Advanced Level Bā Jìn 八勁 – Part 8

Application of Xié Xíng 斜行 – Step Forward Diagonally

The last of the Bā Jìn 八勁 is Kào Jìn 靠勁. Kào means shoulder. You can imagine, that when your opponent is a longer distance away we can attack them with a kick, if they are closer we can use the fist or palm, closer still then we can use the elbow and even closer then we can hit them with the shoulder. We need to learn how to use the shoulders and we need to practise a lot. In the end we should be able to use the shoulder to strike forwards, backwards and sideways, if we can do this, then we can use the shoulder to strike our opponent. Whenever we use Kào Jìn, it must come from the whole body, as this is what makes it powerful, and so our Nèi Gōng 內功 – Internal Training or Dì Gōng 地功 – Power from the Legs, must be strong. This comes from practising our forms a lot and also standing for a long time.

In Tàijíquán太极拳 we have the movements Xié Xíng 斜行 – Step Forward Diagonally and Shǎn Tōng Bèi 閃通背 – Flash The Back where we use can use the shoulder if the situation is suitable.

The pair, Zhǒu Jìn 肘勁 and Kào Jìn basically cover all the strike in Tàijíquán the fist, palm, elbow, shoulder, hips, knees, kicking and even the head. Inside all of them is Zhǒu Jìn and Kào Jìn.

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