DVD: Taiji Fighting Set: 2-Person Matching Set

Every day, Tai Chi Chuan is practiced by millions of men and women worldwide as a moving meditation, known for its health benefits. However, its origins are in the martial arts. A fighting set is a sequence of movements which teaches the student how to apply the martial art in a real-life fighting situation. This DVD comprehensively instructs and demonstrates the 88 Posture, 2-Person Fighting Matching Set for advanced Taijiquan (Tai Chi Chuan).

This Fighting Set is a combination of techniques from pushing hands and the solo Taijiquan sequence, and it serves as a bridge connecting pushing hands with real fighting. Like pushing hands, it teaches you how to sense your opponent’s actions and intentions, and it also teaches footwork and how to set up your strategy, making your fighting skill more realistic and alive. Anyone who is proficient at a solo Tai Chi sequence and pushing hands should be able to learn this fighting set easily, and make it part of their practice routine.

In ancient times, this form was taught by a few masters to only a handful of trusted students as a part of the final training of Taijiquan as a sophisticated and extremely effective fighting art.

SPECIAL FEATURES: Over 100 Scene Selections • Narration: English, French • Multi –Language Menus & Subtitles: English, French, Portuguese, Polish • Slideshow of ancient drawings of the 88 Postures • Interactive YMAA Product Catalog with Previews of all YMAA Videos, and more...

YMAA PRODUCTION • DR. YANG, JWING-MING • "TAI CHI FIGHTING SET " • WRITTEN & PERFORMED BY DR. YANG, JWING-MING, PASCAL PLEE, JULIEN PETITFOUR • EDITED BY DAVID SILVER AND MEDIAMANIC • PRODUCED BY DAVID SILVER • DVD AUTHORING BY MEDIAMANIC • DIRECTED BY DR.YANG, JWING-MING AND DAVID SILVER

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AUTHOR(S)

Yang, Jwing-Ming Ph.D., is a renowned author and teacher of Chinese martial arts and Qigong. Born in Taiwan, he has trained and taught Taijiquan, Qigong and Chinese martial arts for over forty-five years. He is the author of over thirty books, and was elected by Inside Kung Fu magazine as one of the 10 people who has "made the greatest impact on martial arts in the past 100 years." Dr. Yang lives in Northern California.

REVIEWS

JOURNAL OF ASIAN MARTIAL ARTS V14 N4
Reviewed by Michael DeMarco, Seton hall University

I am aware of only a few teachers in the United States and elsewhere who teach this advanced matching set and was surprised to see YMAA producing it in video format.

In Chinese, this two-person routine is called San Shou. It should not be confused with the modern, full-contact, fighting sport that goes by the same name. “San” is usually translated as “to disperse,” “to scatter,” or “to dissipate.” In combination with shou (hands), the practice refers to methods of dissipating any attack.

Dr. Yang gives an introductory talk about San Shou, basically discussing it as a way to practice all the Taiji principles for self-defense. He stresses the practical applications and effectiveness resulting from becoming greatly familiar with this set. If an individual has the potential, it takes over ten years of practice with a minimum of 3-4 hours per day to master Taijiquan. In the traditional teaching method, the Long Form is studied for three years, then Push Hands. The two-person fighting set is the last part of the system to be studied.

On this video, no solid historical background is given regarding the arts origin and lineage. Rather, Dr. Yang explains the set as his two assistants perform it. Since there are 44 movements for each side, a total of 88 matching techniques form the routine. From initial contact, both practitioners are in physical contact until the end of the routine. One attacking movement is neutralized and another attack and defense follow repeatedly throughout the routine. The variety of San Shou techniques include punching, kicking, trapping, sweeping, and subtle neutralizations.

Since there are many possible applications for each technique, the routine contains much more than meets the eye. Dr. Yang believes that every movement should be explained and initially practiced at slow speed. After one becomes familiar with the routine, the tempo can be increased to “medium speed.” At the highest level, the routine is practiced at actual fighting speed.

Key points are provided for following the video: understand at least one application for each technique; master the skills of angling, trapping, yielding, and the technique itself; master stepping and distancing between partners; master trapping and how to evade trapping; train for effective power as used offensively and defensively; and develop one’s sense of the enemy. If all of these can be absorbed, then the practitioner can become more creative, enlarging the routine into a live art.

Following the introductory lecture, Dr. Yang’s assistants perform single techniques in slow motion with pauses. Dr. Yang adds insights to each technique, explaining them with the help of traditional Chinese medical theory as found in acupuncture. Half of the set is covered in this way and then shown as a continuous sequence. Dr. Yang warns those who wish to learn from the video to try not “to learn too quick.” Otherwise bad habits accumulate. Learn slowly and become as accurate as possible.

The remaining half of the routine is taught in similar fashion to the first half. After each technique is demonstrated singly and then strung together in a continuous flow, the video shows the partner practice at the three speeds. The partners demonstrate in a primary direction, but also show movements from the opposite angles for better visual comprehension.

The video concludes with Dr. Yang thanking his assistants for their help and dedication. Any practice that involves the high levels of skills represented in San Shou is a challenge to demonstrate in front of a camera. He states that the quality is “not as high as I wish, but I am satisfied.” He should be. Although the filming is straight forward in simplicity and the narrative lacks a true professional presentation in organization and clarity, the overall effect is that of having a personal instructor in your living room, giving you a solid introduction to the art of San Shou.

Since the video materials did not give the lineage from where Dr. Yang learned this set, I wrote to him to ask. He graciously replied that he learned it from Chen Weishen, who learned it from Zhang Xiangsan. Master Zhang was a noted instructor of Six Harmonies Praying Mantis who also taught Taijiquan. What he taught is slightly different from other San Shou instructors in Taiwan, such as Xiong Yonghe (1886-1984), who was a disciple of Yang Shaohou (1862-1930).

Lineage is important because it is the starting point from where students can progress on their own. It flavors the forms learned. It is unclear who created the set, but some say it was Yang Luchan (1799-1872), who created the Yang Style. It may have been created in the earlier half of the 20th century. Dr. Yang’s video shows variations on the San Shou set and hints at how and why the routine developed and evolved. Since it is unclear who created San Shou, we can at least learn who is teaching it today. Dr. Yang’s video records for us a vital segment in the development of the Taijiquan curriculum, a segment that captures the martial art’s essence. All serious practitioners should at least watch this video, even if they do not intend to learn this rare two-person fighting set."

Taijiquan.com, Patrick Dickson, 2006

"I've been waiting for a video of the two man fighting set for a long time and I'm thrilled that Dr. Yang, Jwing Ming was the one to release it. There is very little information in English that covers the two man fighting set of Taijiquan. T. T. Liang has a book that covers a different two man fighting set, which he calls the Taiji dance. As mentioned in the video, the two man fighting set was traditionally taught to only a few select students. If you are serious about understanding and practicing real Taijiquan, then the two man fighting set can help teach the fighting techniques of Taijiquan to the interested practitioner.

Fortunately, there are still many health benefits available to the practitioner even without knowing the applications. But I am firmly convinced that if a practitioner learns the martial applications and practices them, then the health benefits increase as a result of the postures being done more accurately

My point? Learn the applications to increase and enhance your practice. Once you have learned and become comfortable with some of the martial applications, then learning this two man fighting set will become easier. As the video states, if you are already proficient at pushing hands and the form, then this set is not as daunting as it appears, and it can be learned easily (with some hard work and dedication).

Bottom line! This video has the three essentials:

QUALITY MATERIAL!

QUALITY TEACHING!

QUALITY PRODUCTION!