Like I said, I don't consider it supernatural and as for evidence, there is plenty of clinical evidence of the concept of what is known as qi over several millenia.
There's actually no real evidence. And as for clinical evidence "over millenia", clinical trials are a very modern thing.
Modern clinical trials are a very modern thing, but Chinese medicine evolved through trial and error, there was nothing else available, and the treatment protocols were established on the evidence of what worked and what didn't.
All medicine systems were arrived at through trial and error, from China to the Andes to the UK - that doesn't actually mean anything at all; only with the advent of modern, scientific methods have we achieved serious medicine - before then, it was make do as you could. There is no evidence of qi at all - a herbal cure for an ailment isn't a proof of qi, neither is sticking a needle in you so that your muscles go numb a proof of qi. I've had successful accupuncture myself, but it only worked because sticking great needles in your muscles and wiggling them about causes them to go numb. That's interesting, true, but it's not a proof of qi. Qi can't be proved because it's an idea; and an idea which varies over time and area. If you investigated those millions of recoveries, you may well find some medical miracles, but you wouldn't find a single "proof" of qi - just people using the paradigm of qi to explain it. Martial arts has been one of the best places to disprove qi, because no one can do anything - no one at all - that can't be done by someone who hasn't "cultivated" qi.
And, of course, paradigmatically speaking, as long as one breathes, eats and drinks it’s not possible to not cultivate qi.
You know, you want to explain some things via the qi paradigm - that's fine by me. What I don't get is why the rest of us have always got to be "missing" something, just because we don't use the same set of words to describe things. And the worst thing about that is that most of what's being described wouldn't even be there if it wasn't being described in to existence. But, hey ho.
Hey FQ, do I detect a slight tinge of defensiveness there? Heheh. Just playing devil's advocate here, but it appeared to me over the course of this thread that the qi advocates were defending the possibility of their paradigm as a possible way to view the world ... same as the non qi crowd to my view. As is everything we make judgement on. What everyone calls martial skill is generally just gross physical skill (nothing special), that most people would be able to acquire over time and effort. Even this is a experience that some of us get caught in, when it should be a passing through phase (in my opinion). Once we know how to punch ... the glamour wears off .. we still refine it ... but the focus is not on how great we punch anymore but on how fascinating the musculo-skeletal structure feels when we move ... and then we move-on from there as well ... we grow to where we have to grow and experience what our intuition tells us is the next step, with the grace and humour to acknowledge our own foolishness from time to time ... IMO. Cheers.
The thing about qi is its conception... IMHO I think the old time Chinese people saw their breath steaming one cold morning and thought hmmmm then looked at a bowl of rice and saw steam coming off it and thought... you know I breath and it steams so I live, the rice steams and if I didnt eat it I would die... so therefore this steam is the stuff keeping me alive and giving me energy... hey lets call it qi and thats the stuff that gives us energy and life... (and breath is qi's literal meaning as in 气, which is the simplified version, the traditional version I know has the same character but with the added bonus of rice underneath it thus giving the appearance of steam coming from rice) But further to this they also took it to the next level of explaining a drop in qi for making you weak or sick... sort of like Humours in the dark ages made you ill and wrapping a sock around your neck would cure syphalis... so why do we poo poo the idea of humours and a sock but not qi??
You know, I keep having the moments of aggressive stress with people. I think it's a sexual tension thing.
Hi, I have been off the site for a while and no doubt by now you will have made your mind up about TTC? The style is a mixture posture wise of Hsing I/Ba Gua and Yang Tai Chi so in other words a hybrid form. You will gain some benefit health wise and the ancillary exercises are therapeutic bit in real terms you are not learning Tai Chi Chuan. Both the Yin and Yang aspects must be looked at and even better learned to gain a better understanding of the art. I have met a few Taoist Tai Chi practitioners who do not agree that Tai Chi is a martial art despite the fact that they are learning both postures and names such as 'Parry and Punch'. If a health related art is what you are after then TTC will tick that box but it is not Tai Chi Chuan. Regards and good luck. Mark
chi and tai chi first chi just means breath in cantonese its hey. sets of of movements such as red cinnabar hey gung is just breathing for health. tai chi chuan or tai git kune in cantonese means grand ultimate fist . mixing the idea of hey into it with some philosophy appeared during the very early 60s . this was for marketing during the hippy days. if one wants tai chi based on whats really good for the body look for a real tai chi school . l remember when he showed up on the scene l had already learned wu tai git from shanghai . my teacher learned from ng kam cheuns family member. the postures they use are over extended and not really helpfull to your health . then at least if you find a good teacher he can show you push hands and other things like martial applications, the gim , and dao . l learned over 40 years ago and have seen some real bastardization of tai chi since . check out a schools background like you would a used car. to many join clubs like believeing a 327 chev with positrac was only driven to church on sundays by a little old lady.
AmericanFighter, "Are their martial applications in TTC if you look for them and practice them? Reply With Quote" No!!!! Very best wishes
Is TTC better than No TC I want to take a form of Tai chi and I will only cost me about 15 a month. If I take TTC could it help me if I want to take other form of TC down the road. Also is it true that TTC is bad for you knees and back?
tai chi no taking ttc would not help as you would have to unlearn all the things wrong with ttc. example is posture is all wrong . lack of balance as well as usless movements and displacement of the spine into a unnatural position . the base of the spine should be slightly tucked under to allow the nerves coming out not to be pinched as they spread through the lower body. they try and tell you that the stretching is good for you ( l know as a couple who teach it ) only if stretching is done correctly. youd be better with yoga. the word in chinatown its a hoax his theories dont hold water.
Damn I was looking forward to learning tai chi but there is no one around my collage that teaches it. I finally found one and it turns out to be a style thats no good. :bang:
maybe in your college theres something going on you dont know about . in universities theres quite often such things being taught .
yha Thats what I thought but I go to a private university called Bellarmine university so there isn't a whole lot there they teach TKD but thats it. I have taken hard styles before including kick boxing kenpo tkd privet BJJ lessons after wrestling practice. I want to learn a soft style though I have always loved them. I loved the flowing movements of the forms. I am takeing Bagua now but its getting a little too expensive with the economy and all. $100 a month and TTC would only be 15 a month. Is their nothing I could gain from TTC health stress relief or anything? Or is it really that bad on your back and knees.
cool! yeah there's probably a lot they could teach you dude. i don't know that school but my sifu is Taoist and his stuff is great. Oh 100.00 per month is nothing,mine cost $100.00 per hour and is worth every penny.
