Chinto Kata and Tai Chi’s DaLu Drill

Long ago when I was a new Sho Dan in Isshinryu I began a study of Yang Tai Chi.

I knew of Tai Chi from my readings on Chinese Arts back in college. I was interested in it and when I saw Ernest Rothrock perform it in a demonstration I knew watching it I wanted to study it. For the next two years I had a class once a week. The 6 rows of the Yang form, the Sword form, Single push hands, Double push hands were  in my study. I wasn’t concerned with martial applications just the form and assorted drills. This was not to replace my Isshinryu, just for its own practice.

Practice I did. About 8 years later a few of my students approached me and asked for instruction. I decided to do so, but separate from our Isshinryu studies. I decided to hold class Sundays mornings early on my driveway, whether hot or cold. For the next 16 years or so class was held. Until they all went their separate ways. Then I returned to the solitary practice I originally began.

Teaching was also very instructive, I began to explore the martial applications. After nearly caving in one student’s chest with Lu the Pull Back of Tai Chi, I called Ernie to ask him what I was doing wrong. He told me “Didn’t I tell you not to use that on student’s?” Of course joking for the martial applications were not our study (and of course he had them).

One practice I had read about was DaLu, a Yang exercise. In our study that had never come up. I do not know the full extent of my instructors art, as my study with him had become difficult many years ago due to distance. When video tape (pre internet) became available I finally saw the practice. First, I was shown the movements of DaLu as double push hands application studies. I began to add these drills as part of my program. Then I had a moment of understanding, that these movements were also a direct part of my Isshinryu Chinto kata study, and there were no changes needed to these movements for this to be a drill.

1.   1.       Begin in Chinto kate from the kamae where you lift your hands up.

2.   2.       Then you step away in seiunchin dachi and strike down with both your handsk,

3.   3.       Then you step forward in seiunchin dachi with the rear foot and strike inwards with both hands, the right hand as a ridge hand.

Those motions form DaLu’s techniques.

A method using stepping away to immobilize their strike and draw them down by pulling their wrist and striking down behind their elbow.

Then stepping to strike to their neck.

Of course each motion neutralizes the other as the drill progresses.  

An interesting study in how different arts are to be found within each other, abet with differing execution.