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Martial Arts Styles
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Piqua
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Long Fist
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Weapons
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Martial Arts at the Center |
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Ba Ji Chuan
Our Baji comes to us from the great
Master Li Shu Wen who instructed the late Grandmaster Liu
ABOUT BAJI CHUAN...
Ba Ji Quan has always been associated with a certain region of China, Chang County, Hebei Province. It was from here that Ba Ji sprouted. Mention of the style first appeared in writing during the Ming dynasty in "Chi Hsiao Hsing Shu" by Gen. Chi, a treatise on military strategy. Prior to that it was a family art passed down by the royal Ching family while ruling China.It has a long history of relationship to the Imperial house and its bodyguards. The name as it is now does not express a clear meaning. Ba Ji, ( the other common romanization Pa Chi ) is similar to pazi, the Chinese word for rake. Quan or Chuan is fist or pugilistic art/fighting style. Initially the name was rake fist style, pazi chuan, due to the typical manner in which the fist is held. It was popularized during the Ching dynasty when the name became Ba Ji which could mean 8 poles, 8 ultimate, or 8 extreme. It may have been changed to this to mean strength delivered through 8 outlets.
The most notorious practitioner was Master Li Shu Wen. He was very well known and had a reputation as a spear fighter. He was nicknamed God of Spear or Magic Spear Li. He came to live with Grandmaster Liu's family and teach for 10 years. Li's specialty was his Ba Ji and its spear techniques. Li taught GM Liu both Baji and Piquazhang. These were sister arts, complementary to each other. They were one integrated fighting style, initially taught together, then they became separated. Then, both were taught to Li, probably by two different masters. These two branches are diametrical opposites and put together become well rounded. Piqua is the yin. It is softer, wider, uses palm strikes, has a longer range, and looks open. GM Liu said it has "whip power". Baji is the yang. It is direct, linear, uses fist strikes, is for in close fighting, and appears simple. It has a battering ram/cannon power. During the Ching dynasty when Baji was being popularized, a small private nest existed in Chang County, Hebei. At this time both were being taught by Wu Zhong, a Chinese Muslim. It is unknown where and from whom he learned. It is often a practice of masters to say they learned from wandering Taoist or Buddhist priests. Wu Zhong taught many family members and townspeople, including his daughter Wu Rong. She specialized in Piqua, maybe because it is the softer, yin, more open, longer range of the two styles. Being so, it has been said might make it more suitable for women to practice. After her father's death, she only taught Piqua. The Baji, which was more suited to battlefield fighting with heavy armor on, was taught to successive generations in isolation and was probably selected out due to its conservation of movement which adapted it well to professional fighters such as soldiers, bodyguards, local protection , etc. As stated, Li learned both, but from different masters, and began teaching them together again. He is known to have studied under Jin Dian Sheng and Huang Si Hai. Li had many students from all over but not just anyone could study with such a well known, influential, and dangerous man. His student Huo Dian Ge was bodyguard to the last Emperor of China and instructed both Imperial Guards and the last Emperor himself. Many of Li's students were Generals or bodyguards.
GM Liu was the grandson of Imperial Governor Liu, who's district included Chang County. His family was able to hire Li, who came to stay and teach for 10 years. Baji then became GM Liu's primary style, and later he would become well known for it in Taiwan. After this decade of instruction, Liu and Li traveled around ShangTung Province for 5-6 years. GM Liu was constantly testing his skills and earned the nickname "the little Titan of Shandong". He entered the military during the Sino-Japanese War and rose to the rank of General. In 1949 he fled to Taiwan with Chiang Kai Shek's Chinese Nationalist Party. He continued in the military until 1955. While in Taiwan he instructed Presidential Palace Guards. In the military the basics of Baji are taught in a composite form called pa tang. It was introduced by Li Chi Yuen who later, in 1963, quit teaching baji when he learned GM Liu was teaching it publicly.
The adjectives most often used to describe Baji are powerful and effective. Baji is an ancient art designed to kill with one strike. The energies used are called jings, and there are many. It is a practical style which utilizes the bear step and the tiger claw. The primary weapons are the sword, staff and spear. This ferocious style appears easy to learn due to its simplistic nature but it is actually very difficult to master with the proper power and stance. The jings take much time and hard training to develope. It is very precise in attack and defense and can attack while still protecting the self. This is especially so with Piqua, it looks open but the turning closes and protects. Piqua translates roughly as chop hang or drape hang. It is called Piquachuan or Piquazhang (zhang meaning palm). It imitates the eagle and the monkey. There are a few Chinese sayings about these arts including: "even the gods fear the masters of baji" and "when piqua is added to baji, gods and demons will all be terrified". There is a stepwise method of teaching Baji. There are 3 levels: sha ba ji, da ba ji,and liu dow ki. It is a very complete system; 3 complete training sets each with specific purpose and method.
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