Grandmaster Tse’s Tàijí Fist 158

Pào Chuí 砲捶 – Part 6

Téng 騰 means running fast, moving fast to jump up over a space. It is like a horse running fast and jumping over an obstruction, like a fence. In movement 32, Full Cannon Fist 全炮捶, of Lǎojià Pào Chuí 老架砲捶 we need to jump from one side to the other, just like a horse running and jumping, and this creates more power.

Nuó 挪 means to lean over, gently close and also to move the hand softly. It is not hard, like the other energies in Lǎojià Pào Chuí. In movement 26, Yellow Dragon Spins the Water Three Rounds 黄龍三攪水, the technique is gentle and our hand is controlling the opponent’s hand or another part of their body and twists it like the body of the Yellow Dragon spinning in the water.

Shǎn 閃 means flash. It is very quick and you cannot catch it, like a flash light, it is so quick that even though you know it’s there, by the time you want to catch or reach it, it is gone. Pào Chuí needs us to be fast, but of course we also need to be clear and strong, so  at the end the time between our defence and attack is Shǎn, which happens in a flash.