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"Tai Chi Fist" - Using Practice Variations to Develop Chi Skills

From: The ChiFusion Tai Chi and Qigong Blog
Posted: Wednesday November 28, 2007

Greetings -

One of my favorite techniques for building skill in Chi Development is to use "practice variations."

Practice variations involve taking a series of movements, then creatively making changes in the movements to emphasize a particular skill.

The variation may involve large scale changes, such as re-arranging the order of the movements or the linkages between the movements. Or they may involve much smaller scale changes, such as changing torso or limb positions within the movements. Or they may involve subtle changes not necessarily visible, such as focusing the mind on a different energy center than one usually does in the movement.

The key however is to make sure that the variations focus on just one particular skill. We are not changing movements just for the sake of changing them, or for some passing whim, but to help us focus on developing a particular skill.

I tend to use Tai Chi rather than Qigong movements for variations. Most of the Qigong I practice already has a definite purpose ("skill orientation"), making them harder to adapt to different purposes. But Tai Chi movements by their nature tend to be multi-purpose. So adapting a movement for a certain skill is often more easily done with Tai Chi's complex movements.

I sometimes get the inspiration for these practice variations from unlikely sources. But one of my favorite practice variations - that you can use to develop your Fire Element skills - was inspired directly by the full name of the art - Tai Chi Chuan (Taijiquan).

The full names of many Chinese martial arts end in one of two words - quan which means "fist" or zhang which means "palm". While these terms generically means "martial art" or "boxing", sometimes the term identifies the hand technique you'll find most prevalent in the art. This is not an iron-clad rule, but in general, quan arts emphasized closed fist techniques, while zhang arts emphasize open palm techniques.

Were that always the case, I would argue that Taijiquan should really be called Taijizhang, since most styles of Tai Chi emphasize open palm techniques much more than fist techniques.

Thinking about that one day, I began to wonder what would happen if I practice "Taijiquan" as the name implies, substituting fist strikes for all the palm strikes in the form. I soon realized that this was an excellent way to improve skills in the Fire Chi Element.

This can be done with almost any form or style of Tai Chi, but I recommend starting with the Four Elements form in ChiFusion Level 4.

Before you begin the Four Elements form, close your palm into a loose fist, as shown in the ChiFusion Level 1 course. Perform all the movements in the Four Elements form, from Opening to Closing, keeping your hands in loose fists all the way through.

In addition to changing the hand formation, also use all the "energy focus points" we outline for the Fire Element in Level 4. Focus on the fire energy center (dantien), and use the energy flows we suggest for the Fire movement in Level 4. Perform all the movements in the form with this intent, even if the movement does not usually work with Fire chi.

As you practice with this intent, you may find you need to make changes other than just the hand formation in the movements. You may need to change the direction of the arm movements, or your body position, or possibly your footwork, to support the Fire intent.

Keep in mind that you are "exploring" here, with the idea of adapting the movements to a specific purpose. You may find some movements adapt easily. You may find some that can't be adapted at all. As always in ChiFusion Tai Chi, pay attention to your body/mind signals and let them guide you as you work through the variation.

I would not recommend you practice this Fire variation all the time. As a matter of fact, any variation might become "addictive" - unbalancing your chi development.

But practicing variations like this for short periods of time - say part of each practice session for a week or two - is an invaluable practice tool. It can help you develop skills much more quickly, plus help add variety to keep your practice fresh.

Best wishes,

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