Chen Style is the oldest surviving form of Tai Chi. It is the root of all the five forms of Tai Chi which are practiced today. In terms of overall popularity, it comes in third.

Characteristics

The Chen Style of Tai Chi is characterized by lower and more aggressive stance, sudden bursts of power, and a technique known as silk reeling which essentially means that the actions of the practitioners are fluid and graceful. Neither are they too fast nor are they too slow. This is analogous of reeling of silk from the womb of a silk worm, reel in too fast you will break the silk and if you reel in too slowly you will entangle it.

History Of Chen Style Tai Chi

The Chen Style of Tai Chi as suggested by the name was founded and developed by the Chen family. It is a very old martial art form. The origins of the art are not clear though. Proper documents are not available to suggest how the Chen family originated and developed this art form. Documentation is available only from the 16th century. According to these, the Chen clan from the province of Henan possessed a unique form of martial art. Interviews with the surviving members of the Chen clan reveal that the art was brought by the family from Shanxi from where the family was forced to flee. Shanxi is reputedly the origin of martial art forms such as Bagua Chuan. Chen style initially taught only to family members and it was impossible for outsiders to learn the art. This was termed as lineage and it was a important Tai Chi tradition. This tradition was broken by Chen Fake who started to public teaching in the early 19th century. His teachings ensured the growth in popularity of Chen Style of Tai Chi. At the same time another family member Chen Xin, published a book about the Chen style of Tai Chi. It provided in depth knowledge of the art and gave it wide publicity.

Its Growing Popularity

In the past decade this martial art form is fast gaining popularity. In the increasingly health conscious western societies it is having wide acceptance. The popularity wave started in the 1980. During this time a drastic change in the foreign policy of China resulted in a large number of Chen teachers migrating to the western world. This rise in popularity was augmented by the fact that official members of the Chen clan toured the globe and organized awareness camps and workshops to promote a basic understanding of the benefits involved. Chen style of Tai Chi is practiced by Hugh Jackman in the movie ‘Fountain’. This form of Tai Chi has also been featured in many video games which has helped in increasing its popularity.

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