I once had a conversation with Dan Docherty due a to question that someone asked or during a seminar not sure which. What was said by Dan stuck in my mind and has stayed with me ever since moulding the way I think about applications and pushing hands. To remember exactly what he said word for word I can not, so I will not pretend these are his exact words but my interpretation and the closest recollection of what was said. ‘WHEN I APPLY MY TECHNIQUES I WANT TO USE AS MANY DIFFERENT FORCES AS POSSIBLE”.
At the time my knowledge of Tai Chi was not as it is now and I remember pondering on this statement for many months , it had planted a seed that has developed into a greater understanding of movement.
Realising now that in every movement there are many more smaller movements that contribute to the whole.
I have looked at many applications and found and practice many ways of implementing this; some techniques both in pushing hands and self defence require one movement with several different forces used simultaneously. However the ones that seem most effective are more like a continuous string of forces bonded together by the opponent’s reactions.
Thanks Albert for the recent seminar in Paris which was full of insights. I quite appreciated the peculiar warm-ups, the precise description on how to adopt a proper structure (rooting, connecting and keeping the forearms in front) and the distinction you made between concepts and strategies. Do you recommend anything good to read on the subject of tuishou?
Thanks for the comments they are welcomed and will help me to enhance the experience of future seminars. I am glad you enjoyed the seminar. There is as far as am aware no single place where the concepts Tui shou are written,
A good place to start is the “Strategy of the Five Step Path” it is on Dan Docherty web Site : “http://www.taichichuan.co.uk/information/strategy_and_tactics_text.html” .
My Advice is to read them and try to apply them when you next push, not all at once. You will have a greater focus if you tacky each one individually. It would be good to explore the concept of each one before you try the strategy.
Good Luck with your Tui Shou