuanqi (original qi )Yuanqi is in Taijiquan as well as in traditional Chi -nese medicine the vital energy of the body whichstems from the time before birth and is stored inthe kidneys. Yuanqi spreads in the body and chan-ges according to each part in a more specific qi.The more yuanqi is in the body, the stronger arethe internal organs and the more resistant theyare to illnesses. The principle “In movement is still-ness” and the harmonious and deep breathing ofTaijiquan strengthens the yuan qi in a natural wayand spreads through the whole body. In the classic“The song of the 13 basic movements” it is written:

“The qi goes throughout the bodywithout any stagnating.” (Wu, Ma, p. 156)

Ma Yueliang points out that one should not try toimagine the circulation of the qi and refers to theclassic “The mental explanation of the 13 basicmovements”:

“Put stress on the spirit,not the qi.Too much preoccupation with the qiresults in stagnancy.”(see Inside Kung-Fu, p. 49)

Answering the question posed by students of Taiji -quan as to what one does when one begins to feelthe flow of qi, Ma Yueliang replies: “He should keeppractising as usual.” (Inside Kung-Fu, p. 49)

· Inside Kung-Fu, 16 (12), Burbank 1988.

· Kubny, Manfred, Qi, Lebenskraftkonzepte in China, Haug-Verlag, Heidelberg 1995 (Qi, Concepts of Vitality in China).

· Lau, D. C. (transl.), Tao Te Ching, The Chinese University Press,Hong Kong 2001.

· Wu Yinghua, Ma Yueliang, Wu Style Taichichuan, Shanghai Book Co., Hong Kong 1991.


Documents

Taijiquan-Lilun 1