The Blue Dragon Playing with the Tiger, or T’ai chi ch’uan Martial Techniques

This was not the first our translation on martial arts from Chinese. Last year we translated a book on martial arts. Also, in our archive we have translations from English on Wing Chun style of martial arts and on standard boxing rules.

T’ai chi ch’uan, or taijiquan (Chinese:太極拳, literally “supreme ultimate fist”) is popular as a health maintenance exercises set; however, the prefix “ch’uan” (which means “fist”) indicates that t’ai chi ch’uan is first of all a martial art where the speed of movement plays a role far from the least important one. As for the physical techniques, step-by-step training would be efficient.

Each movement is described in a depictive metaphorical manner. Some of the descriptions let one easily imagine the posture and movements of the martial art master, e.g. “opening the monastery gates”; “the rider is bracing the bow”; “a fierce tiger is coming out of the cage”, etc. Other descriptions are more of a “spiritual” nature, e.g. “a unicorn speaking”; “pulling out the grass to find a snake”; “embracing the moon”, etc. the animals which are most often referred to here are the dragon, the bear, the tiger, and the swallow. Names of elements are mentioned as well; we should note that, as is known, the ancient Chinese philosophy deals with five elements rather than with four ones: wood, fire, earth, metal, and water – “The five elements return to the origin”.