This instruction/guideline refers directly to the Chen style principle of Silk Reeling (Chan Ssu Jin). One of the classic principles of Taijiquan is that oneÕs Jin (inner energy flow) is like the movement of a silk thread being drawn from a cocoon. Some commentators say that the drawing of the silk is coordinated with the turning of the cocoon, this implies that the turn of the centre from the Dantien is a spiral-like trajectory to a point of contact. I have found in my own teaching and training that students who combine some training of the Chen style or the silk reeling exercises grasp this principle sooner rather than later.

The Chinese classics refer to Òa river flowing continuously, never ending to the seaÓ. This reference conveys the clear idea of stringing our Taiji form movements together harmoniously. In the commentaries that I have come across they make reference and comparison to the force of the so-called schools of external martial arts: ÒThe external schools employ brute force which is stiff and unnatural, this force stops and starts and moves in a jerky fashion. In Taijiquan we employ the mind throughout and the movements are continuous without endingÓ.

It is quite easy to see the inference of the internal and external but not so easy to bring the concept to everyday practice. This comparison is more practical in the practice of forms but difficult to conceive in the context of a real fight.

This form of training is unique to Taijiquan.

Richard Watson