Chan Fa is the basic principle ofTaijiquan. The technique of chan first appear叫in“An
generation grandrτ1aster Chen Xin. He is the 且rst to propose that Chen Style Taijiquan is the “technique of chan.” He further explained 出at with
out knowing chan, one could not truly comprehend the meaning ofTaiji
quan. Chen Xin thus established the importance of chan energy in Chen Family Taijiquan. The chan energy can be divided into many sub-sections
such as forward chan, retreating chan, left chan, right chan, top chan, bot
tom cha刀， inward chan, outward cha刀， positive chan and negative chan.
According to my experiences, I believe that these di岳rent chan should be categorized under two main divisions: positive chan and negative chan.
But what are the criteria for these two main types of chan? Chen Xin did not elucidate this point in his book. In addition, there are many different interpretations concerning the meaning of chan in the available literature. I have summarized for reference here my criteria for these two chan to make them clear to my students.
Torso: the turning of the torso to the left is considered positive chan;
the turning of the torso to the right is considered negative chan.
Legs: when the body turns to the left, the left leg is positive chan and the right leg is negative chan; when the body turns to the right, the right leg is positive chan and the left leg is negative chan. For positive chan one should raise the knee and for negative chan one should lower the knee.
However, the knees can only be as follows: one up while the other one is down. Under no circumstances can they be both up or both down (level) ; under no circumstances can they move from side to side.
Hands: when the thumb turns outwards with the palm facing upwards, it is positive chan; when the small finger turns outwards turning the palm downwards, it is negative chan.
When the hand and hip work together to turn left and right, front and back, up and down, it is called a “revolution.” τhe directions of revolution are left, right, front, back, up and down. While making left-right and up
down revolutions, there is also a rotation within. Rotation only has shun.
[Using the right hand as an example, shun is when the little 且nger turns towards the torso while the thumb turns away from the torso. Ni is the opposite.]
When the right hand turns right, ni chan opens 仕om the upper por
tion and shun chan closes from the bottom portion, it is called a “positive circle.” When opening, ni chan requires 出at the hand leads the elbow and the elbow leads the shoulder. This motion continues from the heart (right
hand action) to the chin and continues to turn out until the hand reaches the height of the eyes. This is the upper half of the circle. Then loosen the shoulder, sink the elbow, even out the wrist, raise the fingers and withdraw
the elbow to the side of the ribs. 咀1e elbow touches the ribs. After that only the forearm will turn upward via the navel to the heart.
Chen Xin said that each hand is only responsible for half of the body.
In applications, the hand is the sentry whose main task is to protect the torso, but he originally said that the center demarcation line is the nose. I changed this position to the heart in order to avoid the mistake of students withdrawing their hands to the nose.
币1ang Zongyue also said， “Without extension or deficiency.” Therefore, there must be a standard as to what “extension” is and what “deficiency” is.
In Chen Style Taijiquan, the hand cannot be higher than the eyes. It can
not be lower than the navel. In addition, it cannot go past the heart. ［咀1is requir口 the right hand to face the heart and to never go past the centerline of the torso.] To pass the abovementioned lines will cause one to lose power while not reaching those lines means that one is resisting sti困y.
In general, from the heart to the eyes [the hand] turn is ninety degrees.
This is the essence of the positive circle. In the form, examples of this movement can be found in the left and right hand movements in “Cloud Hands" and the right hand movement in “Block Touching the Coat.”
The negative circle movement of the right hand revolution is like this:
shun chan pulls the right hand inward from the right upper corner. 咀1e 面ngers still point in the same direction. Th e elbow should withdraw to the bottom of the breast. Then change to ni chan. The elbow should first stick to the ribs. 卫le hand leads the elbow to travel from the heart to the kua. Then the hand travels back up to eye level. An example is “Cross the Hands" in the 刀luRoutine. This is a negative circle revolution.
There are very few examples of the negative circle on top and at the bottom of the body. It is only in “Golden Rooster Stands on One Leg” that the hands are one up and one down while doing the negative circles. The two hands in this move are separated into negative circles in front of the heart. The upper hand first travels in a shun chan circle to the heart and then changes to ni chan to continue to travel through the mou白， nose and the baihui point on top of the head. It is like pushing an object up to the top. 咀le lower hand changes to ni chan from the heart to travel down to the kua and pushes down at the outside of the kua.
This form [Golden Rooster Stands on One Leg] only rotates with shun
and ni for two turns. Attention must be paid to make sure that the top hand is upright while the lower hand is slightly slanted.
τhe revolving movement of the front hand and rear hand is both nega
tive circles. 咀ie rear hand travels in a shun chan circle to the heart and then changes to ni chan. It then travels past the front of the kua sideways to the back until it reaches ninety degrees (calculated in reference to the heart) and then changes back to shun chan to sink the elbow to the ribs. The wrist then changes to ni chan and travels from the bottom of the ear to the front of the chest. An example of this move is “Punch Covering the Hand." In this form, the rotational chan movements change four times. In “High Pat on Horse”， when the elbow withdraws to the ribs in shun chan and the hand turns up to the ear, it changes slightly to ni chan to travel from the bottom of the ear out as shun chan. 咀iis form has the chan method chang
ing five times. In the form “Tame the Tiger” of the Cannon Fist routine, there are six changes.
Therefore, in different forms the hands must change the direction of its chan method at different locations of the body. There cannot be any room for error. The “ Taijiquan Treatise” said， “A deviation of one millimeter at the source will cause an error of a thousand kilometers at the destination.”
咀iis assertion is not without reason. Learners of Taijiquan should pay at
tention to this point.
In forms such as “Brush the Knee" and “Step Back to Whirl Arms on Both Sides,'' the movement of the hands to the front and back also has a rule [obedience to the principle] : the front hand is straight while the rear hand is slanted; or the front is thin while the back is thick. These refer to the directions for the coordination of the hand. Learners should also pay due diligence to this law.
Is there a shun and ni difference with the eyes? Of course there is! The eyes are the organs of the body that signal and notify the mind. The mind can then command the entire body to adapt according to the changes of the opponent. 咀1e eyes a陀also responsible for observing the opponent’s situation and the geographical environment.
Chen Xin once said， “In solo practice, imagine you are fighting an op
ponent; in fighting an opponent, imagine you are practicing a solo form."
Sunzi also山d in his "Art of 1场r” that knowing your opponent and
your-self will ensure that you are invincible. Th e statement “In solo practice, imagine you are fighting an opponent” refers to the eyes deciphering the opponent’s movements so one’s own movements coordinate in response to the actions of the opponent. It is the method of knowing the opponent.
卫le first method in knowing your opponent is to observe the way your op
ponent stands, and through observation of his stance, one can estimate his direction and method of attack.
卫lis is achieved through the coordinated efforts of the eyes and mental judgment so as to flexibly and quickly plan defense and attack measures.
Based on this, each movement in Chen Style Taijiquan has a main direc
tion. Main directions are the directions for stance movements before step
ping out. Th e directions are decided according to the final target of the hand. Th erefore, when the direction of the eyes and the stepping of the body are the same, it is considered shun; when the direction of the eyes and the stepping of the body are not the same it is considered ni.