TI FENG / FA JING
TI FENG
As in push hands, we yield to pressure from the O and he ‘falls’ toward us. He will probably feel it necessary to recover to centre by pushing back with his forward leg. If we follow with perfect timing our push will be dramatic and effortless, since we are synchronising our energies in the same direction.
FA JING
A blast of force delivered to a target by the aligned and focused internal energies.
A student asked me if Ti Feng or Fa Jing is used while fencing. After some thought and much paying of attention while fencing I offer this.
When the O exerts pressure on your blade, if you yield to that pressure and then suddenly stop your blade, then there will be a big pressure build-up from the O, at which point you may be able to disengage and safely cut. This feels like a Ti Feng to me.
When the O grabs our sword hand or locks our sword, guard-to-guard, we may use Fa Jing exactly as we would with empty hands. On one such occasion, when I was fencing with Professor Cheng, he turned his head to give another couple of fencers some advice. I took this opportunity to lock his right wrist with my sword handle. Without any loss of time I was offered the gift of flight, and my understanding of Fa Jing expanded.
The sword itself does not need it, it has its steely hardness and it’s razor sharpness to deliver.
Author and Images: Ken van Sickle
German version on our sister site!
Art work by Yonghui Deistler-Yi
- ON BEING A MASTER – Tai Chi Sword 53
- STRANGERS – Tai Chi Sword 52
- PADDED SWORDS – Tai Chi Sword 51
- SAFETY – Tai Chi Sword 50
- PARALLELS – Tai Chi Sword 49
- Swordsmanship – SEVEN QUOTES – Tai Chi Sword 48
- TI FENG & FA JING – Tai Chi Sword 47
- SUPPOSITIONS – Tai Chi Sword 46
- LAO TZU (Laozi) QUOTES – Tai Chi Sword 45
- ETIQUETTE – Tai Chi Sword 44
- FENCING PROCESS – Tai Chi Sword 43
- STRATEGIES – Tai Chi Sword 42
- TASSELS IN THE WIND – Tai Chi Sword 41
- SHOOT FLYING GOOSE – Tai Chi Sword 40
- RHINOCEROS GAZES AT MOON – Tai Chi Sword 39
- THE MASTER SITS BACK – Tai Chi Sword 38
- FIVE APPLICATIONS – 1. BLOCK AND SWEEP – Tai Chi Sword 37
- RULES OF ENGAGEMENT – Tai Chi Sword 36
- CONSIDER – Tai Chi Sword 35
- INVITATIONS – Tai Chi Sword 34
- THE TASSEL – Tai Chi Sword 33
- THE SWORD FINGERS – Tai Chi Sword 32
- Cheng Man Ching Photographs
- THE JOINTS – Tai Chi Sword 31
- THE GRIP – Tai Chi Sword 30
- SWORD MOVEMENT – Tai Chi Sword 29
- ON ALIGNMENT – Tai Chi Sword 28
- CONCERNING THE CENTRE – Tai Chi Sword 27
- EQUATIONS – Tai Chi Sword 26
- HSIN AND CHI – Tai Chi Sword 25
- On studying – NINE QUOTES – Tai Chi Sword 24
- THE SWORD MAIDENS – Tai Chi Sword 23
- THE SWORD AND CALLIGRAPHY – Tai Chi Sword 22
- Returning – MORE THOUGHTS – Tai Chi Sword 21
- Levels of TAI CHI SWORD – Tai Chi Sword 20
- FENCING – Tai Chi Sword 19
- Transcendence – Tai Chi Sword 18
- TURNING TRICKS – Tai Chi Sword 17
- Names of CHENG MAN CH’ING’S TAI CHI SWORD – Tai Chi Sword 16
- FORCE – Tai Chi Sword 15
- DIFFERENCES – Tai Chi Sword 14
- BEGINNERS’ MISTAKES – Tai Chi Sword 13
- MIND SETS – Tai Chi Sword 12
- SENSITIVITY – Tai Chi Sword 11
- HARMONY – Tai Chi Sword 10
- TIME AND HUMOUR – Tai Chi Sword 9
- WHY AND HOW – Tai Chi Sword 8
- SWORD DIMENSIONS – Tai Chi Sword 7
- A ROYALTY OF ARMS – Tai Chi Sword 6
- KENNETH VAN SICKLE – Tai Chi Sword 4
- CHENG MAN CH’ING – Tai Chi Sword 5
- PREFACE – Tai Chi Sword 3
- Introductory Thoughts – Tai Chi Sword 2
- EDITOR’S PREFACE -Tai Chi Sword 1
- Tai Chi Sword by Kenneth van Sickle
