Yang Shou Chung's Principles and Perspective on Taijiquan
The formation of Yang Shou Chung's understanding of Taijquan is intimately related to his taiji education, his personality traits, and his personal experiences.
The Yang Family Taijiquan is noted for its sturdy and stable frame. When Yang Shou Chung inherited his family style he also held onto its notable flavor. His own personality was also quite introverted, and was not prone to false and flowery language. On most days he was quiet and of few words, however with those that he was quite familiar with, or when discussing topics that he was interested in, he would talk a lot. He did not like to mingle in society, but was very enthusiastic and dedicated. After leaving Yuen Long for many years, if his old neighbors arranged a gathering or celebration, and invited him, he would go from far away to attend. He was straight and direct, and he would interact with people in a simple way. He would diligently teach, and because of this his power increased from day to day, this all informed his taijiquan.
1. Maintaining the Center 守中
The character for 守 means to maintain or to hold fast and the character for 中 literally means center but in this case refers to the core teachings, the essence, the principle.
There are two key marks of Yang Shou Chung's taijiquan, one is that of active dissemination and the other is that of faithful successors. Yang Shou Chung personal place is not that of a revolutionary or of an innovator, and in this way he was completely different from his father, because that was a difference in the times they lived in, he was a successor, a faithful adherent of the Yang family taijiquan, and this was history's choice for him.
Yang Zhen Ming, honorific Shou Chung. He was as his name described. According to legend, the two characters 守中 were given to him by according to the Yang family ancestral songs for transmitting boxing. "Maintaining the center position" and "zhongding" 中定 have a special place in Yang Taichi. According to the the essay on Yang Family Transmission 《對待用功法守中土》 - "amidst stability the feet have roots, first understand the four directions, enter and retreat with the body". In the section on the Taiji diagram - "exiting the circle is easy, entering the circle is difficult. Do not separate the the waist from the top of the head back and front, the difficulty lies in not leaving the center position, take care to study how retreating is easy and entering is difficult". Those who can attain the center achieve Taiji. Giving him the name Shou Chung, meant that they hoped that he could follow the family tradition and keep fast to the true tradition, and spread the Yang family tradition to the world.
His whole life he “守中用中”，“不放棄，不拋棄” held fast and used the center, and did not give up and did not abandon. Letting go of all disturbances and temptations, he maintained the appearance and bones of Yang family Taiji. He said himself, "having amassed 30+ years experience in teaching Taiji, regarding what my ancestors have taught me of the boxing method and form, I have not dared to add or remove anything from it; those who have learned from me, do adhere to any rules other than those who came before me." The rules of his ancestors are his rules and using the yardstick of his teachings, "What my father taught me, I have no changed a single movement." His illustrated manual was left to his students, those who look at the contents see that movement he holds on to tradition strongly, in the preface of his reprint of his father's book 《太極拳體用全書》 he specially states : "This edition was written when my father was living in Guangdong. the first edition was in the 23rd year of the Republic (1933), the whole book follows the original printing, there are no changes and there are no additions or deletions. As to the principles, the original is already explained in great detail, and I do not dare to add my own comments." He did not change one word, and even in his own book he was careful to use Yang Chen Pu's own pictures.
To innovate is hard, to hold fast to tradition is even harder. There are many who try to adhere to tradition, but are unable to do so. The tighter you hold on, it slowly begins to change, because the temptations of the external world are too great. Holding on to tradition is sometimes a very lonely thing. Zhang Zhen Ming was able to bear this kind of lonliness, in fact he liked this kind of lonliness.
The boxing classics have two phrases: “我守我疆，中道皇皇”- I protect my borders, the middle path is the sovereign way. This is an apt characterization of Yang Zhen Ming.
2. Openness 開放
Openness is part of the Yang family tradition, this is a kind of heart and emotion of the Yang family. The brilliance of Yang Taiji, is intimately related to this kind of openness. From the time of Yang Lu Chan, until Yang Chen Pu, there is one underlying principle, whether it is Yang Lu Chan's changing fist, Yang Chen Pu's fixed fist, these are both an expression of this idea.
Yang Zhen Ming followed his father in teaching boxing from a young age, and absorbed this principle through his actions. Promoting the art through "taking one's duty is to teach the art" is that tradition of the family. And this was imprinted in his brain from a young age. He had a heroic and righteous side, and diligently taught and taught the real thing, and never held anything back, and adhered to a programme while teaching according to the ability of each student. "When I teach, it is according to the differences of each student, I individualize my teaching, this way it is easier to succeed, as the situation dictates, there is nothing I keep secret, and I try to explain it all. If a doctor is treating a patient, he prescribes the medicine according to the disease, this is an obvious fact." Thus all his students were active in the way they thought, and were able to match their own body conditions with their insights into Taiji.
He thought that the highest techniques should not be locked in a high tower, so he printed a book to explain them, to allow more people to study Taijiquan, in the preface he expressed this thought, "Even if my country is this vast, with such a large population, akin to the planet and the stars, if possible I would teach them all, it is to take the secrets and experiences transmitted to me by my ancestors, I want to spread them to the world."
3. Quiet and Sincere 篤靜
Yang Zhen Ming was not very sociable, apart from his students, his neighbors in Yuen Long, those active in the Taiji world, those with connections such as his kungfu brother Dong Ying Jie, the Wu style lineage holder Wu Gong Yi, he very seldom went out to eat. This allowed him to maintain a peaceful interior and exterior space, allowing him to experience and demonstrate the artistic conception of Taiji.
"To attain the ultimate emptiness, hold fast to the tranquility and sincerity" "靜" is one of the principles of Yang Taijiquan. Only one is quiescent can they maintain the center. Throwing away the vanities of the external world, giving up empty fame, entering deeper into the heart of Taijiquan, one attains the essence. This is also expressed in his teaching, that is he does not simply teach to anyone, and does teach in an offhanded manner, and he does not try to increase his students, but focused on quality and results. He did not advertise himself, Living on Lockhart Road, he opened a studio to teach and lived at the back, and did not have large banners to advertise this, only a simple sign "The House of Shou Chung, son of Yang Chen Pu". This demonstrates perfectly the adage, "From a small house it spreads to the whole world"
4. Usefulness 實用
As Taijiquan is a martial art, its usefulness is shown in two areas, strengthening the body and fighting.
Yang Shou Chung began teaching at 19 years of age, and came to understand deeply society's search for Taijiquan's effectivess, and he completely understood Taiji's practical applications, he steadfastly maintained that being practically applicable was one of the key principles of his teaching.
Whether it was in mainland China or in Hong Kong, many of his students were looking for health, so they deeply respected Taijiquan's ability to promote health, as his teaching differed according to the body type of each student, he allowed Taijiquan to bring the greatest benefits to each person. According to the memories of his students, what he required of each of his students was different, and was able to adapt to each of his students, he once specifically spoke of the objective of this method, this was not indulging one party and neglecting the other, and this was not being conservative, but was adjusting for each person's condition, progressing slowly, this was the best method for health. He also emphasized this in his preface, "As Taijiquan is in accordance with the principles of the changes of Taiji, it is the mechanism for the change of yin and yang, calming the mind and soothing the Qi, the body is relaxed and the jin is soft, this aids flexibility, and rescues the weak and saves one from danger. The proof is from practical experience, the general public recognizes that Taiji has a hundred advantages and no one harmful effect. It can be practiced by those inside and outside China, both civil and martial, young and old, male and female."
As to its practical use, Yang Zhen Ming placed it at the highest place, from his single book one can see, it only deals with the practical applications for fighting. From the beginning to the end he encourages attacking, "Taijiquan is based upon the 13 stances, and has push hands and free fighting as its application" He states that learning the Taiji applications can help strengthen the body of the Chinese people, and increase its fighting spirit." In order to increase the understanding of his students, he would always demonstrate himself, touching hands he would explain each movement in detail, making sure the student understood how to practice and how to use the movement.
Pragmatism was the watchword of Yang Zhen Ming's Taijiquan.
5. Understanding the Principle 尚理
Yang Zhen Ming's own assessment of himself included the following sentence, "At 14 I understood the principles of Taijiquan". Thus one can see how much importance he placed on the principles of Taiji, and how he saw this was the first step in practicing Taiji, and the most important.
This was what he wrote in the preface to the reprint of 《太極拳體用全書》 in 1948 and clearly expressed his thoughts on the matter. This is in one of the few documents left by Yang Zhen Ming and states, "Taijiquan is based upon Yijing Taiji Bagua, and derived from principle, Qi and form. The student needs to first seek the form, nourish the Qi and after a long time understand the principle." In his opinion, only he who has understood the principle, has reached the highest principles of Taiji, from a long and detailed study of the postures, to reach an understanding of the principles, only then can one say that they truly understand Taiji.
From the memories of his students, Yang Zhen Ming would "teach the principles on one hand and demonstrate in the other". Zhang Shi Xian 張世賢 once related how he studied both the inner and and outer with Yang Shou Chung, placing an equal emphasis on the principle and the method: stating "my personality tended towards the quiet side, and was fascinated with the Daoist method." "From the fourteenth year of the Republic (1925) I started to study meditation, and met the Taiji Master Yang Shou Chung in the 39th year of the Republic (1950) and followed him day and night, our interactions were very deep and I obtained from him the key points of boxing. As a result I understood that there was stillness in movement in the boxing and when sitting there was movement in stillness. Both methods complimented the other and I received great benefits; it was not unusual that my physical body improved from day to day, and my daoist body (energetic body) also became stronger from day to day. " The improvement in his Daoist body was due to his understanding of the principle behind the boxing.
Master Ma Wei Huan 馬偉煥 also had a strong recollection, "Learning boxing from Master Yang Shou Chung, in the beginning you feel nothing out of the ordinary, but as your kung fu increases, your understanding is different. Master Yang is a very detail oriented person, and this reflected in his teaching method, which allows you to understand the tiny details of studying boxing, to understand that apart from the movement there is also a great deal to learn. He does not talk much, but expresses a lot, it is through his boxing that the meaning comes through".
Taijiquan is different from other sports, it is not purely a body movement, the movements are for leading the body, the postures are the reason for vitality, the principles are spirit underlying the practice. Yang Zhen Ming's taiji life is filled with this understanding.
Due to his peaceful life in Hong Kong, Yang Shou Chung had much time to devote to studying Taiji, from his bodily understanding and this philosophizing, he was not affected by the vanities of life, his boxing preserved the simple and traditional things. This is what we should deeply experience when we study Yang Zhen Ming's kung fu. That kind of tradition, simplicity and conciseness is a great path without form.
This is what we lack in our present day practice.
[End of Part 2].
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