TaiJi and XingYi For Self Defence Part 7

 

Let’s take a look at the final passages of the “Fighter’s poem”

 

Ward-off, rollback, press, and push must be taken seriously.

With coordination between above and below, the opponent will hardly find a way in.

I will let him attack me with as much power as he likes,

for I will tug with four ounces of force to deflect his thousand pounds.

 

Guiding him in to land on nothing, I then close on him and send him away.

 

I stick to him and go along with his movement instead of coming away or crashing in.

 

The opening phrase “I will let him” is an important point often overlooked, it points to a strategy known as ‘beating aside the grass to startle the snake’ this points to the idea of either leaving a subtle opening or using a feint to prompt an attack that you can then control. So while the previous line focused on closing off options this line looks at showing a way in, but a way that you can control and take advantage of. Because you know where the attack will be directed you are better able to control it and deflect / control it, you are not left with a momentary decision and last second adjustment.

 

The phrase “four ounces…”  is simply making the point that a small amount of informed and skilled force can deflect a greater amount, the actual amounts of force are not literal. 

 

Guiding him to land on nothing is in many ways the very essence of TaiJI, having encouraged the opponent to launch in with force and confidence, a slight evasion (made possible because the attack was prompted by you leaving an opening) can cause the opponent to be overbalanced and exposed to a counter. “send him away” is often interpreted as literally pushing the opponent away. I think this is a mistaken understanding, in a violent confrontation simply pushing a person away is a pointless and potentially dangerous idea, as they would simply gather themselves and relaunch their attack. Once again this idea shows the distortion of understanding of TaiJi due, in part, to the focus on pushing hands practice.

 

Rather the idea here is sending them away on their already established trajectory slightly missing you (the defender), but not so far away that you lose contact and your momentary advantage (see next line).

 

“I stick to him and go along..” this confirms the previous point, that you are NOT pushing the person away, you stay close and stick to the opponent, you don’t separate (come away) nor do you clumsily bump into them (crash in). The aim is to take momentary control of your opponent, not engage in an extended phase of pushing hands. Having taken control you are then in a position to strike your opponent from close range with them not being in a position to defend against the strike. This phase of the conflict is similar to the “HikiTe” (grabbing) technique seen in traditional Karate.

 

As it is with many things in life, all of this is easier said than done. To be able to utilise any and all of these tactics requires dedicated and regular practice. In no particular order, as they are all equally important, skills need to be developed in; agile and sure footed stepping, sensitive arm and hands, development of accurate striking, development of powerful strikes delivered over a relatively short range and skilled use of fighting application that can be utilised with little or no pre-planning. All of the above requirements indicate the need for a range of training methods.

 

All of the above training requirements, except for pushing hands and fighting applications, would generally come under a heading of “JibenGong”:

 

基本 / Jīběn: basic, fundamental, foundational, elementary (this training should not be confused as being merely  beginner’s training)

 

功 / Gōng: work, effort, skill (Gong is as used in Gong Fu - Kung Fu)

 

Sadly, in Chinese Martial Arts (and others for that matter) this entire area of training is often overlooked doing so makes the art little more than a hollow shell of an art with little real practical value).

 

Pushing hands on the other hand get a massive amount of attention in TaiJI training, even if the majority of practitioners don’t fully understand how to use the skills that they are trying to drill.

 

Pushing hands training both static and moving step. My TaiJi teacher, the late Dan Docherty, made a point of teaching moving step push hands pretty much from day one, this was done to emphasise the high importance of developing agility and mobility in footwork. 

 

The use of static pushing hands is also important, but to get the benefit from it, it should always be born in mind what it is you are training for. The aim in a self defence situation is to control your opponent for just a few moments, just long enough to be able to hit them and / or take them down to the ground. So although pushing hands drills often last for several minutes, that does NOT indicate how the skills being practiced would be used. No more than a footballer juggling the ball in the air for several minutes would expect to do that during a competitive match. Developing skills takes a great deal of repetition the actual use of that skill should take but a moment.

 

Striking power is something that too many TaiJI practitioners overlook, even if a particular training form contains fast strike movements that alone will not develop the power and coordination required to strike with power. Both empty hand drills and some form of striking against solid objects should be trained regularly and that should include training accuracy of strikes and not just power and speed.

 

We’ll look at fighting applications and understanding the hand form in the following few posts.

 

 

 

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