Shuaib Elhassan and Michael Montgomery of Alonzo King LINES Ballet practicing T’ai Chi in The Music Concourse in San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park
Two hands rise, separating into yīn and yáng
Left and right like a yīn and yáng fish
Movement springs from extreme stillness, opening then closing
Relax the shoulders and sit on the leg as if embracing the moon
Two hands form into yīn and yáng palms
Two palms crossed over for locking joints
Wait for opportunity before moving, watch for changes
Create opportunity by following the opponent’s force
Wu Jianquan, son of Wu Quanyou (from a didactic poem quoted by his son Wu Gongzao in Wu Family T’ai Chi Ch’uan (吳家太極拳)), Hong Kong, 1980 (originally published in Changsha, 1935)