|
What Makes Tai Chi Chuan The Supreme Ultimate Boxing? |
|
Well, according to Wang Tsung-yueh in his classic, The Tai Chi Chuan Lun, “a feather cannot be placed, and a fly cannot alight on any part of the body. The opponent doesn’t know me; I alone know him. To be a peerless warrior results from this.” That is a very concise answer that expresses the simplest thing that for most is hard to attain.
When the Lun says, “a feather cannot be placed, and a fly cannot alight on any part of the body.” It means the body is relaxed and supporting the eight directions and the mind is like a dust free mirror. With this combination, the slightest pressure on any part of the body will move it. This, at the least, makes a person hard to hit. More importantly it gives them sensitivity and softness.
Sensitivity and softness is what the Lun means when it says, “The opponent doesn’t know me; I alone know him.” This is when you can read your opponents intent. As esoteric as that sounds, it isn’t. It is about not judging your situation; instead you go with the flow. You have to allow your intuitive side, not your rational side, to control your actions. Your actions would stem from changes detectable to the senses: sight, sound, and touch predominantly, but the interpretation of the input of the stimulus is instinctive.
Attaining this level of Tai Chi is a considerable accomplishment and I humbly agree that someone with these skills would be a peerless boxer.
Tai Chi Chuan is a complete fighting system. It has strikes, throws, chin na and fa jing. Also, what Wang Tsung-yueh describes in the Lun is what makes Tai Chi Chuan an internal art. The way it harmonizes all these things, and more, is what makes it Tai Chi. |
