There once was a boy, named Chángdí, that was tasked by his father to watch the family’s water buffalo. The boy did not want to watch the buffalo, but his father insisted. As the boy did not want to be disrespectful, he did what he was told, but his heart was not in it. So, he took his flute with him to pass the time while watching the buffalo.
The boy let the buffalo go where it pleased. He simply followed along behind, all the while playing his flute. When the buffalo stopped to rest, so did the boy. The boy continued to play his flute, not paying proper attention to the buffalo, which wandered off. Eventually, the boy realized that the buffalo was gone. After spending several hours looking for the buffalo, the boy found it resting in the shade of a large tree. However, he now realized that he had no idea where he was, nor how to get home. This concerned the boy, for he knew that his parents would be expecting him home soon.
After thinking about his situation for a bit, Chángdí simply climbed on the buffalo’s back and began to play his flute. Soon the buffalo got up and began to walk. The boy continued to happily play his flute. After a short time, the buffalo, still with the boy on his back, rounded a curve in the path they were on and the boy realized that they were only a short distance from home. In this way, the boy found his way home.
This is a nice little story about a clever boy, but how does it relate to Tai Chi Chuan? In multiple ways. The boy did not panic – he remained calm and relaxed. He did not try to force the water buffalo to start home. What chance would he have of that? Instead, by yielding to the water buffalo’s wishes, the boy got what he wanted – he went with the flow of the situation.
Three important principles in Tai Chi Chuan are:
Remain relaxed and calm
This means both mentally and physically. Mentally, it allows you to think clearly and not make foolish mistakes. Physically, relaxed is actually an incomplete description. It is true that you do not want to be tense, but neither can you be like a wet noodle. In fact, you want the muscles to be relaxed, but to still maintain a “frame”. The tai chi classics describe it as having iron covered by cotton – soft on the outside and hard on the inside. This is being Song (pronounced sūng), which is almost always translated as “relaxed”. Beginners (and almost everyone else too) should focus on eliminating as much mental and physical tension as possible.
Avoid collisions
This is actually pretty straight forward. If you collide with your opponent, you will feel it either emotionally or physically. You will feel force against force. Muscle against muscle. Do this and the strongest, and quickest party will win. By avoiding collisions, you will expend far less energy and accomplish more. How does one avoid collisions? By following the next bullet.
Yielding to your opponent
Yielding to your opponent maximizes your gain. This means that you should follow your opponent. One aspect of this is avoiding collisions, but it is more as well. The tai chi classics say, “My opponent is hard, I am soft; this is called yielding.” (Davis 2004) Only by yielding to your opponent can you most easily defeat him. If you meet your opponent’s hardness (force) with hardness of your own, what do you have? A collision, which we already established is not optimal. Instead, yield to the situation, and work with it. The result will be much better.
These principles work well in life also. Yield to your spouse or coworker and you will actually accomplish more, perhaps in less time. Using these principles, you will find other people to be more cooperative and more willing to help you — maybe even without your asking.
Works Cited
Davis, Barbara. 2004. “The Taijiquan Treatise.” In The Taijiquan Classics, by Barbara Davis, translated by Barbara Davis, 105. Berkeley, California: North Atlantic Books.