Understanding how to generate and release power in Chen
Taijiquan isn’t a simple task. To begin with we must be clear how it differs
from conventional ideas of power and strength. We could go to any fitness or
weightlifting gym and find strong and fit individuals. Does that mean they can
easily replicate Taijiquan’s fajin? In a recent video Chen Xiaowang is seen
giving some pointers to a group of young instructors from the Chenjiagou
Taijiquan School. By normal standards they would be considered to be flexible, loose,
powerful etc. He gave them a short master class pointing out some of their
mistakes and how they could correct them and improve.
To begin with Chen Xiaowang emphasised the need for
practitioners to broaden their minds to accept the idea of training the body to
work as an integrated system. He explained “proper fajin involves three routes of jin”. That is
three different elements of trained power and the course and direction of their
expression. Each of these aspects has to be developed and be closely
coordinated with the others. The three routes of jin identified were:
·
dang jin
·
dantian jin
·
chest jin
Dang
jin is the contained and elastic strength of the crotch. In Chen Xiaowang’s
words, it is “the power created by the convergence of the power of the two legs.”
Second is the connecting power of the body’s centre which links the lower and
upper body. Answering the question what is dantian jin, he explained “It is the
power of the waist, supported by the legs that should not affect the dantian as
the core.” That is, the action of the legs shouldn’t disrupt “the complementary
and uniting relationships of the dantian and the whole body.” The
relationship between the legs and the dantian then is “like the relationship of
water and boat.” Finally, the power generated from the dantian is transmitted
to the chest. “The strength created by the chest is
known as chest jin.” A well known and often quoted Taijiquan saying
is that power comes from the feet, through the legs before being directed by
the waist and expressed in the hands. This speaks of a smooth system which,
after initiating power, transfers and adds to it en route to its end point.
According to Chen
Xiaowang, the most common mistakes made by practitioners as they fajin include:
·
An over–reliance upon
the use of excessive muscular tension or stiffness which acts as a brake and
impedes the smooth release of whole body connected power. Tensing up the
upper body has the effect of locking the potential power of any movement within
the body. It also has the secondary effect of preventing the dang and waist from
moving in a fluid and unrestricted way. This is a serious problem that must be rectified. A practitioner
may look powerful to an untrained observer. But if the fist is clenched tightly
and the muscles are overly activated during the gathering phase of a punch,
then “the jin is stuck inside.” Chen
Xiaowang advised that when preparing to punch to not “tighten the upper
body, release any tension and hold the fist lightly.”
· Failing to understand how to position the legs correctly to
simultaneously generate power and support the dantian. He puts it simply – “If
the position of the legs is not correct the dantian will have no power.”
Conversely, when they are placed correctly the dantian is then able to generate
power. To illustrate the point Chen Xiaowang compared the lower plane to the
carriage of a cannon that needs to be stable if the weapon is to be fired
accurately.
· Turning the hips too much. It is important not to lose the correct position
of the hips. He showed the common mistake where a person punching, for example
with the right fist over-emphasises the hip twist – “…the right hip twists too
much to the left as the fist goes out. The two kua should remain level and
forward facing.”
·
Very often people only use the chest jin, and are unable to
execute dang jin. “Over-extending the upper body is a clear symptom that an
individual is using too much upper body strength and not enough dantian and
dang jin.” In Taijiquan terms the over-reliance of one jin at the expense of
the others is referred to as the dispersion or separation of jin. “Releasing power,
the fist and the elbow move together but each has its own distinct action. At
the moment of emitting they become one line, with the upper and lower parts together
and not isolated.”
·
When, according to Chen Xiaowang, “the body is not supported by the bone
structure.” That is, if the body slants or bends forward out of principle.
“There should be no leaning at all and
the buttocks should not protrude as that compromises the waist i.e. dantian
jin.” In practice this can happen when someone takes too low a posture. Unable
to maintain the correct postural framework after going past the limit of their strength
they are forced to compensate by coming out of the correct posture. Here he
said, the answer is to “ take a higher posture because the stance has reached
the limit of your normal strength.”
As any shortcomings in dang jin, dantian jin
or chest jin limits the overall potential of any fajin action, the question that must be answered is how to most
efficiently coordinate the three jin routes? Chen Xiaowang said - “If all three jin routes
are used together in a fully coordinated way, then each should not affect the
other in a negative way. Dang jin, dantian jin and the chest/shoulder jin
explode in unison.”
Where an untrained
or unskilled person puts all their attention on their fist from the beginning
to the end of a punch, the action of a skilled exponent is qualitatively
different. The spark of intention to release the body’s power is like lighting
the touchpaper of a stick of dynamite. Once the process has been activated the
practitioner’s role is to control and direct the power of the whole body out to
a single focused point. Chen Xiaowang explained that when using jin, “You do
not take an active role, but a reactive role, in effect following the body’s
jin.” In this way the power can be directed exactly where it is needed in an
instant. A well known Taijiquan expression – “Distance fist, near elbow, close
up shoulder” – advises on the appropriate technique to be used depending on how
close you are to an opponent. Chen Xiaowang explained, “You use your fist when (an opponent is) far. When an opponent is near you won’t
use your fist, you’ll use your elbow. [Extremely] close to your body use the shoulder. The same jin
routes only the distance is different.”
