Ken Gullette's Internal Fighting Arts Blog

Tai Chi "Energies" Part 4 - A Deeper Dive Into Tai Chi's An Jin - "Push Energy"

energies of tai chi tai chi an jin tai chi energies tai chi push energy taijiquan energies Feb 03, 2026

Continuing a series of posts on the so-called Tai Chi "energies," let's talk about An Jin, or "Push" energy. And a reminder, the "energies" of Tai Chi are simply refined methods of dealing with force. A "Jin" is a way of dealing with an opponent's force in a refined way that requires a lot of practice.

You don't use brute force. The Taiji energies require skill.

The word "energy" has sparked a lot of woo-woo nonsense that has attracted people to the art who are looking for magic powers and fairy dust instead of martial art.

An Jin -- Push -- isn't really about "pushing" the way we think about pushing. It's about direction, pressure, and timing. It is a downward, forward pressure that is issued in connected weight sinking. It is expressed not with arm force, but with a whole-body connection.

Looking at the first four energies of Taiji: Peng is buoyancy, Lu is redirection, Ji is compression, and An is gravity with intent.

The two-handed push, as in most Taijiquan fo...

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Ken Gullette

I have practiced martial arts since 1973 and began studying the internal arts in 1987. My goal is to cut years off your development time by coaching you in the real skills for high-quality Tai Chi, Xingyi, Bagua. To see more about my bio, click the "About Ken" link on the menu at the top of this page.

Ken Gullette's Internal Fighting Arts

Tai Chi "Energies" Part 4 - A Deeper Dive Into Tai Chi's An Jin - "Push Energy"

Author - Instructor

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