Posts

Showing posts from May, 2008

Soft Body Repeating Hands Bagua Movements

Pre Heaven (For Strengthening & Conditioning) 八大綱 8 Structures (Outline of Power) 單換掌 Single Changing Palm 雙換掌 Double Changing Palm 順式掌 Flowing Palm 背身掌 Backside Palm 翻身掌 Body Reversing Palm (Flipping Palm) 磨身掌 Grinding Body Palm 三穿掌 Triple Piercing Palm 回身掌 Turning Palm (Rotating Palm) 天干八卦 Heaven Movement Forms 蛇形順式掌 Snake's Flowing Palm 龍形穿手掌 Dragon's Piercing Palm 回身打虎掌 Tiger's Turning Palm 燕翻蓋手掌 Swallow's Reversing Covering Palm 轉身翻背掌 Spinning Backward Palm 擰身探馬掌 The Searching Horse's Twisting Palm 翻身背插掌 Reversing Body Backward Stabbing Palm 停身搬扣掌 In Place Hooking Palm (Still Hooking Palm) Post Heaven Movements (For Application) 地支八卦 Earth Movement Forms Section 1: 打法 The Way of striking 開掌 Opening Palm 捧掌 Carrying Palm (offering palm) 扽掌 Yanking Palm 探掌 Searching Palm

My YouTube Vids

Lineage

Image
In Short I study Gao-Style Bagua (), or more specificaly, Soft Body, Repeating Hands Bagua (柔身連環八卦掌). The lineage started with Dong Hai Chuan, then passed to Cheng Ting Hua, then Gao Yi Sheng, then to Wu Jin Yuan (my master's father), and then to Wu Guo Zheng (my master). Until recently, it was taught almost exclusively to the military. I have now been given permission to open it to the public. More Details Dong Hai Chuan (董海川) founded the first lineage of Ba Gua 200 hundred years ago in Mainland China. Like Tai Ji, it expanded over time to include a wide variety of styles and lineages. Dong Hai Chuan taught the style to over a dozen apprentices, but his main successors were Cheng Ting Hua (程廷華) and Yi Fu. Every instructor of the system has added their own unique flavor to the style, which each develped into different lineage names. This system was developed by Cheng Ting Hua and Gao Yi Sheng, hence the name Cheng Gao Ba Gua. Gao Yi Sheng was stationed as a body guard in the Dong

How I Got Started

Me and my two brothers were forced to start martial arts when we were four years old under the instruction of our father. I started with Taekwondo and as I grew up, branched into other styles: Hapkido, Aikido, Ninjitsu, Jeet kun do, Capoeria, etc. When I was about 19, I began studying Chinese to further enhance my knowledge of the arts. I then came to Taiwan to study the "roots" and fell in love with Bagua. The complete Gao-style Bagua system is said to have 8,864 combat related movements, not including Pre-heaven techniques or weapons. Each of the 8 Gua parts have 8 movements. Each of these 8 movements have 6 applications. There are 23 basic steps of entry which, when incorporated with the above, add up 8,832 unique combinations. There remain 8 hidden moves with six applications each. My quest is to find these movements through heavy training and research. If anyone knows what I'm talking about, hit me up.

Bagua 101

Bā Guà Zhǎng (八卦掌), often translated as "Eight Trigram Palm" (but more aptly termed "Eight Sectional Palm") is one of the 3 "Internal Styles" (內家功夫 Nèi Jiā Gōngfú) identified by Sūn Lùtáng (孫祿堂, 1861-1932), the other two being Xíng Yì Quán (形意拳) and Tài Jí Quán (太極拳). "Internal" means that power is developed not though one's muscles, but through proper technique and body structure. The term "internal" is often used interchangeably with "soft" because forces are redirected instead of being met with equal or opposite force. But make no mistake; soft does not equal weak. The trademark of Bā Guà is the "circle" (or more accurately, the "octagon"), a training tool and strategy used to develop the dexterity, balance and fluidity needed to apply Bā Guà techniques in combat. Like other internal styles, proper Bā Guà practice does not damage the body the way western boxing, Muay Thai, and Tae Kwon Do often do,