Tai Chi Rank · Yellow Sash, 2 Stripes
Yellow SashWith Two Stripes
The second stripe on the yellow sash in our Wu style Tai Chi Chuan curriculum. This level is application only: there is no form emphasis here. The video teaches Da Lu, the moving rollback routine with a partner.
About this level
At yellow sash, two stripes there is no new form material and no form emphasis. The rank is partner application. Having learned stationary push hands at one stripe, you now add moving footwork: Da Lu, the big rollback routine, where you and your partner step diagonally into the four corners of the room.
At Shadow Fist, this level is taught in class under your instructor’s guidance and supported by the training video below for practice at home. The form stays your own practice; the work in class is this drill.
- Da Lu (Dai Lui Bo), the moving two-person rollback routine.
- The four corners: cai (pluck), lie (split), zhou (elbow) and kao (shoulder).
- The big rollback step, stepping back on an angle to lead force into empty space.
- Deep, low moving footwork, with the center shifting without losing the root.
- Listening energy, staying in contact so you feel a change of direction before it lands.
Train it with us
Tai Chi classes run at our Windsor Heights school alongside the Kung Fu program. Practice at home with the video below, then bring your questions to class.
Partner work
Da Lu, the big rollback
This video teaches Da Lu, also spelled Dai Lui Bo, Da Lu or Da Lü, which means Big Rollback Steps. It is an advanced, dynamic two-person partner routine. Foundational push hands is usually practised in a fixed stance; Da Lu adds moving footwork that takes both partners diagonally into the four corners of the room.
The four corners
Tai Chi theory divides movement into the four primary directions and the four diagonal corners. Foundational push hands covers the primary directions with peng, lu, ji and an. Da Lu works the corners, training the four secondary forces.
Cai (pluck or split)
A downward, pulling energy that takes the partner’s structure out from under them.
Lie (split or rend)
A tearing, rotational energy that breaks the partner’s alignment across an angle.
Zhou (elbow strike)
Close-range force delivered with the elbow when the distance collapses.
Kao (shoulder or body strike)
Whole-body force at the closest range, driven from the legs and waist rather than the arm.
How the drill works
The attack
One partner steps forward diagonally with heavy, close-range pressure, aiming to strike or throw with elbow or shoulder force.
The defence
Rather than fighting the force head-on, the other partner steps deeply backward at an oblique angle, the big rollback step, sweeping the attacker’s momentum into empty space so they overextend.
The roles alternate in a continuous loop, so the routine never stops between exchanges.
What it develops
Angled force control
Most training handles frontal attacks. Da Lu trains you to read and redirect force arriving at 45 degree angles.
Listening energy
Staying glued to your partner’s arms, you feel the moment they intend to change direction or push, and react without planning.
Stamina and legs
Deep, low moving steps force the center of gravity to shift from leg to leg without losing balance or root.
Training Videos
Practice with the video
The yellow sash, two stripes training video walks through the material for this level. It is available to current Shadow Fist students.
Student access only
Log in with your My Account username and password, then come back to watch the training video.
Rank 8 of 16Yellow Sash, 2 StripesNext: Yellow Sash, 3 Stripes
Tai Chi ranks
- 1. White Sash
- 2. White Sash, 1 Stripe
- 3. White Sash, 2 Stripes
- 4. White Sash, 3 Stripes
- 5. White Sash, 4 Stripes
- 6. Yellow Sash
- 7. Yellow Sash, 1 Stripe
- 8. Yellow Sash, 2 Stripes
- 9. Yellow Sash, 3 Stripes
- 10. Yellow Sash, 4 Stripes
- 11. Green Sash
- 12. Green Sash, 1 Stripe
- 13. Green Sash, 2 Stripes
- 14. Green Sash, 3 Stripes
- 15. Green Sash, 4 Stripes
- 16. Tai Chi Sifu White Sash
For every level
The 10 Tai Chi Principles
These ten principles apply to the whole Tai Chi Chuan curriculum, from the first white sash class onward. They are what the form is training, so come back to them at every rank rather than treating them as a beginner lesson.
Straightening the head
Stand straight, relax your neck and suspend the head naturally erect from the crown point without strain or tension. The image to model is "hanging by a string from the top of one's head", so the head and neck align by the force of gravity alone.
Correct position of chest and back
The chest is kept slightly depressed inward, which helps the breath sink to the lower belly. The upper back is slightly bowed outward while the pelvis is tucked under.
Remain relaxed with no tension
Relax and loosen all the joints, particularly the shoulders and elbows, and sink them so they are flexible, connected and able to integrate into proper structure. Relaxed does not mean limp. Proper structure is held with a minimum of muscular exertion, with gravity providing the downward stacking and power from the root into the ground. Tai Chi transfers energy as a vibration, much like a whip that has no tension. When the muscles and joints are relaxed, aligned and connected, the wave or pulse of the movement is conducted through them with no retained tension.
All movement comes from the center
The waist is the ruler. All movement comes from the waist, whether it is a hand movement or a step, so make the waist cause each movement. The waist as the ruler must be relaxed, initiating, controlling, guiding and distributing the direction and amount of energy transmitted.
Harmonize the upper and lower parts of the body
The vibration of any Tai Chi movement roots at the feet, releases from the legs, is controlled by the waist, moves through the back and arms, and is finally expressed by the fingers. To achieve this path the feet stay firmly attached to the ground like the big roots of a tree, and the knees stay slightly flexed. Upper and lower body then move together, strung together without the slightest break.
The entire body moves as a single unit
The entire body moves as one complete unit, not just a hand, leg or arm. Once one part moves, every other part is in motion; when you are still, everything is in stillness. Be still as a mountain, move like a great river.
All movements are smooth, even and continuous
Tai Chi movements are performed smoothly and evenly, with no interruptions. Nothing speeds up or slows down, except for the Wu style fast form which does change speed, and there is never a detectable start and finish from one move to the next. The common image is reeling silk thread from a cocoon: too fast or too sudden breaks the silk, too slow or in the wrong direction tangles it.
Keep a clear distinction between substantial and insubstantial
When the weight is on the right leg, that leg is substantial and the left leg is insubstantial, and vice versa. One leg is always heavy and one leg is light. This principle of weight movement applies in all directions and to all parts of the body, governed by the waist, and the constant change is understood through the phasing of yin and yang.
Breathe deeply from the lower belly, in harmony with the movement
The breath is deep and full, filling from the Tan tien, two to three inches below the navel. Each movement links precisely with the breath: as the body expands there is an exhale, and as it contracts there is an inhale. Because the breath is linked to very slow movement, the breathing is very slow too.
The mind leads the body
In Tai Chi, attention goes to the mind rather than to force, so use the mind to direct the movement and let the body follow. Keep the mind fully conscious, aware and intent on each tiny point along the path of the movement and on each point of the body. The mind and breath are king and queen, and the bones and muscles are the court.