Is Tai Chi an alternative form of health care? Is it a style of deadly combat moves? Is it just a bunch of people waving their arms?

Tai Chi is actually an internal form of Kung Fu. Translated literally, Kung Fu means "work skill." Kung Fu is a skill which comes from effort or work on the part of the student. Tai Chi is internal because it focuses on the inside of the body. Rather than starting with specific strikes or kicks the way other systems do, Tai Chi uses the internal workings of the body through, among other techniques, relaxing, coordinating the body in effective ways, and harnessing internal energy.

Tai Chi was originally referred to as "Tai Chi Chuan" which means "grand ultimate fist." The fist here means more than just hitting with the closed hand. Instead it refers to the fighting arts or pugilism in general. However, there are many moves beyond striking with the fist. This martial art uses heavy hands, pressure and vital point strikes, grappling, anti-grappling (escapes and releases), pokes, throws, and many other moves and techniques besides these. This ancient Chinese art is known in America for the slow moving forms the student learns. However, for each of these forms there are at least 75 different combat applications.

Some students learn sets of 24, 48, or even 108 forms. However, since Tai Chi is more about what is going on inside the body than about specific poses or movements, students can begin to learn energetics and the basic internal aspects of energetics very quickly with as few as 8 moves. In this way, students can also move students toward learning combat applications very quickly as well.

Tai Chi is also known for the study of how to move and use energy. This includes the study of relaxation versus tension, physical power, applied body mechanics, the transfer of force, whole body power and the transfer of whole body weight. Students also study how to find the structural inefficiencies in others in order to exploit them in combat. Energy work also has many health applications. This is just a sampling of the aspects of energy study that can be pursued.

Skilled practitioners can actually absorb and dissipate energy when hit. This allows them to be soft and pliable to an opponent. This can be a major advantage in a combat situation. As an experiment, try hitting a shower curtain. Hit it as hard as you possibly can. You are unlikely to do any damage to it, because when you hit it, it bends and moves with your hand. However, if you hit a board, the board will easily break. The flexibility of a practitioner allows practitioners to easily avoid injuries. The pliability of a practitioner also enables them to draw the opponent into emptiness and thereby gain an immense advantage. There is a saying: "I know my enemy. My enemy does not know me." If you hit a shower curtain while expecting it to feel like a board, you would probably be caught off guard and you might lose your balance as well.