In my recent (and last-ever) Seattle Summer Seminar, I taught and emphasized a number of the 'SLO' (Single Leg Operations) moves that are shown in detail in my long-form Vimeo product 'Tai Chi: THE HOT ZONE'. Check that out if interested. This post is devoted to the King Move among all the SLO's that are embedded inside the ZMQ37 form. The King of them all is what's called 轉身擺蓮 (the Lotus Kick, coming immedidately after Revolve Body). This move is infintiely deeper than it looks. Hardly anybody has dug into it for the depth it deserves. Usually people just quickly skim through this one, at slightly accelerated speed as though to get it over with. HUGE mistake! This move is key to almost everything.
Although I've introduced this and emphasized it repeatedly in any number of my past books, videos, and blog posts, at this 2023 Summer event I finally went all the way and laid all the cards on the table. And I was lucky that one experienced attendee felt almost instantly the main 'point' of it (no pun intended). That was Johnathan (not to call him out all the way with full name, but people who attended are all friendly types and may want to ask him more about it, so there's the name). I take that's guy's experience and understanding of it as a confirmation by the universe that this was indeed the right time and place to show my hand ... er, foot on this extraordinary mini-protocol. Note that most of the SLO's introducted in The Hot Zone are 'static' (not really, there is always energetic movement within apparent stillness (靜中求動) but I mean superficially, physically. This is more like a micro sequence, peformed in place. Well anyway it has overt movement, unlike the other SLO's that I introduce there.
The first thing to understand is that this is NOT the full Chen Style 'crescent kicks' which are more like traditional Shaolin. Those kicks are done forcefully, powerfully, with full impact of kicking foot to hands, fully resonant sound snaps, and at head height. You can see me performing that style in the video below. Watch it and understand the contrast with the waist-height, barely brushing hands, softer slower version of 'Lotus Kick' in the ZMQ37:
Now you are ready to watch the ZMQ37 version with a more appreciative eye. That is from timestamp 05:00 to 06:15 in this other video. This softer, slower version is the subject of this post:
There's an extremely powerful hidden protocol. But it's one of those tricks of which Yang Chengfu said: "If I don't tell you this, you could practice for a hundreds years and never find it". First some general principles:
- You are going to stand in one place, beginning with your feet even and shoulder-width spaced.
- You are going to alternate right foot kicks, left foot kicks, repeat; for at least 20 kicks at a time before either ending or transitioning to Bend Bow (next move in form)
- Kicks no higher than approx. your waist level or just above.
- Go at an even, regular pace, not super slow but not fast like the Chen kicks above.
- Your upright kicking foot should very very lightly and slightly brush along the bare tips of your flat straight fingers (美人手) on every rep.
If you understand all that, and see my performance of it, you're now ready for the real key to this. There is an energy point in your foot, at the top of the instep where your foot meets your ankle, front center line. It is ST41 in the traditional nomenclature. As you begin each rep, put your mind briefly on this point. As you begin the kick, as your foot just barely beginning to leave the ground, your mind flashes here. Your foot is still relaxed at this point, not fully formed into the upright shape that it ends with on the finger brushing at the top.
You flash your mind to ST41. This will ignite a burst of fully tangible internal power spike at that foot/leg juncture. As your kick begins to rise, you will (eventually!) feel the power channel and stream itself into a torrent of power right up the kicking leg to its next stop, the ST-36 point which is on the front center line of your shin just below the knee cap.
Don't worry for now about ST-34 shown in the pic. For now it's enough to feel, first the 'local' burst at ST-41 at the start, and then, if you can like the one guy in my seminar, feel the power cable shooting straight up in to ST-36 as the kick begins to rise. That's quite enough to get you launched. But it goes much deeper. Later you'll realize that each Lotus rep, begun in the way described above, triggers a whole-body upsurge that instantaneouly ignites your entire pelvis/lower abdomen (as it rises) and then reaches your upper torso, arms, hands, and fingers as you brush them. But for now just try to get those first two ends connect (ST-41 initiation and ST-36 continuation).
For really advanced people, when you understand via your own internal experience everything described above, you can also energetically initiate this SLO kick at point ST-43 lower in the foot, for an added mule-kick shot of power through yourself like getting hit by lightning. It's basically the same process along the same path as above, just with even more um kick.