the way of wujimon

The Hinge:

URL: www.youtube.com/watch?v=IkQ1ghgXaYs

Side to Side:

URL: www.youtube.com/watch?v=dg0rr9Q5Juo

Each practice has provided *me* insight to the other. What is the relationship between The Hinge AND Side to Side.  Hmm ...

Shang Lee made a comment about reading a great article titled Chen Zhonghua and his Chen Style Taijiquan Practical Method found on Master Chen Zhonghua's blog.  I have no doubt the article was good, however since I'm unable to read in chinese, I couldn't share in his excitement. 

I tried to "google translate" thing but that didn't make much sense. So I asked Shang if he could translate the article into english.  It's much better to have a native chinese speaker who also practices taijiquan translate a taiji article. There are a lot of subtle taiji principles and theories that may get glossed over by the average translator.

After some dialogue between Master Chen and Shang, there is now an English translation of the article for all to English readers to enjoy ;)  Click the link below to read the article:

Chen Zhonghua and his Chen Style Taijiquan Practical Method (Part 1) - Translated

Hat Tip to Shang Lee ;)

[image via Attending the World]

Something I've been thinking about lately is the idea of rigidity, rules and systems. Am I more inclined to participate if there are many restrictions placed upon a given system?  What is the role of creativity and exploration? Is it better to be given a few underlying principles in order to allow room for exploration?

Life is too short. As the saying goes, "The worst thing you can do is nothing."

I recently had the opportunity to learn the Chen Taijiquan Practical Method Yilu from Internal Arts IA (aka JB).  We have known each other for quite some time now, so it was great to catch up with an old friend while receiving instruction and correction on my form. Below is a critical principle that I received correction on.  Intellectual understanding is very different than physical manifestation. Eyes ALWAYS on the Opponent One of the first corrections I received from JB was to always keep my eyes on the opponent. By always, he meant ALWAYS at ALL TIMES. I have the tendency to look around before an execution of the movement.  Additionally, I was often caught following my hand as it moved. The idea of "eyes follow hand" is common in other taiji styles, but it's a very big NO-NO in the Chen Practical Method. Why? The body tends to follow the eyes. In taiji, we often hear about the term: Yin-Yang separation.  I've come to realize that this separation not only applies to physical actions, but also to non-physical components.  During the execution of a movement, if I look down to check my stance, my whole structure collapses. If I look around, the structure breaks. I have previously written about the impact of looking down to check stances, and now realize that looking around can also impact one's structure. To assist in the correction, JB would stand in front of me and tell me to focus on him. Think as if I am attacking him. When I did this, JB noted that my structure was MUCH better.  He said it was like "night and day" in terms of alignment. If you think about this concept martially, then of course it makes sense. Never take your eyes off the opponent. We did a bit of application work and I noticed that during the whole thing, I NEVER took my eyes off JB.  We often hear the term "shadow boxing", but does that mean take your eyes off the opponent? I think not. If we claim to practice a martial art, shouldn't we train martially?

… Play therapy is an approach to counseling children that allows them to use toys, play activities and art materials to communicate with others. …

The purpose of this article is to illustrate how appropriate application of a modified Taiji push-hand game can assist youth in gaining insight into their intrapsychic (within themselves) and interpersonal (between individuals) patterns of interaction, and the factors that maintain these patterns, and elements that may contribute to the resolution of issues and improved state of functioning and quality of life .

-- Source: Benefits of Taijiquan in Play Therapy With Children and Adolescents by John Upshaw | Into Mountains Over Streams – International Journal of Qigong & Taiji Culture, online.

John Upshaw is a Chen Taiji Practical Method Practitioner and a student of William Krumm, a disciple of Master Chen Zhonghua.

“The method is not the truth, once you get the feeling, get rid of the method” -- Rick @ wujifa

Video: URL: www.youtube.com/watch?v=9e72IE2casY The Wujifa video, Basic Models and Concepts, discusses a couple of paradigms within the Wujifa system as well as guides and pointers for identifying if you’re on the right path. At a high level, the paradigms are: Mechanical Man Paradigm: A focus on the 1-2-3-4, and results in the continuous adjustment like a sectional mechanical man. Growing the Seed Paradigm: Fascia connection growing throughout the body.  Top is light, the bottom is heavy. Feeling of weight drop into the quads. For more details, check out the video above and then click through and read the companion blog post on the wujifa blog.