CLASS SYLLABUS STARTING 5/29/10
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TAIJI SWORD LINKS (PHOTOS AND VIDEOS) LIANG SHOU YU / YANG TAIJI SWORD FORM PHOTOS OF YANG SIMPLIFIED SWORD SET FIRST 14 MOVEMENTS
TAIJIQUAN FORM LINKS (PHOTOS AND VIDEOS) VIDEO OF FIRST SECTION OF YANG STYLE TAIJIQUAN
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Click on Wu Tunan's picture. |
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Diego's site is |
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The recommended books for Yang Style Taijiquan are:
Mastering Yang Style Taijiquan by Fu Zhongwen
Yang Style Tai Chi Chuan by Yang, Jwing Ming
The Complete Book of Tai Chi Chuan by Wong, Kiew Kit
Tao of Tai Chi Chuan by Jou, Tsung Hwa
For Chen Style Taijiquan, and for Yang students as well, the following books are excellent:
Tao of Tai Chi Chuan by Jou, Tsung Hwa
Chen Style Taijiquan by David Gaffney and Davidine Siaw-Voon Sim
Lost Tai-Chi classics from the late Ching Dynasty by Douglas Wile
Taijiquan Theory of Dr. Yang, Jwing Ming by Dr. Yang, Jwing Ming
The Illustrated Canon of Chen Family Taijiquan by Chen Xin, translation by Oleg Tcherne (751 pages)
The Tai Chi Boxing Chronicle by Kuo, Lien-Ying, translated by Guttmann
This is the current schedule of classes that I teach at local YMCA locations.
| DAY OF WEEK | TIME | LOCATION |
| SATURDAY | 7:30 AM - 8:30 AM | SOUTHWEST YMCA IN SARATOGA |
While practicing Taijiquan pay attention to the following points:
SUSPEND YOUR HEAD FROM THE CROWN
SINK THE CHEST AND PLUCK THE BACK
RELAX THE WAIST
DIFFERENTIATE BETWEEN SOLID AND EMPTY
SINK THE SHOULDERS AND ELBOWS
USE THE POWER OF THE MIND AND NOT STRENGTH OR FORCE
COORDINATION OF THE UPPER AND LOWER BODY
EXTERNAL AND INTERNAL COORDINATE
POSTURES MUTUALLY JOINED AND UNBROKEN
SEEK STILLNESS IN MOVEMENT
Spend at least a few minutes in the WUSHI posture that precedes the form.
Ideally spend an hour or more in this position.
Many people start their Taijiquan practice with only a second or two in the beginning position, which is too short a time.
It is very difficult to get into the right mindset and have your body and mind ready to begin Taijiquan if you spend only a few seconds in preparation.
If you spend a minimum of five minutes in this position, while evaluating the important points, then you will receive noticeable benefits.
Focus on the following points while standing in the beginning posture:
Foot position
Balance point on the feet (should be centered, not towards the balls of the feet, not towards the heels. However, realize that the heel and balls of the feet play an important role in being centered. Now if one gently lets the balance shift in the following pattern:
a. center of the feet
b. a little towards the balls of the feet
c. center of the feet
d. a little towards the heels of the feet
e. center of the feet
In other words, gently shift the weight forward and backward while being aware of the central neutral position. If you do this for five or ten minutes while spending at least ten seconds at each stage, like a slow motion rocking of the body, you will learn a lot about your balance as well as experience some excellent Qi flow in the lower extremities. Now, back to the points that you should focus on while standing in the beginning posture
The head should feel as if it is rising without using your muscles. Relax your neck muscles and imagine that your head is filled with helium. You will feel the top of the spine gently straighten out as you become more adept at this adjustment.
Tuck the pelvis
Root with the lower half of the body
Rise to the heavens with the upper half
Let your skeletal structure be lined up in such a way that you require the least amount of muscle to maintain this posture and position
If/when you feel stress in any part of your body, then visualize your breathing to be flushing and cleansing this area.
Breathe from your lower Dan Tien
Do not let your breathing rise up in the chest
Relax your body and mind
Use mirrors or glass to see your reflection, or film yourself to see how your posture is
Be aware of the Qi coming from the earth as well as the Qi falling from heaven
Beginning of Taijiquan (prior to beginning the form spend a few minutes in the beginning standing posture to allow your body and mind to relax / make the transition from WUSHI (emptiness) to Taiji to yin and yang)
Ward off left
Ward off right
Roll-back
Press
Push
Single Whip
Single Whip Posture (Tan Pien)
While practicing these movements focus on
relaxing the mind and body/correct the posture/strengthen the intent and spirit
proper alignment
correct balance
step lightly like a cat
only step as far as you can sink (in other words don't fall onto each new step)
if you can only sink a little, then take small steps
balance and being centered is more important than how far you can step
root to the ground and stretch to the heavens
let the body move the hands
root with the legs and feet/direct with the waist/manifest through the hands
thinking leads to feeling
be able to use left and right side of brain (analyze it then feel it)
make the move yours (feel what is happening / be conscious of what is real)
take the toughest movement and embrace it until it becomes your favorite technique
tuck the pelvis / stretch the head upwards like a string pulling up the head from the center
hollow the chest and pluck the back
keep the six main bows alive and strong (legs, arms and torso/back)
Focus on the first seven movements of the form, with emphasis on the four directions:
Peng (Ward off)
Lu (Roll back)
Ji (Press)
An (Push)
These movements are often referred to as "The circle within the square". The circle intersects with the square at the four cardinal directions, north south east and west.
On a later lesson we will cover the four diagonals:
Tsai (Pull down)
Lieh (Split)
Chao (Elbow strike)
Kao (Shoulder strike)
These four movements are often referred to as "The square within the circle". The square intersects with the circle at the four diagonals, north east, south east, north west and south west.
Within all of these 8 movements exists the property of PENG. This quality one can see in nature as in the springiness of a branch on a tree. PENG is not rigid, but is rather like a spring that becomes loaded when intersecting with the energy of others, and can expand outwards with great power once released.
The five bows of the body, arms, legs and trunk/back use the quality of PENG.
The 13 original Taijiquan Postures is a very old form that represented the following postures and concepts:
The four primary postures:
Peng (Ward off)
Lu (Roll back)
Ji (Press)
An (Push)
The four corner postures:
Tsai (Pull down)
Lieh (Split)
Chao (Elbow strike)
Kao (Shoulder strike)
The five directions:
Forward (Advance)
Backwards (Retreat)
Look left
Beware of the right
Center (Equilibrium)
The majority of Taijiquan postures use the concepts and postures of the original thirteen postures. Understanding the original thirteen postures can help lead to mastery of Taijiquan.
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FIRST SECTION
LONG FORM
YANG FAMILY TAIJIQUAN
Beginning of Tai-Chi (prior to beginning the form spend a few minutes in the beginning standing posture to allow your body and mind to relax)
Ward off left
Ward off right
Roll-back
Press
Push
Single Whip
Lift hand
White crane spreads wings
Brush knee and twist step, right
Playing guitar
Brush knee and twist step, right
Brush knee and twist step, left
Brush knee and twist step, right
Playing guitar
Brush knee and twist step, right
Step forward, deflect downward, intercept and punch
Withdraw and push
Cross hands
Corrections were covered on the first two postures.
Remember to keep in mind the main ten points of Taijiquan as you practice the form.
Relax the breathing and breathe in your lower belly, do not worry about when to breath in or out.
Be aware of your stepping, do not fall forward to the next step, but rather step softly and gently transfer the weight from one foot to the other. It's like sticking your foot out to test the temperature of the swimming pool. It is also similar to the type of movement a cat makes as it moves slowly towards its prey.
When stepping, only step out as far as you can sink. If you only sink a little bit, then your step should be correspondingly small. Never fall onto your step, which can lead to injury, poor posture, ineffectiveness in applying the techniques.
Keep the six bows alive (arms, legs and back/front).
Take one posture and practice it repeatedly.

To good practice and a healthy life
Patrick