Fajing (discharge of energy) is a way to
show the TCC principle of “taming hardness with softness”. To reach this state of achievement and expertise has long been the holy grail of
TCC practitioners everywhere over the generations.
Nowadays many practitioners “fajing”
incorrectly in two important ways. First, they use brute force to push away
their opponents—exactly the opposite of what the principle calls for. Second, they discharge
such force instantly and explosively in the hope of amplifying their brute force and surprising their
partners.
Fajing requires neither force nor lightning-fast
discharge for surprise. You don’t need a surprise attack because, once engaged,
your opponent is under your control much
of the time, long before the final instant when your energy discharge manifests outwardly
and your opponent topples.
How do you gain
control of your opponent? The Classics tell us “to upset the opponent’s
balance, to break his root, and then you can quickly dispose of him.”
How do you upset his balance? You must move and rattle him
in such a way that, try as he may, he cannot stay centered and
stable. Once he starts moving, you must remain sensitive in feeling and knowing
his movements, and you follow
his moves to upset his repeated attempts to return to a stance of
stability. You know where he is going and you stay a step ahead of him, keeping
him busy and hurried. He is under your control during much of this process.
All the
while, your own moves
are very short, what
my teacher Soong called “inch energy” (寸勁). Though short, your moves are enough to force him respond hurriedly in order to stay from being toppled. His
hasty reaction eventually becomes
flawed. His defense begins to unravel, making him vulnerable to exploit.
You may liken
your short, sensitive, and
quick movements to passing the basketball to create openings in their
defense.
And then you
can make him fall (1) easily, not forcefully and (2) at any moment, not at an instant of surprise. Your opponent knows that you have continuous control over him, that
you can topple him at any time, and that he is a sitting duck waiting helplessly
for the fateful moment.
An
accomplished practitioner can execute such short and quick movements so
smoothly, unhurriedly, seamlessly, and
seemingly with perfect foresight that he appears to be doing nothing special to
topple his opponent. He makes fajing
look easy, and that is an art. This high level of expertise can be achieved only when you are soft and agile, but you don’t need to be powerful or lightning-fast.
In fact,
your opponent may fall out of balance on his own. A genial TCC practitioner
that you are, you may give him a hand, covertly, to prevent his fall. Only he
and you know what is really going on. Though you may not fajing outwardly, he
knows that he has no chance of remaining standing if you decide to let him
fall.
So, a
pushing hands session with a seasoned and gentle expert may not have a fajing
scene at all, much less using brute force for an explosive, lightning-fast
push. And this is what the TCC Classics call for.
By
Wu RH, English translation and annotations by Tang YY
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