There are five major traditions or schools in Tai Chi. Each of them have been named after the families who either have taught, or are currently teaching it. In addition to these five Tai Chi styles, many schools teach either a hybrid of a few styles, or else an integration of Tai Chi with another martial art discipline.
The Chen style is considered vigorous martial arts training. The most famous teacher of the Chen style was Chen Changking, who taught in the 1800s. Today, direct descendants of Chen are teaching the Chen technique in all parts of the world. The Wu style was created by Quan Wu. This style is characterized by small subtle movements. A major emphasis is placed on balance, sensitivity to your partner and internal force development.
The Wu Yuxiang style, which was developed by Wu Yuxiang is characterized by slow movement and strict footwork patterns. In this style, the chest and body are held upright while the body is in motion. The Sun style was created by Sun Lu-t'ang, who was considered to be an expert on internal martial arts. Small circular movement patterns, high stances and subtle footwork characterize this style.
The Yang style was developed by Yang Luchan in the 1800s. The style is a blend of soft and hard movements. Today, it is the most frequently practiced style of Tai Chi in the world. Yang Luchan was quite successful--he was commissioned to teach his method to the palace guards of the Chinese imperial family. Later, traditional Yang postures were modified by Cheng Man-Ching to make them shorter and simpler, as well as both easier to teach and learn. Cheng Man-Ching himself learned Tai Chi from Yang Cheng Fu, a grandson of Yang Luchan.
Although it is not considered a traditional Tai Chi form, Aikitaiji integrates forms, ideas, and functions from Yang-style short form Tai Chi, Aikido, Hsing-I, yoga, and warm-ups and floor work inspired by Moshe Feldenkrais, a judo master. When Sensei Jack Livingston started studying Tai Chi and Aikido in the 1970s, he found that the two forms "were more remarkable in their common attributes than in their differences." He was inspired by his teachers: Saul Krotki, Dale Gillilan, Rod Kobayashi, Mark Saito, and Ben Lo. We know that you will enjoy Aikitaiji.
The Tai Chi Push Hands is performed by two partners collaborating to improve each other's skills. It involves disrupting your partner's balance without resorting to the use of brute force. As you tune into your partner's rhythm and energy, you develop a keen intuition that enables you to sense their intentions and movements.
While you are practicing this form of harmonious movement, your partner's skin, muscles and spine will communicate important information to you. Use all of your senses to predict your partner's actions. Once you achieve movement harmony with your partner, you can redirect his or her strength and use it to your own advantage.
This redirection of energy is essential to the Push Hands exercise. It is used in lieu of the hitting, kicking or shoving that is often seen in other martial arts. In a sense, this form of "combat" serves a higher purpose. Imagine what could happen if we were able to redirect any verbal hostilities that are presented to us. Perhaps, we would discover an easier way to resolve conflicts and hopefully lead a less stressful life.
With these ideas in mind, it is important to understand that the Pushing Hands exercise is not merely a form of combat. Push Hands also serves to help the practitioner integrate the yin/receptive and yang/assertive principles. Although yin and yang are opposites, they are reliant upon each other in order to achieve wholeness. When you integrate yin and yang, your communication skills will improve, as well as your health and vitality. To learn more about these concepts, contact us at Aikitaiji.com
Hopefully, by now you have become convinced of the benefits of tai chi instruction. Finding the appropriate instructor is your next step. What sort of qualities and qualifications should you look for in a Tai Chi instructor? Here are just a few.
You will want to know how long the instructor has practiced Tai Chi. Ask who his or her teachers were, or what school he or she attended. In order for a tai chi instructor to be suitable for your own personal learning style, his philosophy should be in concert with your own. Don't be afraid to ask questions regarding his philosophies. This should not only include a personal philosophy about Tai Chi, but you will want to know about his philosophy of teaching in general.
If you have some specific form of disability, ask the instructor if he ever worked with a student who had the same sort of issues. You will also need to decide for yourself how much you want to be pushed. Does your potential instructor adhere to the "no pain, no gain" philosophy, or does he or she allow you develop at your own pace?
You can get a good idea of a tai chi teacher's teaching skills by asking him how he would describe tai chi to someone who had never heard of the form. Also, ask him how he keeps his students engaged in the learning process, and how he brings freshness and creativity to the learning experience. Finally, if you want to get a sense of our instructor, Jack Livingston, we ask in deep humility that you read his writings, and bio.
Many Westerners are often surprised to discover that tai chi can be used effectively for self-defense. However, for centuries, Chinese Tai Chi masters have practiced Tai Chi as a form of martial arts. In fact, some instructors believe that the cultivation of internal forces that can be applied in a combat situation is a crucial element of Tai Chi's health improvement process.
Internal force cultivation and the resulting defense applications are the ultimate manifestation of the principles of yin and yang. The yielding force represents the "yin" element in tai chi, while the martial applications are the embodiment of the "yang" principle. If a tai chi student has cultivated internal forces but has no combat practice, he might be capable of sustaining punches without incurring any sort of injury. However, it is highly unlikely that he would be able to defend himself in a real street fight.
Conversely, someone who has spent a good deal of time practicing martial forms without spending any time developing their internal force may find himself wasting his external energy, which his partner can easily deflect and use to his advantage. This would constitute an excellent example of two of the basic principles of martial tai chi. The principle of the soft overcoming the hard refers to the ability to use intuition to detect, divert and redirect the partner's intent to attack.
The principle of stillness overcoming movement is actually in reference to the stillness of the mind that is required in order to sense your partner's intent. Both the spiritual aspects as well as the martial applications are born of the inner intelligence that is vital to tai chi practice.
At Aikitaiji, our integration of tai chi and Aikido forms honor both the spiritual and martial applications of these forms. See Theater for videos demonstrating tai chi applications.
The philosophy of the martial aspects of tai chi can be summed up by this poem found in a Chinese Shaolin temple:
I would rather maim than kill
Hurt than maim
Intimidate than hurt
Avoid than intimidate
For this reason, most tai chi instructors prefer that their students first master the defensive or neutralizing skills prior to learning any of the offensive maneuvers.
In fact, some traditional tai chi teachers require their students to go through two phases of development before learning to use tai chi as a martial arts form. The first phase involves the improvement of health. Tai Chi masters believe that an unhealthy person will be unable to achieve the relaxed meditative state that is needed for efficient martial expression. Therefore, in the primary learning stages of Tai Chi, the student concentrates on relieving the physical effects of chronic stress on their body and mind.
Once a significant amount of stress is reduced, the student will find it easier to focus on the meditative aspects of tai chi. It is this meditative state that enables the student to practice harmonious movements with his or her partner. Meditation puts the mind in an alpha state. Alpha states have been associated with enhanced intuition, and intuition plays a paramount role in martial tai chi.
The meditative state also allows the practitioner to keep their mind focused in the present. Extraneous thoughts are cleared from the mind, and the student can concentrate on the purpose of the specific forms, push hands, and techniques. Once a clear understanding of the form's purpose is achieved, it becomes easier to apply your intent.
Aikitaiji, though, is a unitive art rather than sequential. The philosophy of Aikitaiji is that the meditative, health and martial aspects of tai chi, aikido, and other forms proceed together through our integrated curriculum. Offense cannot be divorced from defense and defense cannot be separated from health, as yin cannot be separated from yang. In Aikitaiji, all aspects are coordinated from the beginning.
In this busy, time-pressed world, many people find that they don't have time to attend tai chi classes. At Aikitaiji.com, we offer the opportunity to study online in an interactive way that allows you to receive individualized corrections, a very unique facet of our program. But first, you are probably asking, "What is tai chi, and why is it good for me?"
Tai Chi Chuan is an internal martial art form that was developed by the Chinese as early as 700 years ago. It is based on a philosophy commonly shared by many Chinese doctors, who believe that illness is prevalent when the flow of the body's internal energies, called "chi" are either blocked or unbalanced. The practice of tai chi can improve balance, coordination, grace and flexibility. It can also relieve the symptoms of migraines, hypertension and asthma.
The Arthritis Foundation also recommends tai chi practice as a suitable exercise form for sufferers of arthritis. The continuous coordination of breath with fluid movement makes tai chi an excellent technique for people who deal with chronic anxiety. A study performed in Atlanta in 1996 involved elderly people practicing tai chi for 15 weeks. They reduced their risk of falls by 47.5 percent! Participants in this same study also lowered their blood pressure.
The integration of health benefits, meditation in motion and martial arts training makes tai chi a valuable form of training.
Aikido training is generally focused on two specific goals: physical perfection of the martial art movements and psychological/spiritual transformation. The psychological/spiritual goal focuses on creating a sense of unity with the universe. This unity eventually allows the practitioner to use their wisdom to contribute to the resolution of conflict. While this may seem contradictory for a martial art, if you were to observe an aikido session, it would perhaps seem more logical.
Aikido training is almost always practiced with a partner. The uke, or "the one who is thrown," and the nage, or "the one who leads" must stay focused on each other. While they are engaged, they are constantly blending and flowing with each other. As the students learn to re-direct their partner's actions, they also learn to control their tendency to overreact to opposing forces.
Remaining centered at all times is crucial to aikido training, and this can be carried out in situations outside the dojo. Life is a battlefield, and the dojo is a place where the battles are played out, but always resolved. Centering is also pertinent to the physical aspects of aikido. All force in aikido movements is generated from the practitioner's center of gravity. This allows the aikidoist to remain stable and balanced at all times. This sense of being grounded and centered is actually essential to all sports. Once someone accomplishes this, they are able to swiftly react to all outside forces.
While aikido training enhances endurance, strength and flexibility, the movements themselves do not depend on strength. This makes it a "user friendly" martial art form that can be practiced by people of all levels of fitness. At Aikitaiji, we blend aikido training with tai chi in a method we are sure you will enjoy.
Welcome to our cyber-dojo at Aikitaiji.com, we are so glad that you found us. If you have come to us from far-away places, we offer online training. However, if you are from Salt Lake City, we offer a martial art training program in the area.
Although martial arts are generally associated with self defense, the training can also be used for sport conditioning. Martial artists have the lowest incidence of ACL injury. Our barefoot training improves proprioception and balance, which can in turn improve sport performance. Aikitaiji martial art training enhances agility and improves reaction time. We teach a mind/body integration technique that helps improve concentration skills while promoting a general feeling of well-being. The fluidity of our movements increases dynamic flexibility. Dynamic flexibility is flexibility in motion. Sports medicine experts believe this to be a more functional form of flexibility training than static stretching. Aikitaiji will also teach you one of the most important skills a sport enthusiast needs to learn. We teach you how to fall, and how to get up from a fall.
Check our Classes page for up-to-date information. Please be sure to wear loose, comfortable clothing, and please read our dojo rules before coming to class. We hope you enjoy your time on our site.
Internal martial art describes a spiritual discipline rather than just a physical boxing system, and is characterized by the alternation of yin and yang. Internal form and technique is characterized by a gathering of chi energy followed by an extension or explosion of chi.
Softness involves using “internal energy” or chi as opposed to hard muscular force. This is also the basis of the fabulous health benefits of practicing soft martial art.
A soft strike is rooted in the feet and springs from the ligaments and tendons like a pliable live willow branch. A hard strike uses tense, rigid muscular force like the power delivered by a club or a bat.
Most importantly, soft is what you meet an attack with in order to neutralize it and hard is the symmetrical balance applied to the vacated place. Many push- hands students misunderstand the concept of softness, and become offended if you push them. The idea they've missed is that soft is what you meet hard with when neutralizing an attack, not what you push with when you counter an attack. Push is yang, yielding is yin.
Aikitaiji is an internal martial art. Aikitaiji training uses a balanced-approach that teaches the student to blend and yeild to an attacker, and to assert power when and where it is needed.
Read Aikitaiji Memos to learn more about internal martial art philosophy.
Aikitaiji is a blend of two martial arts: aikido and tai chi. The Japanese martial art called aikido was developed by Morihei Ueshiba, who referred to it as "the art of love" and "the art of peace." Disciples of Ueshiba often refer to him as "O Sensei." Aikido differs from other martial art forms in that its focus is on using your opponent's energy against them, as opposed to punching and kicking. The spherical, total body movements revolve around a stable center of gravity. The word "aikido" can be translated as "The Way of Harmony of the Spirit," or "The Way of Unity with the Fundamental Force of the Universe."
After O Sensei's death in 1969, some of his students carried out his work. The dynamic nature of aikido made it subject to differing interpretations of the Sensei's original martial arts form. As a result, we now see many different styles of aikido.
The older aikido techniques were developed before World War II. They bear a closer resemblance to jujutsu, the martial arts form O Sensei practiced before he developed aikido. Aiki-Budo is similar to jujutsu. Yoseikan blends judo and karate. Yoshinkan is a robust technique which is taught to the Japanese police.
Of the modern schools of aikido, Shin-Shin Toitsu deserves special mention. This is probably one of the softest of all of the aikido styles. Shin-Shin Toitsu aikido training focuses on the concept of Ki, and how it can be used your daily life to create a unity of body mind and spirit. Sensei Jack's earliest influence and training was in Shin-Shin Toitsu. Aikitaiji combines the body mind elements of the aikido and tai chi with a practical combat style that can be used for self defense.
see video examples of aikitaiji blending of aikido and tai chi ideas and techniques in aikitaiji theater
I've taught thousands of hours of Aikido and Tai Chi since 1980. The two arts, equal tributaries to my personal growth, were more remarkable in their common attributes than in their differences.
In January 1977, I began to study Tai Chi (and Hsing I) from Saul Krotki (an authorized student of Cheng Man Ching). I was grateful to find a teacher with such skill in short form, push hands, sword form and Tai Chi fencing. I had read about the great Cheng and these wondrous gifts of his but never dreamed that I would have such an opportunity to learn them in Salt Lake.
At the same time I began to study Aikido, which Master Fumio Toyoda told me was the same art as Tai Chi. Mr Toyoda showed me an Aikido technique that exactly shadowed a piece of Yang Cheng Fu's Tai Chi form (brush knee kokyu nage). I had suspected it for a long time, but Master Toyoda proved it to me--their DNA match.
In 1998, unable to keep the arts apart any longer, I started teaching a style of Tai Chi that I call "Aiki" in order to differentiate it from Folk Dance Improvisational Tai Chi, and to relate it to Aikido which shares the same basic, definitive, principles in different martial vocabulary.
Aiki refers to the interdependent, synergistic communion of energy, and Tai Chi is the undifferentiated cosmos, so the implication is that you may use this art to merge your personal energy with the energy of the universe.
Aikitaiji synthesizes many common, elementary concepts and understanding defined in classical, internal martial art, supplementing one art with insights from the other, validated experimentally.
The art that I teach is different from Tai Chi and Aikido as they are commonly recognized, but correspond literally with the basic principles that define both arts. I've done very little renovation, and much more complilation, leaving the parts that make up the art basically intact.
