History of Tai Chi Chuan

The Shadow Boxing, Tai Chi Chuan, its origins and current status.
By Daniel Corona and Jorge Velásquez
Artes Marciales Magazine
February, 2005

The five main schools or styles of Tai Chi Chuan, in order of appearance, are Chen, Yang, Wu, Hao and Sun, although naturally, each of them has their subbranches. In spite of each having their own characteristics, they all have the following common traits: the body extends and relaxes in a natural way, emphasizing the flexibility. While performing, the practitioner keeps an erect body, moving it naturally and with liveliness in a firm and confident way. During the whole sequence of exercises, the body movements are perfect and coordinated.

In Tai Chi, the hands, the eyes, the body and the limbs must move as a whole, using the legs as the base and the waist as the axis. However, the fact that postures are relaxed does not mean that the movements are performed weakly and without effort. That is why Tai Chi also requires physical, mental and respiratory training.
Historical Origins

The Chen Style Tai Chi  was the first Tai Chi we have knowledge of, and it is the ancestor of the other schools. Its origin goes back some three hundred or four hundred years, during the decadence of the Ming dynasty (1368-1644) and the beginning of the Qing dynasty (1644-1911), but the old legends state that this art was given by heavenly beings to the men of the 12th century, more specifically to a Taoist monk in the Wu Dang mountain by the name of Zhang Sanfeng. However, there were some newly published documents in 1921 that placed Sangfeng in the 15th century; and then in 1930, famous martial arts master Tang Hao’s (1897-1959) research placed Chen Wangting, of the Wen county in the Henan province, as the real creator of Tai Chi Chuan, basing himself on ancient documents and scrolls, but especially on the similarity of techniques among the people of Wen. Wangting, also known as Zhouting, was a knight at the end of the Ming dynasty and the beginning of the Qing dynasty, known and feared by the people of Shangdong. He passed on his knowledge to the Chen families in Chenjiagou. His technique was known as “push hands”, and passed on in the Chen family from one generation to the next. It is nowadays known as the Chen Style Tai Chi.

The fifth generation descendant of Chen Wangting, Chen Changxing (1771-1853) was born. He had a peculiar student who quickly became famous in the Hebei region, as he was said to be “invincible” among his fellow classmates. Even though he was not a member of the Chen family, he was the best of Changxing’s students, and would often take challengers from other towns who wanted to prove their abilities. This man was Yang Fu Kui, better known as Yang Luchan (1799-1872), who made his own interpretation of the Chen school movements and created, as a result, what would be the most famous school of Tai Chi, the Yang Style. Yang Luchan taught his descendants, Yang Jianhou, Yang Banhou and one of Yang Banhou’s disciples named Wu Jianquan (1870-1942), who would create a set of circular and more modern movements, resulting in the creation of the Wu school of Tai Chi. Later, Wu Yuxiang (1812-1880) developed simpler and quicker movements, opening and closing the arms, and that was called “the small frame.” This style was also named “Wu” after his creator, but it was his disciple, Hao Weizheng (1849-1920) who really spread the style. In consequence, this style was more commonly known as the Wu-Hao style Tai Chi. Finally, the Sun school was developed by Sun Lutang (1861-1932), a disciple of Hao Weizheng. Sun created a style that featured lively, skillful movements, performed at a fast pace and with a lot of footwork.

In 1852, Yang Luchan introduced Tai Chi in Beijing and years later, after the Chinese Revolution, the government decided to create the Beijing Sports University. Since then, the above forms and styles were made official, and a new training program known as Modern Wu Shu was established.

In later years, Tai Chi Chuan has seen a following in all its manifestations. In other words, there are people who practice it as a martial art, those who practice it as a therapeutic exercise, and those who see it as a form of movement meditation. Nowadays there are different interpretations that explore Tai Chi in all of those senses, but the descendants of the five schools defend their traditional stance that tries to rescue the martial aspect of Tai Chi Chuan.  The beneficial effects of practicing Tai Chi Chuan are now being studied more thoroughly. Australian, Chinese-descent master Paul Lam, gold medal winner at the Third International Tai Chi Competition in Beijing in 1993, does research with his colleagues to find the specific Tai Chi exercises that help in the treatment of diabetes and arthritis. This is not surprising, if we remember that all sports activate the blood flow, and Tai Chi could be the only option for older people affected by these conditions. Still, as we mentioned before, the original Tai Chi families and their descendants have a trend that tries to bring Tai Chi back to its origins, regarding any health benefit Tai Chi might have as a secondary effect of its correct practice. According to this, the practice is strictly martial, and practicing with any other intent would not have the same effects. These trends hope to bring the forms back to their origins.