The training of Pang Jing through 24 styles tai-chi Nei Gong

Peng 棚 meaning "Holding up" is the most important Jing in tai-chi. By Jing I mean power generated through incorporating the contraction of the extension muscles of one's body, which required a "relaxed" body. There has been lots of confusion about the meaning of Peng. One of the tai-chi 24 styles explains the meaning of the concept as well as presenting a simple training method. I'm talking about the style called "Holding the Golden Urn" (捧金盤) and "Holding/Embracing One" (抱一式). They differs only in that the former is with the palms facing up while the latter is with the palms facing down.

These names are according to the classic 24 styles (as per text by Wang Dixian). Mantak Chia combined the two into one name "Holding the Golden Urn". Chia probably learned it through the Cheng-Wu tai-chi lineage in Hong Kong.

Anyway both styles make use of the palms to hold an imaginary Golden Urn (or "One", signified that GU is only an imagery without any metaphysical content!). With an imaginary something being held up (and balancing it on one's palms at the same time), a practitioner's extension muscles will be activated and exercised accordingly.

In more recent literature, I read about a tai-chi master, who is famous for training his students to take part in MMA fights, made use of spherical balls of some weight hanging down (by a string) to replace the imaginary golden urns. For general workout purpose, something imaginary will probably be sufficient for most practitioners.

Mantak Chia doing Holding the Golden Urn