First of all, this video is about Fajin in the Yang Family Tai Chi, as passed down in the early generations. Other styles of Tai Chi and Kungfu have other methods of Fajin that is meaningful and valid for their goals and practice, such as Chen Taichi's Silk Reeling, Xingyi's Bows, Xinyi's Dantien, and many many more. Regarding Fascia: Fascia, running everywhere just beneath the skin, is the physical substance that connects our body together and where the energy channels used in Tai Chi travel through our body. Because of these connections, it is where we direct our awareness, our Tingjin sensitivity, to derive a deep knowledge of the opponent's body, balance, and forces. This bypasses their resistance, their size, and is especially useful when someone is stubbornly determined to pressure or resist you. Because Fascia is helpful in some common self defense confrontations, and becomes an essential focal point of our awareness and development, Fascia Mastery is our choice for the best first step into Tai Chi's Internal Practice, beyond forms, leverage, and muscular struggle to a world more subtle and totally transformative. Song: Song is a state of relaxation that releases the unnecessary tension in our muscle, that opens up the constrictions in the fascia. That means your energy flow unblocks, and your intention is freed from attachments. As a result, you can move freely, effortless, and fully transfer your mass and momentum in every movement in a truly powerful way. As you relax all the way, like this, you become one with the earth that supports you, in a manner that feels heavy, yet soft, to your opponent. This neutralizes their force and even allows you to borrow their force against them. How does one develop this Song? Through the practice of Songgong, to completely release all that holds you back. This is explored in depth in our Song Mastery course. And what is Qi: Qi is the energy, an information medium like wifi and cellular signal, that conveys our physical experience to our spirit and our intention from our spirit to our physical body. Like electronic signals, it is facilitates by physical circuits, like in your phone and computer, which in our body is our energy channels or meridians that run along our fascia. And what about Neijin: Neijin means Internal Power, and is the result of when Qi and Yi (Intention) work together to create movement that is aligned with your body and spirit, in yourself or in another person. Form practice is an opportunity to learn to move with Neijin, letting your body surf the ebb and flow of energy in and around us. Push hand and partner practice is the opportunity to practice Gathering and Releasing Neijin to transform another person's energy to guide their movement in the Tai Chi way. Next you will come to understand Yi: Yi means intention, and is where our awareness is focused upon, and where our actions center around. People may think they know their intention, but often times, we experience life through a filter of our thoughts, emotions, memories and biases. So when you see someone do something, like walking strangely, suspiciously, you form certain beliefs about them. But do you really know this person and their intention? Or are you interacting with just your projection and assumptions, colored by your past? As we release these filters, and really see the reality before us in a way that is Present, Mindful, what will we see? That is what Yi Mastery reveals. And When you really see the focus of their reality, what impact can you have on their path forward? That is the gift that Yi Mastery grants us, that can be so healing, freeing, and true to our deepest self and our most cherished, meaningful intentions. Thank you for watching this video and reading all of this. And if you're new to our channel, welcome to our community! 🙌☯️🙏
Thank you for your comment, you have a great point about balancing simplicity and thoroughness! We can explore all the nuances in time and for now I'm glad you and other people find this overview to be helpful! 🙏
What a good teacher! One of the best demos on this topic. Respect! Not to side track , the history of this energy body awareness and meditation knowledge go back to many milliniums even before internal martial arts. Song comes from the Sanskrit word Shoon-ya, both mean emptiness. Chi comes from the Sanskrit word sha-kti which means life's energy. But prana is more commonly used near the originated source. Meditation is needed to achieve song. This process of achieving song is actually a spiritual process, bc its a practice to go beyond the limited physical (body and mind). Emptiness is unfortunately often a negative word in the western culture. The Sanskrit word for meditation is dhyan-na, then dhyan became chan in china, then zen in japan then thien in Vietnam. Unfortunately the word "meditation" is quite lacking. If you ask people to define meditation, you will get endless defitions lol. In short, there are many paths to get there, but the importance thing is awareness that you are an energy body first, that manifested to the physical. And not the other way around. Its an inward journey for everyone. The physical body (body and mind) is basically what you gathered from the earth and environment. What you gathered can be yours but not you 🙏
The naysayers always say that the student is being compliant with the instructor and therefor it won't work on MMA or boxers. I laugh to myself, because these are usually people on their keyboards. I have done these techniques on boxers and others in a noncompetitive situation and they are blown away. What the keyboarders don't understand is that Tai chi works best on the noncompliant person, especially if that person is trying to get you. Their intent is like a highway which is difficult not to take advantage of, and the force that they are coming at you with can get them seriously injured, because they don't realize that Tai chi works mostly by redirecting their energy. If they don't move I don't move, I only move because of the energy that they give me. I am not at a level to keep the noncompliant, i.e compliant person from getting seriously hurt, but that is the level I am striving for. Thanks for your videos.
Wow thank you for sharing your experience! Because I think the best way to show the naysayers something beyond all the things they have known, is for more and more people to enjoy real success with the methods that they had doubted. So congrats on your success in these practices! I agree with your observations. Noncompliant, resistant partners are easiest to do this one. For people starting to practice this, ask your partner to be stiff and stubborn, and that will usually help make it easier until your skill grows. Thanks for sharing your experience and awesome comment! 🙏 But it can be useful, and healthy, and healing, in ways above what
When we activate Yin energy we experience a sensation of sinking. When we activate Yang energy we experience a sensation of floating. So activating them means experiencing each of these experiences as the energy flows along the Yin channels, and the Yang channels, respectively. I talk more about it in this video that begins a mini series about Yang and Yin energy. 😃 th-cam.com/video/ORNwi_g0CDY/w-d-xo.html
You are such an enjoyable teacher, very pleasant no ego, I would return to California to train with you. California was my favorite state my whole life until about 2010, unfortunately the situation has deteriorated there, hence I haven't been back in years. I still miss looking over the Pacific from there, California has a lot of natural beauty. That is the other reason I would return. I really like what you are doing with the Yang style, I am more experienced in Chen style and Xingyi/Yi chuan, but would love to learn this stuff. I have trained many external martial arts (wrestling, Muay Thai, jujitsu, judo, aikijujitsu etc) and internal arts are my absolute favorite. I love doing qi gong.
I still enjoy California but indeed in the 2000s it was amazing, I remember taking many road trips to enjoy Big Sur coast, Pacific Coast Highway, Joshua Tree, and Yosemite! 🤩 You have a great background! Xingyi, Xinyi, and Yiquan are fantastic, each excellently illustrating a particular aspect of the Chinese internal arts in a way that is totally helpful. Muay Thai is a great way to learn to develop a relaxed force. And I think wrestling and grappling is super helpful to really master yielding, controlling, and avoiding double weighting. I enjoy practicing these arts very much too, they're just so much fun! And like you, I agree that my favorite is the internal arts, because of all the ways they positively impact my life, in deep and fulfilling ways, beyond the dojo and the outside the ring. I hope you make it to Cali sometime! 😃
Sifu - great video as per usual. So much more depth to this than I originally thought. Questions if I may: 1. Is it true that if you have a wound on a body part, say the leg, the fascia can no longer be trained in that specific body part, or is that a myth? 2. I see that the way you control someone is only via the hands. But can someone be controlled with boxing/mma gloves on. Wouldn't covering your hands invalidate influencing someone's fascia? 3. Maybe I asked before but I understand that if you intend something/or have the idea to connect and THEN move someone. You can move their elbow, spine, feet at will etc with intention alone. Putting the science aside - is that true? You have the idea and the body works it's "magic"? In the CST wing chun it's called Nim Lik which means idea/intent. Once you have the intent, it just works. Really appreciated!
Thanks for great questions! 1. Wounds and scars can change the paths of the fascia, but if the body part hasn't fallen off, there is still some form of connection that you can make use of. So don't let injuries deter you, because the body's capacity to heal and function in the same or new ways is quite tremendous! 2. You can control people in these ways through the hands, but also through the wrist, arm, body, legs, even your neck! Not all of these are strategically useful or common, but they are possible! Regarding gloves, for fascia control which requires some friction and stretching, it becomes more difficult. For Song, it does not matter and you can even conduct Song force through objects, such as weapons, or armor. For the nonphysical elements of Qi, Neijin, and Yi, it does not impede it very much. 3. Yes you should have the intention that you want to connect before you touch them, rather than trying to switch gears really fast, you may not have time for that. Regarding moving their body part with Yi alone, what is possible is that while they have an intention for action, such as to punch you or to resist you, when you shift the Yi to a spot on their body, the force gets clogged there and cause some distortion there. It's like how if you have to give a speech for work or school, but you get a coffee stain on your shirt, and you can't stop thinking about that stain and how it makes you look, then you will probably screw up the speech and keep looking at that stain. The Yi shifted from "giving a great speech" to "oh no this stain". Does that make sense? Shifu King demonstrates really great use of Song in the videos I have seen of him. And that would cause an opponent's force to reflect like I explained, and possibly focused to where he moves their Yi. So that can create the effect he shows and you describe. I enjoy his presentations. Thank you for watching and for the great questions! I think they add a lot to the discussion for everyone. 😃🙏
Hi! You can learn more about Fascia in another video that discussed it in more detail. Check that one out! Secrets of Tai Chi Internal Power Completely Revealed: th-cam.com/video/8bBJxTAcaZQ/w-d-xo.html There are a number of other videos on the subject of Fascia on this channel. I hope they are helpful to you. And feel free to ask me any questions about them! Welcome to our community. 😃
Cool! That's advanced but play with it anyways! Let yourself relax beyond caring about outcomes, as you experience where they are focused on pushing you. Be aware of that as you place your hand on them decisively, not forcefully, but with a certain clarity of "this is it here." Once you have that, see if you can move such that the pressure does not continue to engage your torso. Have fun and let me know how it goes!
Thank you for saying so! There is so much wisdom in old cultures throughout the world. I have been fortunate to have been taught some of the wisdom passed down by this culture and I'll continue to spread it, as I learn and appreciate more and more from all the other cultures too. Thank you and welcome to our community! 😃☯️🙏
@@phoenixmountaintaichi for me tai chi has always been about layers, like an onion but the wine tasting adds a sophistication to the more you become tuned to new senses the more can be explored and appreciated. Thank you Sifu.
Hello sir. Your videos are real gems, and I am using some of your tutorials mainly for recovery. May I ask, if this "fascia training" will still work for someone with arthritis, bad joints and/or skeletal imbalance (for example having a misaligned knee patella or spinal scoliosis)? I've heard that the beginning phases of internal arts relies on "structural alignment" as a pre-requisite to song development. But what if the bones, tendons or ligaments have been damaged. Is there a fascia work around? Thank you very much for sharing your art. It's really helping me. Kind regards.
Absolutely, the first stage, Fascia Mastery, teaches you to control another person's balance and force. It's relatively independent of your own body. The reality is that many great masters in the past had imperfect postures. Because the cultural revolution has put them in labor camps, or economic circumstances forced them to work tough jobs like construction, and took a toll on their bodies. In spite of this, they accomplished great skills that I continue to aspire to! In our tradition, structural alignment as a geometric ideal is not that important, as the masters we just talked about would illustrate. What matters is a state of comfort and acceptance. Sometimes I wake up unable to turn my neck because my cat slept on my face in some strange way 😂 but I will still be able to do all of this, even when I can't look straight forward or turn to the right ha ha. The second Masterclass, Song Mastery, will teach you to release tension in your body in a way that is very healing and creates real comfort for your joints. You will really enjoy that one. Take a look at this video for a beginner friendly practice to start enjoying that comfort! th-cam.com/video/J0RRN0bDxf4/w-d-xo.html Thank you for your comment and questions, because it started a discussion that I'm sure is helpful for many others beyond you and me! 😁☯️🙏
Thank you very much for your response, Sir! I am so glad there is someone like you, who can articulate the nuances of these seemingly mysterious and subtle things. I've been trying to research on different non-surgical remedial therapies for structural deformities; or at least lifestyle choices to mitigate some of the pain, which is what led me to Tai Chi. I've heard stories of qi-gong/nei-gong practitioners fixing such things as calcified spinal damage through such practices. And I hear Tai Chi is an ideal exercise to alleviate chronic arthritis. It's helping me stay active with my current injuries, and my doctor approves of it. But I was confused as to whether structural problems for a beginner would be a barrier to entry for internal development, so I thank you for clarifying and giving me hope! I look forward to exploring these disciplines more, and your content has been just what i needed. Thank you once again, Master. Kind Regards 🙏
There are definitely life style changes that can improve age related or use related joint changes. Eating a very anti inflammatory diet can be very helpful. Maintaining bone health, including vitamin D, calcium, and especially collagen, can be very helpful. Some people really enjoy certain simple supplements: tumeric for inflammation, hyaluronic acid for joint fluid lubrication. I am not a doctor so please consult your physician before any major lifestyle changes. But people have enjoyed success and improvements with these ways. Beyond that, structural deformities are definitely not the end of the road, just perhaps some speed bumps along the way. It's still an enjoyable journey though! Welcome to the community and feel free to ask any questions!
@@phoenixmountaintaichi Thank you for your advice,, Sir. Your approach to your Tai Chi seems very holistic. I am looking into dietary considerations for joint health. There's information I've come across that suggests sugar causes "fascial adhesions" so I'm trying to lower my sugar intake ('cos sugar is my greatest weakness... even more than arthritis lol). But thank you for sharing your knowledge, Master. I'm taking my baby steps😄🙏
Of course! This video demonstrates several different mechanisms to affect another person with Fajin: Fascia: this was the beginning of the video. Remove their ability to resist, and then push them when they can't stop you. This is taught in our level 1 course, Fascia Mastery. th-cam.com/video/-WocXig2jvo/w-d-xo.html Song: This is the next part of the video. Fully transfer your mass and momentum into them, while borrowing their resistance to bounce them even further. This is taught in our level 2 course, Song Mastery. th-cam.com/video/8Crd6hgntUs/w-d-xo.html Qi: This is the part about Yin and Yang. Give the other person's body a sense of floating or sinking, that makes rooting difficult. This is taught in Qi Mastery and Neijin Mastery. Yi: This is the last bulk of the video. Shift the focus of their awareness and intent, so that their resistance does not apply, as they follow your Yi through the projection. This is taught in Yi Mastery. The videos linked in this comment will show you what you will learn as you go through the course. It is recommended you go in order, for the reasons explained in this video. Let me know if you have any other questions!
You are welcome to ask. 😃 Fascia begins just beneath the skin, and above the muscles. So you touch deep enough to reach past the skin but not so deep that you start to clash with their muscles. And you direct your awareness along this surface layer around their body. This awareness is like a compassionate and curious empathy, a caringness that is inclusive. This video showed a more advanced form where we barely touch the fascia and connect through them with our awareness. When first starting out, it's easier to more noticeably stretch or pull at the fascia, like tugging the skin but a bit deeper, to get a more clear feedback that you are engaging them. Because physical force is easier to read than subtler energies and emotions at first, right? Check out this video by Susan Thompson at Internal Tai Chi, where she nicely demonstrates and explains it in a way that's great for beginners to start playing with. th-cam.com/video/zRVvROB4LPo/w-d-xo.html Her followup video shows some nice details th-cam.com/video/4aVxHCKaFv4/w-d-xo.html And you are right of course, that this is taught in tremendous detail in my online courses! You are still welcome to ask though. Thank you for starting this discussion! 😃
@@phoenixmountaintaichi thank you very much, and you're right, physical force is easier to detect. i'll check the video you recommended too, thank you for that as well :D
Stationary and compliant partner, body size / weight difference, footwear ... too many variables that can be exploited by non-taiji practitioners to call this secret revelation as BS. Pls do better.
You're right to think that non-taiji practitioners who want to call things BS, will find ways to nitpick and call things BS. And you would be right to consider every way they can object, more and more ways they may object, until you realize they, as they are, will always object, will they not? I have spent a lot of time before, attempting to create the perfect demonstrations to convince such persons. But if I can push someone, then it'll be said they were compliant, no matter how hard it looked like they resisted. If I make someone fall, it'll be said that they have horrible balance, they know nothing about fighting. Any success becomes the "proof" that the partner is compliant or unskilled. And I don't know that I, or anyone else, have had any notable success with that demographic. And then I started thinking about, why do they want to call everything beyond what they have known, to be BS? And I realize it is because they don't want to understand yet. They want to enjoy and trust that which they love and have dedicated themselves to. And that's perfectly valid, isnt it? We are all entitled to cherish what we prefer. And what that means is, it would take an incredible amount of time and effort to convince any such person. And it may not even be the right path for them. And that's okay. Beyond right, would it be efficient, to spend all day on the people who don't want to know about Tai Chi, when there are so many people who want to understand more about Tai Chi, but have been deprived of helpful teachings about it? For now, these are footages from my in person class. I take any volunteer who wants to experience it first hand and don't mind appearing online. Usually, it is whoever asks me the question. Because foremost, I am there for their learning. So I'm not going to disqualify them for their footwear choices ha ha. It has been a great joy to see them learn through these experiences. And I reshare the videos online, so that people who wish to learn, people who wish to understand, can watch and gain what they can. Some day, I hope for more people, even non Tai Chi practitioners, to be able to appreciate and benefit from Tai Chi. I always strive to do better, until that day, and beyond. Until then, I share the discoveries and understandings I have along the way, for every one who wish to travel this journey alongside me. And that is all of us, doing better, one step at a time, as we enjoy this fascinating journey. Is it better enough for anyone else? For us, I hope to be better than yesterday, and for tomorrow to be better than what's before. And that is a better that is really worth pursuing, is it not? I appreciate your observations on ways people can object. And aside from what people want to object to, what can we realize, that is helpful in any way, for our own good in ways we haven't considered yet? Because as we realize what is good for us, inside of what may appear to be not good enough, we can begin to discover the real key to doing better than we have before. Cheers! 🙏
@@jarrodpelrine7229thank you very much for your support! I really appreciate it! I don't mind the negativity here and there but I wouldn't want that to discourage anyone else that's watching from doing something that can have a positive impact on their life! 🙏😃
@@HarryRemer thank you for watching and I'm very glad you find it to be helpful! As you digest all the content, feel free to ask any questions that arise!
First of all, this video is about Fajin in the Yang Family Tai Chi, as passed down in the early generations. Other styles of Tai Chi and Kungfu have other methods of Fajin that is meaningful and valid for their goals and practice, such as Chen Taichi's Silk Reeling, Xingyi's Bows, Xinyi's Dantien, and many many more.
Regarding Fascia: Fascia, running everywhere just beneath the skin, is the physical substance that connects our body together and where the energy channels used in Tai Chi travel through our body. Because of these connections, it is where we direct our awareness, our Tingjin sensitivity, to derive a deep knowledge of the opponent's body, balance, and forces. This bypasses their resistance, their size, and is especially useful when someone is stubbornly determined to pressure or resist you.
Because Fascia is helpful in some common self defense confrontations, and becomes an essential focal point of our awareness and development, Fascia Mastery is our choice for the best first step into Tai Chi's Internal Practice, beyond forms, leverage, and muscular struggle to a world more subtle and totally transformative.
Song: Song is a state of relaxation that releases the unnecessary tension in our muscle, that opens up the constrictions in the fascia. That means your energy flow unblocks, and your intention is freed from attachments. As a result, you can move freely, effortless, and fully transfer your mass and momentum in every movement in a truly powerful way. As you relax all the way, like this, you become one with the earth that supports you, in a manner that feels heavy, yet soft, to your opponent. This neutralizes their force and even allows you to borrow their force against them.
How does one develop this Song? Through the practice of Songgong, to completely release all that holds you back. This is explored in depth in our Song Mastery course.
And what is Qi: Qi is the energy, an information medium like wifi and cellular signal, that conveys our physical experience to our spirit and our intention from our spirit to our physical body. Like electronic signals, it is facilitates by physical circuits, like in your phone and computer, which in our body is our energy channels or meridians that run along our fascia.
And what about Neijin: Neijin means Internal Power, and is the result of when Qi and Yi (Intention) work together to create movement that is aligned with your body and spirit, in yourself or in another person. Form practice is an opportunity to learn to move with Neijin, letting your body surf the ebb and flow of energy in and around us. Push hand and partner practice is the opportunity to practice Gathering and Releasing Neijin to transform another person's energy to guide their movement in the Tai Chi way.
Next you will come to understand Yi: Yi means intention, and is where our awareness is focused upon, and where our actions center around. People may think they know their intention, but often times, we experience life through a filter of our thoughts, emotions, memories and biases. So when you see someone do something, like walking strangely, suspiciously, you form certain beliefs about them. But do you really know this person and their intention? Or are you interacting with just your projection and assumptions, colored by your past?
As we release these filters, and really see the reality before us in a way that is Present, Mindful, what will we see? That is what Yi Mastery reveals. And When you really see the focus of their reality, what impact can you have on their path forward? That is the gift that Yi Mastery grants us, that can be so healing, freeing, and true to our deepest self and our most cherished, meaningful intentions.
Thank you for watching this video and reading all of this. And if you're new to our channel, welcome to our community! 🙌☯️🙏
I must say you are one of the few that can really explain Tai Chi for what it really is, good job sir
Yay!! I have been looking forward to your next video. 👏 This one us loaded with tons of info. 👍
Yeah! If I don't make videos the info piles up ha ha. I have a lot of interesting topics for the next few videos that I'm excited to share! 😁
@@phoenixmountaintaichi I am looking forward to them as always.
Awesome video, with great analogies...as always!
Thank you! Analogies are a fun way to understand some concepts that are outside of our usual experiences!
Great explanation, thank you. I see negative comments on here, but you have to keep it simple, as there is so much to all this.
Thank you for your comment, you have a great point about balancing simplicity and thoroughness! We can explore all the nuances in time and for now I'm glad you and other people find this overview to be helpful! 🙏
What a good teacher! One of the best demos on this topic. Respect! Not to side track , the history of this energy body awareness and meditation knowledge go back to many milliniums even before internal martial arts.
Song comes from the Sanskrit word Shoon-ya, both mean emptiness. Chi comes from the Sanskrit word sha-kti which means life's energy. But prana is more commonly used near the originated source.
Meditation is needed to achieve song. This process of achieving song is actually a spiritual process, bc its a practice to go beyond the limited physical (body and mind). Emptiness is unfortunately often a negative word in the western culture.
The Sanskrit word for meditation is dhyan-na, then dhyan became chan in china, then zen in japan then thien in Vietnam. Unfortunately the word "meditation" is quite lacking. If you ask people to define meditation, you will get endless defitions lol.
In short, there are many paths to get there, but the importance thing is awareness that you are an energy body first, that manifested to the physical. And not the other way around. Its an inward journey for everyone. The physical body (body and mind) is basically what you gathered from the earth and environment. What you gathered can be yours but not you 🙏
I love these videos, it’s like Adam Mizner vids with commentary.
Thank you so much. This video has brought my practice to a new level.
The naysayers always say that the student is being compliant with the instructor and therefor it won't work on MMA or boxers. I laugh to myself, because these are usually people on their keyboards. I have done these techniques on boxers and others in a noncompetitive situation and they are blown away. What the keyboarders don't understand is that Tai chi works best on the noncompliant person, especially if that person is trying to get you. Their intent is like a highway which is difficult not to take advantage of, and the force that they are coming at you with can get them seriously injured, because they don't realize that Tai chi works mostly by redirecting their energy. If they don't move I don't move, I only move because of the energy that they give me. I am not at a level to keep the noncompliant, i.e compliant person from getting seriously hurt, but that is the level I am striving for. Thanks for your videos.
Wow thank you for sharing your experience! Because I think the best way to show the naysayers something beyond all the things they have known, is for more and more people to enjoy real success with the methods that they had doubted. So congrats on your success in these practices!
I agree with your observations. Noncompliant, resistant partners are easiest to do this one. For people starting to practice this, ask your partner to be stiff and stubborn, and that will usually help make it easier until your skill grows. Thanks for sharing your experience and awesome comment! 🙏
But it can be useful, and healthy, and healing, in ways above what
Excellent demos...
Thank you! 🙏
Great video! Could you clarify what you meant when you said: “I activate my Yīn and my Yáng”?
When we activate Yin energy we experience a sensation of sinking. When we activate Yang energy we experience a sensation of floating. So activating them means experiencing each of these experiences as the energy flows along the Yin channels, and the Yang channels, respectively.
I talk more about it in this video that begins a mini series about Yang and Yin energy. 😃
th-cam.com/video/ORNwi_g0CDY/w-d-xo.html
You are such an enjoyable teacher, very pleasant no ego, I would return to California to train with you. California was my favorite state my whole life until about 2010, unfortunately the situation has deteriorated there, hence I haven't been back in years. I still miss looking over the Pacific from there, California has a lot of natural beauty. That is the other reason I would return. I really like what you are doing with the Yang style, I am more experienced in Chen style and Xingyi/Yi chuan, but would love to learn this stuff. I have trained many external martial arts (wrestling, Muay Thai, jujitsu, judo, aikijujitsu etc) and internal arts are my absolute favorite. I love doing qi gong.
I still enjoy California but indeed in the 2000s it was amazing, I remember taking many road trips to enjoy Big Sur coast, Pacific Coast Highway, Joshua Tree, and Yosemite! 🤩
You have a great background! Xingyi, Xinyi, and Yiquan are fantastic, each excellently illustrating a particular aspect of the Chinese internal arts in a way that is totally helpful. Muay Thai is a great way to learn to develop a relaxed force. And I think wrestling and grappling is super helpful to really master yielding, controlling, and avoiding double weighting. I enjoy practicing these arts very much too, they're just so much fun!
And like you, I agree that my favorite is the internal arts, because of all the ways they positively impact my life, in deep and fulfilling ways, beyond the dojo and the outside the ring. I hope you make it to Cali sometime! 😃
Thank you for the great insight into the Fajin. Looking forward to deepening my knowledge into the inner strengths.
Yes! Looking forward to sharing that with you. Feel free to post any questions you have!
Sifu - great video as per usual. So much more depth to this than I originally thought. Questions if I may:
1. Is it true that if you have a wound on a body part, say the leg, the fascia can no longer be trained in that specific body part, or is that a myth?
2. I see that the way you control someone is only via the hands. But can someone be controlled with boxing/mma gloves on. Wouldn't covering your hands invalidate influencing someone's fascia?
3. Maybe I asked before but I understand that if you intend something/or have the idea to connect and THEN move someone. You can move their elbow, spine, feet at will etc with intention alone. Putting the science aside - is that true? You have the idea and the body works it's "magic"? In the CST wing chun it's called Nim Lik which means idea/intent. Once you have the intent, it just works.
Really appreciated!
Thanks for great questions!
1. Wounds and scars can change the paths of the fascia, but if the body part hasn't fallen off, there is still some form of connection that you can make use of. So don't let injuries deter you, because the body's capacity to heal and function in the same or new ways is quite tremendous!
2. You can control people in these ways through the hands, but also through the wrist, arm, body, legs, even your neck! Not all of these are strategically useful or common, but they are possible!
Regarding gloves, for fascia control which requires some friction and stretching, it becomes more difficult. For Song, it does not matter and you can even conduct Song force through objects, such as weapons, or armor. For the nonphysical elements of Qi, Neijin, and Yi, it does not impede it very much.
3. Yes you should have the intention that you want to connect before you touch them, rather than trying to switch gears really fast, you may not have time for that.
Regarding moving their body part with Yi alone, what is possible is that while they have an intention for action, such as to punch you or to resist you, when you shift the Yi to a spot on their body, the force gets clogged there and cause some distortion there. It's like how if you have to give a speech for work or school, but you get a coffee stain on your shirt, and you can't stop thinking about that stain and how it makes you look, then you will probably screw up the speech and keep looking at that stain. The Yi shifted from "giving a great speech" to "oh no this stain". Does that make sense?
Shifu King demonstrates really great use of Song in the videos I have seen of him. And that would cause an opponent's force to reflect like I explained, and possibly focused to where he moves their Yi. So that can create the effect he shows and you describe. I enjoy his presentations.
Thank you for watching and for the great questions! I think they add a lot to the discussion for everyone. 😃🙏
Really curious about the Fascia and want to learn further. Great Video and explanation.
Hi! You can learn more about Fascia in another video that discussed it in more detail. Check that one out!
Secrets of Tai Chi Internal Power Completely Revealed:
th-cam.com/video/8bBJxTAcaZQ/w-d-xo.html
There are a number of other videos on the subject of Fascia on this channel. I hope they are helpful to you. And feel free to ask me any questions about them! Welcome to our community. 😃
@9:54, Wow! I have to try this! Thank you Sifu!
Cool! That's advanced but play with it anyways! Let yourself relax beyond caring about outcomes, as you experience where they are focused on pushing you. Be aware of that as you place your hand on them decisively, not forcefully, but with a certain clarity of "this is it here." Once you have that, see if you can move such that the pressure does not continue to engage your torso. Have fun and let me know how it goes!
I really believe that greater understanding of the knowledge preserved by the asian peoples can be a key in healing the west. Thank you.
Thank you for saying so! There is so much wisdom in old cultures throughout the world. I have been fortunate to have been taught some of the wisdom passed down by this culture and I'll continue to spread it, as I learn and appreciate more and more from all the other cultures too. Thank you and welcome to our community! 😃☯️🙏
It was explained so well with the analogy of wine tasting. Great video.
I'm glad it was helpful for you! What difference will these understandings make for your practice now?
@@phoenixmountaintaichi for me tai chi has always been about layers, like an onion but the wine tasting adds a sophistication to the more you become tuned to new senses the more can be explored and appreciated. Thank you Sifu.
I like that, layers, and I like onions too! And this onion, the deeper you go the tastier it gets 😃
Great explination!
Thank you for watching! 🙏
🔥🔥🔥
🙏😃
Hello sir. Your videos are real gems, and I am using some of your tutorials mainly for recovery. May I ask, if this "fascia training" will still work for someone with arthritis, bad joints and/or skeletal imbalance (for example having a misaligned knee patella or spinal scoliosis)? I've heard that the beginning phases of internal arts relies on "structural alignment" as a pre-requisite to song development. But what if the bones, tendons or ligaments have been damaged. Is there a fascia work around? Thank you very much for sharing your art. It's really helping me. Kind regards.
Absolutely, the first stage, Fascia Mastery, teaches you to control another person's balance and force. It's relatively independent of your own body. The reality is that many great masters in the past had imperfect postures. Because the cultural revolution has put them in labor camps, or economic circumstances forced them to work tough jobs like construction, and took a toll on their bodies. In spite of this, they accomplished great skills that I continue to aspire to!
In our tradition, structural alignment as a geometric ideal is not that important, as the masters we just talked about would illustrate. What matters is a state of comfort and acceptance. Sometimes I wake up unable to turn my neck because my cat slept on my face in some strange way 😂 but I will still be able to do all of this, even when I can't look straight forward or turn to the right ha ha.
The second Masterclass, Song Mastery, will teach you to release tension in your body in a way that is very healing and creates real comfort for your joints. You will really enjoy that one. Take a look at this video for a beginner friendly practice to start enjoying that comfort!
th-cam.com/video/J0RRN0bDxf4/w-d-xo.html
Thank you for your comment and questions, because it started a discussion that I'm sure is helpful for many others beyond you and me! 😁☯️🙏
Thank you very much for your response, Sir! I am so glad there is someone like you, who can articulate the nuances of these seemingly mysterious and subtle things. I've been trying to research on different non-surgical remedial therapies for structural deformities; or at least lifestyle choices to mitigate some of the pain, which is what led me to Tai Chi. I've heard stories of qi-gong/nei-gong practitioners fixing such things as calcified spinal damage through such practices. And I hear Tai Chi is an ideal exercise to alleviate chronic arthritis. It's helping me stay active with my current injuries, and my doctor approves of it. But I was confused as to whether structural problems for a beginner would be a barrier to entry for internal development, so I thank you for clarifying and giving me hope! I look forward to exploring these disciplines more, and your content has been just what i needed. Thank you once again, Master. Kind Regards 🙏
There are definitely life style changes that can improve age related or use related joint changes. Eating a very anti inflammatory diet can be very helpful. Maintaining bone health, including vitamin D, calcium, and especially collagen, can be very helpful. Some people really enjoy certain simple supplements: tumeric for inflammation, hyaluronic acid for joint fluid lubrication. I am not a doctor so please consult your physician before any major lifestyle changes. But people have enjoyed success and improvements with these ways.
Beyond that, structural deformities are definitely not the end of the road, just perhaps some speed bumps along the way. It's still an enjoyable journey though! Welcome to the community and feel free to ask any questions!
@@phoenixmountaintaichi Thank you for your advice,, Sir. Your approach to your Tai Chi seems very holistic. I am looking into dietary considerations for joint health. There's information I've come across that suggests sugar causes "fascial adhesions" so I'm trying to lower my sugar intake ('cos sugar is my greatest weakness... even more than arthritis lol). But thank you for sharing your knowledge, Master. I'm taking my baby steps😄🙏
Sifu, can you help me understand which online courses will cover the techniques Tai Chi Fajin demonstrated in this video? thanks so much!
Of course! This video demonstrates several different mechanisms to affect another person with Fajin:
Fascia: this was the beginning of the video. Remove their ability to resist, and then push them when they can't stop you. This is taught in our level 1 course, Fascia Mastery.
th-cam.com/video/-WocXig2jvo/w-d-xo.html
Song: This is the next part of the video. Fully transfer your mass and momentum into them, while borrowing their resistance to bounce them even further. This is taught in our level 2 course, Song Mastery.
th-cam.com/video/8Crd6hgntUs/w-d-xo.html
Qi: This is the part about Yin and Yang. Give the other person's body a sense of floating or sinking, that makes rooting difficult. This is taught in Qi Mastery and Neijin Mastery.
Yi: This is the last bulk of the video. Shift the focus of their awareness and intent, so that their resistance does not apply, as they follow your Yi through the projection. This is taught in Yi Mastery.
The videos linked in this comment will show you what you will learn as you go through the course. It is recommended you go in order, for the reasons explained in this video. Let me know if you have any other questions!
@@phoenixmountaintaichi Sifu, thanks so much for the time on this. I will be sure to check out the courses.
i was going to ask how to connect with your partner's fascia, like simple exercise or idea. but i guess that it's covered in your online course :)
You are welcome to ask. 😃 Fascia begins just beneath the skin, and above the muscles. So you touch deep enough to reach past the skin but not so deep that you start to clash with their muscles. And you direct your awareness along this surface layer around their body. This awareness is like a compassionate and curious empathy, a caringness that is inclusive.
This video showed a more advanced form where we barely touch the fascia and connect through them with our awareness. When first starting out, it's easier to more noticeably stretch or pull at the fascia, like tugging the skin but a bit deeper, to get a more clear feedback that you are engaging them. Because physical force is easier to read than subtler energies and emotions at first, right?
Check out this video by Susan Thompson at Internal Tai Chi, where she nicely demonstrates and explains it in a way that's great for beginners to start playing with.
th-cam.com/video/zRVvROB4LPo/w-d-xo.html
Her followup video shows some nice details
th-cam.com/video/4aVxHCKaFv4/w-d-xo.html
And you are right of course, that this is taught in tremendous detail in my online courses! You are still welcome to ask though. Thank you for starting this discussion! 😃
@@phoenixmountaintaichi thank you very much, and you're right, physical force is easier to detect.
i'll check the video you recommended too, thank you for that as well :D
🙏🎸☯️🕉️
🙌☯️
angram for "Put Faith in Jinn" Never they are not our friends, they are very vicious, violent and misguiding.
Peace Next
Stationary and compliant partner, body size / weight difference, footwear ... too many variables that can be exploited by non-taiji practitioners to call this secret revelation as BS. Pls do better.
You're right to think that non-taiji practitioners who want to call things BS, will find ways to nitpick and call things BS. And you would be right to consider every way they can object, more and more ways they may object, until you realize they, as they are, will always object, will they not?
I have spent a lot of time before, attempting to create the perfect demonstrations to convince such persons. But if I can push someone, then it'll be said they were compliant, no matter how hard it looked like they resisted. If I make someone fall, it'll be said that they have horrible balance, they know nothing about fighting. Any success becomes the "proof" that the partner is compliant or unskilled. And I don't know that I, or anyone else, have had any notable success with that demographic. And then I started thinking about, why do they want to call everything beyond what they have known, to be BS? And I realize it is because they don't want to understand yet. They want to enjoy and trust that which they love and have dedicated themselves to. And that's perfectly valid, isnt it? We are all entitled to cherish what we prefer.
And what that means is, it would take an incredible amount of time and effort to convince any such person. And it may not even be the right path for them. And that's okay. Beyond right, would it be efficient, to spend all day on the people who don't want to know about Tai Chi, when there are so many people who want to understand more about Tai Chi, but have been deprived of helpful teachings about it?
For now, these are footages from my in person class. I take any volunteer who wants to experience it first hand and don't mind appearing online. Usually, it is whoever asks me the question. Because foremost, I am there for their learning. So I'm not going to disqualify them for their footwear choices ha ha. It has been a great joy to see them learn through these experiences. And I reshare the videos online, so that people who wish to learn, people who wish to understand, can watch and gain what they can.
Some day, I hope for more people, even non Tai Chi practitioners, to be able to appreciate and benefit from Tai Chi. I always strive to do better, until that day, and beyond. Until then, I share the discoveries and understandings I have along the way, for every one who wish to travel this journey alongside me. And that is all of us, doing better, one step at a time, as we enjoy this fascinating journey. Is it better enough for anyone else? For us, I hope to be better than yesterday, and for tomorrow to be better than what's before. And that is a better that is really worth pursuing, is it not?
I appreciate your observations on ways people can object. And aside from what people want to object to, what can we realize, that is helpful in any way, for our own good in ways we haven't considered yet? Because as we realize what is good for us, inside of what may appear to be not good enough, we can begin to discover the real key to doing better than we have before.
Cheers! 🙏
Are you kidding me negative guy he's doing great 😅
@@jarrodpelrine7229thank you very much for your support! I really appreciate it! I don't mind the negativity here and there but I wouldn't want that to discourage anyone else that's watching from doing something that can have a positive impact on their life! 🙏😃
@@phoenixmountaintaichikudos to you for such a thorough explanation. Enlightening.
@@HarryRemer thank you for watching and I'm very glad you find it to be helpful! As you digest all the content, feel free to ask any questions that arise!