Tai Chi (taiji) Push Hands (Tui Shou) - What is Push Hands?
What should be considered when learning and practicing Pushing Hands? Solo form practice and duet form pushing hand practice are two components of the art of Tai Chi. While sequential practice allows one to learn the essence of Tai Chi, doing pushing hand exercises trains one in self-defense. Therefore, after learning how to do a complete Tai Chi Chuan sequence well, one should focus on learning pushing hands. Only when one is proficient in both can one be said to have practiced the art of Tai Chi Chuan.
Pushing hands is a form of exercise to sharpen the sensitivity of a nerve ending to a degree as sensitive as that of a cricket.
The feelers are not only very quick to sense what the cricket is up against, but also very quick to direct the insect to nimbly dodge an attack or make any necessary shifting movements, and to be completely careful not to exploit the opponent's weak points in any attack. Such an exercise will increase one's interest in the process of learning Tai Chi and will awaken the spirit of inquiry and analysis.
Pushing hands is a technical term used in Tai Chi Chuan and is sometimes referred to as Joining hands or Clenched hands or Kneading hands. There are similar types of practices adopted by different schools of Chinese martial arts to practice the methods of making close contact with one's opponent and making good use of certain fighting tools and techniques.
Knowing how to interpret energy
“Knowing how to interpret energy” is considered the essence of mastering the art of Taiqiquan, and the first step towards knowing is to sharpen the sensitivity of the skin through the practice of pushing hands. The basic way to do this is to grasp the elbow, wrist, palm or fingers of the opponent on a certain part of the body while pushing, pulling or other movements, and to learn to feel the force, direction and speed. After such practice for a long time, the sensitivity of the nerve endings will be greatly sharpened, and the pair will know how to advance or retreat, and how to disperse or neutralize the energy appropriately. This ability is known as “knowing how to interpret energy”.
Once a person has the ability to “know how to interpret energy,” their art will become increasingly refined with more practice. In a confrontation with an opponent, it is extremely important to measure him accurately, and the basis for accurate measurement is knowing oneself and one’s opponent. There is an old Chinese proverb:
"Knowing yourself and your opponent is a hundred times more successful in a hundred battles."
Sensitivity is the means of knowing oneself and one's opponent. Therefore, the basic theory of pushing hands is not very complicated. Of course, in terms of keeping one's body centered and balanced, pushing hands in duet form is more difficult than in solo form practice, because solo form requires maintaining one's own balance while performing different types of movements. In duet form, in addition to one's own balance, it also requires maintaining balance under all measures to disrupt the opponent's balance and not losing the opportunity to disrupt the opponent's balance.
Knowing Yourself and Your Competitor.
The oft-quoted saying, “Trying to know one’s own energy through the practice of ranking and the energy of the other through the pushing exercise,” indicates that the two actually serve the same purpose: knowing oneself and one’s opponent.
Only by constant practice can one acquire real knowledge. One should do one’s best to apply any method as accurately as possible. In pushing hands, the groundedness and solidity of the two legs should be clearly distinguished. For example, when assuming the “archer’s stance,” the front leg should be bent to the required degree, and when assuming the “sitting stance,” the back leg should be firmly seated. Also, as in the row exercise, one’s torso should be kept centered and balanced.
Once a good foundation is laid, it will be easier to reach the next stage of development. It is necessary to follow the rule of gradual progress. Avoid any hasty desire for success. Kungfu (the skill developed through long and arduous training) is an accumulation of development, day by day and little by little.