Tai chi is a form (which loosely translates to supreme energy) is a form of moving meditation, sometimes used simply as a form of keep fit, that has its origins in the ancient martial arts of China. Every form of Chinese martial arts has its ‘forms’ which are a set of movements, normally reinacting a fight, in which the practitioner can practice various punches kicks and moves concentrating exactly on balance, stance, posture etc. so that they become automatic when he is required to use them in practice. Legend has it that the stances of tai chi were discovered by a Shaolin monk called Chan Sang Feng, who lived in China in either the 12th or 13th century. He came across these stances whilst watching a white crane (some say a magpie) attaching a snake. It was the fluidity of the battle that impressed Chan Sang Feng with the snake always maintaining a circle but able to avoid the pecks of the crane (who eventually gave up and flew off hungry). The idea of a circle is important to tai chi, particularly as it relates to the concepts of yin and yang. These 13 stances then seem to have gone to ground although at some stage it was taught to the Chen family as five centuries later these stances cropped up again with various movements connecting them together when Chen Chang Hsing was teaching Tai Chi to his relatives. This Chen style is the oldest known of the hundreds of styles of tai chi known about today (although there are probably only five major ones the Chen, Yang, Wu , Sun, and Woo). The Yang which is probably the most popular nowadays started shortly after that by Yang Lu Chan who was a servant in the Chen Household. He learnt tai chi by watching Chen Chang Hsing teaching it and when it was discovered that he not only knew most of it but knew it very well, being a martial artist of considerable skill anyway, he was taught the whole of the system. Eventually Yang Lu Chan left the service of the Chens and became famous with his new system He was asked (told) to teach the Chinese Royal Family who ordered him not to teach anyone but themselves and family members. However Yang disobeyed and taught many students in secret, including his two sons Yang Pan Hou and Yang Chien Hou. His grandson Yang Cheng Fu wanted the ordinary people to have access to the benefits of practising Tai Chi and seems to have severely broken with tradition, simplified the system a bit and taught tai chi to more of less anyone who wanted to learn it.
It is surprising how energetic tai chi actually is. Watching someone who is good at tai chi practicing is very deceptive it is not anywhere near as easy as it looks. Now mostly devoid of any martial application the ‘point’ of tai chi is both as a form of exercise and to improve the circulation of chi throughout the body. It is It has various associations with Taoism and even the I ching (book of changes) but these seldom make it out of China. A lot of the energy work is being diluted in the west as people rush to learn the entire form in a couple of months whereas in China you would be likely to be made to practice a single stance for a couple of years before moving on to the next one. However there is one exercise that is still frequently taught in western tai chi that does help cultivate an appreciation of chi and that is the sticky hand exercise.
All that is needed for this exercise,which is not particularly energetic, is a partner and some space. Have your partner hold one arm out with the palm of their hand facing you. Touch the palm of their hand with the palm of your hand and shut your eyes. Keep your palms together at all times and ask your partner to start moving around the room, or field or whatever, and move with them but still with your eyes shut. This is not a competitive exercise. Your partner is not trying to detach you. You are simply trying to move as one person, as gracefully as possible, and to do this perfectly you will need to feel the direction your partner will be moving in before they actually move by sensing minute changes in the palm of his or her hand.
Apart from the chi aspect of tai chi which is a bit difficult to quantify, the health benefits of tai chi are fairly well documented. In the may 2000 edition of the Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation featured a study by Lan, Lai, Chen and Wong of the National Taiwan University Hospital in Taipei on the effects of tai chi on the knee strength of 40 ‘elderly’ people living in residential care. 9 dropped out but those who stuck the course ended up with increases in knee strength ranging from 15 to 20%. This followed a clinical trial concerning the effects on blood pressure published in the May 1996 edition of the journal of the American Geriatrics society by Channer et. al of the Department of Cardiology, Royal Hallamshire Hospital, Sheffield, England where 126 elderly patients were divided into three groups. One was given tai chi lessons, one another form of aerobic exercise regime and one given some sort of ‘non-exercise support’ as a control group. After two months only the tai chi group had significantly lowered their blood pressure. It was evidently also the most enjoyable of the three options as more people stuck with it than with the other two groups.