Chen Style Taijiquan is the original style of Taiji Quan, from which all the other popular styles today derived. It is distinguished by its silk-reeling (spiral) energy, and lower stances. It also features sudden changes in tempo, and explosive punches and kicks, jumping and stamping.
This skill was created in Chen Village, Henan, at the beginning of the Qing Dynasty (400 years ago) by military general Chen Wangting (9th generation of the Chen family). He combined the essence of 16 schools of martial art (including Shaolin) with internal training for health, and the Daoist principles of Yin and Yang – opening/ closing, firm/ yielding, slow/ fast etc. . Great Grandmaster Chen Xiao Wang (pictured centre with Grandmaster Michael Tse and Sifu Peter Andersen) is the 19th generation inheritor of the skill.
Students start by learning the ‘Old Frame’ (Lao Jia) and Silk-reeling (Chan Si Jin) which trains you how to move your body as a unit with spiral energy. When one part of your body moves, everything moves. For health purposes and disease prevention, it opens the acupuncture channels and encourages the flow of Qi (vital energy) throughout the body.
