The Tai Chi properties or directions

The principles seem so easy to understand, especially when it is listed and standardized the way Yang Cheng fu did. However, the understanding of principles, directions and guidelines are different in different people which needs a lifetime to understand. I am still going my journey by practising and asking curious questions to experienced teachers.

1. JIng or mental serenity.
It is a description of the mind being cleansed from the everyday problems. Some people use visualisation or guided imagery of a tranquil forest, beautiful beach, pleasant previous experience etc.

2. Song or falsely translated as relaxation
In my previous article, I already explained that when we hear the word relax, we think of a mindless couch potato. There is nothing more erroneous than this. On the contrary, we do need a certain tension of the postural muscles to maintain our good posture. Without this tension, we probably would only be a heap of jelly pudding.

The best way would be to start imagining the spine vertebraes stretching, loosening and separating from each other, our whole body becomes taller and upright as though suspended by a string from above.Imagine our shoulder, elbow, hip, knee and all the rest of our smaller joints stretch, loosening and finally separating from each other. We imagine our body is as strong but soft like a young tree. My teacher Chen YIngjun always pulled a stem from a young tree to demonstrate the Tai Chi body

Chen or sinking, pronounced chuen
This has been one subject that all my teachers extensively modulated during zhan zhuang or standing meditation as well as posture holding. Guided imagery of the qi really sinking while we are song(pronounced sung) have been of utmost significance

Huo or flexibility and agility
We do need a flexible and fast body. Without the jing there will be no song, without song there will be no chen, without anything above of course there will be no flexilibility and agility.

Yang Cheng Fu has standardized the 10 essential principles and I will add the three inner and outer harmonies. With a good teacher and diligent practice, you will develop understanding of these teachings as you proceed........