Basics Are Important

Learning the basics is always very important. Before trying to learn more, one should always make sure that he or she has already learnt the basics, and is able to achieve a certain standard. Otherwise, without a good and strong foundation, a person can learn the moves, but still end up unable to apply it properly because they lack the actual skill and understanding.

For example, peng 棚 lu 捋 ji 挤 an 按 is the most basic of taijiquan's moves. While there are eight main ones, these four are the basic ones, and only after achieving certain standards in them, should someone try to start learning more about cai 采 lie 列 zhou 肘 kao 靠. And out of all these, the most basic is peng. If one cannot peng properly, the other three main moves cannot be done correctly, and of course the other four more advanced moves cannot be properly applied as well.