Tai Ji Circle Assessments with Shifu Liu, 2018

On Sunday 9 December 2018 Tai Ji Circle students gathered for the school's end-of-year assessments with Shifu Liu, a week before the annual AGM.

Before the assessments began, Shifu Liu demonstrated and discussed some of the specific yin and yang attributes of Chen-style Taijiquan: fast and slow, soft and strong, and the circular, twining movements that are characteristic of the style.

He also gave advice on posture. Keep the head and body straight, and maintain your ten "doors", keeping all the joints open and relaxed. Use the feet to push the floor and lead the energy up towards the dantian, then through the waist and outwards through the hands to the fingertips. (In Chinese medicine theory, the dantian is the main energy centre, located in the abdomen below the navel.) Relax the palms and fingers while keeping the fingers straight. Relax the feet so that the energy can flow to the toes. Use the eyes to follow the hand. This was just some of the useful advice he gave us.

We thanked everyone who took part, especially the foundation group, who overcame their nerves to be assessed. That is not easy, even for skilled practitioners.

The four foundation student members who had made the most progress, plus one sponsored prize winner, were to receive the school's training prizes after the AGM on 15 December.