spiralling in yang

Discussion in 'Tai chi' started by johnson, Aug 7, 2003.

  1. johnson

    johnson Valued Member

    wondered if anybody could explain this?
    I hear it can add an extra 10 percent or so to power.

    regards
     
  2. nzric

    nzric on lookout for bad guys

    I think someone mentioned this recently:

    http://www.taichiproductions.com/articles/display.php?articleid=13

    There are a lot of articles on the net about it so try a search on the key words.

    Basically, it's all about body mechanics. The way I understand it is the body isn't designed to move in completely straight lines - if you look at muscle compression and release, and the natural movement of joints, you'll see that the curve is the best form of power generation for the human body. With spiral movements, you are emphasising the natural movements of your limbs and muscles, so your body can release the energy the way it was designed to (look at a slow motion movie of someone throwing a ball).

    On the martial aspect, when you work on spirals you not only are able to deflect an attack better (because you don't meet force on force), you can also learn to capture the energy flowing at you and steer/direct it in spirals so you use the other person's energy against them (think Aikido).

    Of course, that's not the only thinking behind spirals but it's a couple of points.
     
  3. shadow joe

    shadow joe seeker of truth

    i've been doing some similar stuff, standing yichuan for about a year and i'd say it's added a LOT more than 10 percent to my power.... probably more like 30%


    daily practice is key
     
  4. Mad Yakker

    Mad Yakker Valued Member

    Spiralling came from Chen lol!!
     
  5. moondog

    moondog ch'en fake wannabe

    spiralling is a way of compressing energy, like nzric said. there are two explanations, one is, if you believe in qi, that spiralling draws qi from the earth and compresses it, magnifying your fa jing (energy discharge).
    another explanation, like the one mentioned by nzric, is that spiral motions are the natural way the human body was designed to utilize force.
    personally i subscribe to both ways of thought. a spiral motion will amplify your force (this is based on personal experience). i also believe though that qi plays a very important role in discharging energy.
    as to spiralling coming from chen, it is true that chen emphasizes spiral energy. it's called silk reeling energy, and the chen form contains a lot of coiling/spiralling motions. however, whether chen was the origin of this is debatable. all the internal martial arts, particularly xingyi, utilize this sort of body movement. and it gets a lot muddier since people can't agree on which internal art came out first. i've read some accounts that say taiji predated both xingyi and bagua, others say that xingyi came before taiji and bagua, etc.
     
  6. Mad Yakker

    Mad Yakker Valued Member

    Err... how do draw "Qi" from e earth and compresses it?? :confused: And how do u magnifying it??

    Please advise...

    Best regards,
    Mad.
     
  7. nzric

    nzric on lookout for bad guys

    With a bucket, dear Liza
     
  8. Mad Yakker

    Mad Yakker Valued Member

    And a pump... hee :D
     

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