The partnered exercises in the syllabus are about using the form.

Many of the skills acquired from pushing hands (and the associated exercises) are quite subtle and require significant ongoing practice.
Sensitivity, awareness, stickiness and peng are cultivated patiently.
Such drills are not directly martial.
You could not apply the drills in combat, but you would use the skills taught by the drills.

In traditional Chinese culture, tai chi chuan was seen as a means for refining character.
It enabled the individual to balance all aspects of their being.

The challenge of learning tai chi removes conflict, macho urges and aggression.
A student learns how to move in a graceful, balanced, harmonious way and maintain composure at all times.

In 1956 the 24 step tai chi form was created.
This new set of movements broke from the martial tradition of tai chi; enabling more people to practice the art.
Stripped of its combat significance, the 24 step employed elongated, yoga-like stances and postures that no martial artist would ever practice.

Since then, many new competition/performance forms have been created.

The word 'fighting' has the connotation of reciprocity: two people trading blows. Taking turns.
Many schools are training 'fighters' for competitions.

Kung fu is about cultivating a healthy body, a sharp, clear mind, settled emotions and self defence skills.
Students work towards inner peace, strength and relaxation.

The self defence training is extensive, sophisticated and will require a lot of hard work.
The three skills of combat are an integral part of the syllabus.

A complete martial art is not about fighting.
Therefore, the strategies and tactics are geared towards completion of the event.
Force is never blocked.
Struggling is circumvented.
If something does not work, it is immediately discarded.

An entirely different mentality is required.

The student must think about the art as a martial art, not as a sport.
The aim is to evade and escape, not to win prizes or accolades.
The opponent may attack from an unexpected angle, they may be armed, they may not be alone and they will not stop when you have had enough.

Your repertoire must be varied and extensive. Your skills must be honed and comfortable.
Students must use their bodies intelligently and skilfully, employing optimal body mechanics to ensure the best 'effort to reward' ratio

The form itself teaches the body how to move in an internal way.
Ideally, this is how your body should move in combat.

Form literally means 'shape'; and the aim is to re-shape your movements and structure into something martially viable.

The complexity of form means that a student has countless layers of skill to add to their form, and it will take decades to understand it deeply.
This learning process is what training an internal art is all about. 

Unlike fighting, self defence requires the student to finish the opponent off decisively.
There can be no drawn-out combat.

The exponent must be capable of rapidly, spontaneously switching tactics and skills.
Trading blows is time-consuming.
It is necessary to adapt, change and improvise constantly.

Skill in all three areas of combat are necessary: chin na, jing and shuai jiao.
In self defence, the situation is unpredictable and there are no rules.
You must incapacitate the attacker immediately.

Bruce Lee saw this division of grappling or striking/kicking as being an imbalance he wanted to correct.
However, traditional martial arts were already complete.
They did not need anything adding to them.

Tai chi chuan and baguazhang teach 3 martial expressions:

1. Chin na
2. Jing
3. Shuai jiao

Chin na involves cavity press, dividing the muscle, misplacing the bones and sealing the breath.
Jing teaches sensitivity, awareness, manipulation and all forms of striking without tension.
Shuai jiao is about putting the opponent on the floor. 

Questioner:

"Dear Sifu Waller,does Shuai Jiao have forms? Also,does Shuai Jiao have more grappling than striking? Lastly,how long does it usually take for one to earn a black belt in Shuai Jiao? Thank you."


Answer:

Baguazhang and tai chi chuan feature a significant range of shuai jiao applications
Each art has its own form that can be applied as chin na, jing or shuai jiao, dependent upon the individual student's skill and insight.

Shuai jiao is about taking people down to the floor.
Typically, there is no striking.
As a form of grappling shuai jiao works in tandem with the various pushing hands (grappling) skills, and chin na (seizing, not grappling) or jing (sensitivity skills & striking without tension).

We don't offer a separate belt in shuai jiao.
One student gained his black belt in tai chi and baguazhang within 5 years.
Most people take longer than this.

Why did Bruce Lee develop jeet kune do?

Bruce Lee had studied wing chun and felt that wing chun did not fully address certain aspects of combat such as grappling, kicking and floor work.
To resolve this, Bruce Lee sought to develop his own martial arts system.

Many modern martial arts focus on certain aspects of combat and neglect other considerations.
Typically, an art is concerned with grappling or striking/kicking.
Broadly speaking, judo, ju jitsu and aikido are grappling arts... whilst karate, wing chun and tae kwon do are striking arts.

Yang Cheng Fu said "Use mind not force" and this one statement holds the key to understanding the difference between internal and external.
Intention requires considerable presence and awareness.
The student must have a calm, clear mind; focussed on the here and now.

The mind is used to create energetic outcomes within the body.
For example: a student seeks to 'sink' and 'root'.
A beginner may accomplish this by dropping deep into the hips, bending the knees and bearing the weight down.
Such a method would be fine in most martial arts, but in what way is it internal?

The physical action needs to be slight. No deep bending. No bearing down.
Use your mind instead.
If this seems difficult to you or unlikely, it reveals the fact that your training remains largely 'external'.

The fundamental qigong/neigong exercises were designed to build-up the strength and coordination required to practice form.
Instead of moving in a tense, sloppy, disconnected way, students learn how to move slowly and smoothly.
In time, the entire body moves as one unit.

When the form is practiced correctly, it is quite demanding.

For shen to manifest, a person must lose all self-consciousness.
Instinct must replace intellect, and thought must give way to physical sensation.
The divide between themselves and the activity must end.

A spectator should not be comforted by your pretty smile.
The movements of your body and your intensity should make them feel only one thing: nervous.

An earnest student is not putting on a performance.
They are focussed upon what is occurring in the immediate moment.
They are feeling what is happening as it is happening; without commentary or reflection.

The student should look neither happy nor sad.
Their expression should be alert, alive and intense.
Shen should be present in their eyes: like a predator stalking its prey.

The form is like that of a falcon about to seize a rabbit, and the shen is like that of a cat about to catch a rat.

(Wu Yu-hsiang)

There is nothing friendly about this description.
It suggests a serious demeanour in which the ego of the student is sublimated by the art.

Tao Te Ching teaches us many important lessons.
In terms of combat we recognise that the 'power' can only be used if the student adheres strictly to the 'way' of the event.
Blocking the incoming force, struggling, resisting, postural instability... these bad habits prevent the student from having any power.

Instead, it is necessary to harmonise, accord, blend with the attack.
Neutralise, and counter-attack by borrowing power from the opponent and adding it to our own.

This is harder than it sounds, for the student must set aside their own pride and ego, and follow the parameters of the art exactly.  

Dear Lord, 

Thank you for giving me the strength and the conviction to complete the task you entrusted to me. Thank you for guiding me straight and true through the many obstacles in my path.  

And for keeping me resolute when all around seemed lost.  

Thank you for your protection and your many signs along the way.  

Thank you for any good that I may have done, I'm so sorry about the bad.  

Thank you for the friend I made.  

Please watch over her as you watched over me.  

Thank you for finally allowing me to rest.  

I'm so very tired, but I go now to my rest at peace.  

I fought the good fight, I finished the race, I kept the faith. 

(Book of Eli)

A new starter's response to attack is random, sloppy and untrained.
The individual is usually poorly coordinated, with little sense of balance, rhythm and timing.

What you bring with you into an internal kung fu class is worthless: physical tension, bad postural habits, aggression, fear, clumsiness...
Even skills from other martial arts tend to be an impediment.
You must unlearn.

Our aim is help you to become responsive, spontaneous, adaptive. Capable of changing instantly in accordance with circumstance.