does anybody here practice tai chi and aikido? I do yang style tai chi and i wondered how similar the systems are. Tai chi involves finding the opponents centre and uprooting as well as pushing - although I have only done it for 3 years and have not got much skill at it.
One of the 2nd Dan's at our Aikido club is also a Tai Chi instructor. I can't admit to knowing much about Tai Chi, so I'll ask him about it and try and get him on this site. From what I can gather, there's quite a fair amount of similarities between the two, although I suppose basic principles apply to everything really.
Hey Tintin/johnson, As I work next to the 2nd Dan in question he passed over a response as he didn't want to register on a work PC - response below... here is my reply if you don't mind passing this on. I have to start by qualifying the styles that I am familiar with. I practice Shodokan Aikido which is what Tomiki Aikido has become - this is not at all the same as Ueshiba AIkido in that it has a sport/competition aspect similar to Judo. I also practice Wu style Tai Chi Chuan but have spent a few months on the Yang style. So my comments are based on knowledge of these styles and may not be true of other styles of Aikido or Tai Chi Chuan. Pushing Hands In Tai Chi this provides a link between form practice and free style and as you say deals with uprooting your opponent. It could also be regarded as sensitivity training as you are learning to sense the state of your partners balance and readiness. I have to say this is so subtle that after 11 years I am still struggling with this. Aikido deals with these skills but in very different ways. In Aikido you practice with a partner almost from the very beginning of your training. You are also dealing with a moving partner rather than the static practice you have in pushing hands. So the focus is more on distance, timing and these are used to take your partners balance and are a bit less subtle than the practices in Tai Chi. However that does not mean that Aikido does not have subtle aspects. Techniques Tai Chi is very close quarters fighting and is a 'complete' art in that it can be offensive as well as defensive and includes the whole range of armed & unarmed combat. Aikido works with a slightly greater distance between the opponents and is purely defensive. Attacks are only taught to give something to react to. There are some 'striking' techniques but these are usually used to distract the opponent and are usually open handed - they are not used to initiate an offence. Aikido techniques nearly always end up in taking the opponent to the ground by using joint locks but never the sort of hip throw that Judo has. Tai Chi has Broad Sword, Spear and Straight sword Aikido has knife, sword and spear General points There are techniques that are almost identical within the two systems such as 'Cloud Hands' and 'Single Whip' but you never kick in Aikido unless it is done to give your partner the chance to practice an Aikido defence to a kick. Both have concepts such as fighting distance, unbendable arm, eye contact, defending your centre, good natural posture, timing, softness and ways of training to promote skills in these areas. However you have to remember that there is a difference in thinking between China and Japan. A major problem for me is that Tai Chi uses the waist and Aikido uses the hips. It took me 4 years of Tai Chi practice to overcome the habit of using the hips form Aikido. I have heard that there is a version of Tai Chi Chaun called SUN which is a blend of Tai Chi and Aikido but I doubt that you will find this style in the UK. Regards Dave
thanks alot!! thanks thats very helpful. Couple of questions - in the aikido i have seen the hips seem to rotated forward ie raising the cocyxx whereas in tai chi you are supposed to sink this part - why is this done? - i dont know how to throw from single whip - intriguing, just assumed it was a lashing type strike
Hi Johnson, The Aikido instructor and Tai chi Instructor who gave you the reply through Timmeh! is a fellow instructor of mine-We both teach Tai Chi. His answer would concur entirely with mine and you are correct in what you say about the single whip application,although there are many variations of this. Your question about throwing someone whilst using single whip is probably best likened to the Aikido principle that it is always best to break the opponents posture or in Tai Chi 'uproot' your opponent before attempting to throw them. A lashing type strike in the right place would tend to upset your opponents balance which then leaves you with several options one being to run,or to follow through with something else. Wutan.
Sun style is taiji with a dash of bagua thrown in. There is one good teacher inthe UK that I know of, in the north of England.
Sun Style is a blend of Tai Chi,Bagua and Hsing Yi. Sun Lu tang was a strange character who had studied several arts and had even attempted suicide at one point-A complex guy to say the least.
