Tai chi classics
Encyclopedia
The Tai Chi Classics are classical
texts used as guides for the practice of the Chinese martial art of t'ai chi ch'uan. These texts, which vary from school to school, are usually written in classical Chinese
and are used by modern schools that trace their lineage from the Chen family or from them through the Yang family.
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While great antiquity is usually claimed for texts by legendary authors, modern scholarship has not been able to date any of them earlier than the late 19th century.
Among the writings accorded the status of a Classic are:
Chinese philosophy
Chinese philosophy is philosophy written in the Chinese tradition of thought. The majority of traditional Chinese philosophy originates in the Spring and Autumn and Warring States era, during a period known as the "Hundred Schools of Thought", which was characterized by significant intellectual and...
texts used as guides for the practice of the Chinese martial art of t'ai chi ch'uan. These texts, which vary from school to school, are usually written in classical Chinese
Classical Chinese
Classical Chinese or Literary Chinese is a traditional style of written Chinese based on the grammar and vocabulary of ancient Chinese, making it different from any modern spoken form of Chinese...
and are used by modern schools that trace their lineage from the Chen family or from them through the Yang family.
.
While great antiquity is usually claimed for texts by legendary authors, modern scholarship has not been able to date any of them earlier than the late 19th century.
Among the writings accorded the status of a Classic are:
- T'ai Chi Ch'uan Classic (T'ai Chi Ch'uan Ching 太極拳經) attributed to the legendary founder of t'ai chi ch'uan, Chang San-feng 張三豐 (Zhang Sanfeng), claimed to be ca. 12th-14th century.
- Salt Shop Manual 鹽店譜 containing the T'ai Chi Ch'uan Treatise (T'ai Chi Ch'uan Lun 太極拳論) attributed to the legendary Wang Tsung-yuehWang ZongyueWang Zongyue was a legendary figure in the history of t'ai chi ch'uan . In some writings, Wang was a famous student of the legendary Zhang Sanfeng, a 13th-century Taoist monk credited with devising neijia in general and t'ai chi ch'uan in particular.Wang is also said to have resided in Tai-Gu...
王宗岳 (Wang Zongyue). The text was said to have been found stored in the back room of a BeijingBeijingBeijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...
salt shop by Wu Yu-hsiangWu Yu-hsiangWu Yu-hsiang was a Chinese t'ai chi ch'uan teacher and government official active during the late Ch'ing dynasty. Wu was a scholar from a wealthy and influential family who became a senior student of Yang Lu-ch'an...
's brother Wu Ch'eng-ch'ing 武澄清. - Miscellaneous texts: Song of Thirteen Postures, Mental Elucidation of the Practise of T'ai Chi Ch'uan and the Song of Sparring handed down in the Yang and WuWu style tai chi chuanThe Wu family-style t'ai chi ch'uan of Wu Ch'uan-yu and Wu Chien-ch'uan is the second most popular form of t'ai chi ch'uan in the world today, after the Yang style, and fourth in terms of family seniority. This style is different from the Wu style of t'ai chi ch'uan founded by Wu Yu-hsiang...
families. - Texts by Wu Yu-hsiang 武禹襄 (Wu Yuxiang 1812-1880), a central figure in Wu (Hao)-style tai chi chuan, and his relatives; especially his nephew Li I-yü 李亦畬 (Li Yiyu 1832-1892).
- Forty Chapters of writings, with the last three chapters directly attributed to Chang San-feng, preserved in the Yang and Wu Chien-ch'uanWu Chien-ch'uanWu Chien-ch'uan , was a famous teacher of the neijia martial art of t'ai chi ch'uan in late Imperial and early Republican China....
families. - T'ai Chi Ch'uan Illustrated 太極拳圖說 published in 1919 by Ch'en Hsin 陳鑫 (Chen Xin 1849-1929) an important Chen family scholar.
- The Study of T'ai Chi Ch'uan 太極拳學 first published in 1924 by Sun Lu-t'angSun Lu-t'angSun Lu-t'ang was a renowned master of Chinese Neijia martial arts and was the progenitor of the syncretic art of Sun-style tai chi chuan...
孫祿堂 (Sun Lutang 1861-1932), the founder of the fifth and last classical style of t'ai chi ch'uan. - Yang ChengfuYang ChengfuYang Chengfu or Yang Ch'eng-fu is historically considered the best known teacher of the soft style martial art of Yang-style t'ai chi ch'uan .-Biography:...
楊澄甫 (1883-1936) published his Complete Principles and Applications of T'ai Chi Ch'uan in 1934, a work considered authoritative in schools influenced by his many students and progeny. The book includes the well known "Ten Essential Points of Taijiquan Theory" authored by Ch'eng-fu . - Wu Kung-tsaoWu Kung-tsaoWu Kung-tsao was a famous Chinese teacher of t'ai chi ch'uan. He taught in Beijing, Shanghai, Changsha and Hong Kong. The second son of Wu Chien-ch'üan, he was the grandson of the first teacher of Wu style T'ai Chi Ch'uan, Wu Ch'uan-yü. Wu Kung-tsao was the younger brother of Wu Kung-i and the...
吳公藻 (Wu Gongzao 1902-1983) provided original texts and commentary on the previously mentioned Forty Chapters in Wu Family T'ai Chi Ch'uan (Wu Chia T'ai Chi Ch'uan 吳家太極拳). Wu's grandfather Wu Ch'uan-yuWu Ch'uan-yuWu Ch'uan-yu or Wu Quanyou was an influential teacher of t'ai chi ch'uan in late Imperial China. He is credited as the founder of the Wu style t'ai chi ch'uan...
吳全佑 (Wu Quanyuo 1834-1902) had inherited the Forty Chapters from Yang Pan-houYang Pan-houYang Banhou was an influential teacher of t'ai chi ch'uan in Ch'ing dynasty China, known for his bellicose temperament.-Biography:...
楊班侯 (Yang Banhou 1837-1890). The book was first published in Changsha in 1935. In 1980, when the book was published again in Hong KongHong KongHong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
, the famous wuxiaWuxiaWuxia is a broad genre of Chinese fiction concerning the adventures of martial artists. Although wuxia is traditionally a form of literature, its popularity has caused it to spread to diverse art forms like Chinese opera, manhua , films, television series, and video games...
author Jin Yong contributed a postscript to Wu Kung-tsao's text in which Jin described influences from as far back as Lao Tzu and Chuang Tzu on contemporary Chinese martial artsChinese martial artsChinese martial arts, also referred to by the Mandarin Chinese term wushu and popularly as kung fu , are a number of fighting styles that have developed over the centuries in China. These fighting styles are often classified according to common traits, identified as "families" , "sects" or...
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Collections, Translations, and Studies
- Davis, Barbara, "The Taijiquan Classics: An Annotated Translation" (Berkeley: North Atlantic, 2004)
- Jou, Tsung-hwa, "The Tao of T'ai Chi Ch'uan" (Rutland: Tuttle, 1980)
- Liang, T.T., "T'ai Chi Ch'uan for Health and Self-Defense:Philosophy and Practice (New York: VIntage, 1977)
- Lo, Benjamin, Martin Inn, Robert Amacker, Susan Foe, "The Essence of T'ai Chi Ch'uan: The Literary Tradition" (Berkeley: North Atlantic, 1979)
- Wile, Doug, "Tai Chi Touchstones: Yang Family Secret Transmissions" (Sweet Ch'i Press 1983)
- Wile, Doug, "Lost T'ai-chi Classics from the Late Ch'ing Dynasty" (Albany: SUNY, 1996)
- Xin, Chen, "The Illustrated Canon of Chen Family Taijiquan" (Xi'an: INBI Matrix, 2007)