Tai Chi 13 (Shi San Shi), also known as the “Thirteen Powers”, was created by Zhang Sanfeng (Chang San Feng) and is considered “the treasure of Chinese martial arts and the essence of Tai Chi”. It is considered to be the foundation of Tai Chi, the “mother of all Tai Chi forms”, as well as it’s “energetic and conceptual core”. It is easy, therefore, to see why Tai Chi 13 is the source of many variations and styles of Tai Chi.
It is important to note that Tai Chi 13 was created according to “Eight Extraordinary Vessels” or meridians which connect five of the internal organs. Another belief is that the first 8 postures were derived from the 8 Trigrams and the next 5 were derived from the 5 Elements. Bottom line: Tai Chi consists of 13 groups of movements with 60 postures and used for both offense and defense.
The first 8 postures are martial and associated with the movements of the hands and arms. They can be done on both sides of the body and with multiple variations while still retaining the essential core movement. These postures are usually known as Ward Off, Roll Back, Press, Push, Split, Pull Down, Elbow, Shoulder. They probably sound at least somewhat familiar to most Tai Chi practitioners and students.
The following 4 postures deal with the operation of the legs and feet. Step Forward, Step Backward, Gaze Right/Step Left, and Look Left/Step Right refer to the directions and orientation of the movements. The 13th posture is called Central Settling or “Central Equilibrium”.
Grandmaster Yang Zhen Do was asked what Center Equilibrium is. He referred to it as the poise and balance you exhibit when you are practicing Tai Chi, whether it is the form, sparring, or even partner drills. He gave the example of holding a full bowl of water at your heart level while performing Tai Chi. Can you do this without spilling a drop? This is not an easy feat as most practitioners are not quite that smooth, slow, nor are their movements that even while performing Tai Chi. Most of us aspire to make our movements and transitions smooth, slow, and stable. Especially challenging is changing directions or orientation. This level of skill is reached by very few.
The Thirteen Principles will be familiar to most Tai Chi practitioners:
Sink the shoulders and drop the elbows
Round the back and relax the chest
Sink the Qi into the Dantian
Head towards the heavens
Relax the waist and hips
Execute and understand empty and full and the theory of Yin and Yang
Coordination of upper and lower body
Using the mind instead of force
Internal and external harmony
Mind and Qi connection
Stillness in movement understanding
Presence of stillness and movement at the same time
Form continuity and flow
The Eight Requirements (according to the Wudang Research Institute) for the practice are:
When the heart is calm, the spirit is tranquil,
When the spirit is tranquil, the heart is set at ease,
When the heart is set at ease, it is full and still,
When there is fullness and stillness, there are no disturbances,
When there are no disturbances, the breath can circulate,
When the breath can circulate, one can disregard appearances,
When one disregards appearances, one discovers clear understanding
When one discovers clear understanding, then the spirit and the breath will be joined together, and ten thousand things will return to their root.
Shi San Shi (Tai Chi 13) is believed to be the key to unlock the secret of Tai Chi.
Regardless of which family, style, or form you are practicing, it is not considered Tai Chi unless it has Shi San Shi at it’s core!
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