CHINESE MIND-BODY BOXING Copyright © 1974,2003 by Robert W. Smith. All rights reserved. No portion of this book, except for brief review, may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval sys- tem, or transmitted in any form or by any means—electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise—without the written permission of the publisher. For information contact North Atlantic Books. Published by North Atlantic Books P.O. Box 12327 Berkeley, California 94712 Cover design by Jan Camp Printed in Canada Hsing-i: Chinese Mind-Body Boxing is sponsored by the Society for the Study of Native Arts and Sciences, a nonprofit educational corporation whose goals are to develop an educational and crosscultural perspective linking various scientific, social, and artistic fields; to nurture a holistic view of arts, sciences, humanities, and healing; and to publish and distribute literature on the rela- tionship of mind, body, and nature. North Atlantic Books' publications are available through most book- stores. For further information, call 800-337-2665 or visit our website at www.northatlanticbooks.com. Substantial discounts on bulk quantities are available to corporations, professional associations, and other organizations. For details and dis- count information, contact our special sales department. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Smith, Robert W., 1926- Hsing-i: Chinese Mind-Body Boxing I by Robert W. Smith p. cm. Originally published: Tokyo ; New York : Kodansha International, 1974. ISBN 1-55643-455-3 (pbk.) l.Tai chi. 2. Hand-to-hand fighting. Oriental—Psychological aspects. 3. Hand-to-hand fighting, Oriental—History. I. Title: Chinese mind-body boxing. II.Title. GV504.S62 2003 796.S15'5 —dc21 2003043624 CIP I 5 1 A <s A 7 B Q TDANC n« fV7 IV. rK (\A CYl Contents Preface 7 1. The Name and the History 9 2. Hsing-i and Internal Boxing 21 3. The Primary Requirements 25 4. The Five Basic Actions 29 A. The Preliminaries 30 B. The Heart of the Matter 33 1. Splitting 34 2. Crushing 36 3. Drilling 38 4. Pounding 40 5. Crossing 41 C. Linking the Five Forms 46 D. The Function of the Five Forms 51 E. Functions Equated to the Five Elements . . 58 5. The Twelve Styles 62 6. Consecutive Step Yunnan Boxing 61 A. The Form 67 B. The Function 74 7. Advice from the Masters 92 Preface to the 2003 Edition IT IS WITH SOME PLEASURE that I make a few remarks on the new publication of Hsing-i: Chinese Mind-Body Boxing, first issued in 1974. Taiji, Pa Kua, and Hsing-i compromise what the Chinese call nei-chia, the internal or soft boxing arts, as contrasted with Shaolin, or hard and more forceful boxing methods. Taiji stresses relaxed slow movements and Pa Kua the use of the open hand and the circle. Hsing-i uses largely the fist on a linear path. All borrow from the other. Over the years my book on Hsing-i had many readers and helped to introduce the art to western readers. Its success was largely due to such teachers as Yuan Tao, Wang Shu-chin, and Hung I-hsiang who taught me during my stay in Taiwan (1959-62). Whatever skill I gained I attribute to them. I was very lucky. Now so many years later, I'm pleased to see Hsing-i reemerge. I hope it helps a new generation to find joy in this old but ever- green art. —Robert W. Smith Hendersonville, N.C. 2003 7 /. The Name and the History Hsing-i Ch'uan ("The Form of Mind Boxing") is also called Hsing-i Lu-ho Ch'uan ("Form of Mind Six-Combinations Box- ing") or / Ch'uan ("Mind Boxing"), all these names suggesting the harmonious merger of thought and action. Traditionally, it was said to have originated with Yueh Fei, a general of the Northern Sung dynasty (960-1127). There is insufficient historical evidence to credit this claim and even less evidence to support the legend that Ta Mo, the monk who brought Zen from India to China, created it. We know little of Chi Lung-feng, the recorded father of Hsing-i. He was born in Shanghai in the late Ming dynasty and died in the early Ch'ing. He boxed from his early youth and came to promi- nence in the use of the spear. Between 1637—61 while wandering in the Chung-nan Mountains in Shensi Province, he met a Taoist who taught him Hsing-i. (The famed T'ang poet Meng Chiao, who wrote in "Impromptu" the lines "Keep away from sharp swords. Don't go near a lovely woman ..." also derived inspiration from these mountains.) Chi passed the art to Ts'ao Chi-wu, who later became the commanding general of Shansi Province in the K'ang Hsi reign (1662— 1722) of the Ch'ing dynasty. Chi's second great student was Ma Hsueh-li of Honan. The Shansi-Hopei and Honan schools descended as shown in figure 1 (overleaf). Ts'ao Chi-wu Ma Hsueh-li Skansi School Honan School Tai Ling-pang —Ma San-yuan Tai Lung-pang —Chang Chih-ch'eng Li Neng-jan • Li Cheng Hopei School —Kuo Yun-shen —Chang Chu Liu Ch'i-lan —Mai Chuang-t'u •Chang Shu-te ^—An Ta-ch'ing —Sung Shih-jung Pao Hsien-t'ing Ch'e I-chai Shansi School Figure l 10 THE NAME AND THE HISTORY THE SHANSI-HOPEI SCHOOL We know little about the brothers Tai except that they were wealthy and loved Hsing-i. Tai Lung-pang attempted to retain the essence of the art, but the earnestness of Li Neng-jan led Tai to teach him everything. Born in Sung Hsien in Hopei, Li started boxing at the relatively late age of thirty-seven. After one false start—Tai Lung-pang looked too gentle and Li refused to regard him as a master—Li returned and trained ten years under Tai. He worked for two and a half years and learned only p'i ("splitting") and part of lien huan (linking the forms). At a birthday party for Tai's mother, he so impressed her that she berated her son for being so niggardly in his teaching. After that Tai taught him the whole art and Li mas- tered it by the age of forty-seven. Thereafter, he was never de- feated: when challenged he went forward easily, put his hand out, and achieved his purpose. Once a boxing colleague who regarded himself as on a par with Li attempted to grab him and pick him up. Li immediately ascended and his head penetrated the bamboo ceiling. When he came down, his feet were stable and his face bore the same expression as before. The other thought it was witchcraft, but Li told him that, although it looked mysterious, it was simply the peak of the art. From such experiences he gained a reputation as the "man of boxing mys- tery." He was over eighty when he died, sitting in a chair and smiling. Among his many students were Kuo Yun-shen, Liu Ch'i- lan, Pai Hsi-yuan, Li T'ai-ho, Ch'e I-chai, Chang Shu-te, and Sung Shih-jung. Kuo Yun-shen also was born in Sung Hsien in Hopei. Although he boxed from childhood, he learned little until he met Li Neng-jan. He saw Li's skill—so simple in form, so deep in skill—loved it, and learned from him for decades. Once when Li slapped him, he skill- fully absorbed it, landing twenty feet away unscathed. Besides boxing, Kuo mastered the sword, broadsword, and spear. He also THE SHANSI-HOPEI SCHOOL 11 mastered some of Li's esoteric boxing. In the Tiger style, he could jump ten feet as adroitly as a bird, as stable as a mountain. Once five burly boxers put staffs against his stomach, and he, exhaling, knocked them all down. Kuo's peng ("crushing") was so powerful, he came to be called "Divine Crushing Hand." Once in a bout in Hopei he reportedly killed his opponent and as a result was im- prisoned for three years. Although restricted by fetters, he con- tinued to practice while in prison. After he was released he took care to place the back of his left hand on his antagonist's body before using his famous right. His left helped absorb the energy of his right and spared his opponent serious injury. Sun Lu-t'ang does not mention this story in his lengthy treatment of Kuo; this leads me to regard it as possibly apocryphal. Kuo wrote an illustrated text on Hsing-i and entrusted it to Sun Lu-t'ang, but unfortunately it was stolen. When Kuo died at seventy, many of his secrets were still in him. (See page 92 for a sampling of Kuo's teaching. More biographic data on Kuo and other Hsing-i masters can be found in Draeger, Donn F. and Smith, Robert W. Asian Fighting Arts [Tokyo: Kodansha International Ltd., 1969].) Sung Shih-jung was born in Wan-p'ing Hsien in Hopei. He also studied Hsing-i from the great Li Neng-jan. He ran a watch shop at Tai-ku in Shansi, was an avid chess player and fan of Chinese opera, and attained a high level in Hsing-i. When he turned left in the Snake style, his right hand could catch his right heel, and turn- ing right, his left hand could catch his left heel. His turns and strikes resembled nothing so much as a snake. In the Swallow style, he would crouch close to the ground, go under a low bench, and thrust out ten feet; he also was expert in Wildcat Climbs Tree, in which he was able to jump up a wall and stick there clear of the ground for up to two minutes. Sun Lu-t'ang vouches for this and says that once in northeast China Sung was rushed by a challenger. Sung merely flapped him with his hand, and the man shot like an arrow twenty feet away. Sung was still teaching at Tai-ku, adroit as a boy, well past his eightieth birthday. (See page 91 for Sung's advice.) 12 THE NAME AND THE HISTORY