Sunday, 30 April 2023

Three Tan Tien in a straight line

 An early lesson was that we aim to line up the three tan tiens in our tai chi form.

Here is a chap presenting this concept in a joyous manner



Sunday, 9 April 2023

Inners, Outers and the 10 Co-ordinations

 A friend of mine who teaches Yang style T'ai Chi once asked me if I knew about the 3 Inners and Outers.

What he meant are the six harmonies, typically divided into the the 3 internal and 3 external co-ordinations. These are:

  • The hands co-ordinate with the feet
  • The shoulders co-ordinate with the hips
  • The elbows co-ordinate with the knees
  • The heart co-ordinates with the intent
  • The intent co-ordinates with the Chi
  • The Chi co-ordinates with the power
I knew these as part of the 10 co-ordinations, which are:
  1. The head must co-ordinate with the coccyx
  2. The neck must co-ordinate with the waist
  3. The shoulders must co-ordinate with the inside of the thigh, where it joins the body
  4. The elbows must co-ordinate with the knees
  5. The shin of one leg must co-ordinate with the shin of the other leg
  6. The toes of one foot must co-ordinate with the toes of the other foot
  7. The spirit must co-ordinate with the mind
  8. The mind must co-ordinate with the Chi
  9. The Chi must co-ordinate with the strength
  10. The inner aspects (spirit, Chi) must co-ordinate with the outer aspect ( the external form )