FAJIN. GOT IT?

 By Yang Shuangxing

In the Chinese martial arts – especially the internal art – we often hear the phrase “fajin” (發勁) Many assume that this refers to the emission of qi (vital energy), but that's an incorrect assumption. Fajin literally means “emit power/strength” and is sometimes referred to as Fali (發力). So, virtually every percussive martial art has its own particular form of fajin. For some, it's little more than sheer brute force; others require a lot of refinement.

In the internal martial arts of China which includes taijiquan, xingyiquan, and baguazhang), learning real fajin takes some considerable time and practice. It has nothing to do with the size of one's muscles, although the muscles are certainly involved. It is NOT akin to the “force” depicted in Star Wars movies. At all. There's no “magic.” In terms of biomechanics, fa jin is a matter of utilizing body alignment and coordination to form an extremely efficient kinematic chain. The body begins in a relaxed physical state, which is then quickly accelerated in a coordinated whole-body movement. The internal arts are all based on the ability to utilize fajin and without it, they become little more than bizarre forms of shaolin boxing or just flailing the arms around.

Imagine a wet, rolled-up towel or a whip with a small weight attached to the end. If you want to “crack the whip”, you can't just use any arm/shoulder movement; the correct movements must be just so and they have to be practiced repeatedly.

The motions of the arm and hand cause the end of the whip to snap out suddenly and it seemingly becomes “stiffened” as the energy/power is released. In reality, it doesn't really stiffen unless it hits something (meets a resistance). One of the most important features is the TIMING of this release of energy, both during and AFTER. This is all described and illustrated in my book, REFINING JIN.