Tai Chi Chuan is the art that preaches emptiness. One must move without force to realize the true depth of Tai Chi. And, in Tai Chi, you never run out of nothing.

One must understand, of course, that there are stages of emptiness. The beginning student will have one viewpoint concerning this notion, and the advanced master will have another, and there is plenty of room in between. Indeed, one could almost say there are as many viewpoints of this great nothingness as there are students to perceive them.

In the beginning there is much confusion. The beginning student tries to get in the way, has realizations of the mechanistic nature of the universe, and works his way through confusion. Eventually, the beginner starts to realize that there is more to this idea of space than he at first thought.

There is space inside the body. The apparent concreteness of muscle and bone gives way to perception. Awareness can float unhindered through the contrivances of the seemingly real body.

This is understandable through practice. The beginning student becomes advanced as reaction time dwindles and begins to move in harmony with the incoming attack. It is a short journey, once started, until the student commits his body to that of the attackers, and is able to draw upon the energies of two bodies.

Eventually the space of the body gives way to the knowledge that there is a great space open to the the seeker. Indeed, the skin stops being a line of demarcation between the student and the rest of the universe. The student becomes master, and his perceptions are not halted at the threshold of his mortal envelope, but rather are unlimited and as far as he can perceive.

The new master practices with new students, and he speaks of great space, and he gives way that the newbie may fall into that great space, an entire and new and glorious perception of the universe. Slowly, the new student accepts the reality of the master, understands gravity only to reject it in his notions, and the cycle evolves. The fresh seed grows, becomes a young tree, seeks the heavens, undergoing evolutions of life that enliven the mind throughout time.

This is the saga of Tai Chi, never ending, immutable, hastened only by the striving towards knowledge by those who seek. This is the tai chi of a race, of mankind, and it is a goal and a method and a notion that should be sought by all. What would happen if all nations of earth gave way to the humanity of the people?

Al Case has practiced Tai Chi for more than 35 plus+ years. A writer for IKF for years, his methods are unique, and you can read about them at Five Army Tai Chi Chuan.