Getting Started in Tai Chi

Having only seen Tai Chi in a couple of books I had read, I came across a videotape about Tai Chi Chuan while browsing through a New Age bookstore. I'd always been fascinated by Martial Arts like judo and karate, but never pursued them because of the violent way they were depicted in films. Tai Chi promised a non-violent method of working with and moving energy, so I took the tape home and watched the form unfold on my TV. That was eight years ago. I've worked with Tai Chi Chuan ever since.

Learning a martial art through books or videotapes has its pros and cons. The upside is that it's cheap and you learn at home at your own pace. The downside, I discovered, is that you can't ask questions and get answers, nor learn the nuances of the skill. Thus after a few months of practicing Tai Chi Chuan using a video, I joined a class. Over the following year, I learned everything I wanted to know, plus a few things I didn't want to know about the martial art.

Tai Chi comes in many flavors. It is up to you to learn what each one provides in style and attitude, and then make a choice, or just go out and join a class. Basic Tai Chi can be learned in less then a half hour, but takes a lifetime to master. The Chinese work with one move at a time until the student expertly performs it. Then, they move on to the next one. Western society is not so patient. Thus basic Tai Chi is taught through its whole form, then the teacher refines each move as the student proceeds.

The primary idea for doing Tai Chi, and most Martial Arts, is to move Universal Energy, or Chi through your body. Now it's there all the time, but the casual observer doesn't usually recognize its presence. The Chi can usually be felt by first rubbing your hands together, then holding the palms a foot or so apart and bringing them together slowly. A resistance, and/or a feeling like that of static electricity can be felt between the palms when they are a few inches apart. A similar feeling will occur during and after performing Tai Chi.

Tai Chi Chuan and similar forms consist of a number of linked movements, each with its own benefit to the performer. It requires a physical space of 80 to 100 square feet or more, depending on the style and form.

Tai Chi Chih is another way of doing Tai Chi and requires very little physical area because it is a series of movements done in roughly the same space. If all you want to do is move Chi then Tai Chi Chih may work for you. But if you really want to feel your body flow in dance-like movements and practice the defensive aspect of the art, then Tai Chi Chuan or a similar form will produce that effect. You could start with one and work toward the other.

One benefit of learning a Martial Art, and especially Tai Chi, is that it requires little external paraphernalia. You can learn and do it in 'street' clothes wearing socks or with bare feet.

Tai Chi is performed from within and flows outward to arm and leg movements creating a 'ballet' describing the Marital Art.

Borrowing a videotape or book from your local library is a great place to familiarize yourself with several styles and forms of Tai Chi, and will help you decide where to begin. I personally think that Tai Chi Chuan is the easiest form to learn. However, viewing a Tai Chi Chih tape and learning its basic movements will prepare you for future lessons, and give you a feel for the basic form.