Does Taiji have power?
Ask Thanasis!
Taiji is largely mis-perceived as being a soft art for old people. Which partly comes from it being prescribed to older people because it is so good for health; the increased blood circulation nourishes the body and diminishes the workload on the heart.
But also I think from the Chinese government attempting to suppress the true internal knowledge of Taiji training around the time of the cultural revolution in order to remove something that makes individuals powerful from the people they were aiming to rule over.
Correct internal Taiji training develops a fullness inside ones body as well as cultivates and harmonises the practitioners Qi; giving them an internal power that increases over time the they train. When this power is applied on an opponent it has a different quality to hard power that is commonly cultivated in external martial arts. The internal power has a quality that can penetrate the opponents body causing disruption or even internal injury. Rather than just localised blunt force at the point of contact; as is the case with hard power generated from contracting the whole body.
Taiji power is cultivated over time by releasing the muscles of the body, thereby activating conductivity via the fascia throughout the body. Building a unified whole body power that also promotes excellent health within the body.
By Julius Lutero, Heaven Man Earth Perth.