Directing qi during Taiji

[yeniseri]

rakyat,

forget about qi.

1. Relax body mind and spirit
2. Practice as you were taught whehter zhanzhuang,or individual posture training
3. Assuming your teacher is above average, qi will take care of itself if you were taught properly

[Sifu Stier]

Initially it is best to merely relax the body as much as possible when practicing Tai-Chi Chuan....ever attentive to discovering areas of unreleased tension....while breathing naturally...deeply...and slowly in harmony with the slowness of the movement patterns. This allows the chi to sink downward to Tan-Tien...along with the center of gravity...and to gradually awaken and circulate from the Tan-Tien to all parts of the body. This process happens naturally and effortlessly with proper practice on a daily basis.

Upon becoming aware of the awakened chi...and feeling its presence and movement in different parts of the body...one can then mentally follow the energy flows for however long they last. In this way...by envisioning where energy movement sensations were felt internally...the repetition of such sensations is both encouraged and enhanced or magnified. This is allowing the process to unfold naturally rather than attempting to consciously force it move anywhere in particular. As such...one is following the chi more than leading it.

Later...with more practice experience and a resulting higher skill level...one can merely imagine the movement of the chi as previously felt when practicing...and the same sensations will again be felt in the same parts of the body...even without actually performing the exercises!

So just let the tension go...and let the energy flow! Good luck!

[No.6]

I forgot to mention, (this might be obvious) but in Taiji don't be stiff, I see alot of people doing this, ESPECIALLY if they are karate.

That's odd, all I work on in karate is looseness. How can the force generated against the ground continue up the leg, through the hip, up the spine, into the shoulder, down the arm and through the fist to the target if I stop it halfway there with tension?

[TenTigers]

Your Yi leads your ch'i. I have found that when I know the application, I bisualise/feel myself doing it when I play the set. In doing so, I immediately feel energy in that area. Mo intent, no Ch'i.

[shuharicrane]

I have been training taiji for nearly four years now, an amount of time that amounts to only a drop in the bucket. But I have 14 years of training experience in Karate, which although is a relatively small amount of time to some, is ultimately over half of my life.

I agree with No.6, loseness, relaxation, softness, "Song", or however you choose to define it, is not a concept that is owned or exclusive to the so called internal arts. Sure it is something that internal arts are specifically good at demonstrating, but there are things that every art exemplifies well, and things that those same arts do not well exemplify. Which is why it is important to cross train in the first place, so that as warriors, teachers and human beings, we are more complete, physically, mentally, and spiritually.

Furthermore, in the region in which I train, the reverse is true. Here it seems that those who have only Taiji training are more stiff than those who have had training in Karate (or in other arts). Here it is difficult to find a quality Taiji instructor. In other places, I'm sure it is difficult to find a quality Karate instructor, making the competency of relaxation in students who cross train the two arts lessened.

If I have a student that happens to have brown hair and is not demonstrating a particular technique up to par, then I tell that student. What I do not do is go out and find every brown haired individual that trains the same art as myself and try to become their instructor. Frankly, my time could be better spent in the classroom with my students. The old maxim holds true, "Don't judge a book by its cover."