Theory
Q: Could you please tell us about sanhe (three coordinations), liuhe (six coordinations) and zheng jin (whole body power)?
A: Internal sanhe is the integrity of xin, yi and qi. It is about the three combinations of xin and yi (mind and intent), yi and qi (intent with energy), qi and li (energy with strength). External sanhe is the coordination of shoulders with the kuas (the joints and surrounding areas of the hips), elbows with knees and hands with feet.
The internal and external sanhe combines to liuhe, and liuhe represents a complete jin and a complete li, these are so-called zheng jin and zheng li (whole body power and strength). They can maximize practitioner’s potential of using jin and li, and also they will become very powerful and aggressive when used in attack application.
Q: Please tell us about some of the different kinds of jin (power). For instance cun jin (1 inch power), luo xuan jin (spiraling power), re jin (“heat jin”) and the rather mystical zhen jin (shocking power).
A: There are many kinds of jin, such as zhi jin (straight jin), heng jin (horizontal jin), pian jin (leaning jin), tiao jin (lifting jin), chen jin (sinking jin), tui jin (pushing jin), la jin (pulling jin), ding jin (upward pressing jin), suo jin (downward jin), zhang jin (upward jin), kai jin (expanding jin), he jin (closing jin), chan jin (entwining jin).
Cun jin (1 inch jin) is when you are very close to your opponent and use a very quick and short burst of force. Re jin, maybe you mean jing zha jin. It means the power from suddenly withdrawing; it is like when you suddenly pull away your hands when touching something very hot.
I think all these different jin come from different angles when you use them. Luo xuan jin is also called chan si jin (silk reeling or entwining power), and it’s a 3-dimensional movement. It can be changed very quickly and you can’t predict its direction. It’s very important in the application of internal forms.
Zhen jin is a little bit mysterious for me. I think it’s a very ingenious combination of internal qi, jin and li. It starts very slow and soft, when it reaches something, the softness turns hard and the power of jin and li will be incredibly big, just like the waves having soft appearance but contains destructive power when they reach the reef.
Q: How important is ting gong (”listening” skill)?
A: Ting gong refers to training of the senses to enhance a human’s sixth sense. It’s very important. It is as the old saying goes “head is the captain, eyes are the sentinel, hands are the general, feet are the base” (mayb add note). A senior neijia practitioner should be able to sense the opponent’s attack from his subtle changes and subdue him by quicker action.
Q: There is also a lot of theory and philosophy connected to neijia style practice today. Is it important to understand the philosophical ideas?
A: There are plenty of theory and philosophy about Chinese martial arts and many of the styles have their own, but only neijiaquan has a very complete and rich theory and philosophy, especially on yin-yang and on the five elements. It will help you to understand neijiaquan more if you know it well.
Q: In qigong practice as well as neijia practice there is sometimes mentioned the need for sexual abstinence. Could you clarify this for us?
A: It’s quite complicated to explain the reason of sexual abstinence in practice. Sex is very natural and you can’t take abstinence casually. Daoism doesn’t promote abstinence but they suggest not to overindulge in sexual activities. For martial arts practitioners, they should cut down the times of sexuality and keep their jing (“essence”) for health reasons.
Q: You also hear about the small heavenly circle (xiao zhou tian) and the large heavenly circle. What are these and how do they apply to the practice of neijia?
A: These heavenly circles were rarely mentioned in old daoist’s books but they appeared later in therapist’s, qigong practitioner’s and martial artist’s books. They certainly have very different explanations based on their understanding and usages.
I think the basic level is when you breathe by the mouth and nose and it can make your body alive; middle level is when you use your mind to move the qi around your body and it can make you healthy; high level is when you apply your jing to your bone and it can extend your life. That’s what I think about heavenly circles, and referring how they apply to neijiaquan, I think it depends on individuals how much they could understand.