What are the "five bows" in traditional Wushu?

There is a poem of Tai Ji Chuan theorists in ancient times: the beginning of the pen moves the spirit at the end, and the end of the pen arteries. A move at the end, buckle up and down like a bow. The upper and lower bows are called "body bows" and the left and right bows are called "limbs bows". Together, it is "five bows on the body." Only when the bow is pulled up can it be taken off, and it can be held on all sides and shot everywhere. Therefore, it is very important to learn from Tai Ji Chuan and understand the formation and function of the five bows of the body.

First of all, the double-arm bow

The upper limb arch is the double arm arch. The arch of the double-arm arch is slightly wrist joint and shoulder joint, and the arch back is elbow joint. These two bows of the human body have their own characteristics: one end can move freely, that is, the hand; And the other end is connected with the trunk, which is relatively fixed, that is, the shoulder. We call the hand the tip joint, the elbow the middle joint and the shoulder the root joint.

We should give full play to the advantages of dexterity and freedom of hands, so we have stipulated the principle of "leading strength with hands", and hands are the frontier soldiers of our attack and defense. If we need to go to the designated place by hand, we should go straight to the point. If you have to drive by your shoulders, you are giving up the foundation. There should be a "degree" of hand operation. If the hand reaches too far and the arm is straight, the bowstring will be broken; If the hands are too close and the included angle between elbows is less than 90 degrees, the arch back is folded. Both cases will lead to the failure of the arm arch.

The other arch is a slight shoulder joint. We should loosen our shoulders and pull them, which is what we often say. Shoulders should be pulled out and armpits should be empty. Only when the armpit is empty can the shoulder joint rise and fall flexibly and run freely. The problem we should pay attention to here is that we can send our strength to attack each other through the arch back of my double-arm bow, and the other side can also send his strength to my shoulder through the arch back of my double-arm bow. So there is a saying that "the first thing to do is to hit the shoulder." In martial arts confrontation, when my shoulder is stressed, there are nothing more than three situations: one is that my big arm is inward, which is called shoulder relaxation; The second is that my big arm is outward, which is called shoulder turning; The third is that I pull my arm back, which is called shrugging. The only correct way to move your shoulders is to sink and relax your shoulders. Only in this way can the integrity of both arms be guaranteed.

The bow is formed on the back of the bow. It cannot be soft, floating or folded, which means it must be "tight". If we want to do this, "elbow positioning" of upper limbs is particularly important. In Tai Ji Chuan's boxing, walking and even fighting, the elbow is always doing an outward stretching and expanding action, and doing an action of lengthening the shoulder. The elbow is basically located at one side of the body, maintaining a relative position to ensure that the included angle between the arm and the rib will not change greatly. Elbow plays the role of connecting the past and the future, transporting weapons and ammunition to the front hand and supporting the hand to move more flexibly; It is also necessary to help lengthen the back shoulder, lower the elbow and sink the shoulder, and stabilize the balance. The elbow is the arch back of the double-arm bow. To keep the arch back full and the bowstring taut in the best condition, that is, "elbow positioning". When the "elbow positioning" is broken, the elbow will float, the shoulder will stand up, the hand will be lost, and the posture will be relaxed.

Human upper limbs are our main offensive and defensive weapons. The formation of the double-arm bow gives us a reasonable defense position in depth. In the face of the incoming force, we can be more flexible not to be oppressed or reduce oppression, and we can change the incoming force from centripetal force to centrifugal force, thus leading it away. The attack is more powerful because of the double-arm bow, and the whole body's strength can be transmitted to any action point on the hand and opponent through the double-arm bow, not just two hands fighting alone. Moreover, due to the formation of the double-arm bow, our hitting power is large and orderly-elbow first, elbow later, shoulder first and shoulder later, which can be repeated endlessly.

Second, the leg arch

The lower limb arch is the double leg arch. The two arches of the double-legged arch are slightly ankle joint and hip joint, and the knee joint is the arch back of the double-legged arch. An invisible line is formed between the hip joint and the heel. Because the function of the lower limbs is not only to transmit the pedaling force to the waist and hips, but also to bear the weight of the body itself, the range of motion of the small joints (toes) is small (except when attacking with one leg). So, what is the motion form of the pointed joint? That is to grasp the ground with five fingers. Only by grasping the ground with five fingers can our legs and even the whole body remain stable under the urging of various forces. We require five fingers to grasp the ground, but when exercising, the body should rotate left and right and pull in all directions. Flexibility depends on whether our ankles are long enough. So this bow requires a little stability and softness. Grasp the ground and rotate.

The other bow of the legs is slightly hip. Hip joint is the joint of waist and leg, and its joint is relatively fixed and can rotate with restrictions. The main function of the leg arch is to support the trunk and complete the movement in all directions. On the premise of relaxing the hips, the waist and abdomen can move freely like the central axis. Loose hips are a key to Tai Chi's palace. There is no loose hips, and the bows of the legs are out of touch with the body; Without relaxing the crotch, the reaction force of the pedal cannot be transmitted to the waist for redistribution; Hips are not loose, and back rotation is stiff. So this bow is very important and difficult to practice.