Bagua and Tai-Chi are modern forms of martial art.
They both offer numerous benefits, and they feature multiple similarities.
Their similarities make it difficult for most people to tell the differences. This post seeks to eliminate this issue.
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What is Bagua?
Bagua is a Chinese internal martial art, sometimes known as Tai Chi Bagua.
It mainly aims to emphasize merging the mind and the body to help achieve a level of awakening.
Unlike conventional martial art practices that involve movements like jumps and kicks, Bagua focuses on stability, balance, breathing, and energy, known in Chinese as Chi.
Bagua teaches a wide array of advances that can be used in emergencies.
Advantages of Bagua
- It has healing benefits
- It is easy to do
- It teaches self-defense
- It is mentally and physically beneficial
Shortcomings of Bagua
- It is very difficult to master
- It is more masculine
How Does Tai Chi Differ to Bagua
Tai Chi is a modern martial art that often seems simple but is quite complex.
The essential principles of Tai Chi include integrating the mind with the body, control movements, and breathing.
Integrating the mind and body helps bring up total harmony of the inner and outer self.
The ultimate goal of Tai Chi is to activate the life energy within you to flow throughout your body powerfully and smoothly.
It features numerous soft movements which contain much inner strength, much like water flowing in a river beneath a tranquil surface.
Tai Chi can help promote the quality of your life and several other benefits.
Advantages of Tai Chi over Bagua
- It helps provide you a more balanced mental state
- It enables you to keep fit
- It promotes agility and balance
- It promotes both internal and physical strength
- It promotes flexibility
- It helps improve your immunity and relieves pain
Shortcomings of Tai Chi compared to Bagua
- It is time-consuming
- It can take a while to master
- It may cause harm if it is not practiced correctly
The differences between Tai Chi and Bagua
There are several similarities between Bagua and Tai Chi.
However, there are also numerous differences. These differences are:
Tai Chi is known for its soft and fluid dance-like movements done at a stationary position.
On the other hand, Bagua requires a lot of circular and spiral pattern movements.
While some Bagua motions may be smooth, it also incorporates deadly and complicated forces.Tai Chi aims to promote physical, mental, and emotional wellbeing.
On the other hand, Bagua aims to teach evasive movements and advances that can be used in emergencies.
Tai Chi movements are usually very slow, while Bagua is much faster.
Tai Chi appeals to people who are less athletic and like meditating, while Bagua appeals to more athletic peopleTai Chi is based on extremely soft feminine energy (yin energy), while Bagua embodies masculine energy (yang energy)
1.Internal Chi Development
As far as health development is concerned, Baguazhang is the best to get the job done.
To base the internal development on improving the mindset, Baguazhang can give complement to the exercises done.
However, to gain external physical wellbeing, bengua is greater than Taiji since most of the time, when doing movements in Taiji it entails only straight and upright body positions.
Baguazhang has a far greater more option when it comes to movements including, the direction of the lower body movements.
The twists and bends activate the spine health.
On the other hand, Baguazhang is not friendly for people who have issues in moving some parts of their body.
Taiji gives more advantage since you only do upright body posture while meditating.
2. Baguazhang takes less space
An indepth view of the exercise will show that during performing Baguazhang, you will do the movements in a circular manner.
It takes up less space. It will be more conducive to tackle when you do it in a crowd.
Doing these circular movements does not mean that you will have to move back to and adjust on to a different position.
However, Taiji and Baguazhang take up a sizable space when it comes to forms of fighting.
3. Baguazhang takes a shorter time in training
People who live their lives daily with a schedule intact will take upon Bengua in their exercise since it includes only 220 moves with only about 65 individual moves.
On the other hand, Taiji has 280 moves with about 120 individual moves.
To add up to this, when you finish up the Baguazhang moves, then you would de done with balancing both the left and right side.
Doing some of the Baguazhang moves can further result in injuries related to the knees since most of the moves done are more difficult compared to the ones in Taiji.
Everything that makes Taiji hard is hidden to a beginner while Baguazhang is all there to be seen.
4. Baguazhang stimulates the body more than Taiji Can
Boring exercises is something that most people will feel like escaping fast.
As a beginner, you can start Taiji moves and they seem really complicated and hard to tackle when you do not have a trainer.
However, with the simple moves and engagement of the whole body posture, Baguazhang seems more exciting.
Which is better, Baguazhang or Tai Chi?
There are several similarities between Tai Chi and Bagua because they are both modern martial art practices, aiming to enhance your chi (energy).
However, they are very different in terms of their history, movements, speed, and energy.
They both have their advantages and shortcomings. However, none is superior to the next.
With proper training and professional assistance, you can practice either of the martial arts.
However, Tai Chi features more feminine energy, while Bagua features more masculine strength.
Regardless, there isn’t a limit when it comes to who can partake in either martial art.