Healing art, martial art, meditation, and fitness come together as one in the practice of tai chi, as they do with many martial arts.

As as martial art, tai chi strives to teach the cultivation of mental and physical balance in order to overcome violence with stillness.

Before a student can effectively neutralize an opponent’s aggression, he/she must first neutralize any internal conflict or tension within his/her own mind and body.

Before you can deal with someone who wants to fight you, you must first learn to stop fighting yourself.

For every thought that a person has, there will be some form of emotion. For each emotion, no matter how subtle, there will be some physical tension created. So, in order to develop a profound control of the body, one must develop a profound understanding of one’s own mind. The tai chi forms, qigong, tuishou, and sanshou methods are taught specifically with this in mind.

This is why martial arts, especially internal martial arts like tai chi, are seen as powerful tools for improving the quality of life, for understanding the relationship between mind and body, and for achieving inner peace.

The martial skills are seen as spiritual and mental skills for transforming consciousness, and understanding one’s relationship with the inner and outer universe.