essence of Wang

8/13/2019 essence of Wang

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Essence of Combat Science -- Wang Xiang Zhai

An Interview with Mr. Wang Xiangzhai about the Essence of Combat Science

The founding master of Dachengquan, Wang Xiang Yhai, who is famous in the North andSouth, and praised by the martial arts circles of the whole country, has recently moed to!ei"ing# $or the e%change of &nowledge and opinions among the practitioners of differentmartial arts, he has arranged a meeting time eery Sunday afternoon from '()) pm to *())pm, at Dayangyibin +lley, where he acts as the host, and e%changes opinions with otherfamous e%perts of bo%ing, carrying forward and promoting the martial spirit of our nation ashis sincere wish# + reporter interiewed r# Wang yesterday, haing the following discussionwith him#

-'. /nteriewer( / hae always admired and respected your superb bo%ing s&ills, may / as&what is your aspiration with regard to the combat science0

Wang Xiang1hai( !eing praised as the representatie of Dachengquan2 by my friends reallyma&es me embarrassed# / left my teacher in the 33rd year of the 4eign of 5uang Xu of the6ing Dynasty 7'8)9:, and since then, / hae traelled all around the country, and thus / haeseen much and learned much about life, left my footprints on uncountable places, bothnorth and south of the Yangt1e 4ier, met many famous masters and eteran bo%ers, ande%perienced untold hardships#

y biggest gain during these more than thirty years has been meeting many good teachersand helpful friends to compare s&ills and &nowledge with, thus / am confident that /, as aeteran bo%er, am on the right path of combat science# + few days ago, r# ;hang Yuhengrepeatedly made some comments in newspapers# $earing that people of different circleshae not clearly understood his meaning, and thus hae had some misunderstandings, /wholeheartedly want to let people &now what / hae in mind# y remaining years are


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gradually waning away, life itself is enough, there is no room for fame and gain to occupymy mind, thus / am so an%ious to, while this body of mine has not yet decayed, "oin forceswith prominent compatriots to adocate the full deelopment of natural instincts and martialirtue, and get rid of heresies# / do not want to be praised in ain, li&e those deceiing thepublic in order to gain fame#

-iuhebu2 of ?enan proince, are of the sameschool# When tracing the lineage of r# >i Daidong 7who was &nown as @ld Dai: of ?enan ,you can find out that he is r# >i ;hiheAs greatBgrandson, r# >i ;hihe was the teacher of theold gentleman Dai >ongbang# The Yuan family of Ciyuan in fact followed the school of r# >i ,although they named the art differently# r# Dai, although he changed the name Xinyi2 intoXingyi2, was not in contrary with the original meaning, and in that bo%ing the word bo%ing2carried the meaning of most faithfully adhering to it#

@ne should &now that the original Xingyi2 completely lac&ed the training method of thetwele forms, but the whole body was meant to e%press the essence of all these tweleforms# /t did not hae the theory of the mutual promotion and restraint of the fie elements,there were "ust the fie elements representing fie &inds of forces# /t did not hae any fi%edtechniques, bo%ing routines or forms of moements either# / remember well the words of mylate teacher about the fie elements(

etal means the strength contained in the bones and the muscles, the mind being firm li&eiron or stone, being able to cut gold and steel#Wood has the meaning of the bending but rooted posture of a tree#Water means force li&e the waes of the ast sea, liely li&e a dragon or a sna&e, whenused, it is able to perade eerything#$ire means strength being li&e gunpowder, fists being li&e bullets shot out, haing thestrength to burn the opponent2s body by the first touch#arth means e%erting strength heay, deep, solid, and perfectly round, the qi being strong,haing the force of oneness with heaen and earth#

This is the syncretism of the fie elements# /t has nothing to do with one techniqueoercoming another technique as the modern people claim# /f one first sees with the eyes,then thin&s of it again in the mind, and then launches the counterBattac& towards theenemy, it is ery seldom that one will not get beaten up#

!agua2 was originally &nown as Ehuan1hang2# /n my childhood / met r# Eheng Tinghua, /remember he seemed to be li&e a diine dragon roaming in the s&y, changing infinitely, it ishardly possible for the modern person to reach such s&ill and strength# / distantly remember


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r# Dong ?aichuan, it is een harder to understand how profound was his insight into theSea of >aw and attainment of the Tao# r# >iu $engchun is a friend of mine, his s&ills arereally profound, but his attainments are slightly inferior, but still those studying the si%tyBfour palms and seentyBtwo steps cannot compare with him#/ wish that the people practising !agua2 would concentrate on the double and singlechuan1hang2, paying special attention to intuitiely perceiing eery moement, doing their

best to ta&e a more adanced course of training, and earnestly enter into the theory, puttingit all into practise for a long time, then they could get close to approaching its essence#+s masters of the original Tai"iquan2, / should recommend the Yang brothers Shaohou andEhengfu# They are also old friends of mine, thus / &now that this bo%ing really has some&nowledge of mechanics, but out of one hundred persons not een one gains its essence,and een if one can gain it, it is still oneBsided, because the basic s&ills of intuitieperception already died out a long time ago, thus their lower bodies hae no real strength tospea& of# @riginally this bo%ing consisted of three fists, also called the Fold three cutsF, r#Wang ;ongyue changed it into thirteen posturesF, and it was later changed into as much asone hundred and forty or fifty postures, this is the ma"or reason for the distortion#

$or health preseration, it restrains the spirit and mettle, and brings discomfort to thepractitioner# $or combat, it harms the practitioner2s limbs and trun&, and causes the usefulbody to become a mechanical and stiff thing, it also disturbs the student2s neres, and isnothing more than wasting one2s time# +s for its method of training, a punch with a fist here,a slap with the palm there, a &ic& to the left, and another one to the right, that is pitiful andlaughable# +s for dealing with an enemy in a fight, against a masterBhand, please do noteen consider it, if the adersary is not stiff and sluggish, een the famous masters of thisbo%ing hae no chance to apply their s&ills# These abuses are so big that Tai"iquan2 mightsoon become "ust a mere form comparable to a chess manual# $or the last twenty years,most people who hae studied this bo%ing hae not been able to differentiate right andwrong, een if someone has been able to differentiate them, he has not been capable ofputting it into practice#

+s for common students, most of them use their ears instead of their eyes#So ruined is this bo%ing that it has become useless, this is really deplorable# / wish that thepowerful members of this school would promptly and strictly clean it up, and attempt todeelop it in the future# When the day of success comes, they will be held as the bosomfriends of all the bo%ing fans# / dare to say that / understand Tai"iquan2 deeply, those who donot agree, can notify me or lay the blame on me, only the wise ones might understand# +tthe same time, / suppose those who hae really gained something in their study ofTai"iquan2, when they read this, they will nod in agreement and cannot help laughing#Tongbeiquan2 is popular in northern Ehina , especially in !ei"ing # The practitioners / haemet were mostly out of shape, howeer, some were also holding a theory that was close tobeing right, but when chec&ing their s&ills, they were ery far from it# ost probably theirpredecessors were not li&e that, but the later generations hae lost the essence# +lthoughoccasionally there were some who had deep and great s&ills in some oneBsided parts of it,eentually they will hae no hope of wal&ing down the right path of combat science#

eihuaquan2, which is also &nown as Wushi1huang2, has a direct lineage that has been

passed down generation by generation, especially in ?enan and Sichuan proinces# Theirway is different in approach but equally satisfactory in results with that of the practitionersof Wu"isanshou2 of $u1hou , Xinghua, 6uan1hou, Shantou , and other places# They also haetheir special and profound strong points for dealing with the enemy, but unfortunately mostof them are oneBsided and only ery few are complete#

!afan2, ian1hang2, =igua2, !a"i2, Dagongli2, Sanhuangpao2, Niantui2, and >ianquan2, allhae their strong and wea& points, most are oneBsidedly inclined to hardness and a few tosoftness, they lac& the internal s&ill of gathering the spirit# +s for Dahongquan2,


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Xiaohongquan2, Tantui2, Ehuo"iao2, long bo%ing, short bo%ing, and the other ariousschools, / would rather not discuss them#

-G. /nteriewer( What is your opinion on presering the national arts0

Wang Xiang1hai( The bo%ing arts of our nation are in a chaotic state, thus the people cannot&now what course to ta&e# Summed up, they hae abandoned the quintessence and &eptonly the scum, nothing more# +lthough the martial arts of Capan and the bo%ing of Westernurope are oneBsided, they all hae their original points# /n comparison to an ordinary bo%erof our nation, they are countless miles ahead# The people should be ery ashamed of this#So we should clean up and carry forward the old &nowledge# %cept for us, who else is thereleft to do it0 Despite my meagreness, /call for action to adocate it, only for this purpose#

-H. /nteriewer( Sir, you hae fi%ed a time to play host to the martial artists of ariouscircles, this has proed that you are ery modest and enthusiastic for the martial way, butwhy do you do all this0

Wang Xiang1hai( The way of learning builds up from comparison, this applies to bo%ing aswell# When comparing s&ills, there is ictory or defeat, but one2s personality is not harmedby it, on the contrary, it may improe one2s personality and increase one2s morals# /feeryone could inspect and learn from each other2s e%periences, the dispute betweendifferent schools could be aoided, and furthermore, it could stop the irresponsible tal&ing# /wish that those who pursue the same things as /, will not ta&e these words as empty tal&,and if the prominent personage and the wise hermits ofthis country will be willing to ma&e a "ourney to grant me instruction, they are ery welcome#/f you do not wish to come to isit me, please "ust send me a note and / will surely andwholeheartedly pay you a isit and respectfully listen to all you hae to say# To sum up, /only see& to improe the bo%ing art, / do not bother about anything else#

-*. /nteriewer( Sir, you are the founding master of Dachengquan2, you must hae some"udicious iews about this school, would you please tell us some details about it#

Wang Xiang1hai( The way of combat science is e%tremely complicated and difficult tounrael# %tremely complicated and difficult, yet it is e%tremely simple when its gist hasbeen grasped# Thus when we study bo%ing, we should first &now what we study it for# Whenwe &now that, we can surely gain something# ost people study bo%ing mainly for health,and then secondly for selfdefence# 5ood health is the basis of all the human actiities, sothe ways of health preseration and protecting one2s body really cannot be neglected#

/f one learns the method of e%ercise properly, then the benefits will be great, but learning itimproperly can een lead to death# @nly ery few of the sportsmen doing strenuous e%ercisecan en"oy longeity# The bo%ers who hae lost their lies or in"ured their bodies because of

improper e%ercise are uncountable# That &ind of bo%ing is indeed pitiful and also laughable#Inowing the adantages and disadantages of studying bo%ing, one should e%perience andobsere the states of moement and stillness with special care while e%ercising, not only thee%ternal moement of thebody, but also the moing state of the spirit#

@ne should use the spirit and mind to obsere the whole body inside and outside, andwhether eery action is in accord with the requirements of health preseration and selfBdefence or not# Why moe0 Why be still0 What are the results0 What is the phenomenon in


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resulting in nimble and heay insubstantiality, and round and whole substantiality# Kp anddown, left and right, front and bac&, do not forget them# To sum up, what cannot lead tocomfort, happiness, and gaining strength does not desere to be called bo%ing#

The trial of oice is a supplement for the insufficiencies of trial of strength# +ll people haephysiological differences due to the congenital, so eeryone2s body has parts difficult to

connect, thus trial of oice is namely complementary internal breath wor /t is also calledinner breath, or brain -abdomen.Bbac& breath#

SelfBdefence( namely combat# @ne should &now that a big moement is not as good as asmall moement, a small moement is not as good as stillness, one must &now that onlystillness is the endless moement# /f the body moes, that is "ust an e%pression of immobilityand lac& of strength, what is called moement in stillness, is moing as if one was notmoing, the moement and stillness are the basis of each other, and the wonders of theirapplication mostly depend on the nerous system being connected, the mind leading, thebig and small "oints and ligaments e%tending and contracting mutually, the fulcrum beingfirm li&e iron, haing twisting and opposite strengths,rotating around the piot point, moingthe centre in a balanced way, and issuing the e%plosiepower together with the breath# /f one can e%ert it properly, one has the basis of combat#

What was said aboe was mostly abstract, but much of its meaning cannot be described inwords# /f one can &eep practising unceasingly, then it is naturally not difficult to realise#What is the distinction between the so called big moement and small moement, in fact,depends on indiidual basic s&ills, and whether all &inds of strengths are being gained by thebody and understood by the mind or not# /f one can raise the hands and moe the feet withthe whole body haing mechanical s&ills eerywhere, then a big moement is fine, a smallmoement is fine as well, and a moement that is neither big nor small is also equally fine#

/f one does not hae the basic mechanical ability, then no matter what the moement is li&e,it is all wrong# The same applies to using strength and not using strength# The moements ofan ordinary person cannot hae strength without constant unilateral tension that disturbsthe blood circulation# ery &ind of strength based on constant unilateral tension is stiff andinharmonious, and besides that, harmful to health# ?aing strength without constantunilateral tension is namely haing strength without using strength, and when using it, onegains strength#

That is what the natural instinctie strength is li&e# /t is li&e see&ing all &inds of real thingsfrom the unreal, which is hardly possible to e%press in words# +nyway, Dachengquan2 isbeyond the e%ternal form of being good or bad, it actually depends on dealing with themind# /n a nutshell, haing a fi%ed form and fi%ed techniques are all false, s&ills reaching theleel of noBmind are getting ery rare, this is what the aboe means#

-9. /nteriewer( / thin& there must hae been many isitors calling on you since the last timeyour iews appeared in a newspaper# Were there any brilliant persons of unusual ability0

Wang Xiang1hai( /2m ery gratified that you care and introduce me to the readers# +mongthe martial artists of !ei"ing , there still was not a single person willing to come and grantme instruction# !ut the numerous letters coming from all quarters of the country e%pressedthat there are many people who hold me in faour and esteem# oreoer, there were somepeople from some places who came here to bargain, wishing to be appointed to the positionof an instructor#$urthermore there was an incident that / can tell you about# 4ecently, therewere ery many people who were seriously researching combat science and see&ing foradice# ost came to as& for


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instruction by their own initiatie and there were also those who were introduced bysomeone else# That is the only reason / adocate combat science#

/ hae no intention of contending with others, moreoer, / scorn contention# / wish to help allthe countrymen who are interested in combat science to understand it, and also hope thatthe combat science legislation will be reformed completely# Lictory or defeat should not be

ta&en as honour or disgrace# / wish that other bo%ers would not consider themseles toalways be right "ust by studying blindly and practising rec&lessly# / especially hope that allbo%ers will become healthy pugilists# / do not wish them to become martial artists wanderingfrom place to place ma&ing a liing with theirtric&s# !ut nowadays, out of one hundred bo%ers, not een one has anything right at all#

>oo&ing at them, / mostly get the feeling that it is all completely wrong# +s for the bo%erswho rely on bo%ing to ma&e their liing, they "ust should not feel ashamed of studying againfrom others after they hae started teaching# They should not be hard on themseles inspirit, but try hard to follow those who e%cel oer them# They must &eep in mind that theyshould not mislead and harm their students# Nowadays, bo%ers do not &now where the spiritof combat science is# While they hae no alternatie but to ma&e their liing with it, surelythey should not instruct people with mystery and iolence# That way they might not committhe great error of going as far from the truth as the heaen is from the deep sea#

!ut then again, the wea&nesses of these men are too numerous and they cannot be easilyinfluenced oer a short period of time# / only hope that they will become conscious of thetruth and start to selfBe%amine themseles bit by bit, nothing more#

-M. /nteriewer( Since the martial way arose, many schools hae been born, each adocatingits own way so that eentually the students end up with a feeling of ignorance# What islegitimate after all0

Wang Xiang1hai( +ll learning in the world depends on comparison, only that way can goodand bad be distinguished, otherwise eery school will claim to be right, and the laymen willhae difficulties distinguishing right and wrong# The correctness of bo%ing cannot be "udgedmerely by the criterion of ictory or defeat, it must be "udged by whether it is reasonableand suitable to the human needs or not# What is reasonable is achieing comfort, gainingstrength, and getting 1est into one2s life# /f one does not achiee comfort, gain strength, andif the study does not bring 1est into one2s life, thenit cannot be called bo%ing#

Whether one &nows of the history of bo%ing or not does not matter at all, one should only

see whether there is any alue in regard to learning and whether it accords with therequirements of life# !ut spea&ing of the combat science of our nation, it has a centuriesBoldhistory# /t began reealing its brilliance in the Warring States =eriod 7G)3 !E B


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each claiming its teachings as correct# Those schools are namely what are now called thearious styles# During the reigns of Iang%i and Yong1heng of the 6ing dynasty 7'**< B'93H:, firearms were not yet prealent# The emperors feared that the martial arts would beused against the goernment, therefore they wanted to destroy them for good and so thatthey could neer recoer#

Therefore they started to influence the people to thin& highly of the ciil arts and loo& downupon eerything martial# @n one hand they adocated flying immortal swordsmen andtaught the mystical on purpose, on the other hand they praised the bo%ing forms and fi%edtechniques in order to lead the martial arts astray# The middle road and the great Tao couldnot be as&ed about, and they used opera and storyboo&s to sere as their tools ofpropaganda# $urthermore they made the people who practised martial arts to be despisedby the scholarBbureaucrats, so the situation went from bad to een worse# +ll &inds of uglyperformances emerged, what a great pity and tragedy#

>uc&ily our combat science predecessors secretly had successors, and they succeeded inhaing a gleam of light surie# +lthough training halls were set up all oer the country toadocate the martial arts during the last twenty years, the more they were adocated, thesooner they would be lost, neer being able to return to the right path of combat science# /nfact, learning bo%ing is not difficult, but because the brains of the ordinary people aretormented by the storyboo&s, and furthermore, because the bo%ers of modern times mostlydo it for liing, the combat science is completely at loss# en if some people are consciousof that, they are still too ashamed to study from others, and thus hae no way out#

During the last half of the year, the other bo%ers hae come to me to compare their s&ills incombat# / will not point out who they were, in order to let them &eep their ways of ma&ing aliing# Now they mostly understand that they were wrong, but why do they not agree tocome and discuss the martial arts openly, and furthermore, why are they not willing tocompare their s&ills in combat, in order to improe their learning0 @n the contrary, they goagainst their conscience and claim others to be wrong# They do nothing but secretly createabsurd tales, and still they pretend being ignorant of those tales# What do they do that for0+s for the nonBprofessional martial artists, they want tobecome mysterious bo%ers by creating these tales, being li&e theatregoers not well ersedin drama, they are not able to do anything but throw punches at random to show off theirs&ills#

That is really something to be despised# /n case my words are considered erroneous, can thenonprofessional bo%ing students agree to grant me instruction0 $urthermore, / wish to haesmall friendly tests of s&ills in combat, and een if the people who come to me hae nomartial s&ills at all, / will not insult them, and / will not tell about them to other people inorder not to harm their business# /f one cannot come to isit me to grant me instruction,then please tell me the place and the time, and / will come to pay my respects on time# /fone has een a tiny strong point, / will do my utmost to gie him publicity, and if one has nostrong points at all, / will &eep my mouth shut# /f one always considers oneself as a top bo%erbehind closed doors, that is not worth a penny#

-8. /nteriewer( / hae heard your discussion pointing out the right path of our national arts#You hae introduced something new, and a fresh approach in see&ing the good of eeryonepursuing the same things, but / thin& you went a bit too far in some of your critique towardsTai"iquan2#

Wang Xiang1hai( y understanding of the Tao is still shallow, / do not dare to say that / haeintroduced something new, / "ust follow and spread the tradition of the predecessors,nothing more# There are many more things, but / feel embarrassed to say them because /


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hae many good friends practising Tai"i2# +lso, this bo%ing is less abused than most of theothers, and has more sensible practitioners, thus / freely criticise it# / would hae alreadystopped discussing about it a long time ago otherwise#

Tal&ing of criticism, / am afraid that among the Tai"i2 practitioners, those who will neerunderstand combat science are fearfully many, and those who are far from being learned

masters are een more numerous# /n my childhood / heard of the fame of the Taoist ;hangSanfeng# ?aing grown up, / traelled all around the country, so / &now that among all theschools of bo%ing, Tai"i2 has the biggest amount of practitioners# / had already been doubtfulof this bo%ing for a long time# / heard this bo%ing was handed down from r# ;hang Sanfeng,thus / had despised Sanfeng for a long time# >ater / read the collected edition of r#Sanfeng2s teachings, and began to realise that hehad adanced all along the great Tao#

?e had already gone deep into the Sea of >aw and profoundly realised absolute truth#?oweer, / een more deeply beliee that such bo%ing was not handed down from him#+ctually, if it was or was not does not matter at all, because, een if one was the descendantof Sanfeng, one is not worthy to tal& about his art if one has not gained its essence# / do not&now who were the successors of r# Sanfeng, but / suppose they were inferior to Sanfeng#/f they had been capable, why would they hae misled others0 Whether the teachingsgained by the students are true or false is the &ey#

oreoer, nowadays the practitioners of this bo%ing are different from each other and thetheories ary# /t is all random and falseJ / remember that r# Sanfeng said( >eaing one2sown body is wrong, but clinging to one2s own body is much worse# Tai"iquan2 has onehundred and forty or fifty postures, is there any posture or method that is not being clungto0 What are these postures for0 oreoer, the spirit is firmly bound and cannot beliberated# /t is indeed harmful to the freedom of the neres, the limbs, and the trunemembering how wise r# Sanfeng was, he should not hae gone so far as to hand downTai"iquan2 that is so improper#

Discussing the wordy content of the Theory of Tai"iquan2, the single and double weightingand een weighting, and all such profound things are also nothing more than a part of therudiments of combat science# ay / as& the famous Tai"i2 masters to e%amine theirconscience, whether there can be een a single posture or method in accord with thetheories of this bo%ing guide0 Since they claim it to be supreme combat science, why does itnot produce any results in practice0 $urthermore, the practitioners of this bo%ing belieethat they can gain good bo%ing s&ills with superstitious practises# This is een more absurd#

en if all the methods of this bo%ing would e%cel oer the others, and the s&ills would toweraboe the ordinary, there is no doubt that it would still be wrong on the spiritual side, andbesides, that is not the case# +lthough Tai"iquan2 is practised by a huge amount of people,which has gien it much publicity, the sensible people hae long &nown that it has collapsedof itself# =erhaps there was something improper in my words, / really hope that the othermartial artists will question me without any hesitation, if there is someone who can instructme, / will sweep the pathway to welcome him#

-'). /nteriewer( Sir, you criticised the shortcomings of Tai"iquan2, / certainly hae to admit,but / also hae many friends who hae gained good health by practising this bo%ing, / amafraid that your critique is somewhat inappropriate#

Wang Xiang1hai( The alue of combat science is not only in rela%ation and other triflingachieements# @ne must &now that combat science is persistent learning, which is a humanneed and one cannot learn it thoroughly in a ery short time# Therefore ;huang1i said(


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artial arts do indeed enter the Tao# They are the basis of culture and arts, they are thelifeblood of ;en and philosophy# /f "ust a tiny result could represent bo%ing, then there wouldbe no need to obsere and study combat science# /f one stic&s to the practice of bo%ing inthe way you said, it will produce some results# $urthermore, one should &now that if one canta&e the time to practise bo%ing, do it without any method, freely and slowly perceiing byintuition, then the results will be great# / dare to say they will be much more than what you

mentioned #

-''. /nteriewer( The different schools of bo%ing are e%tremely numerous and their theoriesdiffer# +mong my good friends there are many who practise bo%ing# Some of them practiseaccording to boo&s, but none of them has gained any results# What &ind of a boo& shouldthey adopt0

Wang Xiang1hai( Eombat science cannot be diided into schools, and the bo%ing theory doesnot hae the distinction of Ehinese or foreign, and new or old# Do nothing but e%aminewhether it is right or wrong, and suitable or unsuitable, that is enough# +t large, thenumerous schools of our society, generally ta&e the approach of forms and techniques tolearn bo%ing# @ne must &now that this &ind practice is "ust forgery conducted by the latergenerations, it is not the original essence of combat science# en though a few people bychance realise some sideBmechanics and oneBsidedtechniques, they hae not, howeer, left the methods and forms after all, so it is withoutaail in the end#

+s for the writers of the martial arts guide boo&s, they cannot e%ceed this boundary either#+lthough this doctrine is ery easy to study, it is still not as simple as following others li&esheep# Sometimes those who are taught by a famous master who passed the &nowledgeorally and from the heart, still cannot differentiate between right and wrong after do1ens ofyears# ?ow could these writings then be of any use0 /n any &ind of learning, one should firstunderstand the fundamental principle, andbit by bit intuitiely perceie the s&ills, startingfrom the basics# /n addition to that, one shouldponder carefully, ma&ing a clear distinction between right and wrong, and proing one2sperceptions by e%perimenting in many ways# @nly then can one moe on to study thosetechnical s&ills#

@ne should aoid training in front of a mirror, because this way one can easily becomesimilar in form but untrue in spirit# Those training according to boo&s are really the blindbeing led by the blind# Then again, by reading a boo& one can collect the crystalli1ation of allsorts of theories, not paying any attention to the postures and form# +ccording to the sureyof my thirty years of teaching, this branch of learning is e%tremely difficult yet alsoe%tremely easy# + gifted student, in less than one hundred days of e%ercise, has the hope tobecome a great learned master, but among one hundred students there is not een one ortwo of them, and in most cases the talented sagacious people lac& honesty and tolerance,some of them are een shams and cheaters#

Therefore most are abandoned halfway by their teachers, this is also a pityJ +s for the

common students of our society, their difficulties are really lamentable# ost people alwaysbeliee their ears instead of their eyes# The two words, fame and fact, cannot be mentionedin the same sentence# en though the amount of bo%ers in the world is uncountable, thosewho hae gained the essence are rare li&e a unicorn2s horn# +ll of those who hae gainedthe essence are ery different from the ordinary people in character# They cannot be enticedby fame or attracted by benefit, and theywould neer associate with the hypocritesJ $inding a master is ery difficult indeed#


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en if you meet a wise master how can you differentiate whether he is wise or not, andthen he is not necessarily willing to teach you# en if he agrees to teach you, he does notnecessarily hae a good method of teaching# !e it that he has a good teaching method, it isstill not certain that one can realise the essence of his teachings# There e%ist a ariety ofdifficulties that an ine%perienced person cannot &now# Then again, nowadays it is easier tostudy than before, because the science is flourishing# /t helps ery much in understanding

the principles of combat science, but still, combatscience cannot be limited to this#

/f it is e%plained with the hierarchy of science and local anatomy, then it should be the oneand the only way and phase of studying# !ut there are still many principles in our combatscience that cannot be e%plained, but after some years they might be proed by science#>earning &nows no limits, perhaps there are no means to eer e%plain it, this cannot be&nown# Summed up, if discussed under the conditions and &nowledge of today, one shouldadd a scientific method to the spirit of combat science, then it will not be difficult to solethe problems in combat science#

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-'G. /nteriewer( / hae heard many martial artists saying( F/f you do not use strength, howcan you increase it0 None of the ancient and modern masters neglected the enriching of thedantian qi, and only because of that, could they be successful#F

Wang Xiang1hai( The theory of using strength is the tal& of laymen# There are also thosewho speciously support the theory of not using strength, but do not &now what it meansafter all# @ne must &now that not to use strength is correct, but not to use the mind isincorrect# /f one uses strength then the internal organs die, the body becomes ineffectie,stiff, stupid, and easy to be ta&en adantage of by others# /n other words, it is "ust adisguised form of passie resistance# The idea of resisting is produced by the fear of beinghit by the adersary, but in this way one is completely ignorant of the fact that the spirit hasalready accepted to be hit# ?ow could one then not get hit by the adersary0

Therefore, using strength is a great taboo in combat science# +s for the theory of the dantianqi, from the theoretical point of iew, field tests, and my own perception from e%perienceand obseration, this theory does not seem proper# Within the abdomen there are theintestines, the stomach, and the lier, there is no place to fill with the qi# +s for the functionsof force, they are all effects of the opposite power, the e%plosie power, and the power ofthe unierse combined, and e%erted together with breath that ma&es the body bulge andundulate, open and close, and the body and spirit being integrated with the atmosphere inoneAs mind#

That has nothing to do with what the people call the qi of qigong# They always ta&e apotbelly as dantian qi, that is "ust e%tremely wrong# @ne must &now that when e%erted, thestrength must be issued eenly and completely# /n order to be entirely free from worry andto gain strength, one should also be at leisure and natural, that is "ust being reasonable# Thestudents of modern times do not understand this truth, they spend do1ens of years wor&inghard, and instead of gaining liely bodies and minds from the training, they becomemachines# /s that not a great pityJ

-'H. /nteriewer( +lthough your critique is appropriate, it is still always the same combatarena, and if you, in the long run, accidentally misstep in one of the challenge fights, thenwhat0

Wang Xiang1hai( ?ow would / dare to gie an open challenge, / do not een dare to act asthe ringleader for challenge# / "ust wish that my fellow bo%ers would be willing to adocate,discuss, and inestigate combat science li&e this, then it would not be difficult to carry itforward in the future# ?oweer, if nobody does this, / wish to start from myself, with nothingelse other than adising the others with earnest words and good intentions, and oftenin"ecting cardiotonic shots into the arms of the other bo%ers of our country in order to littleby little cure their illness of paralysis, / offer a few commonplace remar&s by way ofintroduction so that others may come up with aluable opinions# en if my body be full ofcuts and bruises, my utmost wish will come true if combat science can be promoted#

-'*. /nteriewer( =eople generally accepted your tal&s, but there were still some who wereliberal in their condemnation of you#

Wang Xiang1hai( Those who understand me are wise people, those who condemn me shouldsit alone in the still of night to listen to their hearts# +nyhow, let them laugh who will, / willnot mind# /f the true essence of combat science will prosper again, how could personalpraise or blame ma&e any difference0


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-'9. /nteriewer( ?ow can the ordinary people dare to disagree with your &nowledge andirtue0

Wang Xiang1hai( What you said is right, / am ery ashamed, but our countrymen hae

already become socially resered# ?onesty and prudence are really the basis of the selfBcultiation of learning and morals, in other words( being solid inside and oid outside, or firmoutside and nimble inside# That is "ust the same principle as that of >ao1i, OThe desirelessone can see the essence, while the desiring one only sees its manifestation#O !ut somehowit is made use of by the people# /t has already become the talisman of those who ma&e theirliing by deceiing others# >ies in the society are also created by such people#

/ hae traelled all around the country for almost forty years, often feeling that there is onlythe art of Oopera actingO that does not put up with the society# @pera does not allow thelaymen to assume positions in it either, but there are many styles of opera which all differ, /do not &now all of them# +s for what is called honesty and prudence toward others, / thin&one should act according to the other party, there should not be any unreasonablepoliteness# >i&e the sages of the past, respectfully sere others and be honest and sincere,oercome your desires and show loe to others#

/ am ery glad to comply with that as the teachings of the boo&s of good intercourse andtreating each other with respect cannot be seen nowadays# / do not desere praise for mylearning and morals# /n studying morals / only put myself under the patronage of theimportant people# What is called Tao is the truth that is all perading and comple%, and theonly proper course to ta&e# /n other words, is it reasonable or unreasonable0 4easonable isnamely the Tao and unreasonable is not the Tao#

/t is not a mystical and strange thing, it is not the poor superstitious chapters and erses ofthe ulgar and pedantic literati either# /t has especially nothing to do with the eccentricpeople, who pretend insaneness, calling that the doctrine of !uddhism and Taoism in orderto loo& different, they cannot een dream about the gate to the great Tao# /f one does notunderstand the society, / hae no choice but to retain tal&ing about other things with him#

-'M. /nteriewer( You said that there are still many places in opera where the essence hasnot been lost, which are far ahead of the aerage schools of bo%ing# / do not understand onwhat ground you can say that, / feel that this comment is rather improper#

Wang Xiang1hai( @pera was originally meant to subsidy the shortcomings of education, all ofits martial performances originated from the way of bo%ing# /n bo%ing there was originallythe qiba 7pulling the body: e%ercise, which is one of the s&ills of shili 7trial of strength:# 6ibais see&ing the pioting strength of the barycentres of the erte% and the two feet, ma&ingthe whole body e%tend equally and completely, becoming one with the unierse, thereforenamed qiba e%ercise#

/n opera it is mista&enly called Frising of the dominationF, but watching their postures andthe meaning of their theories, although they are not proper, they are not far from thateither, thus we &now that it has some essence# +s for all &inds of postures which try toplease the eye and win peopleAs adoration, they are all forged# @f the postures of today2sbo%ers / hae not seen a single one that would hae gained equilibrium, een the oldeterans and young 0lites turn into imitating the untruthful and childish ones, and some ofthem cannot een succeed in that, how could they eer see the profundity of the martialway0


14/17

-'8. /nteriewer( / suppose that recently there was no lac& of people as&ing for adice# Whatis your sentiment, Sir0

Wang Xiang1hai( +lthough there were many people from all circles who came to see methese days, they were all "ust curious people and what they tal&ed about was not related to

combat science# +s for the isitor pursuing the same way, none of them was the &ind ofperson / e%pected#

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realise that there was a huge difference between our s&ills, and now he has become afaithful disciple of mine#

-uchan was a combat science predecessor as well, he was s&illed inTai"i2, and now most people follow his lineage# What / tal& about has to be obsered fromeery aspect, >uchan only achieed a part of the Tao, een r# Wang ;ongyue of the ingdynasty was not a complete e%pert# r# ;ongyue obtained the oneBsided part of pushBhandswith both hands, originating from 5eneral Yue $ei, changed the three fists into thirteenpostures, and named it Tai"i2#

There is no way to do te%tual research on what was handed down from ;hang Sanfeng andthe people would "ust draw wrong conclusions from it# +s for the one hundred and forty orfifty postures, / hae no idea where they originated from# !ut tal&ing of the practice of thisbo%ing, it does not only abuse the limbs and the trun&, but also does infinite harm to thespirit, it is still ery far from the art of actual combat, they hae nothing in common witheach other#

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The spirit and the body are comfortable and natural, not only free and unrestricted, but alsogradually realising the echo of nature# +fter a long time of training, the instincts uneil andthe rays of the spirit will shine, one will hae gained the basis of combat een withouthaing thought of them# /f one always stic&s to mechanical moement, plays around with astaff and performs with a spear see&ing beauty, ta&ing that as the glory of being good inmartial arts, then one does not &now that if a man of insight sees that, he will feel sic& for

ten days# That is terrible, such a person cannot comprehend bo%ing for life#

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essence of Wang