A Very Brief History
Long before the practice of Taijiquan Daoist monks were using herbs, meditation and physical exercise to become one with the Dao and achieve spiritual immortality. Like other Chinese monks a lot of Daoists were well versed in Chinese martial arts, it was only a matter of time until the Daoists merged the health, martial and meditative practices together. Wudang Quan was created by the legendary Zhang San-feng 1300AD. It is believed that Taijiquan emerged from Wudang Quan but it was not until the mid 17th century that Taijiquan as practiced by the Chen family was formally documented. It was another two hundred years (late 19 century) before Taijiquan became popular with the Chinese masses as the health exercise that is common place around the world today.

How is Taijiquan pronounced?
Phonetically Taijiquan is pronounced; tie-jee chew-an
Another dated spelling of the same word is Tai Chi Chuan.
Taiji means Yin and Yang combined and Quan is fist, boxing or fighting, so you could say it means Yin and Yang fighting.

What is Taijiquan?
The Practice of Taijiquan could be described as meditation in motion. It is a slow moving martial exercise system that is renowned for its health building and therapeutic values. Taijiquan is practiced in set sequences of movements known as forms; each form consists of various numbers of martial movements that should seamlessly flow from one to the next in a continuous fluid manner.

Why is Taijiquan so relaxing?
Slow smooth movements along with slow smooth diaphragmatic breathing, postural alignments that allow for muscular relaxation and a meditative awareness all combine to make Taijiquan such a relaxing exercise.

Why is Taijiquan good for physical health?
It is well known throughout the world that exercise is imperative to maintaining health. However the amount and type of exercise that has the greatest benefits to a person’s health are under a great deal of debate. Almost everyone agrees that an obese individual who has very little physical activity is unhealthy, yet at the other end of the scale many people believe that tense, athletic, cardio pumping gymaholics are also at risk.

Taijiquan stays very much in the middle ground. It is enough of a cardiovascular exercise to maintain health and relative fitness, without overworking the heart. It exercises the lungs and massages other internal organs through diaphragmatic breathing. It maintains natural healthy muscle tone without introducing tension. It improves flexibility and joint movement through relaxation and along with a healthy diet it will maintain weight.

In essence Taijiquan is moderate exercise without tension, stresses and strains.

Can Taijiquan benefit mental health?
Work has become less physically demanding over the years as technology has progressed, however things have become more mentally demanding. Not only work but more and more leisure activities are designed to stimulate our minds and senses. Over stimulation of the mind can drain vital resources leaving the body depleted of essence and Qi energy, this can have a negative influence on our emotions and make the body more susceptible to illness and disease.

Slowing the breath within Taijiquan calms the mind allowing the practitioner to enter a meditative state of awareness. This exercise for the mind provides mental clarity and can minimise the desire for mental stimulation.

What is Qi energy?
No one English word can adequately capture Qi’s meaning. In its broad sense it could be viewed not so much a force added to lifeless matter but the state of being of any phenomena. There is also a more narrow and specific meaning as well. Qi takes on different forms due to resonance, function and quality. Within the human body there are various types of Qi each with very specific primary, secondary and other functions. One of these basic principles of Chinese medicine is that to bring about good health a person’s Qi energy needs to be free flowing, balanced and of good quality.

The practice of Taijiquan aids the flow of Qi energy through what is known as muscle tendon meridians. This accelerated yet gentle flow has a dredging, cleansing effect on the channels themselves, but also directly affects the Qi energy within. Taiji practice aids the flow of Qi through the body, cleansing and transforming its quality, improving its function and harmonising a balanced state.

What are Yin and Yang?
Yin and Yang are used to describe qualities rather than entities. These complimentary opposites are neither forces nor material entities. They are convenient labels used to describe how things function in relation to each other.

Yin qualities belong to the shady side of the slope like cold, rest, passivity, interior, downwards, inwards, decrease, stillness etc.

Yang qualities belong to the sunny side of the slope like heat, activity, excitement, upwards, outwards, increase, movement etc.

The practice of Taijiquan follows the principles of Yin and Yang.
Every Yang active movement is followed by an inactive Yin movement. The Yang active movements concentrate power and intent whereas the Yin movements are inert and rely on Yang’s subsided momentum. The body is full and expansive within the Yang movements and empty and contracted within the Yin. Breathing in (yin) occurs within the Yin movements in comparison to breathing out (yang) which occurs within the Yang movements and so on.