T’AI CHI CH’UAN CHING
By Chang San-feng


In motion, all parts of the body must be
Light, Nimble, And strung together.
The chi (breath) should be excited,
The shen (spirit) should be internally gathered.

Let the postures be without
Breaks or holes, Hollows or projections,
Or discontinuities and continuities of form.

The motion should be rooted in the feet,
Released through the legs,
Controlled by the waist,
And manifested through the fingers.

The feet, legs and waist
Must act together simultaneously,
So that while stepping forward or back
The timing and position are correct.

If the timing and position are not correct,
The body becomes disordered,
And the defect must be sought
In the legs and waist.
Up and down, Front or back,
Left or right, are all the same.
These are all I (mind) and not external.
If there is up, there is down;
If there is forward, there is backward;
If there is left, then there is right.

If the I wants to move up,
It contains at the same time
The downward idea.

By alternating the force Of pulling
and pushing, The root is severed,
And the object is quickly toppled,
Without a doubt.

Insubstantial and substantial
Should be clearly differentiated.
One place has insubstantiality
and substantiality; every place
Has the same insubstantiality
and substantiality.

All parts of the body are strung together
Without the slightest break.


CH’ANG CH’UAN (T’AI CHI CH’UAN)
IS LIKE A GREAT RIVER
ROLLING ON UNCEASINGLY