Pa Tuan Chin / Eight Brocades

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Pa Tuan Chin, often translated as The Eight Brocades, is a traditional set of eight Chinese movement exercises.

It is shorter and easier to learn than a long Tai Chi form, which makes it a useful starting point for beginners. Each movement has a clear shape and purpose, working with balance, posture, coordination, mobility and relaxed strength.

Unlike exercises that isolate one muscle at a time, Pa Tuan Chin asks the whole body to work together. The legs, spine, waist, arms, breathing and attention are all involved.

The movements include simple images such as lifting, reaching, turning, drawing a bow and rising onto the toes. These make the exercises easier to remember and practise.

Pa Tuan Chin can be practised on its own, or used to support Tai Chi practice. It is part of the wider Tao Yin tradition: practical movement training designed to help people move with more ease, awareness and confidence.

In class, the exercises are taught step by step, with the emphasis on safe movement, steady improvement and working within your own comfortable range