Yang family uk power pushing...
Posted: Wed Oct 19, 2022 4:52 am
yea.. so I wanted to throw this up here as I've gotten into a couple of responses around the idea and use of power/ strength in tai chi chuan.
in one recent thread a poster pointed out how one of the US branches taught extension in form postures that brought tension and what I would further describe as tensile strength.
This is an example of the power pushing method as passed down by Yang Sau Cheung son of Yang Cheng Fu.
This should really leave no doubt that training for and using power is part of the traditional method.
I would contest that whilst it's still a matter of balance with the softer defensive skills; part of that defence and in particular offence is predicated on developing a certain kind of strength/ power.
One idea of how this misconception was formed is the taking out of context of certain sayings. As well the teaching of CMC, perhaps inadvertently. YCF most likely didn't teach a relatively short term student this method. It's questionable how many disciples he even taught this as it's more or less stayed in one branch of the family system - he seems to have kept it for his son and that makes sense given the nature of cultural hierarchy and family systems/ businesses..
CMC was spreading his soft looking form at the height of the hippy era; "relax" was the perfect fit, even though it's not a good map to anything in TCC literature. I'm not saying it has no place, but I certainly think in some quarters it's over emphasised.
Neither do you come across this disdainfulness and rejection of strength in other IMA systems; again I think tai chi people over the years have caught on and ran with something taken out of context.
When you look at Chen systems, you can see also strength and power is there. When I watch Chen Zhonghua for example you can just see it come through. Lot's of examples. Stories about stone weights in Chen village. Chen Zhiqiang doing moving step grappling looks strong and issues with strong power. The diverting power is/ becomes far less external motions and an internal affair when you get up close and personal ie. clinch ranges.
Wu style through CTH also is not formed out of 'relaxation' and avoiding tensile strength or strength/ power training.
To not be manipulated into compromising positions your connection needs to remain firm and strong. There's a place for letting go of connection or strength and that's the other side.. However you should IMO work from the base and fundamental of connected strength, over the other way round.. All tai chi postures have this fundamental connected strength to begin with anyway. And you need both heaviness and lightness. Where the emphasis can sometimes become too much on heaviness.