24-form tai chi
The 24-posture Simplified Form of t'ai chi ch'uan, (Chinese: 太极拳; pinyin: Tàijíquán) sometimes called the Beijing or Peking form for its place of origin, is a short version of Taiji composed of twenty-four unique movements.
History
The form was the result of an effort by the Chinese Sports Committee, which, in 1956, brought together four Taiji teachers - Chu Guiting, Cai Longyun, Fu Zhongwen, and Zhang Yu - to create a simplified form of Taiji as exercise for the masses. Some sources suggests that the form was structured in 1956 by master Li Tian Ji [1] [2] . The creators truncated the traditional family style Taiji forms to 24 postures; taking about six minutes to perform and to give the beginner an introduction to the essential elements of Taijiquan, yet retain the traditional flavor of traditional longer hand forms (in general, 88-108 postures). Henceforth, this form was avidly promoted by the People's Republic of China for general exercise, and was also taught to internees in Communist "re-education" camps. Due to this official promotion, the 24-form is most likely the Taiji form with the most practitioners in China and the world over (though no surveys have been performed).
Movements
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Variations
5-Section Taijiquan: includes 5 routines, each modelled on the choreography of the Beijing 24 Taijiquan form. The first is a bare hand solo form similar to (but a shortened version of) the 24 Form, then that is used as template for: a two person form (san shou), a solo sword form, a two person sword form and a Chen style variation. The system was developed by Sam Masich, a particularly noted Yang style practitioner.
See also
References
Further reading
- Lee, Douglas (1976). Tai Chi Chuan: The Philosophy of Yin and Yang and Its Application. Black Belt Communications. ISBN 0-89750-044-X.
- Robinson, Ronnie (2006). Total Tai Chi: A Step-by-step Guide to Tai Chi at Home for Everybody. Sterling Publishing Company, Inc. ISBN 1-84483-262-7.
- Liang, Shou-Yu; Wen-Ching Wu (1996). Tai Chi Chuan: 24 And 48 Postures With Martial Applications. YMAA Publication Center. ISBN 1-886969-33-7.
- Kiew Kit, Wong (2002). The Complete Book of Tai Chi Chuan. Tuttle Publishing. ISBN 0-8048-3440-7.
External links
- Simplified Tai Chi 24 form (YMAA Taijiquan) Yang style by Liang, Shou-Yu displays names of each form as the movements are demonstrated.
- Tai Chi 24 form moves in Chinese, Pinyin, English and 4 other languages the movements' names in Chinese, Pinyin, English, German, French, Italian, and Spanish.