t f lam yiquan

 Tu-KyLam'sTaijiquanandYiquansite  Tu-KyLam'sTaijiquanandYiquansite Zhan-zhuangandwholebodyforce ByTu-KyLam Believeitornot,youngchildren nowhowtousewholebodyforcefrombirth.I fyouhaveeverletatoddlerholdyourfinger,andtrytosha eoffhisgrip,y ouwillfinditnoteasy,becauseheisholdin ouwillfinditnotea sy,becauseheisholdingyouwiththeforceofh gyouwiththeforceofhiswhole iswhole body. Aswegrowolder,ourmusclesgetbiggerandstronger,wecanjustuse Aswegrowolder,ourmusclesgetbiggerands tronger,wecanjustuseourhands ourhands orarmstodoeverythinginourdailylife,a orarmstodoeveryth inginourdailylife,andnolongneedtouseth ndnolongneedtousetheforceo eforceo fthewholebody.Weenduplosingthisinstinct. Internalmartialartistswanttorevivethisinborntalentsothatthey Internalmartialartistswanttorevivethisi nborntalentsothattheycanbes canbes trongerandsoimprovetheirs ill.Taijiquan,Xingyiquan,Yiquan,andBaguazh angalltrytoachievethisgoaldifferently: angalltrytoachieve thisgoaldifferently:bydoingtheroutines,by bydoingtheroutines,bystepping stepping ,andbyzhan-zhuang(standingpractice).Ofa ,andbyzhan-zhuang( standingpractice).Ofallthesemethods,themos llthesemethods,themosteffecti teffecti veoneiszhan-zhuangbecauseitcanquic lybuildupastructure(posture)ino urbody,fromwhichthewholebodyforcecanb urbody,fromwhichth ewholebodyforcecanbeproducedandreleased. eproducedandreleased. Physicalandmentalchanges Themainreasonisthatzhan-zhuangcanma eourbones,tendons,ligamentsandm uscleswor togethersothatours togethersothatourstrengthcaneasilymove trengthcaneasilymovefromourfeetthrough fromourfeetthrough ourlegs,torso,arms,handsandreleased.Our ourlegs,torso,arms, handsandreleased.Ourmindandbodieswillund mindandbodieswillundergoalo ergoalo tofchangesthroughdoingzhan-zhuangandso tofchangesthroughd oingzhan-zhuangandsowebecomefitterandstro webecomefitterandstronger.Our nger.Our thin ingwillbeclearerand ingwillbeclearerandwearemoreconfident.H wearemoreconfident.HereIwillexplaintoyou ereIwillexplaintoyou howthishappens. Let'sstartwithours eleton,whichisthesupportofourbody.Ours eletonis mainlymadeupofbones.Ifourbonesarebig mainlymadeupofbon es.Ifourbonesarebig,hardandheavy,wewill ,hardandheavy,wewillhaveeno haveeno rmousstrength.Iftheyaresmallandlight,w rmousstrength.Ifthe yaresmallandlight,wewillhavemuchlessstr ewillhavemuchlessstrength.Zh ength.Zh an-zhuangisaprocessthatma esourboneshardenedandheaviertoproducemore force.Thosewhopracticezhan-zhuangcanfee force.Thosewhoprac ticezhan-zhuangcanfeelthishappenintheirbo lthishappenintheirbody. dy. Ourligamentsjoinourbonestogetherinours eleton.Ourligamentscancontrac torstretchalittlebitwhenwerun,jump,r torstretchalittle bitwhenwerun,jump,releasepower,etc.Whenw eleasepower,etc.Whenwejumpdo ejumpdo wnfromafourfeetheightandnothurtoursel wnfromafourfeethe ightandnothurtourselves,thisisbecauseour ves,thisisbecauseourligaments ligaments wor asashoc absorbentwhichabsorbstheshoc . Ifourligamentsarestrongandtough,wewillhavemorestrength,and Ifourligamentsarestrongandtough,wewill havemorestrength,andsocanru socanru nfaster,jumphigher,andreleasemorestreng nfaster,jumphigher, andreleasemorestrength.Zhan-zhuanghelpsto th.Zhan-zhuanghelpstoma ma eour ligamentsbecomebiggerandtougher. Othertissuesinourbodythatperformsimilarroletoourligamentsar Othertissuesinourbodythatperformsimilar roletoourligamentsareourten eourten dons,whichconnectourmusclestoourbones. dons,whichconnectou rmusclestoourbones.Zhan-zhuangcanma Zhan-zhuangcanma eourtendonsa ndmusclestougher,biggerandstrongerinthe ndmusclestougher,bi ggerandstrongerinthesamewayastheydotoo samewayastheydotoourligame urligame nts.Peoplewhospendalotoftimedoingzhan-zhuanggrowbul ierandstronger, andtheirmindismuchclearer.Thecoordinat andtheirmindismuc hclearer.Thecoordinationbetweenthemindand ionbetweenthemindandthebody thebody isbetteraswell. Pengenergy Itisquiteeasytofeelyourtendonstenseuptoproducestrength.Dur Itisquiteeasytofeelyourtendonstenseup toproducestrength.Duringzhaningzhanzhuang,ma esureyourfingersare esureyourfingersareslightlybentwithaga slightlybentwithagapbetweenthem,andma pbetweenthem,andma esureyouremembertobendyourthumbsforabout esureyouremembertobe ndyourthumbsforaboutfortydegrees.(Imaginin fortydegrees.(Imaginingyou gyou

rhandsaregrabbingaballishelpfulifyoudonotfeelthepengener rhandsaregrabbingaballishelpfulifyou donotfeelthepengenergy.Myst gy.Myst udentssaytheyfeeltheirhandsareli etheclawsofaneagle,whichisquite true.)Thenyoucanfeelveryquic lythatyourthumbsandtendons(onyourarms )arebringingalotofstrengthtoyourfingersandpalmma ingthemverystron g. Pleasenotethatthebendingofyourthumbsdoesnotrequirealotoff Pleasenotethatthebendingofyourthumbsdo esnotrequirealotofforce,but orce,but surprisingly,itcanbringalotofstrength surprisingly,itcan bringalotofstrengthtoyourhandsandma toyourhandsandma eyourarmss trongli eabow.Yourarmsarefu eabow.Yourarmsarefullof"peng"energy,but llof"peng"energy,butyouarenotusingal youarenotusingal otofforce.Withthispengenergyyoucanattac orwardoffanincomingforce quiteeasily.Youarerelaxedandyetpowerful quiteeasily.Youare relaxedandyetpowerful.ThisisPengenergyat .ThisisPengenergyatwor wor . Pengenergyisindispensableinpush-handsaswithoutpengyoucannotd Pengenergyisindispensableinpush-handsas withoutpengyoucannotdopush-ha opush-ha ndsproperlyandimprove.Whenteachersteach ndsproperlyandimpro ve.Whenteachersteachpush-hands,mostofthem push-hands,mostofthemjusttell justtell theirstudentstorelaxandnottouseforce. theirstudentstorel axandnottouseforce.Whenstudentsdoasthey Whenstudentsdoastheyaretold aretold ,theyalwaysgetpushedoffbalance.Sothey ,theyalwaysgetpush edoffbalance.Sotheystarttouseforcetopre starttouseforcetopreventfrom ventfrom beingpushed.Theyareusingforceagainstforce. Touseforceinpush-handsiswrongbutnottouseforceisalsowrong. Touseforceinpush-handsiswrongbutnotto useforceisalsowrong.Youneed Youneed tohavethepengenergywhendoingpush-hands tohavethepengener gywhendoingpush-hands.Thetroubleisthatmos .Thetroubleisthatmostpeople tpeople donot nowwhatpengenergyi nowwhatpengenergyis.Ifthesestudentsspe s.Ifthesestudentsspendtimedoingzhan-zhuang ndtimedoingzhan-zhuang everyday,andbendtheirthumbsandfingersa everyday,andbendth eirthumbsandfingersasdescribedabovetoprod sdescribedabovetoproducethep ucethep engenergy,theirproblemwillbefixedinstan engenergy,theirprob lemwillbefixedinstantly.Theywillnotgetpu tly.Theywillnotgetpushedeasi shedeasi lyandtheycanpushtheiropponentmoreeasil lyandtheycanpusht heiropponentmoreeasily.Theirpush-handss y.Theirpush-handss illwillta eoff.Pengenergyisboughtaboutbydoingzh eoff.Pengenergyis boughtaboutbydoingzhan-zhuang.Itisasignt an-zhuang.Itisasignthatyour hatyour wholebodybeginstoconnecttogetherasaunit. Gatheringandreleasingofpower Withconstantzhan-zhuangpractice,ourbodyweightand"Jin"(spelled Withconstantzhan-zhuangpractice,ourbodyw eightand"Jin"(spelledasjingi asjingi nChinesepinyin,meaninginternalstrength)w nChinesepinyin,mean inginternalstrength)willbeabletosin illbeabletosin toourfeet.W ecanfeelthatourfeetareli edbeingplantedintheground.Ourinternalstr engthstartstodevelopandgetsstrongerwith engthstartstodevelo pandgetsstrongerwithourpractice(ofzhan-zh ourpractice(ofzhan-zhuang). uang). Fromourfeet,ourjincanbereleasedthroughthepushingofourfeet Fromourfeet,ourjincanbereleasedthrough thepushingofourfeetintothe intothe ground.Howdowedothis?Generallyspea ing,inthe"Embrace-a-Tree"posture, ourbac leg(hip, neeandfoot)pushestowardsthefrontlegandatthesamet imeourfrontlegpushesdownintothegroundtobra e(stoptheforwardmovemen tofthebac leg).Thetwoforcesfro leg).Thetwoforcesfromourlegswillmergeto mourlegswillmergetosendjinuptoou sendjinuptoou rhandsandout. Butanadvancedpractitionerwill nowthattheprocessismuchmorecomplicated thanthis.Beforethereleaseofpower,there thanthis.Beforethe releaseofpower,thereisashortbriefgatheri isashortbriefgatheringofene ngofene rgyorjin.Wewillneedtositproperlyonou rgyorjin.Wewillne edtositproperlyonourlegs,liftthetopofo rlegs,liftthetopofourheadu urheadu p(unfortunatelynotmanypeoplecandothisp p(unfortunatelynotm anypeoplecandothisproperly),andletourene roperly),andletourenergyandj rgyandj insin totobottomofourfeet.Thenwema eourrealhipmovebac slightlya ndwesitslightlymoreontherearleg.(Whenwesitbac ,our neesmoveaway fromeachotherfront neegoesslightlyforwardsandbac neebac wards.Ourle gsareli eholdingaballoonint eholdingaballoonintheshapeofarugbyball heshapeofarugbyballwhichisexpanding.O whichisexpanding.O urbac legpushesintothegroundwhileourfrontlegs,withthe neemovingou tandheelliftingup,pushesupwardsandbac wardstosendjinslightlybac war ds.)Thisisthegatheringofourenergy. Whenwereleasepower,our neesandhipsmoveclosertoeachother(ourfronth eelwillmovedowntotheground,whichwilli eelwillmovedownto theground,whichwillinturnbringourfront nturnbringourfront neebac a tthesametimeourbac neemovesforwards.Ourhipswillmoveinaccordancew ithour nees)andourbac legpushestowardthefrontlegwhichwillpushesin totheground.Thisishowourlegswor whenreleasingpower. Inourupperbody,ourtorsohastomoveforwardtopushourarmsforwa Inourupperbody,ourtorsohastomoveforwa rdtopushourarmsforwardstore rdstore leasepower.Manymastersli etodescribethemovementli ethis.Theforearms

areli eanailandthetorsoasledgehammerwhichstri eshardatthenail.Thi sisanexampleofreleasingpowertothefront.Releasingpowertothebac is thereverseofthismovementwhilereleasingpowertotheleftorrightisonly avariationofthis.Practicethepowerdischargeexercisesinfourdirectionsw illhelpperfectthiss ill. Conclusion Zhan-zhuangtrainsonourbones,ligaments,tendons,andmusclestoma ethemwo r harmoniouslytoproducewholebodyforce.Itbuildsupagoodstructureinou rbodytoma ethestrengthofourwholebodywor togetherasaunitallthest rengthinourlegs,torso,andarmswillbedirectedtoouropponentveryquic l y.Ouropponentcanfeelthecomingoftheenormousstrengthfromusbutcannot doanythingaboutit. Zhan-zhuangisthefoundationofallinternalmartialartsandcanma eushealt hyandstrong.Withoutzhan-zhuang,allourtrainingwillbeawasteoftime. Althoughthisarticlemainlymentionsthetrainingofbones,tendons,ligaments, andmuscles,weshouldnotforgettheimportantroleofourmindwhichcoordina testheverysmallmovementinourbodyduringzhan-zhuang. ©CopyrightTu-KyLam All rights reserved Home Last modified 17May2008

ThunderousRoarsofTigersandLeopards ByTu-KyLam Yellingtechnique(shisheng)isoneofthesevencomponentsofYiquan.Tomysu rprise,IrecentlyfoundoutthistechniquehasitsorigininXingYiquancalled thunderousroarsoftigersandleopards.Thistechniqueisonlytaughttosenior students. LiZhong-xuan,alateXingYiquanmaster,recalledinhisrecentboo titledShi QuDeWuLinhowhelearnedthistechniquefromhisteachers.MasterLilearned XingYiquanfromthreegrandmastersTangWei-lu,ShangYun-xiang,andXueDian . Heas edTangWei-luiftheyellingisonlyforthepurposeoffrighteningouro pponents.Thereplywasno.Yellinghelpstodischargemorepower.WhenLias edT angtoteachhimtheroarsoftigersandleopards(hubaoleiyin),Tangdidnot dosoimmediately.Thenoneday,Tangtoo Litoatemple.WhenTangfoundnobo dywasinside,hegentlyhitthetemplebellandas edLitoputhishandonthe belltofeelit.ThiswashowTangtaughtLitheyellingtechnique.Licouldno tunderstanditandas edTang.Tangsaid,Thisishowmyteacher(LiCun-yi)tau ghtme.Ihavenothiddenanything.Iwascleverenoughtolearnit.Youcannot learnbecauseyouarestupid. Afewyearslater,TangrecommendedLitoShangYun-xiang(Tang'sfellowstudent )forLitoimprovehiss ill.OnedayLihadtheopportunitytoas ShangYun-x iangHubaoleiyin.Shangas edLihowTangtaughthim.LitoldShangtheaboves tory(hittingthebell).Shangsmiledbutsaidnothing. Shangloved ittens.OnedaywhenLiwenttolearnfromShang,Shangwasholding alovely itteninhisbosom.Shangas edLitofeelthe ittenwithhishand, andsaidHubaoleiyinwasnotaloudsharpnoise,butdeepdullrumblingnoisel i ethatinthebodyofthe itten.Thisexplanationwasbetterthantheonegiv

entoLibyTangaboutHubaoleiyin. SeniorXingYiquanstudentswhotrainproperlyunderamasterwillfindthatqi andjingwillshowupintheirbody,namelymuscles,bonesandtendons.Theybe comebiggerandstronger.Butitishardforqiandjingtopenetrateintotheir internalorgans.Withthehelpofyellingwhenwereleasepower,Qicangodeep intotheinternalorgansandstrengthenthem.ThisisthemainpurposeofHuba oleiyin. TheyellingtechniqueinYiquaniscomposedoftwosoundsashorteandalouderyo opItisusedwhenpeoplepracticeFa-li(dischargepower).Thenoiseisnotmade fromthemouth.Whenwema etheesound,weinhaletogatherenergyandpeoplec anheartheesoundcomefromourthroat.Thenwema eaquic yoopsoundtorelease power.Withthesoundyoop,qigoesquic lydownintoourdan-tian,justli ethr owingastone(orabomb)intothewater.Thenoiseisadeeploudsound. Li'sstoryhelpsusbetterunderstandYiquan'sshisheng. ©CopyrightTu-KyLam All rights reserved Home Last modified 4January2008

AcomparisonbetweenTaijiquanandYiquan ByTu-KyLam Taijiquan,well- nownforitsbenefitsforhealth,ispracticedalloverthewor ld.Ithasbeautifulformsandcanbeusefulinself-defenseifyouhavebeentr ainedproperlyandlongenoughunderthetutelageofamaster. YiquanisarelativelynewstyleofChinesemartialart,foundedbyWangXiang-z haiinthe1920sbycombiningthemaintrainingtechniquesandprinciplesofXin gyiquan,Taijiquan,BaguaZhang,andotherstylesofmartialarts. TaijiquanandYiquanhavedifferencesbuttheyalsohavesimilarities.Iwilltr ytoma eacomparisonofthetwosystemsandfindouthowtheycomplementeach other. Similarities WhatYiquanta esfromTaijiquanisTaiji'strainingprinciple:usemindandnot forceandsoweseethatpractitionersofbothdisciplinespracticegently,slo wlyandwithgreatconcentration.Thispracticehelpstonourishourlifeenergy andimproveourhealthandfitness.Inthisrespect,Yiquanisverysimilarto TaijiquanandQigong.Theysuitpeopleofallages. ThenbothTaijiquanandYiquanhavepowerdischarge,whichisdoneinarelaxed mannerwithpowerreleasedonlyatthepointofcontactinsteadofusingbrutef orce.Bothsystemsaregoodnotonlyforhealthbutalsoforself-defense. AnotherthingYiquanborrowsfromTaijiquanispush-handspractise,thoughYiqua npush-handsisdonedifferentlywithitsownflavourandmoreemphasisonselfdefense,whichisepitomyzedbyitsstronginternalpower. Finally,theybothbelongtotheinternalsystemsofChinesemartialartsandre quirethatstudentsandpractitionershavecorrectposturestoma eqiflowand developinternalstrength.Suchrequirementsasliftingupthetopofthehead, droppingshouldersandelbows,bending nees,flexinghipjointsandsittingpro perlyontopofourlegsapplytobothTaijiquianandYiquan.

Differences Curriculum Themajordifferencesareinthecontentsorcomponentsofthetwosystems.Taij iquanhasbeautifulformsorroutines,onwhichstudentsandpractitionersspend mostoftheirtimewhentheytrain.Infact,theyspendsomuchtimeintherou tinesthattheyalmostforgetthereareotherareasofTaijiquantheyneedtowo r on.Formoststudentsorpractitioners,learningTaijiquanisonlydoingthe Taijiroutinesandpush-hands. Yiquandoesnothaveroutines,whichgivepractitionersmanyopportunitiestowo r onotheraspectsofmartialarts,ratherthantheforms.Yiquanstudentsspen datleasthalfoftheirtrainingtimedoingZhan-zhuangtodeveloptheirintern alstrength,whichtheycanuseinpush-handsandfighting. Beforetheydopush-hands,studentswillneedtolearnsomeunbalancingandcont rollingtechniques,whicharecalledShi-li.Iftheys ipthis,theywillnotbe abletousetheirinternalstrengthdevelopedfromzhan-zhuang,andsowillnot dowellinpush-hands. Beforestudentscanta epartinsparring,theywillneedtopracticesteppingw hichwillhelpthemattac andevadeattac softheirenemyquic lyandeasily. Thentheyalsopracticeafewpunches(only4or5)and ic s(only3 ic s),wh ichareusefulinfighting. Aftertraininghardonthebasics(zhan-zhuang,shi-li,zou-buorstepping),stu dentswillhavelaidagoodfoundationforpush-handsandsparring,whicharetw oofthefewmajorcomponentsofYiquantraining. JudgingfromthedifferentcurriculumofTaijiquanandYiquanasdescribedabove ,wecanseethatTaijiquanemphasizesontheartistic,andhealthaspectsofCh inesemartialartswhileYiquanonthepracticalandhealthaspects.Taijiquani sgracefulandislovedbymillionsofpeople.Yiquandoesnothavethebeautifu lformbutareverygoodtohealthandforself-defense. Tactics AsTaijiquanismoreorientedtowardstheperfectionoftheirbeautifulroutines ,itemphasizeslessoninternalstrength,soithasabiggapinitsteachings ofthisarea.Taijiquan'smaintacticsinpush-handsandsparringreliesaloto nneutralizationandma euseoftheopponent'sstrengthandretaliateaccording ly.Thewell- nownsaying,"Todeflectonethousandpoundswithfourouncesofs trength"describestheTaijiquantacticsquitewell. Yiquanemphasizesonpower,andstatesclearlypowercanonlybedevelopedthrou ghzhan-zhuang.Yiquanstudentsandpractitionerswillnothesitatetousetheir powertoattac andoverpowertheiropponents.Neutralization,whichisverypo pularinTaijiquan,isnotusedalot.Instead,theytendtousetheirpowerto redirecttheincomingforce.Formoredetailsonthis,seemyarticleentitled "ThePowerofYiquanSinglePush-hands." Complements ItcanbeeasilyunderstoodthatTaijiquanismoreli eanupperlevelofacons tructionwhileYiquanthefoundation.Eachofthemisstronginwhattheotherl ac sandsotheycancomplementeachotherverynicely. ItisveryobviousthatTaijiquanlac sinternalstrength.Althoughsometeacher sclaimtohavesecrettrainingmethodstoincreaseinternalstrength,theyare notreallyeffective.TaijipractitionersshouldborrowYiquan'szhan-zhuangto fillthegaplac ofinternalstrength-intheirtrainingsystem.Iftheycanl earnYiquanpush-handstechniques,itwillcertainlyraisetheirpush-handss il

ltoanewhigh.Taijiteachersshouldta eagoodloo attheYiquancurriculum andredesigntheironetoma eTaijiquantrainingsystemcomplete. Yiquanissimpleanddirect,butthiscanbeboringandunconvincingtosomepeo ple.AnotherfactisthatmanylaymendonotbelieveinYiquan'strainingmethod s.Inthesecases,learningTaijiquancanhelp.AfterpeoplehavelearnedtheTa ijiroutinesandpush-hands,theywillbeabletobetterappreciatethepractica lapproachofYiquan. Conclusion TaijiquanandYiquancomplementeachverywell.ForpeoplewhohavepracticedTa ijiquanformanyyearswithoutmuchimprovement,theyshouldseriouslyloo atY iquan.ForpeoplewhofindYiquantoosimple,theycanthin aboutdoingTaijiqu an.WecansayTaijiquanisamansionandYiquanthefoundation.Amansioncanno texistwithoutitsfoundation,andafoundationwillbeawasteifwedonotbu ildamansiononit. Thefollowingtranslation,whichsharesthesameconclusion,canhelpyouunders tandthetwosystemsbetter: TheJingofTaijiquanandYiquan Touchinghands Taijiquan.WhenaTaijimaster"plays"(practices)withyou,youcanonlytouch hisclothes.Hewillma eyoufeelgoodandhavethehopethatyoucancatchup withhim. Yiquan.WhenaYiquanmasterplayswithyou,hewill"nail"yourightdowntoth eground.(Hisinternalstrengthwillgostraightdownthroughyourarmstothe bottomofyourfeet.)Youwillhavenoideawherehisjincomesfrom.Hesmiles andatthesametimestraightensuphisfingers,oneatatime,andyouwillfal lintodespair. Powerdischarge Taijiquian.Whenyourarmsgetintouchwiththoseofamaster,hisarmswilltu rnasmallcircle.Youcanseethemasterstandinfrontofyou,butcannotfind agaptoattac .Keeploo ing,andsuddenlyyoufindthatyouhavebeenthrown flyingoff,andyourbrainbecomesblan .Thin ingbac onthismoment,itisli esippingacupofgoodtea. Yiquan.Whenyourarmsgetintouchwiththoseofamaster,hisforearmswillmo veslightly.Youcanfeelthattimeandspacearecompressed,butnotsurewhat ishappening.Whatfollowsisthatyouarethrownoffbalance.Youareexcitedb ecauseyouarethrownoffbyrealstronginternalforce.Themasterbeatyouwit hhissheerpower,nottric s. Movements Taijiquan.ThemovementsofTaijipractitionersareverylight,nevertoofastn ortooslow.Whentheyreleasepower,theirbodymovesslightlyandthenstopas ifnotwantingtohurtyou. Yiquan.ThemovementsofYiquanpractitionersareverysimple,withoutanydelib eration.Whentheyreleasepower,theirbodydoesnotevenmove.Onlytheirarms moveforwardandthenstraightenuptheirfingers. Combination TaijiquanisYinandYiquanYang.Thisistrueandreal.Hopetheybothcanwor welltogether,justasourlipsandteethwhichdependoneachother. ©CopyrightTu-KyLam All rights reserved Home Last modified 17May2008

FinerPointsofYiquanPush-Hands ByYaoCheng-rong TranslatedbyTu-KyLam Push-hands,whichisacombinedapplicationofzhan-zhuang(standingpractice), shi-li(testingofenergy)zou-bu(stepping)andfa-li(powerdischarge),isan importantpartofYiquantraining,aimingtoimprovethemartialartss illofp ractitionersandstudents.Push-handssupplementsfreesparringverywellasit canhelppractitionersandstudentstoimprovetheirfightings illandreducet hechancesofgettinginjuredtoaminimum. Therearetwo indsofpush-hands:singlepush-hands(leftandright)anddouble push-hands. Ifyouwanttoimproveyourpush-handss ills,youmustfrequentlyta epartin push-handspractice.Duringyourpractice,youmustpayattentiontothefollowi ng: Spendalotoftimedoingzhan-zhuangandshi-lisothatyoucanhavesomef oundations illtorelyon. Avoidturningcircleswithoutanypurposes.Ma esurethatthereis"yi"(mi nd/intent)ineveryoneofyourmoves.Youneedtostandupandfaceyouroppone ntsandshouldnotrunawayfromthem. Whendoingdoublepush-hands,youshoulduse"Hun-yuan-zhuang"(Embraceatree) posture,with30%or40%ofyourbodyweightonyourfrontfootand70%or60%o fyourbodyweightonyourbac foot.Bothofyourarmsshouldbe eptround,li eembracingabigballoon.Yourfeetshouldbe eptatacomfortabledistancef romeachother.Thenmoveyourfrontfoottothecenterlinebetweenyouroppone nt'sfeet(yourbac foothastofollow),andma eyourfrontforearmcomeinco ntactwiththatofyouropponent,withyourfrontforearmpointingtothecenter ofyouropponent'schest.Yourbac forearmshouldberaisedand eptroundand incontactwithyouropponent'sotherforearm.(Youropponentwilldothesame asyou.) Thepointofcontactbetweenyourarmsandthoseofyouropponentisthefocuso fthepush-handsbattle.Throughthespiralandcircularmovementsofourarmsw e now,fromthepointofcontact,theenergyofouropponentandvolumeofhis strength.Throughourforearms,weusethestrengthofourwholebodytothreate nouropponent'scenter-line(chest),tryingtounbalancehim.Throughoutthepu sh-handspracticeorcontest,ourwrist,forearmsandupperarmsshouldhavespi ralforce.Inotherwords,thespiralforcecomesnotonlyfromourarmsbutals ofromourwholebody.Itistheresultofourwholebodywor ingtogetherasa unit.Thesayingssuchas"Movingyourhandsoutli eusingasteelfile,andmo vingitbac li ewithdrawingafishingrod"and"yourwaistshouldturnli ea wheelandyourlegsli eadrill"areexamplesofspiralforce. Duringpush-handspractice,donotusetoomuchforceonyourarmsotherwiseyou willnotbeableto nowthesubstantialandinsubstantialchangesofyouroppo nent.Duringpush-hands,youneedtofindoutforyourselfhowmuchforcetouse ,howfasttomove,andwheretomove.Onceanopportunityarrives,youshouldm obilizethestrengthofyourwholebodyandreleaseit.Ifyouusealotofforc eonceyourarmscontactyouropponent's,youwillbetopheavyandyourstrengt

hcaneasilybeusedbyyouropponent.Yourstrengthcanalsobestiffandcanno tchange.Evenifyouhaveanopportunity,yourstrengthcannotreachyourhands andsoyourpowercannotbedischarged. Ofcourse,ifyouusetoolittlestrength,youwillnotbeabletowardoffyour opponent.Howmuchstrengthtousealldependsonthestrengthofyouropponent .Ifyourstrengthcanbeusedbyyouropponentinacontest,youhavemadeami sta e.Ifyoucanuseyouropponent'sforceandcontrolhim,youhavegotitrig ht.Generallyspea ing,justusemediumstrengthwhenyourarmsgetintouchwit hthoseofyouropponent.Yourstrengthisbetweensubstantialandinsubstantial andcanchangeeasily. Inpush-hands,peopleoftental aboutlistenings ill.Inmyopinion,listening s illmeansthes illorabilitytocontrolouropponent.Ifwedonot nowthe changesofouropponent'sstrength,wecannotcontrolhim.Andweoftenhearpe oplesayrelaxationandnotusingforceareveryimportantsotheydarenotuse forceduringpush-hands.Whenweas themwhy,theysayifyouuseforceyourwh olebodywillbestiff.Ithin relaxationdoesnotmeannotusingforce.Ifwe donotuseforce,wewillnotbeabletocontestwithouropponent. Relaxationdoesnotmeannottouseforce,butreducethedegreeofforcethatw euse.Relaxationandtensionshouldinterchange.Weusemoreforcewhenweneed to,andrelaxwhenwedonotneedtousesomuchforce.Thenweshouldgofurth ertoma esurethatintensionthereisrelaxationandinrelaxationthereist ension.Ifwerelaxproperly,wecanproducestrongforcewhenwetenseup. Push-handsisatestofourtrainingonzhan-zhuang,shi-li,zou-buandfa-li.T hepurposeofdoingzhan-zhuangistodevelop"hunyuanli"orwholebodyforce. Shi-liisanexercisebywhichwetrytotesttheinternalstrengthdevelopedt hroughdoingzhan-zhuang.Whenwedoanymovement,wehavetoma esurethatour yi(mind/intent)andli(strength)arealwayspresentandnotbro en.Zou-buor steppingmainlypreparesusforfighting.Ifwearegoodatstepping,wecanmo vefastandcancreateopportunitiesforustodischargepower.Duringstepping training,wemustrememberthatwhenourlegsmove,ourupperbodyandarmswill havetofollowandviceversa.Wemusttryto eepourwholebodywellcoordina tedsothatwecanfeelstrongandcomfortablewhenwemoveforwards,bac wards, left,right,orupanddown. Push-handspracticeorcontestiscloselyrelatedtoYiquan'sbasictraining.Th ereasonwhybeginnersdonot nowhowtousewhattheylearnfromthebasics(z han-zhuang,shi-li,zou-buandfali)isthatfirstly,theydonotunderstandth epurposeofpush-hands,secondly,theycaretoomuchaboutwinningandsoforge ttheprinciples,thirdly,theytrytoloo goodandlac thepowertothreaten ordestroytheiropponents,andfourthly,theyhavenotspentalotoftimedoin gshi-liandsotheylac theabilitytocontroltheopponent. Allpush-handstechniquesarebasedonYiquan'sbasictraining.Ifyouwanttob egoodatpush-hands,youneedtospendalotoftimepracticingshi-li,suchas "hoo andHang"shili,spinningshi-li,throwaballshi-lliand"theholytur tlemovesoutofthewater"shi-li.Youneedtospendtimedoingzhan-zhuangand doingzoubushi-liwhichisshi-liwhilestepping.Withouttraininghardonth ebasics,itisveryhardtoimproveyourpush-handss ills. Duringpush-hands,youmustnotbenervousandshouldnotcareaboutwinningor losing.Youmusttrytofeelhowyouropponent'sforceischangingandtrytoco ntrolyouropponent.Youshouldalsopayattentiontothemovementsofyouroppo nent,whilemaintainingthegoodcoordinationofyourbody.Onlywhenyou nowy ourselfandyouropponentwell,canyouachievewhatyouwant. Thespeedofpush-handsvaries.Sometimesitisfast,atothertimesitisslow.

Whenitmovesveryfast,itisveryhardtoapplyourtechniques.Inthiscase youneedtostic toYiquantrainingprinciples,lateronthegoodresultwills howup.Duringpush-hands,youshouldbeveryalertsothatyoucandealwithth eintentionofyouropponent.Whenyouhavegoodconcentration,youwill nowwh atishappeningandcanutilizethehiddenpotentialinyourbody.Donottreat push-handslightly,thin ingitinvolvesonlyturningcircles,somepushesandp owerdischarge.Weshouldtreatitli efightinganenemywhoistryingto ill us.Oncewegetincontactwithhisarmsweshouldbeabletocontrolhim,andw eshouldnotbecontrolledbyhim. Allthetechniquesinpush-handsareexecutedthroughusingourinternalstrengt h.Weshouldalsolearnhowtouseourshoulders,elbows, neeships,head,palm sandfistssothattheycanbeusefultous.Wemustbecarefulandtrytoavoi dinjury. Whenfacingourenemyduringpush-handsorsparring,weshouldadheretothesep rinciples:donotattac ifwecannothitourtarget,donotattac ifourstri eisnotheavyenough,anddonotattac ifwecannotputouropponentoutofac tioncompletely.Wemustbesohighlyalertthatouropponentfeelsintimidated. Everyoneofourmovementsshouldbesopowerfulthatitwilldestroyouroppon ent,otherwisewecannotdefeatouropponent. ©CopyrightTu-KyLam All rights reserved Home Last modified 9September2007

HowDoesHunyuanliWor s? ByTu-KyLam Hunyuanliistheforceofthewholebody,producedbyallpartsofourbody-he

ad,chest,hips, nees,andfeet-wor ingtogetherasaunit.Inpush-hands,if weapplythisforce,togetherwithourbodyweight,wearesuretohaveanuppe rhandoverouropponent.Infighting,thisforcecanhelpus noc outanoppon enteasily.HunyuanliisthecoreofYiquantrainingsystem.Allpractitionersa ndstudentstrainveryhardforit.Inthisarticle,wewilldiscusshowHunyuan liwor sinthedifferentareasofYiquansystem. ZHAN-ZHUANG Hunyuanlicanonlybeobtainedbydoingzhan-zhuang.Thereasonisbecausezhan-

zhuangcanquic lybuildupagoodstructurethatcanhelpincreaseourstrength .(Formoredetails,seemyotherarticleentitledZhan-zhuangandWholeBodyFor ce).Therefore,forzhan-zhuangtohaveanygoodresult,wemusthaveacorrectp osture.(Formoredetails,seeChapter25:YiquansPostureandMovementsinmybo o DemystifyingTaiChiChuanDemystifyingTaiChiChuan.) Duringzhan-zhuangwedonotstandstill.Instead,ourbodymovesslightlyforwa rdandbac ward.Thisiscalledmojingmeaningfeelingorsearchingforinternal strength.Mojinghelpsusdiscoverourwholebodyforce,andputitintopractice inpush-handsandsparring.Formoredetails,pleaseseemyarticleentitledMojing:InSearchofInternalStrength. WhenIlasttrainedwithmyteacherinBeijinginJune2008,onedaywhenIwas doingCheng-baozhuang(theEmbraceaBalloonposturewithtwofeetparalleltoeach other),MasterYaoCheng-rongsuddenlygentlyheldmyrightshoulderwithhisr ighthandandas edmetomoveforwards.Ifhehaddonethistomethreeyearsa go,Iwouldhavenotbeenabletomove.NowIjustliftedmyheadupandmovedi tforward.Atthesametime,theball(inside)ofmyfeetpushestheground,and

my neesmoveslightlyinwards(towardeachother).AndthereIwent! Thenheputhisrighthandbehindmybac ,andas edmetomovebac .AgainIli ftedthetopofmyheadandmoveditbac ward.Atthesametime,theball(outsi de)ofmyfeetpushedbac ward,my neesmovedslightlyoutwards(awayfromeach other).ThatwayImovedbac tothestartingposition. ThesearethemovementsthatwealwaysdowhenwepracticetheEmbrace-a-Balloono rCheng-baozhuangposture.Addingpressurebyholdingsomeonesshouldertostophi mfrommovingisagoodmeanstotesthisinternalstrength.Myteacherseemedt obepleasedwithmyperformanceashesaidnothing.IthoughtIhadpassedthe test. ThistestwillbeeasierifwestandinanEmbrace-a-Tree(Hunyuanzhuang)postur ewhereoneofourfeetisinfrontwhiletheotheratthebac .Herewewillha vetoliftourheadupandmoveitforwards.Atthesametime,ourbac neemov estowardthefront nee,whichwillinturnmovesslightlybac (notforward). Ourbac legpushesforwardwhileourfrontlegpushesstraightintotheground, andourbodywillmoveslightlyforward. Tomovebac ward,thepreviousmovementisreverse,withourtorsomovingslight lybac tositmoreonthebac leg,whichpushesintotheground.Thistimeour frontlegpushesslightlyoutward,upwardandthenbac ward.(Thetopofourhe adshouldalwaysbeliftedatalltime.) Inshort,whenwepracticezhan-zhuang,ourwholebodyalwaysmovesslightlyfor wardandbac ward.Afterpracticingzhan-zhuangfortwoorthreeyear,ourwhole bodyforcewillslowlyshowupandcanbeusedinpush-handsandsparring. Howlongdoweneedtostandtoseethegoodresult?MasterYaodoesnotgivea definiteanswer.Hetoldmetoreservetwothirdsofmytrainingtimeforzhan-z huang,onethirdforshi-li,stepping,andfa-li.Oneofmyfellowstudentstold methatthemasteras edhimtostandonehourandahalfaday,andanotherto ldmeatleastonehouraday.(Aftertwoorthreeyears,ourHunyuanliwills tarttoshowup.)However,Itwiceheardhimsay,Doingzhan-zhuangisbettertha nnotdoingit.Spendingmoretimeinstanding(alsotraining)willcertainlybr ingbetterresultsthanspendinglesstime. SHI-LI Shi-liiswhatYiquanstudentswilllearnafterlearningzhan-zhuang.Shi-liinc ludesonlyabouttensimplemovementsthatloo li eqi-gong(muchsimplerthan Taijiroutineandisequivalenttoit).Ittoo meawhiletounderstandwhatsh i-liisfor. MorethanonceIas edMasterYaohowwecouldimproveourpush-handss ill.He alwaysreplied,Doshi-limore.Ifeltperplexedatfirstbecausethiswasnotthe answerIhadanticipated.Ihadexpectedhimtoshowmesomepush-handstechniq ues. Afterquiteafewpush-handssessions,Icametounderstandthatshi-limovement sareactuallycontrollingandunbalancingtechniquesinpush-hands.Ifwehave doneshi-liproperlyandlongenoughtoproducewholebodyforce,wewillbeabl etounbalanceandcontrolouropponents,insteadofbeingcontrolledbythem.H ereIwilltellyouwhy. Indoublepush-hands,wedonotjustturncircleswithourarms,waitingforag aporawea spotinouropponents,andthenmovinginquic lytopushhimoffb alance.Weusuallyusedifferenttechniquestounbalanceorcontrolouropponent sbeforewepushthemofbalance.Forexample,wesometimesspin(xuanfashili )ouropponentsorsplit(fen-guashili)openouropponentsarmstoma ethemlo

setheirbalancefirstbeforefinishingthemoffwithapush. Onotheroccasionssuchaswhenourforearmsareontopofthoseofouropponent ,wecanpushdownwards,bac wardsandsidewayswithourforearmstobrea open theopponentsdefenceandthenthrowhimout.ThisistheapplicationofFu-anshili(movementisli egrabbingandthrowingaballandthenpushingitintothew ater).Ifourforearmsareunderthoseofouropponent,wecansitbac withbot hourforearmsopeningupandmovingbac wardstounbalancetheopponentbefore wegivehimapush.ThisishowGou-gua(Hoo andhang)shi-liisusedinpush-han ds. MasterYaoissogoodinusingshi-litechniquesinpush-hands.Fouryearsago, whenIfirstdidpush-handswithhim,heoftenspunmearoundli eatop,which gavemesuchafrightthatmymindwastotallyblac edout.Inotheroccasions, afterhehadunbalancedme,hedidnotreleasepowertothrowmeout,butchange dshi-litechniquestomovemetootherdirectionsleft,right,frontandbac . Iwasmovedaround,notabletostandproperly,li eadrun enman.Nomatterho whardItried,Icouldnotgetoutofhiscontrol.IjustfeltIwassuc edin byhispower,anddidnot nowwhathedidtome.Ittoo methreeyearstounde rstandwhathedid,andunderstandwhyhesaidpracticingshi-limorecanimprov eourpush-handss ill. Moststudentsaretaughtshi-lisoonaftertheyhavelearnedzhan-zhuang.Theyc annotdoshi-liproperlybecausetheylac gong-li(internalstrength)anddoal lthemovementsfromtheirhandswithoutotherpartsofthebodyparticipatingi nthemovement.Thisisunavoidable.Theywillhaveto eeppracticingshi-li,a ndatthesametimepracticezhan-zhuangtobuilduptheirgong-liandpayatten tiontohowtheycanma etheshi-limovementsinvolveallpartsoftheirbodyi ntoaction. HowdoesHunyuanliwor inshi-limovements?ItisverysimilartotheMo-jing inzhan-zhuang:theheadsleadsthemovement,thebodymovesforward(orbac wa rd),the neesmoveinward(oroutward)slightlyandthelegs(feet)pushthegr ound(li emo-jingmovementsinzhan-zhuangmentionedintheprevioussection). Eachtimewemove,wehavetoma ethejing(westernizedspelling:jin,meaning strength)fromourfeetmovetoourhands(byrelaxingandbythepushofourfe etintotheground).Whenjingisonitswayupfromourfeet,everypartofour bodyhastowor simultaneouslytohelpincreasestrength.Ifwecandothis,t hisiswholebodyforce. Suchshi-liasGou-gua(Hoo andhang),Fen-gua(splitting),Xuan-fa(spinning),andP ng-tui(pushingforward)allendupinapushingforwardmovement.Peoplewhohav ehadsomegong-lifromdoingzhan-zhuangwillfinditeasytoputtheirwholeb odyweightandstrengthontheiropponentandsoareabletounbalancetheiropp onent.ButthefirstpartofGou-guaandFen-guashiliwherewesitslightlybac w ithourforearmsopentobrea uptheopponentsforearmscannotbeexecutedasea sily.Mostwillfind,withourbodysittingbac ,itveryhardtoputourbodyw eightonouropponent,whichmeanslittlewholebodyforceispresent.Tocompen sateforthis,wemustma esurewesitbac (trytoma euseofourbodyweight todoso)whilewedothefirstpartofthetwoshi-limovement.Atthesameti me,wemusthaveourfrontlegpushoutward,upwardsandbac wardsandourbac legpushintotheground.Wemustalsoliftthetopofourheadup,ma ingitgo inoppositedirectionwiththefrontfoot.Ifwedoallthisatthesametime, wewillhavewholebodyforceandcanbrea openouropponentsarmsandma ehim losehisbalance. InFu-anshi-li(whichloo sli eliftingtwoballsupwithourhands,andthenpu shingthembac intothewater),whenourhandspushtheballs(orflutterboard )intothewater,wesitbac inthesamemannerandlettheweightofourbody pushtheballsdown.Here,thereissomeforceintheheelsofourpalmsandfor

earms.Wemustrelaxallotherpartsofourbody.Whensittingbac ,ourtorsos houldnotcomedownwithourhands,butshouldstayup.Liftthetopofourhead moreandma eitgoinoppositedirectionwiththefrontfootasdescribedint hepreviousparagraph. Whenwelifttheballsupfromthewater,weshouldnotjustuseourhandstodo thewor .Ourwholebodyshouldmovetogetherwithourhands.Weshouldliftup thetopofourheadandma eitgoforwardtoleadthemomentum.Ourtorsohas togoforwardaccordingly.Ourbac legpushesforwardwhileourfrontlegpushe sintotheground.Ifourhands(movingupandforwardtothefrontofus)areb ac edupbyourwholebodyli ethis,wewillhavewholebodyforce. FA-LI Ifwecandoshi-liwithwholebodyforce,wecanmoveontothenextstageoft raining:fa-li,whichmeansreleasingpower.Fa-liissimilartoshi-li.Thedif ferenceisthatwhenwedofa-li,wespeedupshi-limovementswithvigorousfor ceneartheendofthemovements.Weusuallyusefa-litopushanopponentaway inpush-handsorstri eatsomeoneinsparring. Itisimportantthatweshoulduseourheadtoleadourinternalstrength,which meansitmustgoforward.Ifitdoesnot,littlehuanyuanlicanbereleased. Therearefa-limovementsthatstri etothefront,tothesidesanddownwards. Wecanalsodofa-liwithpalmstri es,punches, ic s,etc.Themostcommonfaliexerciseisqianshangfa-liwhichmeansreleasingpowerforwardandupward.He rewestartfromHunyuanzhuang(Embrace-a-Treeposturewithonefootinfrontan dtheotheratthebac ).Themovementisverysimple:wejustrotateourhands, movethemforwardsandupwardsandma eourpalmsfacingoutwardswithourfing erspointingdiagonallyup.Themovementneartheendisfastandstrongwithth eintentionofsendingallourenergyout.Rememberthatourheadandtorsomust moveforwardandourlegsmustpushtheground.Afterthiswemoveourhandsba c tothestartingposition(Hunyuanzhuang).Whenreleasingpower,itisessen tialthatourshouldersandupperarmsareveryrelaxed. Whenteachingthisfa-liexercise,myteacherli estoas hisstudentstohold aT-shirtbetweentheirfingers.Iftheycanthrowtheshirtupandout,thispr ovesthattheyarerelaxedandnotusebruteforce. Whenwedoquan-fa(punchingmovements,whichcontainmainlyfourpunches:punchf orward,punchupwards,downwardsandhorizontallywhichloo sli ealeftorrig hthoo inboxing).Whenwepunchforward,wemustremembertobringbac theha ndthatisnotpunchingtopowerthehandgoingforwards.Wemustliftuptheto pofourhead,turnourbac hip,bac neeandbac foottohelpproducemoref orce. Whenwepracticepalmstri ewithfa-li,wedoalmostthesamethingsaswhenwe practicequan-fa(punches),exceptthatwemustma eourpalmsgoinopposited irectionswitheachother. STEPPING Mochabu(groundrubbingormud-wal ing)isthefoundationofallYiquanstepping

.WhendoingMochabu,weshouldnotjustmoveourfootforwardorbac wardby itselfasdoingsohasnostrength.Weshoulduseourhipsandourlegstomove ourfoot.Forexample,westartfromanEmbrace-a-Treeposturewithonefootinfr ontandtheotheratthebac withourbodyweightmoreonthebac leg.Thenwe rotateourpalmstoma ethemfacethegroundwithourfingerspointingthefro nt.ThisisFu-anjijizhuang(HoldandPushpostureinafightingstance). Beforeweliftourbac footupandmoveitforward,wehavetoshiftourbodyw eighttothefrontfoot,andsitproperlyonourfrontleg.Weliftthetopofo

urheadup,ma eourfrontfootgentlypushintogroundandraiseourbodysligh tly.Thatwayourbac footisliftedofftheground.Wenowhavetouseourhip sandourlegstomoveourbac footclosertoourfrontfootbeforemovingito uttothefrontandformafightingstance.Nowthefrontfootbecomesthebac foot.Wewillrepeatthesameprocesstomovethebac footforwardagain.This ishowmocabushouldbedone.(WhenwepracticeMochabugoingbac wards,them ovementsarereverse.) InMochabu,thedistancebetweenourfeetisonlythewidthofourshoulders( justli ewhenwestandintheEmbrace-a-Treeposture).Thedistancecanbemuchw idenedtobecomeabigsteppingexercise(twiceaswide).Themovementsareexac tlythesameasinMochabuexceptthatthespeedisfasterandwemoveforward withourheadleadingthemoveandourbac legpushesourbodyforwards. Anotherusefulsteppingisthatwemoveourfrontfootonestepforwardandour bac footfollowssuit.Hereweshouldremembertouseourheadtoleadthemove andourbac legtopushourbodyforwards.Withthis indofstepping,wecan moveinastraightlineforwardormovediagonallyforwardina45degreeangle. Allthesteppingshouldbetrainedinbac wardmovementsaswell. Steppingisgoodtrainingtoourlegs.Itcomplementsshi-limovementsinwhich wemainlyuseourhands.Ofcourse,wealsopracticeshi-liwithstepping,which ismuchharderbecausewedotwoatthesametime.Butifwecandostepping(Z oubu)andshi-liwellrespectively,withsomeeffortwecanquic lycombinethe two.Steppingisusefulinpush-handsandsparring.Goodsteppingcanconfuseo uropponentsandcanhelpusattac moreefficiently.Itcanalsohelpusstepo utofdangerquic ly. CONCLUSION Afterwecandozhan-zhuang,shi-li,fa-li,andzoubuproficiently,weshouldt a epartinpush-handsandsparringtotestourhunyuanliandseeifitispow erfulandthreateningtoouropponent.MasterYaooftensays,Ifwedaretocompe te,wewillma eprogress. Itisimportantthatwemaintainourgoodpostureandnotletitcollapseduring push-hands(andsparring).Weshouldalwaysaimatouropponentscenterandprot ectourowncenter.Weneedtoberelaxedandapplysuitabletechniquesindiffe rentsituations.Themoreweta epartinpush-handsandsparring,themorewew illimprove.Allthesearetheapplicationofhuanyuanli. ©CopyrightTu-KyLam All rights reserved Home Last modified 12December2003

MoJing:InSearchofInternalStrength ByTu-KyLam Doyou nowwhattodowhenyoupracticezhan-zhuang?Manypeopledonot.During zhan-zhuang,wedoanexercisecalledMo-jing,whichmeansfeelingorsearchingf orinternalstrength.Oncewehavefoundorbuiltupourinternalstrength,itw illaccumulateandourinternalstrengthwillgetstrongerandstronger.Mo-jing requiresthatwehaveacorrectposturewithgoodzheng-li(whichmeansopposit etension),usemindandnotforce,andmoveslowlywithverysmallmovements.W ewilldiscussthisingreaterdetailsinhere. ZHENG-LI Topandbottom.

Wemustplaceourtorsoproperlyonthetopofourlegs,whichcanma eourweig htandenergysin toourfeet,thusma ingusfirmlyplantedontheground.The nwemustliftthetopofourheadup.Soourheadandourfeetaregoinginopp ositedirectionsoneupandtheotherdown,andcreatesometensionfromthetop ofheaddowntoourfeet.Thistop-and-bottomzheng-ligivesusstrengthtoper formallthetas swearerequiredtodoandsoitisthemostimportantopposit etensionorzheng-liinourbody.Sittingproperlyonourlegsandliftthetop ofourheadupisalsothemostimportantrequirementforacorrectposture. Inzhan-zuang,thetopandbottomzheng-limainlyappliesinourheadandourfe et,ofwhichtheoppositetensionstretchesourbodytoma eitlonger,andalso producesstrength.(Inshi-li,itmayapplybetweenthehands,suchasinchang fameaningpalmstri eswhereonehandisupandtheotherdown.) Leftandright. Leftandrightzheng-liappliesmainlyinourarms.InChengbaozhuang(Embrace-a -Balloon)orHunyuanzhuang(Embrace-a-Tree)posture,weneedtoextendourelbows toma ethemgoinoppositedirectionsleftelbowtotheleftandrightelbowt otheright,andwealsoneedtoimaginethatbetweenthethumbsandfingersof ourhandstherearefiveelasticstyingthemtogether(thumbtothumb,indexfin gertoindexfinger,etc.).Atthesametimewemoveourelbowsawayfromeacho ther,wedothesametoourthumbsandfingers(imagingourthumbsandfingersa repullingtheelasticstostretchthem)toproducetheleftandrightzheng-li. Wealsomoveourelbowsandhandstothefrontalittlebitto eepthemawayfr omourshoulderstoproducethefrontandbac zheng-li.Thismovecanma eusf eelthatourbac isround,andjingfromourfeetcaneasilycomeouttoourhand s. Frontandbac . Frontandbac zheng-limainlyappliestoourlegs.(Butitalsoappliestoour handsorelbowsli eintheabovesituation)WhenwepracticeHunyuanzhuang(Embr ace-a-treeposture)withonefootinfrontandtheotheratthebac ,wesitmor eonourbac leg(70%).Wema eourbac hipmovesslightlybac wardsandourf ront neemoveslightlyforwardstoproducethefrontandbac zheng-li. Thesethreedifferent indsofzheng-listretchourwholebodyinsixdifferent directions,andma eusfeelthatourbodyisroundli eaball.Weshouldalway smaintainallthese indsofzheng-liduringourpractice.Theyma eourenergy flowandourinternalstrengthincrease. MO-JINGMOVEMENTS Duringzhan-zhuang,wealwaysimaginethatweareholdingaballoon,embracinga tree,orstandinginaswimmingpoolholdingaflutterboard,etc.Inthecase ofholdingaballoonoratree,weimaginewewanttomovetheballoonorpusht hetreeforwards,andthenwewanttomovethembac .Ourbodymovesslightly(a boutaquarterofaninchor2mm)forwardsandbac wardswithourvisualization . Howdowema eourbodymoveduringzhan-zhuang?InCheng-baozhuang(Embrace-a-Ba lloon)andotherstandingpostures,whereourfeetareparalleltoeachother,o urheadhastoleadthemove.Whenweimaginethatwearemovingaballoonforwa rds,ourhead(whichliftsupallthetimeduringtraining)hastomoveslightly forwards(2mm)atthesametimetheballofourfeetmustpushthegroundand our neesmoveinwards(towardeachother)for1mili-metertosendourbodyfor ward.Ourhandsmovesslightlyinwards,downwardsandforwards(alsoabout2mm) . Whenwewanttomovetheballoonbac tothestartingposition,theprocessisr

eversed.Ourheadmovesbac wards,andtheballofourfeetpushesbac wards.Ou r neesmoveoutwards(awayfromeachother)for1mili-meter,andourhandsmov eoutwards,upwardsandbac wardsforabout2mili-meters. Whenwestandinthefightingstancewhereonefootisatthefrontandtheothe ratthebac ,wemustrememberthatourbac hiphastositbac (whichwillbr ingourbac neebac wards)andourfront neemovesslightlyforwardstoprodu cezheng-li.Whenwewanttopushatree(oranythingelseinyourimagination) forwards,ourheadwillmoveforwardstoleadthemove.Ourfrontfootmustpush straightintothegroundandourfront neemustnotmoveforwards.Infact,ou rfront neemovesslightlybac wards,butwedonotfeelit.Ourbac leg(main lytheballofourbac foot)hastopushthegroundtosendourbodyforwards( 2mm).Thisway,our neemovesclosertoeachother. Whenwewanttopullthetreebac ,ourfront neemustnotmovebac wards.Inst ead,ithastomoveslightlyforwards,upwardsandpushbac wards(withthehelp oftheballofourfrontfoot)tohelpsendourtorsobac tothestartingposi tionbeforewepushthetree.Atthesametime,ourheadmovesbac andourhip mustsitbac tobringbac ourbodyforabout2mili-meters.ourhandsmoveout wards,upwards,andbac wardsslightly(2mm)andwearebac tothestartingpos itionagain.Mojingmovementswillgoli ethisduringzhan-zhuang. USEMINDANDNOTFORCE Theabovesectionshowshowourbodymovesslightlyforwardsandbac wardsdurin gzhan-zhuang.Themovementsareverysmallandtotallyunderthecontrolofour mindandwehavetorelaxandshouldnotuseforce.Thisisverydifficultfor beginnerswhotendtouseforcetomoveforwardsandbac wardsandtheirmovemen tisusuallybigbecausetheycannotdoitsmall. Beginnerscannotavoiddoingthemovementbig.Buttheyshouldtrytodoitsmal llateron.Forexample,assoonaswepushthetreeforwards,wepullitbac i mmediately,andthenpushitforwardsandpullitimmediatelybac again.Itjus tgoesonli ethis.Slowlywewillfindthatwemoveverylittleorhardlymove atall.(Doingsogivesusnotimetotenseupanduseforceandsohelpsusto relax.) WangXiang-zhai,Yiquanfounder,said,Bigmovementisnotsogoodassmallmovem ent,andsmallmovementisnotsogoodasnomovementWhenwedoabigmove,oure nergywilltendtodisperseandlac strength.Therefore,smallmovementisstro ngerthanbigmovement. Nomovementinzhan-zhuangdoesnotmeanabsolutelymotionless.Itismo-jingat itshighestlevelwherethemovementissotinyandnotnoticeable.Hereourin ternalstrengthisplacedatthebestoptimalposition,readyforustopouncea ttheenemy.Thatiswhynomovementisbetterthansmallmovements. WHATTOLOOKFORINMO-JING Bydoingmo-jingwhatdowetrytofind?Wewanttofindinternalstrength,but wewillnotfinditdirectlyandstraightaway.Forpeoplewhohavepracticedzh an-zhuanganhouraday,theywillgraduallyfindthatthereisabiglumpinthei rbodywhichmovesforwardsandbac wardsatthesametimetheymovetheirbody forwardandbac ward.Thisbiglump fromourheaddowntoourfeet-feelsli eou rbodyweight.Whenwehavebettercontrolofitbeingabletomoveitforwards andbac wardsatwill-wecanapplyittoouropponent.Thisisthefirstsign ofourinternalstrength. Tofindthislumpandtobeabletouseit,wehavetobeveryrelaxed.Ifweuse forcewhichcanma eourwholebodytenseup,wewillneverfindit.Itwillcer tainlyhelpifwetrytofeelourbodyweightshiftingforwardsandbac wardsdu ringzhan-zhuang.Weusuallyfeeltheouterbodyweightwhichwillslowlymoveins

ideourbodytogiveusthefeelingofabiglump. Ourinternalstrengthisthisbiglumpplusthemovementofthewholebodyasdesc ribedinthesectionMo-jingmovements.Asforhowinternalstrengthwor s,seemy articleHowDoesHunyuanliWor s?alsopostedonthiswebsite. CONCLUSION Ourinternalstrengthisthisbiglumpplusthemovementofthewholebodyasdesc ribedinthesectionMo-jingmovements.Asforhowinternalstrengthwor s,seemy articleHowDoesHunyuanliWor s?alsopostedonthiswebsite. ©CopyrightTu-KyLam All rights reserved Home Last modified 20February2007

Yiquan's"OppositeTension"and"Reaction"Training ByYaoCheng-rong TranslatedbyTu-KyLam Weall nowthatinternalstrengthisdifferentfromourinbornstrengthormech anicalforce.Internalstrengthcanbeacquiredonlythroughintensifiedtrainin gunderspecialconditions.InYiquan,weusestandingpracticewiththehelpof ourmind/intenttodevelopinternalforce.Thereisasayingwhichgoes,"Ifyo uwanttolearntheessenceofmartialarts,youmuststartfromdoingzhan-zhua ng".Theessenceofmartialartsreferstotheinternalstrength.Thestrengthd evelopedfromdoingzhan-zhuangiscalled"Hun-yuanli",whichmeansthestrengt hofthewholebody.The eytogaininghun-yuanliisthroughourmind/intent. Weuseourvisualizationtodevelopcontradictorystrengthoroppositetensionb yma ingpartsofourbodygoinoppositedirections.Wealsoimaginethatthere issomeconnectionbetweenourbodyandourenvironment(e.g.pushingatree,p ullingaspring,etc.).Bydoingso,wewillbeabletoma ethewholebodymove togetheratthesametime. OppositeTension Meaningofoppositetension. Whatwecalloppositetension(zheng-li)isthespringystrength,(produced fromourmind/intent),whichgoesinoppositedirectionstop,bottom,left,righ t,frontandbac .Oppositetensionisusefulbecauseitcanhelpproducestrong wholebodyforce,especiallyafterwetrainhardonshi-li(testofstrength), zou-bu(stepping)andfa-li(powerdischarge). Whenpracticingzheng-li,weshouldstartfromthesimpleone(whichisone dimensionsuchastopandbottom).Lateron,wecanpracticethewholebodythre edimensionalzheng-li.Thebestwaytotrainonzheng-lisimpleorwholebodyi stopractice"Hun-yuanzhuang",whichisthe"Embrace-a-Tree"posture. Zheng-litraining Wetrainonzheng-libyusingoneofthefightingpostures,forexample,"Hu n-yuanzhuang"orEmbrace-a-Treeposture.Weimaginethattwospringsaretying ourwriststoawallinfrontofus,andwewanttopullthespringstowardsus. Withournec leadingthemovement,ourbodysitsslightlybac tohelpourhan dsdothejob.Weshouldtrytofeelthetwocontradictorystrengths-oneisth atwewanttopullthesprings,andtheotherthespringspullbac .Thecontrad ictorystrengthma esusfeelthatthereisastrongforcethatobstructsourmo

vementandwecanhardlymove.Inourimagination,wewill eeppullingthespri ngs,relaxing,andthenpullingandrelaxingagainandagainduringtraining. Alternatively,wecanimaginethatourarmsareholdingabigball.Withour headleadingthemovement,wetrytosqueezetheballandthenpriseitopen.A fterconstantpractice,wewillbeabletofeelthecontradictorystrengthcreat edbytensionandrelaxationinterchangingwitheachother.Thisisalsothestr engthproducedbyourmind/intent. Wholebodyzheng-litraining Afterpracticingthesimplezheng-lidrill(asmentionedabove)forawhile, wecanmoveontotrainonthewholebodyzheng-li.Whenwestandona"hun-yua nzhuang"orembrace-a-treeposture,weimaginethatthereisaspringorelasti cconnectingourheadtoonepointonthegroundbetweenourfeet.Weimagineth attherearealsospringsconnectingourheadtoourfrontfootandourbac foo t.Ourheadshouldmoveupwhileourfeetstaydowntocreateoppositetension. Ourrighthipshouldgoinoppositedirectiontoourleft neetocreatecontrad ictorystrength.Soshouldourlefthipandright nee.Ourhandsshouldhaveop positetensionwithourfeetandsoshouldourshoulderswithourhips.Inshort ,ourwholebodyfromtoptobottom,lefttorightandbac tofrontshouldhave oppositetensionatthesametime,whichiscalledwholebodyoppositetension. Wemustrememberthatthetopandbottomoppositetensionisthemostimportant ofall. Duringzhan-zhuang,ourpostureisroundorcircular,butweshouldbeable tofeelthatourstrengthcangostraightoutfromanydirection,andthatallo urhairisraised.Ourbodydoesnotmovebutthereappearsthatthereismoveme ntalloverourbody.Ma esurethatourmind/intentisalwayspresentduringzh an-zhuang. Reactiontraining Thisisthetrainingofournervoussystemsothatitcanreactquic lyandfigh toffouropponents.Therearetwo indsofreactiontraining. Ifwehavepracticedzhan-zhuangandshi-lilongenoughandhavedevelopedt hewholebodyoppositetension,whichmeanswefeeltherearestringsconnecting differentpartsofourwholebodytogether,andwealsofeelourwholebodyits elfisli easpring,weimaginethatsomeoneispushingsomepartofourbody. Uponthin ingofthis,ourmindtensesupabitandourstrengthwillberelease dfromthecenterofourbodyandouttocounteractwiththeinvadingforce.Aft ertrainingli ethisforsometime,wecangofurtherandimaginethatsomeone isattac ingussothatourbodycangeneratestrengthtodealwiththissituat ion.Ourvisualizationshouldnotshowupinourbody.Wewilljustdoitinour mindandletthemindgeneratestrength,notourmovement.Rememberthissaying :"Themindisstrength,andmindandstrengtharealmostindistinguishable". Imaginewearestandingonabambooraftinthestormysea.Theraftisvery unstable,roc ingfromsidetosideandbac tofront.Ifthefrontpartofthe raftisliftedupbywater,ourbodyweightshouldmoveslightlytothefront. Ifthebac oftheraftgoesup,ourweightshouldmovetothebac .Iftheraft ismovingfromsidetoside,ourbodyweightshouldfollow.Whenwefeelthera ftisgoingupwiththerisingwater,ourbodyweightshouldsin .Ifitgoesdo wn,thenourbodyweightshouldgoup.Weshoulduseourmindtoperformtheset as sandourmovementsshouldbesosmallthattheyarehardlynoticeable.Ourm ovementsshouldnotbeexecutedfromourlegs,butfromthewholebody.Attheb eginning,youcanfollowapattern:movingup,down,left,right,bac orfront. Lateronthemovementsshouldbeatrandom.Atthebeginning,theraftcanmove slowly.Lateron,itmovesveryfastwiththestormyseas.Thisexercisewillp rovideuswithgoodtrainingonourreactionandhelpusma equic adjustmentt

ocopewithdifferentsituations. Note Whenwetrainonzheng-li,wemustpayattentiontothefollowing: Whenwepracticezhan-zhuang,weimaginethatweareembracingatreenoton lywithourarms,butwithourchest,ourbelly,andourlegs.Thetreeandours elvesbecomeone.Weimaginethatwearepushing,pulling,lifting,plunging,sq ueezingorprisingopenthetree.Butthisshouldbedoneinourmindrathertha nfromourbody.Itismainlytotrainonthereactionofournervoussystem,ma ingourbodyreactproperly.Gradually,whenourmindisthere,ourstrengthwi llbethere. Duringtraining,weshouldnotconcentratetoomuchonourbody,butshould thin ofourenvironmentinsteadbecausethin ingofourbodycanma eustense. Weshould eepcalmevenifthemountaincollapsesinfrontofus. Ourmovementshouldbecloselyconnectedwithourmind.Zheng-lidoesnotme anonlypullingbac .Whenwepullbac (e.g.aspring),thereisanotherforce (fromthespring)thatisgoinginoppositedirection.Themainpointistoma e themovementcontaintwooppositeforces.Duringzheng-lipractice,ourmindan dourbodyshouldbeinthestateofgettingreadyforarace,andshouldberea dytomoveatanymoment. ©CopyrightTu-KyLam All rights reserved 9September2007

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PowerDischargeinYiquan ByYaoCheng-Rong TranslatedbyTu-KyLam Anoverviewofpowerdischarge Peoplewhopracticemartialartsmusthaveheardoftheterm"jing"whichmeans strength,orpower.Whenwehitanopponentorthrowhimawaywithforce,wedis chargeourpower,whichiscalled"Fali"inChinese.Ifwewanttoreleasepowe r,wemustma esurethatwehavealreadyhadthepoweratourdisposal.Inorde rtobuildupourpower,wemusttrainhardonzhan-zhuang(standingpractice), shili(testingofstrength),andzoubu(stepping).Onlyafterwehavedevelope dstronginternalstrengththroughdoingthethreestagesofYiquantrainingcan westarttolearnhowtodischargepowerbecausepowerdischargeisanexplosiv eexpressionofthethree. Itisnoteasytodischargepower.Youneedtowor hardonthebasicsfirst.In theabove-mentionedfoundationtraining,zhan-zhuanghelpstodevelop"Hunyuan li"whichiswholebodyforce.Shiliintensifiesthestrengthdevelopedfromz han-zhuang.Itisameanstotestourstrengthtoseeifitisstillstrongwhen wedoamove.Shiliis,ineffect,abiggermovementofzhan-zhuang.Zoubu,w hichmeansstepping,helpsusma eourwholebodyarms,torsoandlegs-movein unisonwhenwestepforwardsorbac wards,andisveryusefulinfighting.Afte rwehavespentconsiderabletimeinthebasics,wecanstarttolearnpowerdis charge. Powerdischargeandoppositetension

Whenwepracticepowerdischarge,wemust nowhowtogatherourstrengthfirst. Togatherstrengthistoadjustourbodysothatourenergycangathertogether readytobedischarged.Toachievethis,weshouldhavetotalconcentrationdur ingstandingpractice,allourjointsshouldremainbentallthetime,andoure nergyshouldgoinwards.Whensteppingforwardsorbac wards,wehavetopayatt entiontothesepointsaswell.Also,ourmindshouldbeincontrolofthewhole body,ourpostureshouldnotcollapse,andtheforceofthewholebodyshouldb eunitedsothatitisreadytobeused.Ourmindandbodyshouldma eusready fordefenceorattac atanytime. Powerdischargeisveryimportantinallmartialartssystems.Weshouldbeable todischargepowerwithourhandsoranyweapons.Powerdischargerequiresthat weshouldbeabletoreleaseexplosiveforcefromsmallmovements.Ourpowersh ouldbereleasedasthoughdynamiteexplodes.Thisforceiscalledexplosivefor ce. Whenwepracticepowerdischarge,ourwholebodyisundertheguidanceofourmi nd,whichhelpsourbodytoproducemoreforcewithvisualization.Whenourmind wantstoreleasepower,ourbones,ourtendonsandourmuscleswillmovewitho urmindtodischargestrongforce.Powerdischargeshouldberelaxedandnatural sothatpowercanbesentoutofourbodyontoouropponent. Beforewereleasepower,weshoulduseourmindtoma eourforcemovetoopposi tedirectionfirst.Thisiscalled"Zhen-li"meaningoppositetension.Forexamp le,ifwewanttoreleasepowertothefront,weshouldmoveonepartofourbod yslightlybac wardsfirst,andviceversa.Ifwewanttodischargepowerupward s(ordownwards),wemoveonepartofourbodyslightlydownwards(upwards)firs t.Thesameprincipleappliestodischargingpowertotheleftandtheright.Wh enpartsofourbodygoinoppositedirections,theycreatetension/strength,wh ichwillhelpusgeneratetheforceofthewholebodymovingtowardsouropponen t.Theoppositetensionstretchesourjointsandtendons,andcanma eusfeelt hatwehavealotofstrength.Allourstrengthshouldcomeoutfromourcenter. Westri ehardonlyatthepointofcontact.Afterpowerdischarge,wemovebac toournormalpostureagain. Powerdischargeexercise Youstartfrom"Hunyuanzhuang"orthe"Embrace-a-Tree"standingposture,with yourfingersclenchedtoma efists.Yourpalmsstillfaceyourbody,andyour" tiger'smouths"faceup.Whendischargingpower,imaginethatyouropponentiss tri ingfastandhardatyourfrontforearm,youcounteractbyma ingyourfront forearmmovingslightlydownwardsandthenforwardswiththebac forearmmovin ginaccordance.Thedistancebetweenyourfistsisabouttwo-fist'slength.Whe nyourfistsmovetoalmostaboveyourfronttoes,andyourpalmsarefacingthe ground.Nowimaginethatyourfingertipshavetouchedyouropponent'schestor yourtargetposition.Alsoimaginethatyourtorsoisli easlashhammer,your forearms(fromhandstoelbow)areli ebignails,butyourupperarmsandshoul dersdonotexist.Yourtorso(li eahammer)movesslightlybac wardsandthen quic lyforwardtostri eatyourelbows(li enails).Atthismoment,yourelea seyourfistsandyourfingerstipsarepointingupwards.Imaginethatyourstre ngthisgoingthroughyouropponent'sbac andafar.Onceyouhavereleasedpowe r,youhavetomovebac quic ly,justli eyouhavetouchedapieceofburning iron.Youmovenotonlyyourhandsbac ,notalsoyourinternalenergy.Whenpra cticingpowerdischarge,youneedtoconcentrate,andmobilizetheforceofyour wholebody,andyoufeelyourfingersareli etenuprightspears. Thingstoremember Whendischargingpower,yourheadmovesquic lyforwardsandupwards.Youim aginethatyouareholdingathinmetalplatebetweenyourteeth,andyouwantt obitetheplateintopieces.(Butdonotbitetoohard.)Yourtonguemovesslig htlybac .

Yourshouldersandelbowsshouldextendleftandrightandyourchestslight lydrawsin.Use"shisheng"oryellingtechniqueandquic lyejectasmallsoun dtoma eqisin toyourlowerabdomen. Beforedischargingpower,thepalmofyourfrontfootshouldbeslightlyemp tyorrelaxed.Whenreleasingpower,thepalmofyourfrontfoothastopushhar dintothegroundandatthesametimeyourbac legpushesforwards.Dischargin gpowerisli esuddenlybra ingyourcar.Yourheadstri esforwards,yourlegs pushhardandyourhandsreleasepower.Youreleasepoweratthepointofconta ctandthenstopimmediately.Whenyoumovebac toyourstartingposition,your neesmoveoutwardsandyourbac hipsitsslightlybac . ©CopyrightTu-KyLam All rights reserved 20February2007

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TheStrengthofYiquanSinglePush-Hands ByTu-KyLam YiquanPush-handsoriginatesfromTaijiquan.Butithasbeenmodifiedsomuchth atithasitsowncharactersandflavours.Itismuchmoremartialartsorientat edandsomorepracticalasitisusefulinfightingandhelpsstudentsmovesmo othlytofreesparring. ThepostureinYiquansinglepush-handspracticeisexactlyli ethepostureofE mbrace-a-Tree,witheachparticipantmovingtheirright(orleft)handandright (orleft)footforwards.Theyma ethebac oftheirright(orleft)forearmsin touchwiththatoftheopponent,whiletheirotherhand,heldintheEmbrace-a-T reeposture,willprotectthemfromanelbowstri eorpreparethemtomoveforwa rdtopushtheopponent.InYiquansinglepush-hands,weareallowedtouseboth handstopush. Atthestartofpush-hands,oneoftheparticipantswillrotatehisarmtoma e hispalmfacediagonallytothegroundandthechestoftheopponent,andmoveh isbodyslightlyforwardstopush(towardsthecentrelineofthechest).Theoth erparticipantwilltryto eephisarmround,sitsbac andturnrightslightly towardoffthepush(withhispalmstillfacinghimselfasinthestart-uppos ture).Thenhewillrotatehisrightarm(toma ehispalmfacetheopponent),m oveslightlyforwardstopushhisopponentinthesamemannerasthefirstparti cipant,whowillneedtowardoff.Sothetwowillpusheachotherinturn,and theirforearmsmoveincircles,whichloo li eaTaijipushhands. ButYiquanpush-handscirclesareverysmall,comparedtothoseofTaijiquan(le ssthanhalfthesize).Themainreasonisthattheparticipantscanma etheir armsalwaysstayclosetoandsoprotecttheircenter-line.Anotherbenefitist hatthepengenergyinthearmsisverystrong.(Ifyouturnbigcircles,alotof yourpengenergywilldisperse,andsothestrengthinyourarmswillbegreatly reduced.) PleasenoteinYiquanpush-hands,weusuallypushouropponentsforearm(s)witho urforearm(s),notwithourpalms,(forthepurposeofcontrollinganddestabili zinghimbeforepushinghimoffbalance)andwhenwepush,ourpalmsfacethegr oundandtheopponent(withourwristsextended).Pushingli ethiscaneasilyu prootouropponentasourforcegoesrightdowntothebottomofhisfeet,andh ecanbedestabilized.Whenthishappens,heisunderourcontrolandmercy. Thereisagoodreasonforusingourforearmstocontrolouropponentbecauseth eyarealmostthreetimesbiggerthanourhandsandareclosertoourtorsoand

socanproducemuchmorepower.(Itisobviousthatusingourpalmstopushour opponentsforearms,whichTaijipractitionersoftendo,isineffective.) Whenwewardoff,wewill eepourarmsroundwiththepalmsfacingourchestli eintheEmbrace-a-Treeposture.Thispracticegivesusmorepengenergytowardof ftheopponentspush.Weshouldneverletourarmsbendtosmallerthan90degree s,whichisconsideredcollapsedform,andcanresultingettingthrownoffbalanc e. Thereareseveralwaysofusingourforearmstocontrolouropponentsbeforepus hingthemoffbalance.Thesimplestoneistouseourright(orleft)forearmto pushdownwards,forwardsandfromtheside(leftorright)ontheopponentsfore arm.Thethreedirectionalpushwillma ehimhardtowardoff.Ifhisarmcolla pses,ourpalm(s)willimmediatelyreachhischestandpushhimoffbalance(wit honeorbothhands). Ifouropponentsforearmisverystrongandwecannotpushforwards,thenwepush bac wards,downwardsandsidewayswithourrightforearm.Thismovewillunbala ncehim,ma inghimstumbleforwards.Wecannoweasilymoveourhandsforwards topushhimoffbalance. Iftheopponentsforearmishighupandverystrong,wewillpushhisforearmup andthenpushbac wardsanddownwards,whichwillupsethisbalance.Wecannow pushhimoffbalancewith(ourpalms)easily. Anothercommonlyusedtechniqueisspinning.Whenwepushforwardsandfindour opponentresistourpush,wecanthenpushsidewaysinahalfcircletospinour opponentsothathisbac isturnedfacingus.Wecannowpushhimoffbalance withbothhands. Theabovearetheattac ingtechniquesinYiquanpush-hands.Tocounterthese,t hemajordefendingtechniqueistheonecalledSpirallingdownwards,whichisused toredirectthedownwardandforwardpushoftheopponent.Followingthemoveo ftheopponentisalsousedthoughnotasobviousasinTaijiquan.Forexample, whenwearespinned,ourarm(s)hastogoloose.Inshort,inYiquanpush-hands, whoeverhasthestrongerinternalstrengthandbettertechniqueswillwinthep ush-handsbattle. WheredoesthestrengthofYiquanpractitionerscomefrom?Firstly,fromdoingz han-zhuang(standingpractice).Thelongerwestand,thestrongerourinternals trengthwillbe.Shi-li(testingofenergy)isalsoimportantastheshi-limove mentsarethemovesusedinpush-hands.Thetwo,togetherwithzou-bu(stepping) arethefoundationofYiquanwhichweshouldspendalotoftimepracticing. Secondly,we nowhowtouseourforearmstogoodeffect.Forexample,weuseth eupperpartofourforearm,whichisbigger,topushatouropponentslowerfore arm,whichissmaller.Webendourwristsindifferentdirectionstoproducemor epower.Weextendourwristswhenpushing,andflexourwristswhenwardingoff . Thereisaspecialoftrainingtoincreasethestrengthinthearms,whichisca llNotyieldinganinch.Herewhentheopponentpusheshard,ourarmwillturnas mallerthanusualcircleandthenpushbac .Bothparticipantswilldothesame. Thisisusingforceagainstforce,whichinthiscaseisameanstohelpdevelo pstrongarms. Inshort,Yiquanpush-handsisexecuteddifferentlyfromthatofTaijiquan.With theirsmallcircles,Yiquanpush-handsisfastandpowerfulcomparedtoTaijiqu an. ©CopyrightTu-KyLam

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