Internal Martial Arts
Internal martial art describes a spiritual discipline rather than just a physical boxing system, and is characterized by the alternation of yin and yang. Internal form and technique is characterized by a gathering of chi energy followed by an extension or explosion of chi.
Softness involves using “internal energy” or chi as opposed to hard muscular force. This is also the basis of the fabulous health benefits of practicing soft martial art.
A soft strike is rooted in the feet and springs from the ligaments and tendons like a pliable live willow branch. A hard strike uses tense, rigid muscular force like the power delivered by a club or a bat.
Most importantly, soft is what you meet an attack with in order to neutralize it and hard is the symmetrical balance applied to the vacated place. Many push- hands students misunderstand the concept of softness, and become offended if you push them. The idea they've missed is that soft is what you meet hard with when neutralizing an attack, not what you push with when you counter an attack. Push is yang, yielding is yin.
Aikitaiji is an internal martial art. Aikitaiji training uses a balanced-approach that teaches the student to blend and yeild to an attacker, and to assert power when and where it is needed.
Read Aikitaiji Memos to learn more about internal martial art philosophy.