Tai Chi is the new Yoga

[gbrutt]

It seems the way of this age is often to reduce and over simplify. We have to put a tag or a handle on things or we are afraid people won't show an interest. It's like skimming a stone across the top of the water; it moves over the surface but never finds the depths. My own adventures with the martial arts have proven that although some make it look easy, actual practice is quite another thing. When you spend time with any martial art, the illusions quickly fall away. It's the same with quick and shallow comparisons. While I can appreciate both Yoga and Tai Chi; where they've developed and where they are going, the beauty of them in motion by those who love the arts; I feel drawn to the latter. This would not make sense if they were one and the same. Watching and participating in them shows a range of distinctives. They might possess some superficial similarities but working out the movements reveals that each is unique.

In years past, one had to seek for others from whom we would learn. It took time and effort. Today we can click on a few links and gain a bit of information on many styles and forms and thereby deceive ourselves that we really know. We come to the martial arts like a hungry person in a cafeteria; we take only what looks good at the time with little thought beyond the immediate sensation; leaving behind the rest. The choices are many and it is both a blessing and a curse. We would do well to investigate and understand the myriad of disciplines that exist and to respect the long traditions that each brings. Comparisons can be helpful for they contrast and highlight but they cannot fully explain a thing that is so deep and profound.

[PalmStriker]

Understandable, where Vedic culture generated static postures in the form of Yoga may be less appealing to the general population than the flowing "chi" forms of Taiji. Less enlightenment, more exercise. Ancient yogi's rarely had any excess calories to burn. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CXnD956hF6w