Taijiquan's Three Essential Steps

There are three important steps to achieving satisfactory progress in Taijiquan.

The First Step of Progress - Laying the foundation.

Start by  learning the unique characteristics of Taijiquan.  

Taijiquan’s unique method of practice and its terminology such as “cultivation of internal energy”, “using the intent and not force”, is a new concept and experience for people with established frames of reference.  Or this aspect itself may be completely new with no reference at all to go by.

However, the aspect of internal cultivation and stimulation is crucial in Taijiquan practice and must be set in place from the onset.  Wanting to learn  a routine as quickly as possible should not mean the omission of establishing the standard requirements i.e. the mental emphasis supported by correct physical structure.  Once wrong habits are formed the true meaning of Taijiquan  becomes more and more distant and difficult to retrieve.

The most important part of learning is consistence; not “three days of fishing and two days of sunning the net” (Chinese saying meaning intermittent commitment to a task) as this way ultimately practice is futile.  People can practice according to age and capability but the fundamental principles of Taijiquan must be present.

Therefore, the key to the first stage of learning Taijiquan is to understand what Taijiquan is and have a rough idea of the connotations of Qi (energetic flow),Yi (intent) and Shen (spirit), and to know what to learn and how to practise and slowly infuse the principles into the actions. 

The Second Step of Progress - Reconciling the internal and external aspects. 

According to Chinese medical theory, the nurturing of the internal organs results in a healthy external body. The whole body is said to be unblocked as the internal organs are able to send out all their essences to the outside - as manifested in good complexion, hair and skin, strong bones and proper functioning of all parts etc.  This also applies to the cultivation of the mental states as the “seven excesses” adversely affect the healthy working of the whole body.

Thus there’s a correlation of the internal and external, of “heaven and man”.

The same principle is shared in the practice of Taijiquan. The key is to achieve internal and external integration, forming a connection between the internal (body) and external (environment). 

Inside and outside does not refer to the division between the inside of the body and the surface of the skin at the level of the human body structure. It is the gongfu formed by shape, intent, qi and spirit in the continuous process of communicating, merging, blending and flowing with the external body and environment that the body is in.

One of the methods of practising internal and external harmony is the concept of three qi circles. The qi circles emanate from inside outwards and are distributed to the periphery.  The main qi circle is the waist that acts as guide and vector of the upper and lower circles;  the upper circle directs the shoulders and facilitates upper limb movements; and the lower circle controls the kuas and directs the rise and fall of the feet and movements.  The intention driven circles combine with external qi to form a holistic qi realm that’s "so large there’s no outside limit, so small there’s no inside", referred to as the unity of heaven and man.  

The Third Step of Progress - Upper and Lower coordination.

Generally speaking, having established the three circle foundation, in the process of practising the frame there will be some kind of upper and lower body coordination. 

Taijiquan theory that emphasises the importance of upper and lower integration says: "the root is in the feet, expressed through the legs, controlled by the waist, shaped in the hands; from the feet to legs to waist to hands, completed in one qi breath”.  If any part is missed out, it is said that qi is scattered.  Upper and lower body coordination is not just how the upper limbs move, but how the lower limbs move too. 

In order to avoid the dispersion of the mind and body in the process of practice, and to ensure that the three parallel qi circles can run in harmony, a imaginary vertical line is present at the centre of the three circles.  This way under the guidance and manipulation of his vertical line the body can move forward, backward, left or right without dispersion thus achieving internal and external as well as upper and lower coordination.

It is a long-term process of cultivation in the steps of progression and takes as long as it takes.