Hey Steve! This is great information. Thank you! Some background.. I am learning this as part of a mindful meditation practice, but also as a self-awareness practice. I have witnessed the short and long forms. It will take me a long time to remember the sequences as given. But watching it is like a beautiful dance. Its challenging for me to "copy" or follow the body positions of my instructor, but with practice, maybe in time? He has introduced "push-hands", and I love it, though I'm awkward right now. I watched two women practicing "sword-play" (?) in an adjacent studio. It was beautiful--like a choreographed ballet. Advancing..retreating.. turning...twisting..engaging...dis-engaging. The soft "clicks" as their swords met in space were like mindfulness bells. This looked like very advanced body-work, as they danced so expertly without missing a cue to engage or retreat. What struck me was their precise "attention" in the moment. And continued with each passing moment. I hope to find that present-centered attention in my Tai Chi practice. I didn't ask the teacher, but I'm wondering is using DVD's as part of a home practice would help, or if concentrating on my formal classes is the best method, at this stage of learning. Thanks again.. Kristy
--- On Sat, 2/19/11, SteveW <[email protected]> wrote: From: SteveW <[email protected]> Subject: [Zen] Re: Martial arts To: [email protected] Date: Saturday, February 19, 2011, 10:06 AM --- In [email protected], Kristy McClain <healthyplay1@...> wrote: > > Hi Steve, >  > I am learning Tai Chi as part of a mindfulness and extension of a spiritual > practice. Question? Is Tai Chi considered a martial art like karate, or > no? Are karate and kung fu related? >  > Any tips on how to improve one's focus and concentration while practicing--as > a beginner? >  > Thanks..k > > Hi Kristy. Yes, Tai Chi Chuan, or Great Ultimate Boxing, is a "soft" style form of Chinese Boxing. I had the opportunity of working-out with a practitioner of Tai Chi Boxing, and I was suitably impressed. Martial arts are generally divided into "soft" or "internal" and "hard" or "external". Soft arts emphasize the development of inner energy (chi or ki), sensitivity to the direction of momentum, and utilization of the opponent's force to unbalance him or her. I have some training in Aikido, which is a soft art. The term "kung fu" really refers to a high level of expertise in any endeavor. The terms Chuan Fa, Wu Shu, Kuo Shu, Sanda refer to fighting. Karate is a hard-style Okinawan martial art that combines an early native form of fighting called "Te" and some basic external Chinese Boxing techniques, mostly from the Fukien White Crane system. There are a huge number of different systems of Kung Fu/Chuan Fa, some similar, some not. Those systems that are called Shao-lin trace their origin to Bodhidharma, the 1st Patriarch of Chan. It is said that Bodhidharma went to the Shao-Lin temple where he sat for 9 years "listening to the ants scream". He noticed that his fellow monks were in poor shape, and that this was interfering with meditation. So he taught them a series of exercises called "18 Hands of The Monk", which formed the basis for Shao-Lin Boxing. Your Sifu will give you all the needed tips. When you get to practicing Push-Hands with a partner, you will start to see the martial applications. Steve
