“Tiger creeps down Yang saber form”

Hello my name is Dennis Pounall and I have been involved in Taijiquan for a number of years, and practicing martial arts for the last 30 years. I was introduced to martial arts by many teachers and influenced by a few. In my time of study I began to understand that martial arts is both a discipline and an Art Form. Pursuing the discipline, one should acquire a combination of proper instruction, adept understanding, and appropriate application.

These factors along with a wholesome traditional foundation separates modern from traditional martial arts. In today’s society, the most challenging aspect of the arts are the recent drawbacks of modern lifestyle and global attitudes. To most young people today, the reasons for choosing and studying a martial art are quite variable. Some may see it as a way to become famous, the next winner of the ”Ultimate Fighting Championship” commonly known as the ”King of the Octagon”.

Others may pursue another path where they choose the tournament circuit as their arena, and pursue recognition by winning trophies and titles…

“The Maio Dao sabers pierces the heavens”

If a traditional approach is chosen, their should be some philosophy, some theology and some room for adaption and innovation. This allows both, the art and the artist to maintain its essential principles, yet develop and add to its traditional forte, Thus allowing room for continued growth by keeping it a living tradition and maintaining a vital system. Then the art’s full expression stays dynamic, and the essential discipline and the style never gets lost. Thereafter each generation of practitioners will add a little more to the system, breathing fresh life into the martial art, making it relevant in the time and environment in which it is practiced.

Taijiquan and Taijiboxing is heavily steeped in the artistic expression depending on which family style you practice, and archaic principles founded in a symbiotic relationship between Taoism and Buddhism.

In article written by Gene Ching From, an interview with master Taiji Player Dr. Yang Jwing Ming (Kungfu Taiji Magazine March/April )edition (pages 33-44), he conducts an interview and asks some very poignant question.

6272009 114157 Nan dao sword form The art of taijiquan is much like the art of being a masterful magician.It requires a subtle skill and a balanced blend of techniques and tools that come together to form a state of “synchronicity”.  Just like being a magician, there are many layers to your craft. A magician may employ the skill of illusionist, or the skill of being an escapist, then there is the slight of hand techniques, and of course, the masterful  ” vanishing act”. All these skills require dedication, practice and discipline, just like the art of taijiquan. Each facet of training should be intricately woven together so the final product appears to be flawless and limitless. The tools of a taiji boxer are hidden in his training and his ability to glean the skills from his daily practice, knowledge and interpretation of the classical text, with developed natural ability and persistent  dedication to his craft.  A demonstration of true synchronicity is like the quiet workings of a very exclusive watch. On the outside, the watch serves a basic function that is to measure and determine a constant known as time, but the mystery lies in the synchronicity of the unseen working parts, …the gears, springs levers and, of course, the power plant, the quartz crystal.A basic watch can only tell the time, (in hours, minutes and seconds).  The more sophisticated watch can not only keep track of time, but also the month, the lunar cycle, direction, and dual time zones, speed and distance travelled, to name a few things. 

 The point is, it all starts with the same basic components, just as the practice of taijiboxing starts with the basic structure of the ” form”. The “set or form”,( as it is often called) is a wealth of hidden skills waiting to be rediscovered.

This wisdom of the old masters is a gold mine of treasure waiting to be revealed.   If you choose to search for gold, you will need the right tools to find the treasure that is buried below the surface.  

1. The taijiboxer bag of tricks!!.

The ability to use taijiquan as a martial art lies in the understanding and application of  its fundamental principles.  Most of these concepts may be found in the theoretical interpretations of “taiji classics”, but most are found by trial and error.

“Invest in loss.”

A)The skill of relaxation.   The first key is to understand what it means to be relaxed. Relaxed does not mean collapsed.  It means to have a relaxed awareness with a flexible but supple body, mind, and spirit. By achieving this skill both your attention and intention will be in a state of harmony allowing your awareness to expand beyond the obvious and the immediate.  Consequently, you will gain the ability to focus without being easily distracted or in mindless isolation.

B)“Emptiness and fullness”. With this skill, it requires you to incorporate  the principles of yin and yang, and the application of the  “thirteen powers” (the five phases in the legs and feet), and eight triagrams in the arms and  hands.

C)“ Evenness and slowness“.  When using the principles of evenness and slowness, it means to match your opponents movements, while using  the concept of” silk reeling”, thus creating a feeling  of purposeful movement with balance and stability and continuous natural flow. (We practice slow to move fast,… you move fast, I move faster.)

D) “ Rooting and stability”.Conceptually, rooting means to be still, but not immobile. Rooting does not mean you become rigid and stiff. You should still be light on your feet. Mastery of this skill allows you to have maximum stability with minimal effort, allowing you a greater range of flexibility and upper body mobility to attack and defend, spontaneously and simultaneously.

E)“Coordination and centering”.  It requires many years of practice and more years of patience, coordination, relaxation and complete awareness in order for  the body to move as one complete unit. By mastering this skill, your movements will not be premature or telegraphed, and you should not be tense or stiff. This negates the tendency to rely on speed, power and aggression as your only means for self-defense. Quite the opposite, all your movements are connected in a natural coordinated continuous flow, just like  the natural way a shark moves in water or a bird flies in the sky (nothing is wasted and nothing is needed)…

Economy of Motion

a) Breathing and Qi kung. The use of breathing is unique but not exclusive to taijiquan. Most disciplines of martial arts and competitive sports utilize the inherent benefits of proper breathing. The one major difference is that, in taijiquan, the purpose is dedicated to a breathing system known as “ Nei kung”.

This specific method of breathing is called the “internal merit system”. The application of this specific style of breathing allows each practitioner the full benefits of his every breath, both for healing himself or others, and protection (as in self-defense and fa jin).

 This is accomplished through a specific method of visualization in meditation, diaphragmatic breathing techniques, concentration, attention and practice of mental, spiritual and physiological cues that allow the process to take place over time.

 The taijiboxer combines all the tools and skills to create a system of unlimited phases in  power, speed , stillness and motion.

These skills provide the ultimate expression of synchronicity, and like the magician, allow each practitioner an opportunity to have a full bag of tricks to be used and shared at their discretion. Thanks for taking the time to read my article. I hope it helps and empowers you on your journey of self discovery in the wonderful art of taijiquan.

PeaceSifu Dennis Pounall.

The metamorphosis of a Taiji player to a Taiji boxer is a subtle but enlightening shift in both perspective and potential. It could be assimilated as the pupae and the butterfly; all the essential ingredients are consolidated within. However, only with clear intention and mindful attention, will this subtle change occur.

This transition requires patience, persistence, acceptance of pain and perseverance of the disciple, a road less traveled by the majority of Taiji players.  Most Taiji players practice the form (the form or set of 108 movements) with little attention to its martial roots or its philosophical heritage. It requires adept tutelage, natural ability and, above all, patience, in order for the miraculous conception to take place. This is the mystery of the metamorphosis from Taiji player to Taijiboxer.
If we examine ourselves daily with mindful meditations and mental alertness, checking our thoughts, motivations, and their external manifestations in our behavior, it may be possible to occasionally catch a glimpse of the secret change in process. Looking too hard will most certainly evade your awareness. There lies the beauty of the Taiji symbol and the wisdom of the ages.

If you spend your life and energy to focus only on the inward journey, (the Taiji sequence or set) it is like staring at your fingers pointing to the moon. Do not concentrate only on your fingers. Then you will miss all the heavenly glory of the Taiji boxer’s journey. Form without function is a functionless form. The movement without the meaning is mindless movement. Therefore, the Taiji form without the boxing is incomplete, like a bicycle without gears. You never reap the maximum benefit of the bicycle with all its innate potential. With diligent practice you will grow to understand that stillness is the foundation, and action is the use. Action then becomes the fulfillment of stillness, known as the spirit of vitality. Such blending of stillness and motion is a foundational part of the change related to the Taoist principles of yin and yang.

Another part of the subtle change is the rule of the hard becoming soft and the secret of cotton and steel. It is an important transition that all Taiji boxers understand softness overcoming hardness.

Hard things become brittle, and brittle things break. Too soft can be too weak, therefore I believe “Be soft and sensitive on the outside and strong and supple on the inside” just like cotton over steel. The practice of silk reeling and bone marrow washing and tendon changing skills helps this part of the transformation.

The integration of the thirteen powers, as well as practice and applications of the push hands theory, helps to solidify the “quiet skills”{ Chi Na ,Shuai Jiao, Fa Jin, Kicking skill, and striking techniques}.
The Taiji boxer’s martial skills round out and solidify with the addition of weapons’ training and Qui Kung techniques.

With this basic formula combined with a minimum of 15 years of dedication and diligent practice, the disciple will be on his way to the completion of their metamorphosis.
In the stillness and motion of our daily lives, the Tao of being enhanced with martial discipline and clarity of the Buddhist mind is essential to living a compassionate and vital life.

These treasures, discovered by the ancient Taoist sages, are as relevant now as they’ve ever been. All we need to do is apply them. This may be the reason for Taijiquan to be known as the supreme ultimate fist.

Thank you for taking the time to read my article. I believe that partaking and sharing our knowledge is the way to achieve our own individual vault of immortality.

Sifu Dennis Pounall