Author’s note: If you are not familiar with the preceding part(s) of this article, my suggestion is to first read Part 1, which contains a more complete introduction. For those who may be dropping in without having read preceding parts,…
Four Things That Are Always True: A Contemplative Meditation Program
New! Listen to an AI generated podcast summary and discussion of this article . . . There are four things that are always true. This is a humanities treatise, so by “things” I am not referring to scientific laws or…
Do the Origins of Taijquan Matter? Part 1: The Answer
Knowing the origins and original purpose of taijiquan (tai chi) and the internal martial arts will help you to walk a straight path in your practice.
Entering the Door: Understanding and Training the Learned Power of the Chinese Martial Arts – Introduction Part II
Part II of the introduction to the training series “Entering the Door: Understanding and Training the Learned Power of the Chinese Martial Arts.”
Entering the Door: Understanding and Training the Learned Power of the Chinese Martial Arts – Introduction Part I
Part I of the introduction to the video series “Entering the Door: Understanding and Training the Learned Power of the Chinese Martial Arts.”
Sample Intermediate Taiji Class
Instead of a typical blog entry on theory and mechanisms of taiji practice, I thought we’d just share a typical taiji class in this post. Below is a video playlist of portions of our Feb 18, 2021 virtual Zoom class…
Two poems and understanding peng/lu/ji/an/cai/lie/zhou/kao
One purpose of poetry is to communicate succinctly. My favorite songwriter John Prine was certainly a poet—he could tell an entire story in one sentence. (The day after I wrote this, John Prine was pronounced Illinois’ first poet laureate 🙂…
Bringing practice to daily life – Part II: the foundational application of meditation and the simplest qigong
In Part I of this article we discussed two simple methods to bring the physical principles of taiji (tai chi) and qigong practice to daily life. Here we complete our short list by suggesting two additional mental/spiritual, or mind/body/spirit integrative…
Bringing practice to daily life – Part I: physical principles
The taiji (tai chi) classics refer to the ultimate purpose of practice: . . . with your whole being, develop your life. Taiji is a multi-dimensional (physical/mental/spiritual) and multi-modal (combining balance, strength, coordination, dynamic stretching, and moderate aerobic) form of…
Variables of Form Practice— Part II: The Other Side
In Part I of this article on variables of form practice we addressed when and why one should practice faster taiji (tai chi) forms. Here we take up another variable: practicing “the other side.” I understand that practicing the mirror…
Variables of Form Practice— Part I: The Benefit of Faster Forms
Should you practice taiji (tai chi) form at variable speeds? Should you practice “the other side?” Both are common questions with the same answer: yes, absolutely yes! But one must understand why and when to incorporate these variables for efficient…
Why Standing?
My Experience in Learning Standing Meditation Standing meditation was not taught a great deal when I started taiji in the late 1980s. I learned from a great local teacher, and as this was pre-internet times, supplemented my learning by routinely…
The foundation of the foundation of the foundation of taiji
In recent blogs I have written a great deal about the physical mechanisms of taiji (tai chi) movement, internal power, and understanding martial application. Here I thought it worthwhile to return to the foundation (sitting meditation) of the foundation (qigong)…
Eight characteristics of taiji (tai chi) movement
In Part I of our article “What’s the Difference?” I listed seven characteristics of taiji (tai chi) movement. Based on questions/comments received, I thought it worthwhile to expound a bit on each of these. The goal here was to make…
What’s the difference? Part II: comparing taiji and external arts
From a physical perspective, in taiji (tai chi) we are fundamentally training balance, flexibility, coordination, power, efficiency of force exertion, sensitivity/reaction, agility, and confidence. This is the gong of gongfu—without which technique is empty. All of these are, of course,…