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Taiji Boxing |
Tai Ji Quan is a
major division of Chinese martial art. Tai Ji Quan means "supreme
ultimate fist". Tai means "Supreme", Ji means "Ultimate", and
Quan means "Fist".
There have been
different sayings about the origin of Tai Ji Quan. The traditional legend
goes that the wise man Zhang Sanfeng of the Song Dynasty (960-1279) created
Tai Ji Quan after he had witnessed a fight between a sparrow and a snake;
while most people agreed that the modern Tai Ji Quan originated from Chen
style Tai Ji Quan, which first appeared during the 19th century in the
Daoguang Reign of the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911).
Tai Ji
Quan has its
philosophical roots in Taoism and is considered as an internal martial art,
utilizing the internal energy, or Qi, and following the simple principle
of "subduing the vigorous by the soft". Taoism is the oldest philosophy of China
which is represented by the famous symbol of the Yin and Yang which expresses
the continuous flow of Qi in a circular motion that generates two
opposite forces, plus and minus, which interact and balance with each others to
bring existence to the physical and metaphysical world.
The most famous
forms of Tai Ji Quan practiced today are the Chen, Yang, Wu, Wu and Sun
styles. All the five styles can be traced back to Chen style Tai Ji Quan.
According to historical records, Tai Ji Quan was founded by Chen Wangting
(1597-1664), who lived in Chen Village, today's Henan Province in China. Based
on the Chen style and created by Yang Luchan, a Hebei native of the Qing
Dynasty, the Yang style is now the most popular style worldwide. The Woo Style
is based on the Chen and Yang styles and created by Woo Yuxing.
The Sun style is
derived from Chen and Woo styles and created by Sun Lutang. The Sun style is a
combination of the more famous internal Chinese martial art forms of Ba
Gua, Xing Yi and Tai Ji. The Wu style is based on Chen and
Yang styles it was created by Wu Jianquan.
Nowadays, when
most people talk about Tai Ji Quan, they are usually referring to the
Yang style, which has already spread throughout the world and is practiced by
millions of people.