On "Abandoning Self and Adapting to Others" in Tai Chi Chuan Combat - Zhang Zhijun
The combat strategy of Tai Chi Chuan in Push Hands and Free Sparring can be summarized in four words: "Abandoning Self and Adapting to Others."
"Abandoning Self and Adapting to Others" is the overarching principle and guideline. If you want to hit me, the usual response would be to block or dodge your attack, then look for an opportunity to strike back. However, there is a more sophisticated approach: when you want to hit me, I guide your hand towards my body. By following your force with arcs and spiral movements, I take control of your power. In formulaic terms, your force plus my force through arcs and spiral motions will all be under my command. This is Tai Chi Chuan.
Some may say, "I don't need to follow the principle of 'Abandoning Self and Adapting to Others' to still be able to knock someone down. Isn't that possible?" We argue that while you may still be able to knock someone down, it is not the essence of Tai Chi Chuan's strength, nor does it match the subtlety of Tai Chi's combat techniques. Tai Chi requires us to adapt to our opponent no matter how harsh the conditions during confrontation are. We must achieve "Abandoning Self and Adapting to Others" under various circumstances, utilizing sticking, adhering, connecting, and following to solve problems. At the same time, "Abandoning Self and Adapting to Others" aims to achieve the goals of "making oneself advantageous and the opponent disadvantageous" and "leading the opponent into emptiness," ensuring the opponent's attacks fall short rather than land effectively. When you come at me, I make your force ineffective; when I need to release power, I do so freely, striking as needed. This is the graceful state that everyone practicing Tai Chi Chuan Push Hands and Free Sparring aspires to reach.
The core of "Abandoning Self and Adapting to Others" is transforming passivity into initiative, using the most optimal method to protect oneself. It involves taking the lead and cleverly dismantling the opponent's offense while simultaneously organizing and implementing one's own offensive strategy. "Abandoning" should not be done blindly, otherwise it becomes wasteful; "Adapting" should not be unconditional, otherwise it leads to being controlled. To achieve "Abandoning Self and Adapting to Others," the following key points should be mastered:
1. Adapt to and alter the opponent's force.
When both parties engage, if both move forward, one might jump out. It might feel like just a bump, but in reality, during the instant of engagement, a small circular motion was added. This subtle arc movement caused the other party to float away. Therefore, upon making contact, it's crucial to identify the direction of the opponent's force, try to follow their force, and change its direction. Otherwise, you might end up being thrown off balance without realizing why. Regular training should focus on developing sensitive touch and listening skills, not worrying about immediate gains or losses. Winning a single round is only a temporary gain. Only by understanding the size, length, direction, and speed of the opponent's incoming force upon initial contact can one achieve long-term success. Following the opponent's force is merely the surface; during this process, one integrates their force with the opponent's, then uses arcs and spiral movements to alter the direction of this combined force. The principle requires us to use this method to neutralize the opponent's first, second, and even third forces. Imagine having such a method of following and transforming, regardless of how strong the opponent's force is, they will inevitably lose their advantage and become controlled by us.
2. Avoid losing contact and avoid resisting directly.
In Push Hands, two common mistakes are "losing contact" and "resisting directly." These are common issues for those practicing Tai Chi. "Resisting directly" leads to stiffness, while "losing contact" results in softness. "Resisting directly" makes the force too rigid. If your spiral movement has sharp angles, flat surfaces, straight lines, protrusions, or broken momentum, the opponent can easily detect your intentions and counter them, leading to "resisting directly." We say that Peng Jin (ward-off energy) is the overall energy of Tai Chi. When the opponent applies force, the response is immediately Peng. There are many directions for Peng: upper Peng, front Peng, etc., followed by guiding the opponent's force in any direction, which is correct except for "direct resistance." For beginners, during confrontations, they often overlook the numerous correct methods and default to resisting directly. However, this is an unavoidable stage in learning Tai Chi. With diligent practice, one can shorten the time spent in this phase. While overcoming "resisting directly," it's important to prevent "losing contact." "Losing contact" means becoming soft, relaxed, unguarded, and completely collapsing. "Losing oneself" is vastly different from "abandoning oneself." "Abandoning oneself" is for transformation, while "losing oneself" offers no initiative or follow-up strategies, inevitably leading to failure.
3. Develop a sense of cyclic defense and continuous strikes.
When practicing "Abandoning Self and Adapting to Others" and "Leading the Opponent into Emptiness," it's important to note that after one point of attack is gone, another should quickly follow. When the opponent attacks, your hand retreats, but your elbow must advance, otherwise, you're handing over your position to the opponent. Guarding solely with your hands might cause "resisting directly"; giving up your position willingly is "losing contact." To avoid both, one must skillfully use the second point to protect the first, the third to protect the second, transitioning smoothly from hand to elbow, elbow to shoulder, shoulder back to hand, and so on in a continuous cycle. This applies only to the upper three sections. If one can coordinate left and right seamlessly throughout the entire body, using hands, elbows, shoulders, chest, hips, knees, legs, and feet in a cyclical striking pattern, it becomes even more effective. Additionally, one must maintain the awareness of continuous strikes. Many people stop moving after issuing a strike in Push Hands, leaving themselves unprepared for the opponent's next attack due to missing the second strike. In fact, if they had continued with another force application, the opponent would have fallen. Even if there isn't a visible second strike after the first, one must mentally stay focused and prepared for the second strike. The key is to never lose this awareness.
4. Distinguish between the "Guiding Hand" and the "Striking Hand."
In Tai Chi combat, it's essential to differentiate between the "Guiding Hand" and the "Striking Hand," which holds significant importance for "Abandoning Self and Adapting to Others." The fundamental goal of "Abandoning Self and Adapting to Others" is to lead the opponent into emptiness, control them, create a situation where oneself is advantageous while the opponent is disadvantaged, and effectively strike the opponent. Therefore, our two hands should have specific roles. One hand serves as the "Guiding Hand," primarily used to dissolve and guide the opponent's incoming force, making it "fall into emptiness." The other hand is the "Striking Hand," responsible for attacking the opponent. Of course, these two hands are interconnected; only by coordinating and cooperating with each other can they complete the dual tasks of "Abandoning Self and Adapting to Others" and striking the opponent. The determination of the "Guiding Hand" and the "Striking Hand" depends on the direction of body rotation. When the body turns left, the left hand is the "Guiding Hand," and the right hand is the "Striking Hand." When the body turns right, the right hand is the "Guiding Hand," and the left hand is the "Striking Hand." The role of the "Guiding Hand" is twofold: to guide and alter the direction of the opponent's incoming force, and to direct our own strikes and make the opponent fall. The role of the "Striking Hand" is relatively simpler, requiring only positioning and external expansion. Combining spiral self-rotation with the body's public rotation enables the intent to strike the opponent. The role of the "Guiding Hand" outweighs that of the "Striking Hand." Through arcs and spiral movements, the "Guiding Hand" ensures the opponent's force cannot find a point of contact on our body, neutralizing their strength effortlessly. The "Striking Hand" changes according to the variations of the "Guiding Hand." As the boxing theory states, "Leading into emptiness and combining leads to issuance." "Leading into emptiness" is the wonderful application of the "Guiding Hand," while "combining" is the function of the "Striking Hand." "Issuance" is the result. If one cannot distinguish between the "Guiding Hand" and the "Striking Hand" in actual combat, the application of techniques becomes blind, making it impossible to practice the highest principle of Tai Chi combat: "Abandoning Self and Adapting to Others."
5. "Storing and Issuing Mutually Transform" and "Neutralizing and Striking as One"
Ultimately, "Abandoning Self and Adapting to Others" is a method whose purpose is to achieve "storing and issuing mutually transform;" its ultimate realm is "neutralizing and striking as one." Any force consists of three elements: magnitude, direction, and point of application. By altering the point of application and controlling the direction of the opponent's incoming force, the magnitude of the force becomes irrelevant to us. Tai Chi has the treasures of adherence, stickiness, connection, and following. Once in contact with the opponent's limbs, we can follow their momentum, extend and rotate according to their movements, adjust our own balance, and probe the situation of their force, responding appropriately to changing circumstances and guiding situations to our advantage. During the process of adhering and yielding, since we neither lose contact nor resist, we naturally neutralize their force. When the opponent's force fails to reach its intended target, two scenarios may arise: either they continue advancing, creating a disadvantageous posture for themselves, or they halt their force and retreat. Both scenarios will alter their center of gravity, creating opportunities for us to disrupt their balance. Simultaneously, this "neutralization" process is also our "storage" process. Once this process is completed, it signifies: first, the threat posed by the opponent against us is eliminated, and second, a favorable situation where we are advantageous and the opponent is disadvantaged is created. At this point, we can transform "storage" into "issuance," and "neutralization" into "striking." This is called "storing and issuing mutually transform." A higher level is "neutralizing and striking as one." Under the overall principle of "abandoning self and adapting to others," skilled practitioners of Tai Chi can achieve "neutralization is striking, and striking is neutralization." Or, in many cases, the earlier part of a movement is "neutralization," and the latter part is "striking." There is no noticeable transition between the two, or the transition occurs imperceptibly.
6. Utilize the Wonders of Folding
As stated in the boxing theory: "Folding lies in the wrist." Actually, folding should occur throughout the whole body, though it happens most frequently in the wrists and chest-waist area. Folding in Tai Chi involves using circular spiral movements to change the direction of coiling force, meaning going down before going up, to the right before going left, and backward before moving forward. When the opponent's force arrives, one fold neutralizes it effortlessly. Because these reverse-direction movements easily confuse the opponent, if the force is spherical and holistic, the opponent won't know where you're heading. If your movements are linear, the opponent can see clearly. Furthermore, adding speed to circular spiral movements creates shocking force, causing a brief mental blank in the opponent or inducing them to inhale. Often, striking during the opponent's inhalation easily damages their joints, injures their tendons and bones, or even harms their internal organs. Folding is a relatively refined technique, facilitating the achievement of "abandoning self and adapting to others" and "leading into emptiness."
7. Incorporate Appropriate Body and Footwork Techniques
If the opponent's force is powerful, robust, fast, and angled sharply, it adds difficulty to "abandoning self and adapting to others." In such cases, if hand techniques cannot resolve the issue, use body techniques; if body techniques cannot resolve it, use footwork. Use one step if necessary, two steps if one doesn't work, or even three steps repeatedly. Tai Chi has five types of footwork: advancing, retreating, looking left, looking right, and stabilizing. These include moving forward, stepping back, glancing left, glancing right, and maintaining stability. Among the five footworks, "stabilizing" is the basic one, and the other techniques evolve from it. When standing still, ensure firm rooting with the toes, allowing all joints to move. If the opponent's impact force is too great, you can step back, though it's preferable not to. Staying rooted helps maintain technical form. Conversely, applying coiling force during movement provides greater advantages. Therefore, during confrontation, if both parties' hand and body techniques are insufficient, whoever can use footwork to alter the opponent's force vector and direction, influencing their center of gravity, achieves the goal of "making oneself advantageous and the opponent disadvantageous."
In summary, "Abandoning Self and Adapting to Others" is the overarching principle of Tai Chi combat techniques. Based on this foundation, Tai Chi includes advanced combat techniques such as "using softness to overcome hardness," "using stillness to control movement," "avoiding strength and attacking weakness," and "responding last but arriving first." These techniques represent the most brilliant parts of the profound Tai Chi system. They are easy to learn but hard to master, easy to understand but difficult to practice. Only through rigorous training, frequent summarization, bold exploration, and continuous elevation can learners gradually progress and enter the realm of excellence.
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