Push hands, as it is usually practiced in the United States, is a gentle, slow-paced exercise between two practitioners of tai chi, in which each attempts to "read" the other person's energy. It bears almost no similarity to a judo competition. However, push hands in China's Chen Village is a competitive bout, where each player attempts to throw the other to the ground, similar to a judo match.
Chen Village Push Hands
The slow and gentle form of push hands is practiced in Chen Village, the place where tai chi originated, but it is an exercise for beginners. Tai chi players who wish to test their skills engage in "shuai jiao" push hands, a form of wrestling from a standing position, much like judo. Just as in a judo match, the goal is to throw the opponent down. However, the techniques for doing so are based on the principles of tai chi and often involve the use of forces moving in multiple directions at the same time to twist the opponent in such a way that he collapses and falls.
Comparison with Judo
The rules of a competitive judo match are quite similar to those of a Chen tai chi push hands competition. The two opponents face off with each other and attempt to unbalance each other to get a clean throw. An "ippon," or victory, is awarded for a technically perfect throw or submission from the opponent. A less-than-perfect throw is awarded only partial points. Strikes cannot be used to decide the outcome, so a judo match is primarily a stand-up grappling match with the goal being to throw the opponent down. A Chen tai chi push hands competitor most likely would be able to compete in a judo match with minimal adjustments.
Push Hands in Taiwan
On the island of Taiwan, push hands often is practiced in the city parks in an informal way. It is associated not only with tai chi but also with another Chinese martial art called white crane kung fu. Because of the casual nature of push hands practice in Taiwanese parks, the intensity level can vary from the low-impact style most people are familiar with all the way to something resembling a judo match. It depends on the intentions of the push hands players.
Extreme Push Hands
The more intense variety of push hands practiced in Chen Village has been brought to the United States in the form of "extreme push hands." In an extreme push hands match, the competitors cross arms with each other at the forearms and wrists, then do everything they can to throw each other to the ground or out of the fighting area. Strikes are not allowed, and, unlike in judo, there is no ground-fighting. Despite the lack of ground-fighting and submission holds, the basic goal of throwing the opponent is the same as in a judo match.
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