Tai Chi Grapples can be found in almost all Tai Chi moves in some form and in many Tai Chi moves their are quite a few Tai Chi Grapples to be found.
In Wild Horse Tosses Mane there are multiple arm breaks from the inside and the outside positions including a leverage break, a torque break and a break that uses the Tai Chi practitioners shoulder to break the opponents arm. There are shoulder dislocations, several different kinds of throws including throws from the arm breaking position and throws that are caused by executing a split across the opponents body from the inside or outside. There are also quite a number of counter grapples including the elbow break performed with the shoulder as listed above in response to a wrist seizure.
Here are some other examples of Tai Chi Grapples. Brush Knee has a nice take down using the upper arm to take the opponent down by their head and also a very simple arm break that can be performed very quickly in an instant. Needle searches sea bottom also has a multitude of Tai Chi Grappling techniques. One of my favorites is a counter grappling move whereby the opponet grabs your wrist and you immediately drop them to their knees by placing your other hand on top of their arm and performing Needle Searches Sea Bottom thereby dropping them hard and fast with a fair amount of pain at the contact point.
Cloud Hands has a nice grapple whereby you wrap the arm of someone who is attacking you from behind with a punch. Once again it is a fairly instantaneous grapple and when you execute the grapple they are immediately facing away from you and up on their toes in a lot of pain so that they have to come along or suffer a broken / dislocated shoulder. Of course most Cloud Hands movements will intercept a punch and break the arm of an attacker from in front of you.
Please post some of your favorite Tai Chi Grapples and we will include them here. Be careful not to get to carried away. Sorry my Tai Chi humor can be a little dry.
Just had a visualization of using a cloud hand manuever with a technique I call “stroke the big beard and wave hello.”
Block a one-two punch, circle to the outside bringing both hands under wrapping the opponents arms at the elbow, sink down, pull back drawing a half circle, Raise up and lunge forward, dislocating both of their shoulders at the sockets.
(I’m really not a violent person).