What is Tai Chi?
When most people think about the martial arts, they think about kung fu movies where fighters are doing back-flips over one another, or breaking hard objects with various parts of their body. They think of prolific stars like Jackie Chan or Jet Li. They picture hard, intense physical training and years of disciplined practice. What a lot of people are just now beginning to learn is that there is a softer, more spiritual side to Chinese martial arts, but one that still teaches practitioners a lot of valuable lessons about self defense, and the physics of the body.
Tai Chi is one of these softer martial arts. It's one that focuses more seriously on internal strength. While disciplined series of standardized forms and styles of movement are still common with Tai Chi, the overall philosophy behind its effectiveness as a self-defense art are much different than other fighting styles. Tai Chi is low impact, and focuses on enabling the user to be able to direct their flow of Chi energy in order to strengthen certain aspects of their body, or to heighten their resistance to injury during fights.
As a martial arts discipline, Tai Chi focuses around the iconic principles of yin and yang. Rather than confronting any challenge with overwhelming physical force, it teaches fighters to be soft and yielding at times to give themselves a tactical advantage in a fight. As an opponent attacks, you recede as though you were a retreating coastal tide. As your opponent withdraws, you go on the offensive. Being able to feel the exchange of energy between yourself and your opponent helps to raise your sensitivity, so that you can judge timing with better precision. From a fighting perspective, Tai Chi shares a lot of principles with Jujitsu ' going with the flow, and using motion and momentum that already exist around you to your advantage.
The enrichment of a person's Chi flow that takes place during Tai Chi exercises is part of the reason why a lot of people who aren't really that interested in martial arts as a whole have taken up Tai Chi as a hobby. There's a lot that a person can learn about the flow of their own bodies, as well as of the universe that surrounds them without ever having to engage another person in combat. Since it doesn't place a lot of strain on the joints, it makes a fantastic form of exercise for people who are older, or suffering from something that might weaken their overall skeletal integrity. Better blood circulation is encouraged, as is physical coordination.
Tai Chi is catching on in a pretty big way in Western culture. If you're considering starting it, it's important to remember that it requires the same level of discipline that any other martial art will. It's not something that's easy to teach to yourself, and you will most likely need to enlist in the help of a master instructor in order to be successful. Still, the enlightening journey inward is worth whatever expenses you might incur.
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