Jamie Fowler2 said:But how do you actually feel chi? Where does your focus go when you contract at the end of a strike? And why even contract at the finish? (Trick question: is that chi yin or yang? 😁 )
You can experience chi in so many different ways: warmth, coldness, tingling, or even a pulsing sensation. For instance, if you hold your hands together, it feels as though the air itself has volume and you can actually feel it pressing against you. Through sheer mental willpower, you can try to direct chi to any part of your body—though, if I’m being honest, I’ve only been partially successful at that! As for whether chi is yin or yang? Hmm, from what I understand, chi itself isn't strictly yin or yang; rather, it manifests *as* yin or yang. So, a movement could be yin or it could be yang, soft or hard...
When you're striking, you should be focusing your mind onto a single point of impact to funnel the chi right there. The same logic applies to blocking (though that has never quite worked for me!).
Regarding that contraction at the end of a strike—I'm still a bit fuzzy on the reasoning there. I remember reading somewhere that in Tai Chi, strikes are supposed to be completely soft, even at the moment of contact with the opponent's surface.
And isn't the whole point of practicing Tai Chi to clear out those internal blockages? After all, that's the only way chi can flow freely through the body.
That comment you made about "my chi is stronger than yours" reminds me of something our Sensei Mario Topolšek once mentioned. He said that with enough practice, a fighter eventually reaches a level where they can sense an opponent's chi, allowing them to practically predict every move. He even added that a fight between two true masters usually ends after just one strike—or sometimes, none at all!
I'm constantly trying to channel all of this into my Sanchin kata training. Like they say to the Uechia masters: "Everything is in Sanchin; the entire art is contained within Sanchin." It covers the fundamental movements, body conditioning, breathing, rooting, chi, and concentration. Ultimately, you're aiming for a meditative state where your mind isn't anchored to any specific body part, but instead, you become fully aware of everything both inside and outside yourself. I truly believe that's the peak every martial artist should strive for, regardless of their style. At that level, all the differences between various disciplines just seem to melt away.
The only catch? You'd probably need to train four or five hours a day, and there's absolutely no guarantee you'll ever actually reach that level.
Maybe that "inner versus outer" concept refers to the balance between using muscle versus using chi during a movement (though, personally, I find the idea of moving without using any muscle a little hard to wrap my head around).
Man, I've gone and dried myself out... I'll stop there for now.