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I want to begin by telling you why I love the tai chi spear and the impact it has made on my practice. I was a late-comer to the tai chi spear form because I didn’t have access to teaching. I may have also been intimidated by the speed and number of moves. However, learning the spear has paid off in many unique ways: My open-hand form became lighter I finally understood spiraling energy I learned proper opening and closing of the armpits and inguinal crease (kua) It added variety to my training so I practice more It is FUN! and I laugh and feel like a kid doing it (even though I hit myself in the shins) It is the embodiment of what is possible physically. Like each of the weapons, there is an incredible history, a reason why it is studied, ways this weapon form improves your open-hand form, and jaw-dropping movie and competition examples. Put your seatbelt on because here is a wushu competition example that is absolutely insane. https://youtu.be/R2YNg2i06l8 Now I know what your saying. I could probably do that with a week or two of training, but might not be ready for Russian television. 😉 The cool thing is that it doesn’t matter. Because what is going on inside of her is available to you if you train at your own level. The tai chi spear form (槍 – qiāng) is one of the primary weapons forms of tai chi but is less known or less practiced than the sword forms. It contains light, fast, spinning movements with quick steps and is used to train internal strength and spiraling energy. The tai chi spear form is extremely unique when compared to other weapons or other forms of exercise. This routine has its origin on ancient military battlefields. Spear forms use whole-body energy for sweeping, thrusting, and striking. It also teaches you how to extend your inner power (fajin) out to the tip of the spear. Here are the things that make the spear form stand out: The Spear Increases Your Lightness and Speed While most tai chi forms are low, slow, and grounded, the spear form is more nimble and quick. You do hold low proper stances but you also come up to full attention. The steps are as fast as the hand movements so it is pretty light and quick. This compliments all of the other tai chi forms well. Spiraling Energy Originates in the Spear Form In order to get the much-desired shake in the end of the spear, spiraling energy is used to transmit force through the pole. It is often hard to learn spiraling technique in the openhand form but the spear gives us a visual and tactile way to learn. For a very nice, detailed description about spiraling energy, Dr. Paul Lam has a great instructional video: Dr. Paul Lam on Spiral Force Opening and Closing Movements Proper tai chi is performed with continual opening and closing of joints. As a quick example, moving your arms slowly as if you are flying opens your armpits, then elbows, then wrists and closes them on the way down. When you see someone doing beautiful tai chi you are recognizing their timing of opening and closing. They look like a sail filling and emptying. The spinning of the tai chi spear is powered by proper opening and closing motions. When you can properly spin the spear, the opening and closing abilities easily translate back into your tai chi long form. Connection of Whole Body Force The spear form is taught slowly in the beginning without using much force. Once the movements are learned and correct, every thrust and strike is powered with the whole body and focused on the spear’s tip. In order to produce force with such light quickness the spear form teaches movements that expand and contract the whole body which has been shown to be beneficial from a health perspective too as it influences the meridian points running up the front (conception vessels) and back (governing vessels) of the body. Hopefully you see that there is a WHOLE lot going on here than just "learning another form." How Old is the Spear? To truly comprehend the value of learning the spear form we have to understand how far back in history the spear has been used and that it has been a part of every culture. Fighting, hunting, or fishing with a spear requires the use of whole-body mechanics that is at the same time forceful, quick, and flexible. As tai chi practitioners, we are SOOO lucky. While the spear remains part of everyone else’s history, we still have a living, breathing spear routine to learn correct body mechanics that have been honed across several centuries. The oldest spear to date was discovered in central Germany possibly dating from 400,000 years ago. However, being that spears are wood, scientists think this is an underestimation. Spears have been part of every tribal, hunting, and military tradition. Egyptian hieroglyphics show spears The Greek and Roman foot soldiers and cavalrymen used spears African tribes Native America tribes In the Arab world and India, spears were in use right up until the beginning of the 20th Century All Asian infantry had spear or lance detachments The history we are most concerned with is the Chinese of course. There were two primary forms of spears, the Mao and the Qiang. The Qiang was long and flexible and is the origin of the spear we now use in tai chi. There is some confusion as to how to distinguish the Qiang from the Mao, as they are obviously very similar. Some people say that a Mao is longer than a Qiang, others say that the main difference is between the stiffness of the shaft, where the Qiang would be flexible and the Mao would be stiff. Scholars seem to lean toward the latter explanation more than the former. Because of the difference in the construction of the Mao and the Qiang, the usage is also different, though there is no definitive answer as to what exactly the differences are between the Mao and the Qiang. Sources: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spear No reason to just talk about the history of spears when there are great movie re-enactments. Here is one of my all-time favorite scenes: Hero (2004) Jet Li vs. Donnie Yen - Chess Courtyard Fight Spears Are Not Just Used By Humans Scientists have now documented that chimpanzees and apes use spears to hunt.Chimps in Senegal found to fashion spears for hunting Israeli documents Bonobo apes making spears Chen Tai Chi Spear Form We will end here with two examples of the Chen tai chi spear form. What I would love viewers to glean from this incredible example is how it is simultaneously calm and fast. 72 moves are performed in about 2 minutes. The Chen tai chi spear form movements are listed below.It also demonstrates the relaxation needed to spin the spear during the martial flower movements and at the same time incredible power at specific points visible by the flexing of the spear. https://youtu.be/WmxOyOzRr8s Chen Tai Chi Spear Chen Tai Chi Spear - Pear Blossom Spear (Li Hua Chiang) MovementModified Pinyin1. Yaksha Explores the Sea 1. yie cha ta hai 2. Full Martial Flower2. chuen wu hwah3. Middle-Level Thrust3. jong ping cheong4. Three Quick Thrusts4. gi san cheong5. Upper-Level Thrust5. san ping cheong6. Swing the Pearl-Beaded Curtain6. gen ju dow juen lien7. Lower-Level Thrust7. shia ping cheong8. Stamp and Thrust8. dien tway lui cheong9. Green Dragon Bares Its Claws9. ja ching long shien jow10. Advance Forward, Pierce with Spear10. sham bu ja I cheong11. Sweep Ground, Block Stab from the Side11. sau di su bien lon cheong12. Step Forward, Two Strikes12. wong chien da leong cheong13. Yellow Dragon Flicks the Staff13. wong dien gahn lowng14. Diverting Pierce14. leow I cheong show I cheong15. Half Martial Flower15. bahn wu hwah16. Block Attacks at Waist16. yao chwin lan cheong17. Turn Around, Half Martial Flower17. hwey toe bahn go wu hwah18. Press Down on the Snake18. show an di schwa cheong19. Flick the Spear19. show I cheong20. Pierce with Spear20. ja I cheong 21. Two-Finishing Thrusts21. leong shang ye-eh22. Wave the Banner on the Left22. zoa yao chee sow23. Heaven-Piercing Thrust23. chw tien cheong24. Wave the Banner on the Right24. yo yao chee sow25. Iron Ox Plows the Earth25. tien nyo gun di26. Turn Around, Half Martial Flower26. hwey toe bahn go wu hwah27. Water-Dripping Spear27. di schwey cheong28. Two Finishing Thrusts28. ye-eh leong cheong29. Step Forward and Ride the Dragon29. shong o-he lowng shu30. Part the Grass to Search for a Snake30. wong chien ing bo tzow shwing shua31. Step Back, White Ape Drags the Spear31. wong hoe tway32. Turn Around, Pin Black Dragon into the Cave32. hwey toe ja u long ru dong33. Stamp and Snatch the Pipa33. dien hwey twey shu pipa34. Advance Forward, Two Strikes34. wong chien da leong cheong35. Wield the Banner to Sweep the Ground35. yao chi sao di36. Mount Tai Crushes the Egg36. tai shan yah lo-an37. Turn Around, Half Martial Flower37. hway toe bahn go wu hwah38. Agile Cat Pounces on the Mouse38. mao puh shoe (?shu-e)39. Strike from the Left39. zoa puh I cheong40. Strike from the Right40. yo puh I cheong 41. Turn and Thrust41. fan shun hoy toe (look back) su I cheong42. Flick the Heel42. tiow I gun zuh43. Single Hand Thrust43. dan sho chu cheong44. Full Martial Flower44. chuen wu hwah45. Er Lang Carries the Mountain45. er lang dan shan46. Sweep the Spear46. sow I cheong47. Half Martial Flower47. bahn wu hwah48. Lower Thrust48. sha leo fun cheong49. Turn Around, Half Martial Flower49. hway toe bahn go wu hwah50. Sparrow Hawk Swoops Down on Quail50. guh suh poo on chwin51. Sweep Right51. yo sow I cheong52. Flick Heel52. tiow I gun zuh53. Finishing Thrust53. ye-eh ee cheong54. Full Martial Flower54. chuen wu hwah55. Er Lang Carries the Mountain55. er lang dan shan56. Sweep the Spear56. sow I cheong57. Half Martial Flower57. bahn wu hwah58. Beautiful Maiden Holds a Needle58. may new ren gin59. Fair Maiden Works at the Shuttles59. ewe new xheun sow60. Thrust to the Throat60. zu chuong ho men cheong 61. Turn and Sweep61. hwey toe sow I cheong62. Full Martial Flower62. chuen wu hwah63. Protect the Knee63. who she cheong64. Two Finishing Thrusts64. ye-eh leong cheong65. Old Dragon Sways Its Tail65. tsong lang buy huey66. Forward Block66. wong chien dan I cheong67. Forward Block67. wong chien dan I cheong68. Block Left68. wong zoa dan I cheong69. Block Right69. wong yo dan I cheong70. Half Martial Flower70. bahn wu hwah71. Tai Gong Goes Fishing71. tai gong dio you72. Step Forward, Mount the Horse, and Thrust Back72. wong chien ching bu hway ma cheong KungfuDirect is a great place online to buy a spear to get training on your own. We trust their products because they are high quality and they understand what we are using them for. There are just a few things you need to know to make sure you get the right length and find one that is straight and in good condition. Here is what you need to know and where our class orders from: How to Find the Right Tai Chi Spear.

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