"Nothing but a circle"...

 The seemingly profound Taijiquan is actually "nothing but a circle".

Taijiquan master Yang Chengfu said: "Taijiquan is made up of circles. Its entire combative capability is not based on individual techniques or set moves.  Instead it’s all about circles - vertical circles, horizontal circles, oblique circles, countless and continuous rotating circles in the limbs, waist, whole body.  When it reaches the peak of perfection, it is impossible for the enemy to break through.  An exaggerated description mentions that a drop of water cannot penetrate.  Whatever comes in contact with it will be thrown out”.

Taijiquan theorist Chen Xin wrote: "Taijiquan is spiralling  (reeling silk) method:  Forward and Backward, Right and Left, Upward and Downward, Inward and Outward, Large and Small, Positive and Negative”.  He also said, "As for the movement of hands and feet, there is nothing more than a circle. There can be no straight line.  Simply, every circle is a circle of Taiji”.

The words of these past masters explain the characteristics of Taijiquan movement.  That it is inseparable from circles. We must pay attention to and  train our bodies, hands and feet to draw and walk circles, and for these circles to be connected before and after.  Taijiquan is made up of these countless circles that are connected and unbroken to form spirals.  The traditional theory of Taijiquan called the circular and the spiral rotational movements reeling silk movements, and the circles reeling silk circles.

Chen Zhaokui added: "Although each limb makes a spiral circle, but on the whole, Taijiquan is a holistic sphere”.  From the surface Taijiquan is our body and hands and feet drawing circles, but from the overall point of view, these spiral circles are in fact our whole body rotating and rolling like a ball.  Therefore, he urges players  to have an overall concept of the body as a sphere when practising Taijiquan.