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How to Understand
and Apply the 10
Essentials

Zhang Fuxing
The well-known 10 Essentials of T’ai
Chi Ch’uan were dictated by Yang
Chengfu and put down in writing by
one of his senior students named
Chen Weiming.

It is generally acknowledged that they

are of vital importance to every T’ai
Chi practitioner, no matter what form
or which style one has learned or is
learning. That is to say, every T’ai Chi
practitioner should have an overall
understanding and mastery of these
important principles, and apply them
to daily practice, so as to acquire an
ideal effect.

For the convenience of T’ai Chi

practitioners, as well as enthusiasts, I
am now trying to offer a somewhat
detailed but easy to understand
interpretation of the 10 Essentials.

1. Reach the Top of the

Head Upward
“Reach the top of the head upward” is
also called “Lifting the top of thehead”
or “Suspending the top of the head.”
All these technical terms are applied
in qigong, as well.

In the light of Yang Chengfu’s

explanation, “Reach the top of the
head upward” means to hold the head
and neck upright and keep the head in
a slightly rising manner, as if it were
suspended at the top from above. This
indicates that when you reach the top
of the head upward, you are required
not to put forth external strength.
Just use your mind-intention to do
that.

Yang clearly told us: “Never exert

force. If you use force instead of mind
to reach the top of your head upward,
your neck will become tense and
stubborn, and the flow and circulation
of your qi and blood will be affected
adversely.”

Truly, the practice of T’ai Chi sets

strict demands on the position of the
head and neck. During the process of
performing, your head and neck
should always be kept in a straight
state, but without any tension and
stiffness. The movement of the head
and neck must be in unison with the
turning of the torso and the change of
the body’s direction and position.

What is even more important is that

the neck muscles must remain
relaxed, and the head not be allowed
to bend forward or lean backward, or
tilt to the left or right.

For instance, when you are doing the

postures such as “Needle at Sea
Bottom,” and “Snake Creeps Down,”
you should beware of bowing your
head. And when you are doing the
posture of “Wave Hands like Clouds,”
you should avoid your head wagging
left and right. Such mistakes quite
often occur in the performance of
some practitioners, especially
beginners.

Practice proves that only when you

are able to reach the top of your head
upward in the proper way (e.g., the
top of your head feels as if it were
suspended from above) can the
above-mentioned requirements be
achieved.

Practice also shows that this point,

“Reach the top of the head upward,”
not only has a great and direct
influence on the relaxation of the
entire body and mind and on the
circulation of the blood and qi, but
also is closely connected with other
items of the 10 Essentials. So it is
absolutely necessary to take it
seriously.

2. Hold the Chest

Slightly In and Keep the
Back Slightly Rounded
This set of technical terms is also
applied in both T’ai Chi and qigong.
“To hold the chest slightly in,” Yang
said, “can make the qi sink down to
the dantian naturally.” He said that in
practicing T’ai Chi, “you must shun
protruding your chest. If the chest is
thrown out, the qi will come up and
crowd in the chest. This will result in a
top-heavy state of your body, and you
will be easily toppled over.”

“To keep the back slightly rounded” is

closely related with “To hold the chest
slightly in.” Yang said: “So soon as your
chest is held in, your back will become
rounded automatically.

When the back is rounded, the qi will

be able to nestle up against the back;
then your intrinsic energy that can be
discharged through the spine will be
tremendously powerful, and you will
be unmatched anywhere.”

“Hold the chest slightly in and keep

the back slightly rounded” can be
achieved naturally through a deep
and long exhalation.

It is considered that the state of the

chest and back that occurs just as you
finish a deep and long exhalation is
the best condition required in
“holding the chest slightly in and
keeping the back slightly rounded.”

Whether you are doing solo practice

or push hands training, you must keep
your chest and back in the required
condition; otherwise, the qi will well
up in the chest, causing the upper part
of the body to be heavy, the lower
part light, and the feet unable to take
firm steps.

In order to make the required

condition of the chest and back come
into being easily, it is advisable to
change chest breathing into natural
abdominal breathing.

What is called natural abdominal

breathing is to gently expand your
lower abdomen outward as you
breathe in, and to slowly contract
your abdominal muscle as you
breathe out. This can be of great help
in sinking the qi down to the dantian
and keeping your chest and back in
the required condition.

3. Relax the Waist and

Loosen the Hips
“The waist,” Yang said, “plays a
dominating role throughout the
whole process of T’ai Chi practice. If
you can relax your waist, you will be
able to have a strong base, and your
feet will become stable and forceful.”

The waist serves as the connection

of the upper part and lower part of
the of the body. In practicing, not only
the coordination of the arms and legs
but also the control of the center of
gravity and the maintaining of
balance must be achieved through the
waist.

The waist is generally likened to the

axle of a vehicle. Yang said that all the
movements, including alternations
between “emptiness” and “solidness”
and change of direction should pivot
on the waist.

It is your waist that brings your torso,

your four limbs, and all other parts of
your body to act together as an
integrated whole.

So you must give special heed to your

waist at all times, and keep it in a
relaxed state with the sacrum right in
the middle. Otherwise, it will be
incapable of playing the pivotal role in
your performance, and, consequently,
the discordance of the movements of
your four limbs and torso will
inevitably arise.

However, the relaxing of the waist is

inseparable from the loosening of the
hips. You can hardly acquire a real
relaxation of the waist without
loosening your hips.

The so-called “loosen the hips” mainly

means to loosen the joints of the hips.
When your waist is relaxed and your
hips are loosened, your legs and feet
will feel light, flexible, and full of
energy. It will be easier to get the qi to
sink down, and your movements will
become nimble, steady, and
harmonious.

So you must try your best to keep

your waist relaxed and your hips
loosened during practice, particularly
when your movements are under the
transidon from “emptiness” to
“solidness.”

But it must be kept in mind that

relaxing the waist and loosening the
hips should be done by using mind-
intention rather than muscular force.
If you use force, your waist will likely
become more tense and dead-locked.

What is more, you will very easily

cause your buttocks to appear in a
protruding state, which is regarded as
taboo to the art of T’ai Chi. In
addition, while doing the postures
such as “Needle at Sea Bottom” and
“Snake Creeps Down,” you should
avoid bowing your waist too much.

4. Distinguish Between
Emptiness and
Solidness
Yang said, “It is of the foremost
importance to distinguish between
emptiness and solidness while
practicing T’ai Chi.” Referring to the
question about what is “emptiness”
and what is “solidness,” he illustrated
with an example that if your “whole
body’s weight is resting on the right
leg, then the right leg is solid and the
left leg is empty, and vice versa:”

“If you can distinguish between

emptiness and solidness,” Yang said,
“the movements of your legs and the
turning of your body will be light,
nimble, and effortless; if you fail to do
so, then you will be hard to make
steps, unable to stand steady, and
easy to be uprooted.”

Distinction between emptiness and

solidness is easier said than done. It is
really a very complicated problem,
since in the process of practice all the
movements and postures and most
parts of your body are inevitably
involved in the question of
distinguishing between emptiness
and solidness.

According to the requirement of

distinguishing between emptiness
and solidness, during the practice,
both your arms and legs should be
constantly alternating between
emptiness and solidness in a united
action.

Each movement should be carried out

in such a condition in which two
opposite and yet complementary
elements (or forces) — namely
emptiness and solidness, or softness
and firmness, or Yin and Yang — are
always holding each other up, while
also unceasingly transforming from
each other.

This is just like what the Tai Chi

symbol shows: Yin-Yang opposites
unite; there is Yin in Yang, and Yang in
Yin. Namely, emptiness and solidness
unite, and there is emptiness in
solidness, and solidness in emptiness.
This means that there is no absolute
emptiness or solidness. Both of them
are relative.

Then, how does one distinguish

between emptiness and solidness?
Regarding the legs, it is generally
thought that the leg that is bearing
the weight or the leg that is making an
“attack” is considered to be solid, and
the other one is empty.

For example, in the “bow step” stance,

the front leg that is taking most of the
weight is solid and the rear leg is
empty. In the posture of “Kick with
Heel,” the leg that is undertaking the
“kick” action is considered to be solid,
and the other one is empty.

Distinction between emptiness and

solidness in referring to the legs is
closely related to the shifting of
weight, so special attention should be
paid to the shifting of your weight
during practice.

Regarding the arms/hands, it is

generally thought that the arm/hand
that gives expression to the
substance of the movement is
considered to be solid, and the
arm/hand that takes subsidiary or
concerted action is considered to be
empty.

For instance, in the posture of

“Intercept and Punch,” the right hand
that has turned into a fist and is
assuming the “punch” action is solid,
and the left hand that is attaching to
the inside of the right forearm is
empty.

In the posture of “Wild Horse Waves

Its Mane,” the arm/hand that is
moving forward and upward along
with the body’s move and turn is
considered to be solid, and the other
arm/hand that is descending to the
side of the hip is empty.

In practicing, the “solid” leg or arm

and the “solid” movement itself are
required to be steady and substantial;
the “empty” leg or arm and the
“empty” movement itself are required
to be light and agile.

Remember that only when you

distinguish between emptiness and
solidness clearly, can you then
maintain good equilibrium and avoid
those common .defects, such as
double-weighting, discontinuity,
faltering, heaviness and clumsiness,
and practice in a calm, nimble,
smooth, and continued y.

5. Sink the Shoulders

and Droop the Elbows
Yang said, “To sink the shoulders eans
to have the shoulders loosen and no
down. To droop the elbows means to
let the elbows go down and keep
them in a drooping state.”

When engaging the practice, you

should consciously keep your
shoulders relaxed and sunk. If you fail
to do so, Yang said, “your shoulders
will be squared or shrugged; then the
qi will rise up. If you retain qi in your
chest, your body will float, and your
arms and legs will become heavy,
feeble, and clumsy.”

Your elbows should always be kept

relaxed and drooped. What is
extremely important is that when you
move your arm, you should let the tip
of the elbow point down as far as
possible.

It is because the elbow is so closely

eelated to the shoulder that the
moment the tip of the elbow raises
up, the shoulder will become squared
or shrugged.

So you must guard against raising the

tips of your elbows during practice,
especially when your arms are moving
apart from each other horizontally to
both sides of your body, or when you
are doing the movements in the
posture of “Wave Hands like Clouds.”

The hand/arm movements often

produce an immediate influence on
the shoulders and elbows. In
practicing, if you stretch your hand to
excess, you will likely have your arm
straightened completely, thus making
the sinking of the shoulder and the
drooping of the elbow impossible.

On the other hand, the sinking of the

shoulder and the drooping of the
elbow also must be conducted
properly. If they are overdone, your
arm will be inevitably crooked unduly,
which is also incorrect and should be
avoided.

During the process of practice, your

arms are always required to bend a
little, to keep them in an arc-shape.
That is to say, your elbows should
never straighten completely, nor bend
unduly.

While discussing how to correctly

deal with the shoulders and elbows,
as well as the arm movements, we
cannot help but refer to the demands
on the hand and wrist.

According to the fundamental

principles of T’ai Chi Ch’uan, when
you push your hand forward, you
should let your palm open out with
the fingers slightly curved and the
wrist slightly bent up.

When you draw your hand backward,

you should let your palm slightly
contract with the wrist slightly bent
down. You may learn and grasp these
skills through practicing some basic
movements, such as “Press” and
“Push.,,

6. Use the Mind Instead

of Force
Yang pointed out: “It is said in the
Classics of T’ai Chi Ch’uan that, ‘You
must use the mind instead of force to
direct all the physical movements.’
When you are practicing, relax your
entire body completely. Do not let
any external, awkward strength
remain in the muscles, bones, as well
as blood vessels to tie yourself up, so
that you will be able to handle your
body and the four limbs at will, and
your movements will be light and
nimble.”

Yang said that maybe there are some

people who raise the question: “If you
don’t use energy, how can you
develop energy?” In answer to this
question, he said that in the human
body there are many “channels and
subsidiary channels” (generally
known as “meridians,” in English),
which may be compared to the
irrigation canals and ditches in the
fields.

Just as the water can flow

unceasingly to irrigate the fields when
the canals and ditches are not
blocked, the qi (vital energy) will be
able to flow freely throughout the
body when those “channels” are not
stuffed up. If those “channels” in the
body are filled with awkward
muscular force, the qi and blood will
stagnate, and the movement, of the
body will be heavy and clumsy.