Chen Family Tai Chi is the undisputed Grand Father of all the Tai Chi Families. The first difference between Yang and
Chen was Yang took out all fast movements and developed a slow consistent set of movements. The Yang Family Tai
Chi forms are extremely safe to practice for students of all ages. Now Yang Family is the most popular Tai Chi family
taught due to the low impact consistent fluidity. As for the martial aspects the Yang family system uses the practice of
Push Hands to train the aspects.
There are many legends about Tai Chi. It is generally agreed that it began about 1100A.D. with a man named Chang
San Fung, who had studied for 20 years at the Shaolin temple and survived the eighteen hazards to graduate as a
practitioner. The fact that he graduated after only 20 years of study suggests that he had a great deal of natural ability.
He moved to U-Tang Mountain.
One day he watched a snake fight with a crane or eagle. Now he noticed that although the bird could move three times
as fast as the snake, it was still could not hit the snake. The secret was that the snake would not dodge straight back,
but would move back in curving lines, going to the side slightly as it pulled away.
When it thought is over, Chang San Fung realized that it was a small slow motion to the side that allowed the snake to
escape. The bird’s attack was fast, but its speed actually worked against it, because it could not change the direction of
its thrust. Thus the circular motion of the snake could defeat the straight line attack of the bird.
Chang San Fung realized that if a man moved in a circular pattern he could defeat a quicker opponent. Thus the idea of
Tai Chi Chuan was born.
For many centuries the secret of Tai Chi was kept by masters and passed it on to only a few of their favorite and most
trusted students. The idea was that they could use Tai Chi when necessary to keep order among other students.
During the 18th century, a man named Yang Lu Tan was a small unimportant servant in the Chen household in the village
of Chen Chian Kou, a few miles from Peking. The north of China has a climate somewhat like North America, and the
people born there eat a good deal of meat. Perhaps for this reason they grow much taller then the Chinese in the more
tropical South.
Master Chen was very large. He stood about 6’ 5”, weighing 240 pounds; and the two sons were just as big. At the
time Master Chen was the best Tai Chi practitioner in China. He did not know Yang Lu Tan was spying on his practice
every night, studying him for more then ten years - until he got caught! At that time stealing an “art” “could be a capitol
offense; it depended on what the affected party wished. But old Master Chen was smart. He saw that Yang Lu Tan
could defeat his two sons, who were much bigger the Yang Lu Tan, so he reasoned that he must have great ability. So
rather then having him executed, Master Chen took Yang Lu Tan as a student.
Now because Yang Lu Tan did not inherit the knowledge of Tai Chi (he was just a servant), the old pattern of the family
secret was broken. In later years Yang Lu Tan did not hesitate to teach Tai Chi to anyone who wanted to learn it.
Were it not for him, Tai Chi might have remained a family secret, but now Tai Chi is practiced by hundreds of millions of
people in China and the world daily.
