Section 2 Videos - 2026
Our movements as in Push the Water look as if they are done through a horizontal turning, and when first learning it, it is. However, as one improves, the shifting is done through the absorbing of one foot combined with the sinking of the tailbone. The movements, then, have a very strong vertical component. This is true of all our movements.
We reviewed the Punch Down movement going into the Carry the Moon movement. The arms move very little to complete the movement. When coming up from Carry the Moon, the right knee feels as if it is going to the left. We then reviewed the Deflect Downward and Punch movements in detail.
Expanding and opening every joint in the body is of primary importance in tai chi. It creates Peng-Jin which is the essence of every posture and move.
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Turning, whether in tai chi or qigong must have an up and down element. This element is created by one leg absorbing and one sinking. The leg that is getting the weight is doing it by absorbing or pulling something out of the ground. Simultaneously, the emptying leg is sinking deeper. Adding a vertical component to the horizontal turning in effect creates a spiral that comes up from the legs and goes through the body. The end result is that the turns become much more compact, and with more power.
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We looked at the Apparent Close-Up, Hug the Silver Moon, and Turn Palms.
Tai Chi, at its core, is based on the balance of yin and yang. For a posture or movement to be truly Tai Chi, it must contain both. Yin and yang are often described as opposing states—man and woman, day and night, soft and hard. While this is useful, Tai Chi is fundamentally dynamic, not static. For this reason, it is often more helpful to understand yin and yang as giving and receiving.
Every part of the body is simultaneously giving and receiving. When the arm moves forward, it is giving. At the same time, the trunk subtly moves back and receives. Within the arm itself, the upper arm receives while the forearm gives. Within the forearm, the hand gives while the forearm receives. Within the hand, the palm receives while the fingers give. This continuous interplay of giving and receiving exists at every level of movement and structure.
When we speak of expansion in the body, we are referring to the separation of the joints. This separation arises from the same yin–yang relationship: one side of a joint gives while the other receives. This is often easy to see and feel in the upper body, but it is just as present—and just as important—in the lower body.
When the hips and tailbone sink, the knees move slightly forward and subtly upward. This action opens the kua. If the hips and knees were both to move straight downward, excessive weight would collapse into the knees, creating discomfort and severely limiting mobility. The upward quality of the knees balances the downward sinking of the hips.
As the knee lifts slightly, it draws upward through the ankle and instep, creating a hollow under the foot. This hollow allows the foot to receive energy from the ground, while the outer edge of the foot gently sends energy downward. Again, giving and receiving occur simultaneously.
In a Bow stance, the front leg has 70% of the physical weight sinking it into the floor. If it were to also send energy into the floor there would be no yin/yang. Instead, as the leg is receiving the physical weight, it is also absorbing or receiving energy from the ground. To balance the rear leg, it most send or give energy into the ground, this creating a balance between yin/yang and giving and receiving.
Review of expansion - the opening of all the joints - and how to do it in our trunk an darms.
Discussed the shape of the hand and how extending the pinkie makes a long connection to the fee.
Reviewed the Giving and Receiving in the feet and how the weighted leg pulls or absorbs or receives, and how the other leg sinks and receives. Each leg is also turning creating a sinking and turning in every move. This was demonstrated in Brush Knee and Push the Water, as well as in Cloud Hands.
Reviewed the Turn Hands posture and started working on the Grasp the Peacock posture of Ward-Off.
The 3 dan-tiens can be considered as "hollows". As one improves these hollows unite and they become part of the sphere that surrounds us.
The movements that we do are 3-dimentional because our expansion moves our arms outward as well as side to side. This outward expansion creates peng-jin. We looked at how this works in Push the Water, Block and Strike, Push and Pull and Circle Heaven and Earth.
We bagan looking at Grasp the Peacock's Tail, specifically at Ward-Off (Peng) and Roll Back (Lu).
To receive force, the kuas must make a circle that allows you to change the direction of the force by going under it and then back at the person. In Push the Water or Follow the Moving Ball, and in fact all the movements that we make, there is a small circle in the kuas.
Grasp the Peacock's tail - Ward Off (Peng), Roll Back (Lu), Press (Ji), & Push (An)
Topics covered in today's class:
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The alignment of the 3 dan-tiens
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Pulling or absorbing with one foot; sinking the other
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The sinking of the qua moves the arms
Form
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Transition from the kick after turn hands to Ward Off in Grasp The Peacock
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Hands come closer to the chest because the elbows bend to the sides​
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After the kick, lower the body on the supporting leg and place the foot to the right of the left heel
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Ward-Off (peng)​
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You must pull with the front foot while sinking the back to create an upward motion​
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Roll-Back (lu)​
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As you sink back and turn, both hands expand forward​
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Front foot sinks deeper
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Press​
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Edges of both palms extend outward to open the shoulder joints ​
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THe lifting of the arms is done by sitting back with the ips
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The elbows sink down to match the kuas to change the angle angle of the arms to direct the incoming force to the feet
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Topics covered in today's class:
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The turning of the feet: Feel as if the legs are tree trunks turning in place. The turning of the center is much smaller but the circle is still as big.
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In the Apparent Closing, the circle is more vertical so the spiral that's created is like a stretched slinkie.
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Stepping up in Apparent Closing or in Open the Clouds involves sinking the tailbone as the feet move us into place. We are doing a "crunch" without tensing our body.
Form Work​
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Grasp the Peacock's Tail
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Ward-Off​
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Roll-Back
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Press
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Stepping up and turning to Push (An)
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Hollow the chest and press the elbows forward​
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Lift the right toes, but only slightly. Still feel as if your toes are touching something
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Arms move very little
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When coming back out of the move, adjust your left toes to help you to sit
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Topics covered in today's class:
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The knees always connect together as they turn inward
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Shifting weight is done by one knee lifting and one sinking
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Elbows expand out with the knees and bend with the kuas
Form Work​
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Grasp the Peacock's Tail
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Stepping up and turning to Push (An)
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The arms go into the right position by following the the movements in the knees
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Arms move very little
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Topics covered in today's class:
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Shifting weight - what happens in the legs, as for example in Push the Water
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Becoming aware of the macro, meaning feeling the surrounding sphere moving with you
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Feeling the knees connected as if riding a horse or holding a basketball
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Feel your back expanding to the wall behind you. That will expand your arms
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Expand each and every joint. Feel as if your stretching the entire body and connecting it
Form Work
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Grasp the Peacock's Tail from start to finish