Soft power

[liokault]

Bruce described it with water. . .it flows, can be put into containers, and, is relatively a 'soft' substance. Yet water has ground mountains into sand. A
wave has the power to wipe all signs of life from the face of the planet.

But who has that kind of time these days?

[liokault]

Liokault & Jekyll: serious question. What should I read to understand all this special tai chi language that people on the internet use like 'peng' and soforth ?

I never understand a fucking word other Tai Chi practitioners are saying, not even the sensible ones talking about using it for fighting on a site like Bullshido.

Well, to put it simply, Anti-Viagra is a bit like viagra....but it has the opposite effect. Any more questions?


If you don't understand this thread try skimming through this one:The basics of why TCC sucks

[Meex]

This sounds like very basic tai ji theory, though it does sound like you are experienced with push hands.

Yes.

The way jing and softness are related is that you have to be relaxed to have good jing. Most fighters know that when punching, you should relax your arm until the last moment in order to prevent hyperextending your elbow. A lot of the power comes from the hips and shoulders. In my experience, this is the most difficult thing for people to learn.

Jing and softness is related in the same way jing and hardness is related.
To be relaxed has less to do with jing than you ascribe to it. . .'relaxed' is
not directly equiable with soft power. Hyperextending your elbow is a sign
of bad technique.

Yes, some power comes from hips & shoulder mechanics, with basic technique.
There are levels where your power takes less and less body motion, and more
focused technique. This is where your jing is increased, soft and hard combine,
and your art begins to be more than just a hobby.

`~/

[Cullion]

I read that thread, and what I got from it was that tai chi is full of people who mostly played mages or druids when they did RPGs in their teens.

I'd still like to understand the real, practical meaning of terms like 'peng' (for example, are we talking about a push from straight on, or that armlock thing you do to me sometimes, etc..) so I could make some sense of what people are saying.

[Meex]

But who has that kind of time these days?

Well. . .in a completely esoteric answer I got from my #@%*&$! sifu. . .
". . .it could take a minute, or 30 years!"

More to the point, some get it, and some don't.
I've seen 35 year precticioners that are no closer
to and sort of "enlightenment" about religion, or
fighting, or life. . .and also have students with a
few months of training that are way past those
other dudes. . .why? I dunno.

`~/

[Cullion]

If you don't understand this thread try skimming through this one:The basics of why TCC sucks

People like Taiji Butterfly are too far gone dude. You can't prove he's wrong by beating him at sparring, because sparring is wrong in his world. To him, martial arts aren't really about fighting, but about gathering a group of people around him who listen when he speaks. Why ? because you need to acquire followers to reach 9th level as a druid accoring to the second edition rules :)

You could try and lure him to bullshido, to see if 'saturation bombing' with skepticism would break him, but I would think he'd take one very quick look, declare the place full of trolls and leave.

[liokault]

I'd still like to understand the real, practical meaning of terms like 'peng' (for example, are we talking about a push from straight on, or that armlock thing you do to me sometimes, etc..) so I could make some sense of what people are saying.

You do not need to understand the terms.

They are not techniques as such. The Eight powers and Five directions (i.e the thirteen tactics) just describe the way your body moves. You don't need to know the chinese term for forward, before you can move forward.

If you are really that interested, I can lend you some books, when you start training again, that go into basic detail and have some reference to trigrams etc.

[Ronin]

Yes granpa, that's correct. All discussions about 'internal' martial arts and 'softness' are really about the unclean passions trying to animate your floppy little kubotan.

I knew it !!!

[Jekyll]

Bruce described it with water. . .it flows, can be put into containers, and, is relatively a 'soft' substance. Yet water has ground mountains into sand. A
wave has the power to wipe all signs of life from the face of the planet. A
firehose will push a small car.

Ah, I think I see, someone looks at tai chi and says; "It has softness. It has power. It has soft power." but tidal waves are not soft, and a bubblebath is not powerful.

Edit: Failing to discriminate between the two is "Double Weighting" or in normal english "Asking For a Kicking".

[Cullion]

I think soft power is just like the 'relax your shoulder and throw the punch' idea that boxers practice. I hereby declare boxing an internal martial art. This is bullshido for chrissakes, let's talk about our techniques in proper direct terms. No more 'fa-jing' or zen nature analogies m'kay ?