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Tai Chi Paul

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Tai Chi Today: Tradition, Practice & Living the Form

Monday, April 13, 2026 — Taichipaul.com

Welcome. This page is a living resource for students and friends of the Yang family tai chi tradition as taught through the Choy Kam Man lineage at the San Francisco Chinatown YMCA. Whether you are stepping into your first warm-up or refining push hands, everything here is offered in the spirit of patient, honest practice.

The Lineage: Yang Family to Choy Kam Man

The art we practice descends in an unbroken line from Yang Lu-ch'an (楊露禪, 1799–1872), the founder of Yang-style tai chi chuan. Yang Lu-ch'an learned from Chen Chang-xing in Chenjiagou village and later brought the art to Beijing, where it was refined for a wider audience.

  • 1st Generation Yang Lu-ch'an (楊露禪) — founder of Yang style
  • 2nd Generation Yang Pan-hou & Yang Chien-hou — sons who spread the art
  • 3rd Generation Yang Shao-hou & Yang Cheng-fu (楊澄甫, 1883–1936) — Yang Cheng-fu standardised the large, open frame form that most practitioners recognise today
  • 4th Generation Choy Kam Man (蔡金明) — direct student of Yang Cheng-fu; brought the authentic transmission to San Francisco
  • 5th Generation Kenn Chase, Laurence Tan, and fellow students at the San Francisco Chinatown YMCA

This lineage is significant because Yang Cheng-fu was the person who crystallised the "long form" of 108 postures that remains the benchmark of classical Yang-style practice worldwide. Master Choy carried that exact transmission across the Pacific, preserving details of timing, weight distribution, and martial intent that are easily lost in transmission. Learn more about Yang-style tai chi chuan on Wikipedia.

Master Choy Kam Man (蔡金明)

Choy Kam Man was born in Canton (Guangdong Province), China, around 1890. As a young man he studied directly under Yang Cheng-fu, the third-generation patriarch who standardised Yang-style tai chi chuan. This direct studentship placed Master Choy among a small circle of individuals who received the complete, unfiltered transmission from the Yang family itself.

Master Choy immigrated to the United States and settled in San Francisco's Chinatown, where he began teaching at the Chinatown YMCA in the 1950s. At a time when Chinese martial arts were rarely shared publicly with non-Chinese students, Master Choy opened his classes generously, welcoming all who came with sincerity and respect. His approach was quiet, precise, and deeply principled — he corrected students not with lengthy lectures but with a gentle repositioning of the hand or a single well-chosen phrase.

He taught the full curriculum: the 54-movement Short Form, the classical 108-movement Long Form, Push Hands (Tui Shou), and the Ta Lu (Da Lu) four-corner exercise. He passed away in San Francisco in 1991, leaving behind a generation of dedicated practitioners who continue to preserve and transmit his teaching.

For historical context on the broader Yang-family tradition, see the Yang-style tai chi chuan article and the overview of tai chi chuan on Wikipedia.

Short Form — 54 Movements

The Short Form as taught in the Choy Kam Man tradition condenses the essential postures of classical Yang-style tai chi into 54 movements that can be completed in approximately eight to twelve minutes. It is the ideal starting point for new students and a complete daily practice for experienced practitioners. Every movement in the Short Form also appears in the Long Form, so time invested here is never wasted.

  1. Preparation (Commencement) — Stand with feet shoulder-width apart, arms float up and press gently down. Establishes calm, rooted intent before movement begins.
  2. Ward Off Left (Peng — Left) — Step left, raise the left arm in a rounded ward-off posture. First expression of peng energy — expansive, resilient.
  3. Ward Off Right (Peng — Right) — Shift and turn, raise the right arm. Consolidates peng energy on the dominant side.
  4. Rollback (Lu) — Yield and draw the opponent's force past you. Core yielding principle; never meet force with force.
  5. Press (Ji) — One palm presses the back of the other wrist forward. Compact, focused energy released in a straight line.
  6. Push (An) — Both palms push forward and slightly down. Combines root and forward intention simultaneously.
  7. Single Whip (Dan Bian) — Wide opening posture; left palm faces out, right hand forms a hook. One of the signature postures of Yang style.
  8. Lift Hands (Ti Shou) — Weight shifts back, hands rise in a listening posture. Develops sensitivity and upright alignment.
  9. Shoulder Strike (Kao) — Subtle lean forward with shoulder leading. Introduces body-unit striking as opposed to arm-only force.
  10. White Crane Spreads Wings (Bai He Liang Chi) — Right hand rises, left drops. Elegant separation of upper and lower gates.
  11. Brush Knee and Twist Step — Left — Left hand brushes knee, right palm pushes. Coordinated hip-hand integration across the body's diagonal.
  12. Brush Knee and Twist Step — Right — Mirror of the previous movement; develops bilateral coordination.
  13. Brush Knee and Twist Step — Left (again) — Third repetition deepens the lesson of continuous stepping without interruption.
  14. Play the Pipa (Guitar / Lute) — Hands form a lute-playing gesture; weight shifts back. Listening posture that conceals a strike to ear and throat.
  15. Brush Knee — Left (Step Forward) — Resumes forward progress after the pause of Play the Pipa.
  16. Step Forward, Deflect Downward, Parry, and Punch — Four-phase sequence: block low, parry, step in, deliver fist. First appearance of closed-fist striking.
  17. Withdraw and Push (Apparent Close-Up) — Pull hands back to shoulders, then push forward. Classic neutralise-and-return pattern.
  18. Cross Hands — Arms cross at the wrists in front of the chest. Closing of the first section; restores central equilibrium.
  19. Embrace Tiger, Return to Mountain — Large gathering and turning movement. Transitions into the diagonal plane; introduces the second section's wider spatial range.
  20. Fist Under Elbow — Stand on left leg, right fist rests under left elbow. Trains single-leg balance and compact guard position.
  21. Step Back and Repulse Monkey — Right — Step back, push forward with opposite hand. Retreating without losing forward presence.
  22. Step Back and Repulse Monkey — Left — Mirror; trains equal skill in both directions of retreat.
  23. Step Back and Repulse Monkey — Right (again) — Third repetition; the sequence of three is a hallmark of classical Yang-style teaching.
  24. Diagonal Flying (Xie Fei Shi) — Wide, sweeping step to the diagonal with a splitting arm motion. Powerful shoulder/arm separation technique.
  25. Wave Hands Like Clouds — Left — Circular arm motion with side-stepping. Develops continuous waist rotation and hand sensitivity.
  26. Wave Hands Like Clouds — Right — Continues the cloud-hands sequence; stepping now moves laterally.
  27. Wave Hands Like Clouds — Left (again) — Three-repetition completion of the cloud-hands series.
  28. Single Whip (second occurrence) — Returns to the wide Single Whip posture; marks a structural boundary in the form.
  29. Snake Creeps Down (High Pat on Horse transitions here) — High Pat on Horse: right palm presses forward at face height from a high stance. Tests forward intention without excessive lean.
  30. High Pat on Horse — Elevated guard; one hand rises like patting a horse's mane. Develops light, nimble upper-body control.
  31. Separation of Right Foot (Right Heel Kick) — Both hands open outward as the right leg extends in a controlled kick. Tests rooted balance on the left leg.
  32. Separation of Left Foot (Left Heel Kick) — Mirror kick to the left. Bilateral kicking develops equal strength and balance.
  33. Turn and Kick with Left Heel — Pivot 180°, then left heel kick. Adds rotational momentum to the kicking sequence.
  34. Brush Knee and Twist Step — Left (after kicks) — Grounds the practice after the elevated kicking sequence; returns to forward stepping.
  35. Brush Knee and Twist Step — Right — Continues the stepping pattern.
  36. Step Forward and Punch Down (Punch to Groin) — Forward step, downward fist. Targets low-line vulnerability; reinforces whole-body fist mechanics.
  37. Turn Body, Sweep Lotus Leg, and Punch (Bai Lian Tui) — Sweeping circular kick followed by a punch. One of the most visually dynamic movements.
  38. Step Forward, Seven Stars — Both fists rise together at chest height. Dense, compact guard; named for the seven visible stars of the Big Dipper.
  39. Step Back, Ride Tiger — Step back, arms open wide. Strategic withdrawal that creates distance and resets the engagement.
  40. Turn Body, Sweep Lotus (Bai Lian) — Circular sweeping leg motion. Tests hip flexibility and rotational balance.
  41. Bend Bow, Shoot Tiger — Archer's stance, right fist arcs forward, left fist guards. Combines lower-body stability with upper-body power release.
  42. Step Forward, Deflect Downward, Parry, and Punch (reprise) — Echo of movement 16; the form is teaching through repetition and return.
  43. Withdraw and Push (second reprise) — The classic neutralise-and-return; builds confidence in the pattern through recurrence.
  44. Cross Hands (closing) — Arms cross at the wrists. The form is gathering itself toward conclusion.
  45. Conclusion (Closing) — Hands lower to the sides, weight settles, breath returns. The form is complete; stand quietly for a moment before moving.

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