What is the meaning of Peng energy?
It is like the water supporting a moving boat.
First sink the ch’i to the tan-t’ien,
then hold the head as if suspended from above.
The entire body is filled with spring like energy,
opening and closing in a very quick moment.
Even if the opponent uses a thousand pounds of force,
he can be uprooted and made to float without difficulty.
– T’an Meng-hsien
At its core Tai Chi is not about forms or technique practice. Well it is to some extent, but that is not what is central to the art. You can spend years and years collecting so called ‘empty forms’ and in the end not be doing Tai Chi. The very basis of Tai Chi is the utilization of energy. Chi itself is a type of energy that is harnessed in the practice. In many eastern beliefs Chi is the basic energy that animates the universe, but there are additional energies that also come into play in Tai Chi; actually eight specific energies. The first of these energies and the one most principal in the art is called Peng Jin. This loosely translates as Inflated Energy. One way to visualize this is by thinking of an inflated balloon or ball. This is the feeling one must have in their body to be properly practicing Tai Chi. The expansion of energy is in all directions equally, but is also especially manifested in the leading extremities. The finger tips, the toes, and in some cases the heels. The energy must be robust and yet also at the same time faintly compliant and yielding. In Tai Chi all movement is grounded in the feet, established in the legs, led by the Dantien and is expressed in the hands.
Examining that a bit closer… The feet are what are in contact with the earth. When your feet are on the ground you should be in essence rooted and unmovable. Think of a stalk of bamboo. It can bend and sway to external pressure and forces yet will remain firmly planted. This is why all movement should be fixed by the feet. You are in this way connected to the entire earth. The legs are among the most powerful muscles in the body. Their power should be used to develop the movement of the body. But it is the Dantien that leads this movement of the body. The Dantien is the centre of gravity of the body; the center of chi, and where the Peng Jin radiates outward from. The mind and the breathing should be also focused on this area. Three finger widths below and two finger widths behind the navel. All of this now allows the final manifestation of energy to the hands. It is the hands which ultimately perform the various striking, grasping warding off, and blocking techniques. This is the same with the feet when exercising blocks and kicks, although in many kicks one is leading with the heel and I believe that it is proper to also have the energy radiate from there.
Another fundamental concept in Tai Chi is that of relaxation and looseness or Fang Song. The total body should be relaxed but especially the shoulders, spine and hips. The elbows should be also relaxed and anchored. In order to hear properly one must be still and relaxed; to hear your opponent and to hear yourself. It is just one of the paradoxical natures of Tai Chi that has these two fundamental features blended together.
Peng Jin allows the Tai Chi practitioner to sense what an opponent is doing, then to absorb and control the adversaries force and finally if needed to identify the direction of exposure and attack it. This is at the heart of push hands practice, and its mastery can only become possible with many years of diligent and correct practice.
The reason why many people practice Tai Chi for years and years and yet never really cross the doorstep are because they lack Peng Jin and Fang Song.