Chen Family Taijiquan Training Methods

Hidden deep within China's Henan Province, Chenjiagou is the place where Chen Wangting, a seventeenth century royal guard, created Chen style Taijiquan more than 350 years ago. Combining traditional martial arts with Chinese medical theory and ancient breathing methods, he created the forerunner of all the major schools of Taijiquan practised today. Incredibly his descendants still live and teach in the village today.

Practicing Taijiquan in its ancestral birthplace, allows you to cut through many misconceptions and to reach closer to the essence of the traditional manner of acquiring skill. The realisation that you are tracing the footsteps of people like Chen Wangting, the creator of Chen Taijiquan; Chen Changxing, formulator of the system as we know it today; and Chen Fake, who took Taiji to the wider world, in effect, stepping on the same soil, gives a great sense of continuity. Since my first visit to Chenjiagou in 1997 there have been many changes including the building of a new Family Temple and Taiji Museum. On the whole, however, the people in the village continue to live a simple rural life, closely following the rhythms of nature. There are no streetlights and in the evening darkness comes early. Training in the village soon settles into an uncomplicated routine, physically demanding, but mentally very straightforward with none of the distractions of home. Early to bed and early to rise, practising, eating, sleeping and visiting the local bath-house to warm up and ease any sore muscles.

Located in the middle of the village, the Chenjiagou School of Taijiquan was built in 1982. It is the most celebrated school in the area and is run under the stewardship of Master Chen Xiaoxing and his brother Chen Xiaowang. A large austere building, the absence of modern comforts creates the perfect atmosphere fitting of a traditional martial arts school. Everywhere there is evidence of the hard work and training that has produced many champions in Chinese national competitions. All around the school are groups of students practising; some doing weapons forms; some performing acrobatic kicking movements in a sandpit; others being drilled in basic exercises - all under the watchful eyes of the various instructors. Since 2003 Chenjiagou Taijiquan GB has organised intensive training in the school every year with Chen Xiaoxing.

Chen style Taijiquan has its own step-by-step comprehensive training system and working with Chen Xiaoxing, it soon becomes clear, form training provides the foundation. Stories are handed down of the prodigious number of repetitions Chen Fake performed every day. Chen Xiaowang is said to have suspended building work on his house because it was interfering with his daily repetitions of the Laojia Yi Lu (Old Frame First Routine). This tradition has survived with the current emerging masters from the village.

Form training is demanding. It requires the total attention and participation of mind and body. Elements such as patience, persistence, yi (mind intent), strength, relaxation, and qi are crucial in honing one's Taijiquan skills. In Chenjiagou, practitioners have for generations considered the handform to be the base upon which all the other skills of Taijiquan are built. Practicing the Taiji form is not simply a matter of mindlessly repeating the sequences. Each routine has been carefully researched and meticulously arranged. The forms are the culmination of centuries of practical experience, each posture and manoeuvre having been tried and tested then assembled to construct the forms or routines we see today.

Characteristics of the Traditional Handforms
While modern shortened versions of Chen Taijiquan are practiced as an introduction to the system, the main curriculum emphasizes two primary barehand routines. The first and more commonly practiced is the Yi Lu (First Route), the second being the more dynamic Cannon Fist or Paocui routine. These two routines were compiled by the fourteenth generation standard bearer Chen Changxing (1771-1853), incorporating the more numerous ancient forms devised by the systems founder Chen Wangting (1600-1680).

When contrasted to the Cannon Fist, the movements of the first routine are comparatively simple, with more emphasis placed upon softness (rou) than firmness (gang). Yi Lu focuses upon the development of silk reeling energy (chan ssu jing) through the twining and coiling movements of the limbs and body, interspersed with powerful energy releasing movements (fajing). In appearance, the form is relaxed, steady and stable. As the Chinese classics say, "like a great river rolling on unceasingly". Throughout, the limbs are guided by the body in an uninterrupted sequence of opening and closing movements.

Great thought was given to the features of the movements (whether hard or soft, difficult or easy, etc.) so that the complexities of the art could be learned little by little over time. For instance, the beginning movements of the Laojia form are relatively straightforward. The movements are comfortable and natural, with silk-reeling as the most important principle. More softness and less hard movement make learning and practicing easier. This employment of coiling and twining movements is one of the major features of Chen style Taijiquan. Practicing the form while accurately following this method leads the student along the path to developing more effective fajing and, eventually gaining an understanding of how to apply and escape from qinna (joint-locking) techniques. Conscientious training of the first form lays a strong base upon which more complex skills can subsequently be overlaid.

The second routine, Paocui, contains a greater level of difficulty. Movements are more intricate, faster and tighter, with shaking energy as the main principle. Through practice of the form comes an appreciation of the different requirements of each movement--for example, the positioning of hands and feet, bodily synchronization throughout the movement, and how to place the body most favourably for attack or defence.

High or Low Postures?
The optimum number of forms practiced and the level of physical difficulty must be decided relative to the strength or weakness, age and vigour of the practitioner. For less-experienced students, it is preferable that actions be large, comfortable and open. The expression of roundness, fullness and continuous motion, as well as the alternation of opening and closing movements, can be more clearly seen when the spiralling silk-reeling circles are larger.

Whether the form is practiced in a high or low stance is decided according to personal preference. In the early stages of training, low postures allow one to develop the foundation strength of the lower body.

Low postures also allow the practitioner to see more clearly the folding movements of the waist and turning of the legs. As the level of skill increases it is normal for the postures to become higher. This higher stance is, however, extremely agile, the practitioner being able to change naturally and easily between high and low positions. For the older beginner, a higher position may be more comfortable. Above all, in practicing the form one should let naturalness be the guiding principle.

Training the Frame
The inhabitants of Chenjiagou refer to the practice of Taiji boxing as "lien panjia" or "training the frame of one's posture." Great emphasis is placed on the quality of a student's position and fixing any deficiencies in his or her postural framework. The training syllabus requires the learner to first learn the movements of the form. Once the foundation of familiarity with the form is reached, the process of correcting posture can begin. Correcting posture is a hands on process whereby the teacher adjusts the posture of a student until it eventually fulfils a set of requirements handed down over many generations. This is achieved in much the same way as a sculptor refining ever-greater details from a crude outline.

Familiarity Through Repetition
The process of achieving competence in the form is often compared with learning to write Chinese characters. In the early stages of practice one shouldn't look to far ahead to the more advanced requirements. Like learning the basic calligraphy strokes, the beginner should first concern himself with accurately learning the sequence. Concentration should be focused upon maintaining an upright position and performing the movements in a soft and balanced manner. Inexperienced practitioners often try to run before they can walk wishing to train combat applications before a solid foundation is established. Different teachers from Chenjiagou often compare learning Taijiquan to the wider educational system. Everybody accepts that they must go through primary education before they are ready to attend high school. Likewise, they must complete high school before they will be able to benefit from a university education. Those trying to acquire the more complex skills upon an inadequate foundation are destined to fail.

Chen Xiaoxing often speaks of the need to grind out skill through heavy training. Repetitive practice of the form leads to familiarity with the movements. Certain optimum patterns of movement must be established, and these can only become set if they are repeated almost endlessly. The unique nature of Taijiquan's movement is designed to get rid of all stiffness and rigidity in the body. Through prolonged practice and training, the body's joints are loosened, the tendons are stretched and elongated and all parts of the body are co-ordinated in motion. Every gap between the joints should eventually developed an elastic quality - this elasticity, the stretching of the tendons added to whole body co-ordination is what is known as Taiji neigong or internal skill.

A distinctive characteristic of Chen Taijiquan is the frequent use of fajin, that is explosively issuing energy with any part of the body. Along with the fist, elbow, shoulder and knee used in the external martial arts, Chen Taijiquan requires the practitioner to be able to fajin with any part that comes into contact with an opponent. This can be used to throw or strike an adversary. Alongside sensitivity, yielding and redirecting skills, a practitioner seeking martial efficiency should be capable of powerful aggressive movement.

Chen Taijiquan fajin should be elastic in quality, forceful without being stiff. In the words of a Chen family saying, fajin must be performed as though "shaking cinders from the back of the hand" or akin to "a golden lion tossing its mane".

Important points to be seriously considered when trying to develop effective fajin skills. Firstly there should be no deviation from the core principles of Taijiquan - relaxation, whole body movement etc.. Execution of the methods arises from a particular point within a circle, so the silk-reeling spiral path of a movement should always be sought.

The practice of fajin should only be done after one has acquired the pliant energy (rou jin) of Taijiquan. They should be done within the principle of 'song' - letting loose or maximum relaxation of the muscles and joints - the idea of attaining forcefulness and power from softness.

Look to harmonise internal and external movements; ensure that they co-ordinate the actions of the upper body and lower body; clearly differentiate weight distribution; and pay strict attention to timing. The ultimate aim in Chen Taijiquan, is to harness one hundred percent of the body's strength during a movement. Therefore, power emitted should be complete, the speed must be quick, the range should be short and the end point must be precise. While Chen Taijiquan makes use of rapid shaking movement of the waist and hips during fajin, this aspect is often over-emphasised. Shaking the body without having a fixed point of impact may appear impressive to the untrained eye, but is of little practical use against an opponent.

Only by following the above characteristics could one hope to properly develop fajin skills. True fajin is more than simple brute strength. Rather, it is a sudden, relaxed and fluid explosion of power.

Source: The Essence of Taijiquan by David Gaffney & Davidine Siaw-Voon Sim

Below are 3 examples of Chen Taijiquan Fajin in action!

Standing pole or zhan zhuang is the most basic exercise of Taijiquan. Typically, the arms are held in front of the body as if holding a large ball, as the practitioner stands and quietly observes the natural ebb and flow of the breath. During "standing" practice a static posture is maintained for a period of time, with emphasis upon developing awareness of and maintaining the most efficient and relaxed structural alignment necessary to hold the position.
Over time this enhances postural awareness and calmness of mind, and significantly increases the strength of the legs. When the legs are strong and can tolerate weight securely, then the upper body can relax and sink down into them, making the top more flexible. If the legs do not have sufficient strength, the top is "afraid" of sinking down, and the body remains top-heavy and unrelaxed. All the training methods of Taijiquan look to developing extreme lightness and sensitivity in the upper body. Simultaneously the lower body should exhibit a feeling of extreme heaviness and connection to the ground. At this stage, the practitioner can be said to be putting down roots.

Standing Pole practice provides a means of increasing internal feeling and the circulation of qi. Regular standing for extended periods of time gives rise to acute body awareness as the practitioner learns to relax and sink their qi. By reducing the level of external stimulation, one can focus more closely upon sensations within the body. While the external body is still, internally the breath, blood and qi are circulating. This represents a state of balance, or "motion in stillness."

Through prolonged training qi becomes fuller and stronger, filling the dantian, breaking through blockages in the jingluo (energy paths) and then saturating the whole body. The body is like an inflated ball, full of elasticity and peng jing. With the silk-reeling movement of Chen Taijiquan, this energy can be circulated throughout the body.

As one develops competence in the different requirements during standing (i.e. head erect, shoulders relaxed, elbows sunk down, chest relaxed, hips sunk, knees bent, etc.) the feelings and sensations that arise can be transferred to the Taiji form and push hands.

Form training has long provided the foundation of Chen Taijiquan's step-by-step training method. Chen Wangting's original art comprised of five barehand boxing routines which were passed down over the next five generations until the time of fourteenth generation standard bearer Chen Changxing (1771-1853). He amalgamated the five routines into the two routines practiced today, these being the Yilu (First Routine) and the Erlu (Second Routine) also known as the Pao Cui or Cannon Fist form. Today, Chen style Taijiquan can be divided into two main frames: Old and New (Laojia and Xinjia, respectively), each consisting of a First Routine and Cannon Fist. Where the first routine is characterised by slow soft movements, the second is predominantly fast and powerful.

Each form has its own purpose and each form is one step in a clear progression of training. At the beginning the student seeks to standardise movement as far as possible in accordance to Chen style Taijiquan's basic requirements for each part of the body. Each of the requirements has practical implications for maintaining good health, for maximizing the efficiency of movements, for qi circulation, and for heightening the effectiveness of martial applications.

In this context we can understand the logic behind Chen Taijiquan's traditional emphasis upon Yilu as the foundation form. The slower nature of the Yilu permits the practitioner to pay attention to details; to make certain that postures are precise; to test stability and balance during movements; to enhance lower body strength; and to become conscious of the circulation of qi throughout the body.

As the practitioner's level of skill increases they may begin training the Cannon Fist routine to develop the ability to explosively release power and to increase their endurance and stamina. Taijiquan is built upon the model of hardness and softness complementing and alternating with each other. Consequently, the two forms represent a complete balanced system of hardness and softness. Pao Cui is physically very demanding with many instances of fajing (energy release), fast movements, sweeps, elbow and shoulder techniques and sudden changes of attack and defence.

The process of learning Taijiquan must be approached systematically if the student is to achieve the best results. Chen Taijiquan training has traditionally been divided into six stages, each laying down the foundation for the next. These stages are learning, practising, correcting, smoothing, examining and dismantling the frame. Each stage is necessary and none should be omitted.

The first stage is called xue jiazi or "learning the frame". In the initial period of training, students must learn the movements of the form. In Chenjiagou the conventional foundation form is the Laojia Yilu (Old Frame First Form), this being the vehicle through which all the subsequent higher level skills are built. During this stage the requirement is simply to become familiar with the sequence of movements and aspects such as where one's weight should be, what direction the body should be facing and so on. This first phase is sometimes referred to as "plotting the route".

Once the movements have been learned, the student must practise intensely until they are completely familiar with the form. This second stage is known as lien xi jiazi or "practising the frame". At this stage the learner does not have to concern themselves to much with too much detail, just training the form until it becomes very familiar.

The third step is nie jiazi or "correcting the frame". Now that the learner is very familiar with the sequence and basic requirements, more detailed corrections are required from the teacher. While the student now knows the routine, at this point they are still making many mistakes in terms of their posture and movement. Perhaps the shoulders are tight or the elbows are lifted. During this third stage the teacher carefully adjusts a student's posture in line with Chen Taijiquan's strict requirements. Nie jiazi can also be translated as moulding the frame. The student must be patient as every aspect of their body, movement and posture is carefully rearranged - drop your elbow, relax your shoulder, push out more with your hand etc.

The fourth stage is shun jiazi, which can be translated as "smoothening out the frame" or making it flow. Even after the posture has been corrected in the previous stage a person's body is still stiff. When they move, it is like a machine with no oil. Now the training emphasis must be upon becoming very smooth and very natural. After correction, you should practise until you find that the whole body becomes coordinated and flowing. When you move, whether it is slow or fast, your movements should maintain the same quality. You must not let your movements become scattered and dispersed if you speed up, letting the shoulders lift or allowing your qi to rise up. Your breathing is similar. For example, if we consider a sequence of movements where we breath in as we close and out as we open or. Where we breathe in as we turn left and out as we turn right, there should be no change in this pattern whether you go fast or slow. This fourth step, therefore, just requires you to become smooth.

When this has been achieved, we enter the fifth stage of pan jiazi or "examining the frame". Now the form is very standard in terms of movements and postures you must go deeper putting the gongfu into your body. Through careful and meticulous study you must fix all the postures until they are extremely accurate. Training in a low position to develop the lower plane strength and stability or xiapan; ensuring that you fulfil the requirements of being supported on all directions; lower body strong and upper body light; body moving in unison and so on.

The sixth stage is called cai jiazi or "dismantling the frame". Dismantling the frame entails training until the function of every posture can be brought out optimally. Taijiquan is a martial art, so with every posture we should start learning the application. Training one movement at a time, this is the time when you should start to work on the different body methods and applications contained within the form. Many teachers begin to teach applications straight away, before the student is ready.
Teaching applications in this manner gives a student little chance of being successful. For example, even if you show him a lock, he can't use it effectively because the body has no coordination. It is simply not ready. First your movements must become smooth. Your qi must be be flowing and unblocked. Then you start to think about bringing every posture out, learning the applications of the movements in the form. At this stage when you practise, even thought there is no actual opponent, you train every movement as if there were.

If all of these stages are completed one comes to a point where applications against a real opponent can be brought out at will. In a serious encounter they do not have to pause to think about their response. Instead the most appropriate and effective reaction will naturally come out. This level of skill is called yong jiazi.

You must have a clear picture of how to train correctly to achieve a good end result. Often students simply have the wrong idea of how to train and in their mind they are not convinced of the method. When you practise you should make sure that you follow these six steps. Throughout the learning process you must have patience and not be in a hurry. First try to discard your hard strength. In the early stages of learning a student is repeatedly told to relax. Many people genuinely feel that they are relaxed, when in taiji terms, they are still quite tight. The result of this tightness is that their body movement is very stiff and is not led by the waist. Throwing away your hard strength allows you to develop a very strong root, to co-ordinate your breathing with your movement, and to improve your qi and blood circulation.

A common problem is for people to be in too much of a hurry to learn the martial applications contained within the form. Whilst being taught the details of a particular movement or posture, all they want is to learn the application. However, their movement is stuck - not smooth - so you first don't teach the application until everything is smooth and everything looks like Taiji. When you practise you should reach a stage where everything feels very comfortable because the movement is so natural. Once this feeling is achieved consistently, it sends a message to your brain that everything feels correct, comfortable and balanced. First you should find this sensation.

To achieve this you must be prepared to discard your hard strength and learn to use your body in a new way. Throwing out your hard strength allows you to grow a new type of strength. If you use your hard strength, there is no place to grow this new strength. Those unwilling or unable to give up their hard strength will not be able to realise Taijiquan's unique method of releasing power (fajin). Without giving up this hardness they cannot reach a level where all movement follows the silk-reeling principle, with everything turning, everything coming from the waist and from the dantian. First the dantian moves, then start to move your body. This is very important, so learning just try to get the movement smooth.

A Taijiquan saying is that "learning slowly also is fast". At first glance, this seems contradictory but training slowly gives you time to think about the rules. In Taijiquan every part of the body has its own rule. After you have trained these rules into your body you no longer need to think about them. Whether you move fast or slow it is the same, not when your going fast different than when you are going slow. Now when you move still your mind turning your body, the knee turning, ankle turning, your leg turning. Later you don't need to think about it, because your body knows it. So this needs training. When you train a lot you will get this. Then you can start to learn the applications.

Traditionally we also speak of "three understandings" which must be realised as one passes through the aforementioned six stages of learning. When you begin to learn, the first level of understanding is reached when your mind knows what to do - your body needs to do this circle, your arm needs to do that circle etc. At this level one's ability is still limited. While the mind understands, the body often doesn't follow. It doesn't do what your mind thinks it is doing. Sometimes your mind knows how to do it, but your body just doesn't let you. At this first stage we say that "the mind knows but the body doesn't know". The second level of understanding is reached when your body and mind become synchronised. Or "the mind knows and the body also knows". The final level of understanding is called shen. Now you need to understand the energetic connection between your mind, qi and body. Everything comes from your mind moving your qi, the qi then activates your movement. These are the six steps and three understandings.

Wang Haijun explains the eight energies of Taijiquan in the Essence of Taijiquan by David Gafney & Davidine Siaw-Voon Sim (below).

Chen style Taijiquan is the original method from which the other four main Taijiquan styles (Yang, Wu, Wu and Sun) have evolved. Endorsed by the 19th Generation Gatekeeper of Chen Family Taijiquan, Chen Xiaowang, The Essence of Taijiquan is an essential resource for those seeking to understand the true face of this most enigmatic of martial arts.
This book explains the turbulent recent history of Chenjiagou, birthplace of Taijiquan, and how this has shaped the art we practise today. It presents a comprehensive introduction to the overlapping steps that make up the traditional Chen Taijiquan syllabus. Topics include: Understanding Qi in a practical way; Taijiquan as a combat system; Deciphering the boxing canon of Chen Wangting, the creator of Taijiquan; The correct attitude required for successful practice etc.. Throughout the book lies an underlying theme of demystifying the art and appreciating it within the cultural framework of generations of Chenjiagou practitioners. In a range of articles, the final chapter sees some of today's leading practitioners give their insights into the multifaceted art of Chen Taijiquan.

The Essence of Taijiquan can be ordered at the following link:
www.blurb.com/bookstore/detail/1113810

L'essenza del Taijiquan
- tradotto in italiano da Amanda Carloni
http://www.blurb.com/books/2896342

A Essência do Tai Ji Quan %u592A%u6975%u4E4B%u7CB9
in Portuguese -traduzido por Gabriela Morgado
http://www.blurb.com/bookstore/detail/2913285

Push hands is a two-person training drill the aim of which is to attain sensitivity to the movement and intention of an adversary while masking one's own intention and energy. Harmonizing with the movements of an opponent, the practitioner works towards eliminating all tension and resistance within his own responses. In contrast to most external martial arts, the intention is not just to block an incoming force with greater force, but to "listen" to and "borrow" the opponent's energy to defend oneself.

This listening skill is not sole dependent upon the sense of touch but of whole body awareness. Many people make the mistake of turning their heads to one side or closing their eyes while pushing hands. In actual fact, there must be a combination and coordination of sight, hearing and touch, and one is not exclusive of the others.

Understanding jing (the trained energies of the body) lies at the heart of push hands practice. Fundamental to achieving this is a careful study of Taijiquan's Ba Fa or Eight Methods. From these eight methods or energies all skills and techniques are generated. The eight energies comprise four frontal methods : peng (warding); lu (diverting); ji (squeezing) and an (pressing down) and four diagonal methods: cai (plucking); lie (splitting); zhou (elbowing) and kao (bumping). Mastering these four skills is important if one is to acquire a true understanding of the throwing and striking skills that Chen Taijiquan is famous for.

Push Hands allows the practitioner to put to the test the body postures trained in the forms. Correct body alignment enables one to control others and yet prevent others from entering one's boundary.

Chen style Taijiquan traditionally uses five methods of Push Hands:
Wuan Hua - fixed step - single- and double-handed exercises
Ding Bu - fixed step - double-handed
Huang Bu (jin yi tui yi) - single backward/forward step - double-handed
Da Lu - moving step - low stance - double-handed
Luang Cai Hua - free steps - double-handed

Beyond these is the practice of san tui or free pushing.

As the practitioner reaches a more accomplished level, the use of supplementary exercises with a variety of training equipment can further amplify this energy. Skills such as neutralizing, yielding, qinna (joint-locking) and explosively releasing power are more efficient when backed up by greater physical strength.

While it may come as a surprise to many, strength training is not a new phenomenon in Taijiquan. In the past, it represented one aspect of an all-encompassing training process. In Chenjiagou, within the garden where 14th Generation Chen clan member Chen Changxin is said to have taught Yang Luchan, founder of Yang style Taijiquan, can still be found an eighty kilogram stone weight that they are said to have regularly trained with. Traditional strength training methods such as pole shaking and practicing with heavy weapons continue to be used up until today. Over the centuries strength, endurance, and agility have been physical attributes highly valued within Chinese military circles. According to Chinese military historian Stanley Henning, military training has utilised activities such as weight lifting, long distance running, jumping, climbing, and swimming alongside the development of martial arts prowess. General Qi Jiguang's training manuals inspirational in Chen Wangting's creation of Taijiquan outlined a comprehensive training regimen which included: "maintaining an overall strong fighting constitution (through remaining "lean and mean"); strong hands and arms through training with heaver than normal weapons; strong feet and legs through running over 600 yards without gasping for breath, using ankle weights (bags of sand) while running; and overall bodily strength and endurance by training while weighted down with heavier than normal armour".

Chen Wangting had been through the Chinese imperial military examination system where candidates, in addition to tests of ability in archery while mounted and on foot, were examined in bending a 12 catty bow, brandishing the 120-catty halberd and lifting a 300-catty stone. (A catty is a Chinese unit of weight equalling 1.102 pounds). Quite naturally he included similar exercises in his new system:
Also popular, to this day, is the exercise of shaking a long pole as a means of increasing the amount of power that can be transmitted from the dantian (the dantian is a point about three fingers beneath the navel and approximately an inch beneath the surface - it is held to be the bodies centre of energy and balance) out to the extremities. The pole is at least three metres in length and is used as a means of increasing whole body power and explosiveness. The practitioner trains either a pole form that consists of thirteen methods that have been compiled into a sequence, or by training individual movement drills. The seventeenth generation master Chen Fake, one of the most renowned practitioners of the modern era, is said to have performed three hundred repetitions of the "pole shaking" exercises. In Chenjiagou both the spear and the long pole are typically made from a particular kind of wood called bailagan, a strong but flexible wood that allows the practitioner to transmit force through it and bends to absorb impact preventing damage to the weapon. As well as form training for whole body strength, a number of two-person "sticking" drills are also practised with the pole to enhance the 'listening' ability and combat skill of practitioners.
Taiji Ball training is used to strengthen the torso, condition the muscles, and increase physical power. Stories are handed down of past masters training with stone balls weighing 60kg. Students in the Chenjiagou Taijiquan School today use a basketball filled with sand to train the system's unique spiralling and rotational movement. Through a range of coiling movements the practitioner works towards a stage where the movement of their dantian leads the movement of the ball. There is also the Taiji Bang - a short stick used to develop seizing, locking and escaping skills. Usually about the length of one's forearm, the bang is used for twisting and stretching the tendons and developing the strength of the grip and forearms.

Weapons training is another means of developing strength in the Chen Taijiquan curriculum. The most widely practised weapons are the straight sword, broadsword, spear and halberd (guandao). Each have their own unique characteristics and conditioning benefits. The sword trains flexibility and the full extension of one's body; the sabre is fast and explosive and could be likened to plometrics in modern athletic training; while the spear trains agile footwork and upper and lower body co-ordination. One common method of increasing strength is to train with heavier weapons

The guandao, also known as the "spring & autumn broadsword" or less prosaically as the "big knife" is regarded as Chen Taijiquan's heavy artillery. Unlike the spear and the pole, the spring & autumn broadsword historically was the most often deployed weapon by Chinese military officers. Due to the exclusive and expensive nature of the weapon, it became a symbol of military rank, and was often ornately decorated. The name guangdao derived its name from the legendary Chinese general Guan Yu, who was respectfully given the title of Lord Guan (Guangong), from the tumultuous "Three Kingdoms" period of Chinese history. He reputedly used a weapon weighing eighty-two jin (one jin is about five hundred grams). This was also the favoured weapon of Taijiquan's creator Chen Wangting. Because of this he acquired the nickname "Equal to Guan Yu" because of his military exploits and his proficiency in the use of the guandao. The dynamic nature of the guandao form, with its sudden changes in direction, sharp turns and explosive leaping movements makes it a wonderful body-conditioning tool. Today's practitioners use weapons ranging from a few kilograms to more than twenty kilograms. Its practice is based on thorough grounding in the core skills of Taijiquan, as it demands a stable lower plane, good upper body strength, and excellent spatial awareness.

Source: The Essence of Taijiquan by David Gaffney & Davidine Siaw-Voon Sim

Weapons training has always played an important part of the Chen training curriculum. At the time of its creation, Chen style Taijiquan was practiced, essentially, to develop the martial and military skills of the villagers of Chenjiagou. Without a doubt the training would have greatly enhanced the health of the Taiji boxers, however, this did not provide the main reason for practicing the skill. In Chen Wangting's day guns had yet to make an appearance. Traditional weapons were still being carried onto the battlefield and used in actual combat.

In the present day, the weapon routines of the assorted Chinese martial arts are considered by most people only in from the perspective of demonstrating or exercising in the park. Viewing the Chen weapon forms in this way will only lead to a shallow appreciation of their fundamental nature. Preserved inside each of the Chen weapon routines is the original martial meaning. As well as showing relaxed flowing movements, the forms include numerous dynamic actions, swift changes in tempo, and fierce chopping, slicing or thrusting movements.

Viewed in the light of the whole system, weapons training add to the barehanded training of the Chen Taijiquan exponent by magnifying certain requirements. For instance, the mind and intention must be extended all the way through the length of the weapon; movements must stay relaxed, agile and efficient at the same time as controlling a weighty object; also footwork should be lively and responsive to permit rapid changes in the actual fighting collection. Within the training curriculum of Chen style Taijiquan numerous weapons are still practiced today, including sword, broadsword, spear, guan dao, pole, double-sword, double-broadsword and double iron mace.

Once the theories underpinning the Taijiquan forms and push hands methods have been realized and trained until they are very familiar, then practice can be taken a stage further with the introduction of single-posture training. At this stage, the form is taken apart as selected movements are trained over and over again. By dismantling the form and drawing out the most efficient application and fajing movements, the practitioner can develop essential combat requirements for instance speed and accuracy.

At first sight, single-posture training may seem tiresome and repetitive. Nonetheless, going over individual movements many times significantly increases the capacity to use them practically. Often single-posture practice focuses on building effective fajing ability. Even so, there should be no departure from the core principles of Taijiquan. Any movement where force is emitted must be characterised by looseness, pliability and elasticity, rather than rigidity and stiffness. Just because a movement is fast and powerful, the practitioner should not lose sight of the need for following the silk-reeling spiral path rather than straight-line movement.

Past generations of masters placed great importance upon supplementary power training methods (xing gong). In Chenjiagou, in the garden where Yang Luchan, the founder of Yang style Taijiquan, is said to have learned from Chen Changxin, there is still a stone weight weighing about eighty kiliograms that they are reputed to have trained with to increase their hand strength.

Also popular, to this day, is the exercise of shaking a long pole as a means of increasing the amount of power that can be transmitted from the dantian out to the extremities. Cut from the baila tree, the long pole is typically in the region of four yards long and roughly an inch and a half in diameter. This type of wood is flexible and springy, allowing the practitioner to transmit force through it. It is said that Chen Fake performed three hundred repetitions of this exercise daily, as well as at least thirty rounds of the handform.