Wahnam Tai Chi Chuan (Taijiquan) Thailand

'Fisherman casts net'-an excellent Taijiquan felling technique.

Have you ever see a Taijiquan practitioner dodge a kick, swiftly jump forward, strike the would be kicker, capture him in a joint lock all before felling him forcefully to the ground!!!??

It’s fair to assume that you probably haven’t

But if you have, you are very lucky, because you may have seen Taijiquan as it really would have been practiced around 80-100 years ago, as a traditional, effective and respected martial art, this is also how we aim to use our Taijiquan in Wahnam. Today, unfortunately, Taijiquan is mostly thought of as retirement activity mostly practiced in the parks of Asia by the elderly, or as a ‘new age’ dance practiced by hippies! Incidentally, I have nothing against hippies, who are generally very sweet people and I certainly have nothing against the elderly or their practice of Tai Chi as a recreation activity that helps them relax and socilize but what they do is quite different from high level Taijiquan practiced for healthy vitality, combat and spiritual cultivation.

In fact if you mentioned you train Taijiquan as a genuine martial art to many hardened martial artist nowadays they may laugh at you! Indeed this has happened to me! Even if Taijiquan is practiced as a martial art more often that not traditional Taijiquan patterns and tactics are thrown out of the window when the art is used under pressure, (like in sparring) in favour of boxing, wrestling or just random fighting.

Even when we see beautiful traditional Taijiquan training taking place, the training normally reaches its limit at pushing people away and ignores the fact that when faced with other trained opponents, they will not simply be pushing you in combat, but punching, kicking and picking you up and slamming you into the ground if they can, Oh dear!

This of course leaves the modern Taijiquan practitioner who aims to use traditional Taijiquan (and who is just trained in pushes) at a huge disadvantage.

Was this the case in the past, when Taijiquan masters were noted for their skill in combat?

No. Of course not, Taijiquan masters of the past could handle and counter all types of attack, and here is why.

Chen Fake- A Chen style Taijiquan master who lived in the first part of the 20th century defeated many skilled martial artists using Taijiquan.

Genuine Taijiquan as practiced in the past was and still is a complete martial art. As such it includes with in its repertoire, attacks and defenses in the four main categories of combat, as do all Chinese martial arts. These four categories are; hand strikes, kicks, felling techniques, and Chin Na. Chin Na includes the gripping, breaking, dislocating of limbs, bones and joints and also the tearing of muscles, tendons and skin.

That Taijiquan includes these four categories of attack and defense is not by any means new information, it’s actually a many centuries old fact, but how often do we actually see the evidence of it in the Taijiquan practiced today?

This is what I intend to have fun with in this up coming series. In this series I will give three examples of traditional Taijiquan applications in all four of the categories of attack and defense. In fact some of the techniques are genuine favorites of mine, and I can honestly say I’ve used 80-90% of the techniques to be shown in friendly un-cooperative sparring, and also some of them in rough and un-friendly sparring! I should add I much prefer the former of the two!

Sifu Wong Kiew Kit, 1st generation of Wahnam Taijiquan, teaches Taijiquan as a complete martial art.

I hope you enjoy the upcoming installments.

Robin

3 Basic Strikes of Wahnam Taijiquan

Taijiquan application of Swinging Fist.

First we will have a look at some basic hand strikes in our school. In our school of Taijiquan the power required for hand strikes comes from internal force training and is “soft” and internal in nature. With dedicated daily training over a relatively short period of time quite a bit of power can be developed, so that within a year or two (of dedicated daily training) enough force should be developed to deliver a ‘knock out’ blow or to break a brick for example. It should be stressed again that hard conditioning of the hands is not required to develop this power, and the increased energy from this type of training will greatly benefit daily life, giving you vibrancy and vitality.

Strike No.1 Fierce Dragon

Fierce Dragon

The first pattern shown is ‘Fierce Dragon’ it is a beautiful pattern and very effective, with sufficient training this pattern can be executed with some speed to overwhelm an opponent. It is especially effective when applied with the Taijiquan tactic of “The opponent initiates, but I arrive first”. Below you can see I am sure to cover on the way into the attack.A mid level attack.

A mid level attack.

Mid attack is countered with 'body movement'.

The attack is countered using body movement. Then the palm strike is executed.

Two more hands strikes will be coming up next.

Strike No.2 Swinging Fist

Swinging Fist.

The next pattern is ‘swinging fist’. This pattern has many excellent applications, and works very nicely when executed with some speed. Below it is shown as a counter to a mid level punch. Using body movement it is possible to avoid the mid level attack and use the left hand to parry the attack to the side then swing the right fist over to strike at the temple or nose. It is important the striking arm is relaxed when striking to make use of the whipping motion of the attack.

A mid level attack.

Mid attack is countered with 'body movement'.

Swinging fist is aimed at the head.

Taijiquan application of Swinging Fist, from another angle.

Still another Taijiquan Strike to come. Keep posted.

Strike No.3 White Snake Spits Venom

White Snake Shoots Venom-Form

Surely a favorite of many Wahnam Taijiquan students, White Snake is an excellent and potentially dangerous technique. This means when you train it with a partner you need to be very careful and exercise the safety first rule, as the strike can potentially damage a persons sight. Actually this technique is a good indication that Taijiquan is a genuine martial art, and not a ‘martial sport’ as is often the case with many modern day ‘martial arts’, where rules prevent strikes to vital areas of the body, in Taijiquasn there are many strikes aimed at such areas but a skillful practitioner would avoid using these techniques because due to the peaceful nature of genuine Taijiquan training, not causing harm to people is a quality that is valued. Below Mark executes a mid level punch at my chest. I then use body movement to avoid the attack and strike. I ensure that my fingers are at least a couple of inches away from Mark’s eyes for safety.

Mid level attack

Attack is countered with body movement, White Snake is then executed.

That concludes our basic strikes of Wahnam Taijiquan, next up is Kicks!

3 Basic Kicks of Wahnam Taijquan

'Double Lotus Kick' of Wahnam Taijiquan

Kicks may not be the most famous part of Taijiquan’s repertoire but it may surprise you to know that there are many excellent kicks in traditional Taijiquan. The kicks in Taijiquan are interesting for a few reasons. Firstly the kicks do not rely on body weight for power, but on force built from stance training and flexibility exercises. Also high kicks tend to be avoided in Taijiquan as they can expose the groin and vital areas, indeed the highest kicks in Taijiquan are aimed at chest level.

Kick No.1 Side Kick

Taijiquan 'Side Kick'

Some purists may say that there are no sidekicks in Taijiquan, However I have seen them performed in Chen Style Taijiquan many times and believe that they were also part of the original Wudang Taijiquan, they are certainly in Wahnam Taijiquan. Indeed it is such an excellent kick it would be silly not to make use of it. It is important to remain balanced when kicking so as not to expose yourself unduly to attack during the kick. The sidekick below is shown as a counter to mid/high attack. I like to think of the kick as similar to a stamp which can be aimed at the hip.

Side step away from high attack.

Side kick into opponent

detail of the side kick from a different angle.

Two more Kicks coming shortly!

Kick No.2 Thrust Kick

Cross Hands Thrust Kick

The ‘thrust kick’ or ‘cross hands thrust kick’ is surely the most recognizable kicks in all of Taijiquan, and so logically thinking should be a very effective kick, well, it definatley is. Strange then they we see it so rarely actually being applied. Personally I have found the kick very effective in sparring. Below it is very easy to see ‘Cross hands thrust kick’ is being used as a counter attack to a punch. Many people are at a loss as to why the arms extend as they do in the the pattern, maybe you can see one of the answers below?

A mid level attack

Side step and thrust kick.

Thrust Kick applied.

Another Kick is coming.

Kick No.3 White Crane

White Crane Flaps Wings

This is a beautiful pattern with excellent applications, possibly the most painful of which is a swift kick to the groin. It’s interesting that in many Taijiquan single legged patterns the raised foot merely remains stationary as it is raised instead of kicking out, but it should be assumed that in most single legged Taijiquan postures a kick is the most obvious and effective combat applications. Below White Crane is shown as a counter to a mid attack. It’s important to cover the opponent’s hands when kicking. It goes without saying that this is a dangerous application that needs to be trained with due care for your training partner.

White Crane,used as a kick aimed at the groin.

Application of White Crane used as a kick from another angle

Next to be featured will be felling techniques.

3 Basic Felling Techniques of Wahnam Taijiquan

Wahnam Taijiquan application of Carry Tiger Back to Mountain, performed by Barry (thrower) and Ade (Throwee)

Taijiquan has great felling techniques. When executing a Taijiquan felling technique it is very important not use brute strength or force against force against you opponent, Why? Contests of force and using brute strength are to be avoided in Taijiquan training and combat. In sparring or real combat, it is possible that you may come up against someone stronger than you and whilst in the act of trying to throw your opponent using brute strength you could in fact be thrown yourself when their power proves to be superior to yours. It is also possible that while caught in a power struggle of trying to throw your opponent you expose yourself to other attacks like hand strikes and kicks. This is why you would rarely if ever see a Taijiquan Master try to throw an opponent straight away without first unbalancing, striking or distracting his opponent. Using those methods is a good way to avoid a force on force battle.

Fell No.1 Carry Tiger Back to Mountain

Carry Tiger Back to Mountain.

‘Carry tiger back to mountain’ is a great throwing technique. Below it is shown intercepting a mid level attack. Notice the locking of the attacking arm under the arm pit. The action of pulling, turning and pushing on the shoulder twists the upper body, this coupled with the sinking into a solid stance fells him over the leg. As he falls I can follow him and make sure he falls safely.

Intercepting an attack.

Securing arm and moving in for a throw using 'Carry Tiger Back to Mountain'

Off balancing and using the waist for the throw.

Turning the upper body for the throw.

Safely down to the ground, taking care not to hurt your taining partner is important if you want a happy training session.

There are two more Taijiquan throws on the way.

Fell No.2 Fisherman Casts Net

'Fisherman casts net' from Wahnam Taijiquan

This is a beautiful technique similar in concept but with a different flavour from ‘Carry Tiger Back to Mountain’. With this movement there is more than one application, but the one shown is a fundamental use of the pattern as a felling technique. Below you will notice that the technique is used to counter a mid level attack. Notice the lock of the attacking arm under the arm pit and the use of the other  arm like a bar across the chest. With a turn of the waist, the trip is executed over the leg.

Mid level attack.

Stepping forward and securing a hold of the attacking arm.

Attacking arm is locked under arm pit to aid control and prevent attack.

Using the waist movement of 'Fisherman Casts Net' to fell.

Ensuring a safe fall for my training partner.

An application of ‘double lotus kick’ is to follow.

Fell No.3 Double Lotus Kick

Taijiquan pattern of 'Double Lotus Kick'

Double lotus kick is a beautiful movement shared by most of the Taijiquan styles. Below is an application of the movement used as a leg sweep/felling technique. It should be noted that as this is a picture series, obviously the movements look staccato in nature, in application the movement should be smooth and fluid. As the mid attack comes in there is a move to the side and sweep the leg.

mid level attack

Side step to use the 'Lotus Kick'

Apply the the 'Lotus Kick'

Ensuring a safe fall for my training partner.