The last Saturday of April marks the annual celebration of World Taiji Day whereby large crowds of people gather together to perform Taiji and promote the health benefits that it provides to its practitioners.

Taiji is a low-impact and slow-motion martial art where one must breathe deeply, move through a series of motions without pausing and calm one’s mind.

When performing Taiji, deep breaths are inhaled and exhaled (diaphragmatic breathing) for an extended period of time while the practitioner must maintain steady and controlled breaths. This improves oxygen intake to various organs.

Due to the current restrictions in place to counter the spread of COVID-19, the China Cultural Centre in Malta in collaboration with the Wang Zhanjun Taiji Association, the Malta Wushu Federation and the Malta Martial Arts Association, Malta Yang Family Taiji, Malta School of Wushu and Taiji Blue Sea, organised an online Taiji seminar delivered by the acclaimed Master Ye Xuan.

Taiji is a low- impact and slow-motion martial art

The sun was shining in Jiangsu Province, China, when Ye Xuan appeared on everyone’s screen in a typical Chinese garden with hanging scrolls of calligraphy on which the motto of the Wang Zhanjun Taiji Association was inscribed: ‘Inherit and pass on order, bring forth new ideas of strength, attain the Way and guide others to do the same’.

Ye Xuan opened the seminar by describing the value of Taiji in preventing and treating many health problems such as osteoporosis and chronic enteritis. He then answered in detail questions posed by the participants.

A highlight of the seminar was watching Ye Xuan demonstrate his superb Taiji skills. Moreover, as the seminar progressed, the participants, hailing from a number of Taiji schools based in Malta, began to demonstrate their own skills, receiving praise from the Master. The warm atmosphere during the seminar was evident and everyone shared a strong sense of unity and solidarity.