Steve James wrote:But, I totally agree that anyone who tries to sell people some special power that will enable them to fight should be exposed as a fraud. Otoh, I don't think that the Chen family has done that. I think that comes from other styles. I think it's totally fair and practical of them to incorporate sanda, and it's unfair and impractical to require they restrict their movements to their form. One could do that for every tcma from shuai jiao to wing chun. Imo, that's confusing the martial with the art.
How to use Taiji only (without mixing any other CMA systems) to become a good Taiji fighter? Is it possible? IMO, it's possible. Taiji has all the basic striking tools. It can be an effective striking system if train properly. Does Taiji has all the wrestling tools? May be not. But you don't have to learn 300 throws to be a wrestler. If you can master "cloud hand - body control", you can use it to defeat your opponent over and over.
IMO, the issue is the students. Taiji attracts a special kind of students. When those students become teachers, they attract a special kind of students again. If you don't have any students who are willing to test the Taiji skill that you taught them to deal with people from other MA systems, it will be very difficult to develop reputation for your Taiji system as a fighting art.
Many years ago when I started a Taiji class in North Austin Community College. During the first day, I introduced Taiji basic stances such as:
- horse stance,
- bow-arrow stance,
- striking tiger stance,
- golden rooster stance,
- twisting step stance,
- 7 star stance,
- 40-60 stance,
- ...
During the basic stances introduction, one student stoop up and said, "This is not Taiji." He then left and I have never seen him since then. Even today, I still don't know why he left. When you learn ball room dancing, you start from box step, fox step, Cha Cha step, ... When you learn Taiji, you start from horse stance, bow-arrow stance, striking tiger stance, ...
What did that Taiji student expected from his 1st day of Taiji lesson? LKJ? That Taiji student is the "special kind of student" that I'm talking about.
Crow weep in the dark. Tide bellow in the north wind. How lonesome the world.