Tai Chi Kong Fu

Tai chi is an ancient Chinese form of movement meditation that benefits the whole person-physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual. Its fluid, graceful, and grounding movements help to cultivate feelings of well-being, centeredness, serenity, and strength. Tai chi is one of the leading techniques being used today to help reduce stress-related imbalances, including high blood pressure; anxiety, headaches, and joint pain, and contribute to improved balance, agility, and bone mass.
Tai Chi Ch'uan, literally "Supreme Ultimate Fist," is a centuries old Chinese self-defense discipline for health, relaxation, meditation, and self-cultivation. Sometimes called Chinese or Taoist yoga, it emphasizes relaxation and inner calm rather than strength. It can be learned by anyone, regardless of age, sex, or athletic ability. It is practiced slowly and evenly in circular patterns.T'ai Chi Ch'uan is considered a healing exercise because of its reputation for alleviating many ailments, such as hypertension, gastric problems, arthritis, heart disease, and anemia.
It improves circulation, balance, and helps relax and strengthen the nervous system. The stretching movements make the body limber, tone up muscles and help release tension. Practitioners find that it creates a sense of well being. As meditation, T'ai Chi Ch'uan is a way of harmonizing body and mind dynamically. It fosters an inner quiet that nourishes a continuing awareness. It blends easily with other kinds of meditation. As a martial art, it is one of the inner schools based on yielding and cultivating inner energies. It avoids use of external strength.
The philosophy of T'ai Chi Ch'uan is rooted in Taoism, which advocates natural effort, and in the I Ching, or Book of Changes. The movements and inner teachings are derived from the complementary relationship between Yin and Yang, two fundamental forces that create and harmonize the Universe by their interaction.
The interaction of Yin and Yang is vital to the practice of T'ai Chi Ch'uan since physically and mentally the practitioner is continually shifting between empty (Yin) and full (Yang) and soft (Yin) and hard (Yang) to achieve an evolving equilibrium.
This produces both physical and mental flexibility and the power to adapt in a way that provides the practitioner with the necessary leverage to deal with a martial opponent or someone combative in other ways.
Practice produces the ability to yield while maintaining contact that will ultimately produce a satisfactory resolution.
T'ai Chi Ch'uan also has the capability to produce physical strength by the proper repetition of the movements. In addition it generates qi, or inner energy, which revitalizes the system.
Over time, practitioners are able to generate internal strength, or jin. T'ai Chi Ch'uan masters are famous for their internal strength, cultivated through years of practice.
Perseverance in practicing T'ai Chi Ch'uan requires and reinforces mental strength and stability because of the focus and concentration that are inherent in its correct practice.
Diligent practice of T'ai Chi Ch'uan also increases self-knowledge and self-mastery. It leads to a greater appreciation of one's self and others. T'ai Chi Ch'uan is intimately connected with qigong, also known as ch'i kung or ch'i gong, an ancient Chinese discipline that involves the mind, breath, and movement to create a calm, natural balance of energy. One of the best kinds of qigong is T'ai Chi Ch'uan, which combines mind, body movement and spirit.
What is Tai Chi Chuan?
The ancient art of Tai Chi Chuan will give you a total body workout without experiencing the after effects usually associated with intense physical exercise. The soft slow movements of Tai Chi Chuan help to release tension, therefore reducing the effects of stress on your body. Health improvements can be experienced because the energy used to maintain the stressed condition is released and becomes freely available to allow the body to heal and rebalance. Research has shown that if Tai Chi Chuan is practiced for as little as 10 minutes each day this can bring great rewards. Many articles have been released by several health agencies about the therapeutic effects of Tai Chi Chuan.
The learning process and practice of Tai Chi Chuan is a perfect metaphor for life, "you get out of it, what you put into it and sometimes things turn out great and other times not so great". This is the reality we must be aware of during any learning process. You will experience your full range of emotions, joy and anger, happy and sad, feelings of success and failure, achievement and frustration, as you try to rediscover the natural rhythm of your body. This happens because you start to ask your mind to think and your body to move in a totally different way. When you first start to practice Tai Chi Chuan (Taijiquan), the body misunderstands the confused messages of the mind , however, as you become more experienced your mind and body align.
The Yin/Yang symbol represents opposing forces in a state of balance creating harmony. A mind and body in conflict creates confusion which leads to frustration. We all have natural talent and abilities, we just need to reawaken them. What is lost can be found providing you know in which direction to seek and this is the focus of Tai Chi Chuan. Retread the path of life and awaken to your true potential and in doing so you will know that "you" have the ability to destroy the illusion of mental and physical conflict which creates an image of limitation. Tai Chi Chuan is a truly spiritual experience because "you" and you alone create the change to make it happen.

If you have heard of Tai Chi Chuan you will know it is a relaxing form of gentle exercise practiced by tens of thousands of people throughout the world. It is not restricted by age or physical ability, because there are many practitioners in their 70's and 80's who teach and continue their own studies of this unique and wonderful art.
Tai Chi Chuan promotes natural posture by aligning the head, spine and pelvic girdle which distributes the weight correctly into both legs. The series of slow rhythmic movements gently massage the internal organs as one moves through the Tai Chi form.
Tai Chi Chuan is regarded as a complete martial art, however it is taught in many different ways. The way you are taught Tai Chi Chuan will determine how you perceive it and integrate it into daily life. You could use Tai Chi Chuan as any of the following:
" Health and Relaxation.
" Moving Meditation.
" Dance and Exercise
" Coordination and Postural Integrity.
" Self Defense.
" Martial Art.
" Spiritual Discipline
All of these definitions of Tai Chi are correct, the end result depends upon your personal requirements. You can achieve any one or all of them, its your choice.
What Tai Chi Chuan is not !
" Tai Chi Chuan is not an instant cure or a quick fix for health problems.
" It is not a ten-week fitness or self defense program.
" It is not a religion, a cult or a sect.
Tai Chi Chuan is an art form, like all arts it requires time, patience and a certain level of discipline to perfect it. It is a shining pearl amongst the many systems available throughout our world today. Perseverance is the greatest quality required to achieve success in the pursuit of excellence. Success comes one step at a time.
"A journey of a thousand miles starts with a single step." The most difficult step in any journey is the first one.