Knowledge of the founder "Dong Haichuan" that is truly important in understanding Baguazhang

Mr. Dong Haichuan's career in his younger days remains a mystery. Even with the advantage of his location and the ability to search for literature unique to China, a famous Baguazhang researcher in China was unable to identify the specifics of his career in his younger days.

"While traveling around the country and visiting famous boxers and martial artists from all over the country, sparring, interacting with, and studying with them, he met a "foreigner" in a place in northeastern China and was taught the techniques of Baguazhang. During Dong's relentless training, the principles of bodily origins based on the law of Bagua Yin Yang were established, and combined with the principles of Taoist self-cultivation, it became Baguazhang, and with the adoption of martial arts by the Qing Dynasty royal government, it developed greatly...'

This is the commonly-known process of its establishment and development.

As you can see, not much is known about the specifics and dates. Although it is a relatively new martial art that was established in the mid-1800s, most of the founder's background is unclear.

This is mainly because Dong was a low-ranking civilian.

If he had been a high-ranking official on the ruling party's side, there may have been records. However, since he was an ordinary citizen, there are no concrete records of his life.

Because Dong was a lower-class person, he was probably unable to read or write (the ruling party did not want the people to acquire knowledge that would lead to rebellious ideology, and deliberately lowered the literacy rate of the people). In fact, no documents or materials created by Dong himself that could provide clues about his life have been found.

Since there are no documents or materials, vague stories such as meeting "foreigners" and learning from them, or traveling around various countries, are told as the main story when explaining Dong's life.

Therefore, it can be said that it is extremely difficult to specifically identify the history of Dong or the early days of Baguazhang.

However, as Baguazhang practitioners, we need to be clear about our purpose in order to master the technique. If we do not specify our purpose, we cannot put together a technical system to achieve that purpose.

In order to understand Baguazhang and actually use it to protect ourselves and our loved ones, there are four points that we need to be clear about to some extent.

• Was Dong Haichuan a eunuch? If he was, why did he become a eunuch?
• What is a foreigner?
• What is the purpose of Baguazhang and what is the core of the technical system to achieve that purpose?
• When did the change from Chuanzhang to Baguazhang occur due to the Baguazhang Yin-Yang theory?

Was Dong Haichuan a eunuch? If he was, why did he become a eunuch?

Whether Dong was a eunuch or not is related to the premise on which the Chuanzhang technique system was born, so we will touch on this here.

Because he was a eunuch, his muscle strength and physique were not like that of an average man, and Chuanzhang was born from the premise of using people with disadvantaged physical resources, because this is the beginning of the Chuanzhang style of Baguazhang in the late Qing Dynasty.

Dong Haichuan was a Han Chinese, and being a Han Chinese, he was a eunuch.

It is a common belief among various schools of Baguazhang that Dong was a eunuch. When talking about Dong's career, the "Qing Dynasty Prince Su's Mansion" comes up.

The Su Imperial Palace was a prestigious family of the upper class among the Qing Dynasty royal families, and boasted a relatively large mansion located in the northeast of the Forbidden City.

The "Royal Palace" refers to the mansions of the Qing Dynasty imperial family and aristocrats who were awarded titles for their contributions to the founding of the country. In order of rank, the palaces of the Prince, the Prince, the Beiqi, the Yuezi, the Sekoku Gong, and the Fuguo Gong were all considered royal palaces.

The Su Imperial Palace was the highest-ranking "princely" palace among the royal palaces, and together with the Forbidden City harem, the Su Imperial Palace was staffed with the royal family, numerous royal concubines and female servants, and castrated male officials called eunuchs.

In the inner city, where the Forbidden City, harem, and royal palace were located, Han Chinese were not only restricted from living there, but even from staying there. Only Manchus were allowed to live and stay in the inner city, where the Forbidden City was located. Naturally, Han military officers were strictly restricted from entering (military officers with treasonous intentions were almost always prohibited from entering, as the intrusion of such officers would lead to a serious national crisis).

Mr. Dong is of Han Chinese descent. The only way for a Han Chinese man to take care of the royal family in the palace is to become a eunuch. The class system at that time was far more thorough than modern racial discrimination policies. From this point of view, it is almost certain that Mr. Dong was a eunuch.

Reasons for becoming a eunuch: due to the system of association, social advancement, and political ideology...

The reason why Mr. Dong became a eunuch cannot be confirmed in ancient documents.

There is a record on Mr. Dong's stone statue that he became a eunuch by "association." However, this is not conclusive evidence. There is almost no conclusive evidence of Mr. Dong's life and career.

From this point, Mr. Dong's status can be inferred to some extent.

First, he was of low status. And secondly, he was a Han. These are inferred from the fact that there are no records remaining that show Mr. Dong's career. If a person had a suitable position among the rulers, their name would remain in some form (for example, records related to political events, diaries, daily notes, etc.).

Even in China, rulers made up less than 10% of the total population. The overwhelming majority were commoners, who left no records. The reason there are no records of commoners is because they and their families and relatives could not write or read. Illiteracy is a typical characteristic of commoners of low status.

And despite being the founder of four generations of schools, there is no history of Dong's early life. It's all about traveling around the country... It seems that his specific history was intentionally hidden.

Even after he rose to success, he did not tell his disciples about his specific history when he was young, and only a vague biography remains. The scene where the techniques leading to Tensho were acquired is explained as having been passed down by "foreigners." These points lead to the speculation that the techniques of Tensho were established within antisocial organizations, or created by the artist himself.

The antisocial organizations at that time were remnants of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom army, local bandits, pirates, etc. After the upheaval of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, the authority of the Qing Dynasty in China was greatly lost, thieves and bandits were rampant in various places, and the spread of opium meant that the threat of "death" was a common threat in the lives of ordinary people.

Most eunuchs became eunuchs because they wanted to somehow survive a life where they didn't know what tomorrow would bring. If they were castrated and had normal male functions removed, they could enter the palace as eunuchs and get food.

It was not uncommon for people who, for some reason (mostly crime or participation in anti-social activities), had lost their ties with their community and could no longer return to their hometowns to become eunuchs to make ends meet.

There are many reasons why Dong became a eunuch, including dramatic and romantic ones and anti-Ming restoration activities based on political ideology.

However, since Dong later achieved success by creating a martial arts system with a technique that was easily adopted by the imperial court, it is assumed that he became a eunuch in order to make a living.

Who are the "foreigners"?

It is common for each school to claim that a hero from a certain era was the founder of martial arts. Examples include the theory that "Yue Fei" was the founder of Xingyiquan and the theory that "Bodhidharma" was the founder of Shaolin Kung Fu.

In that respect, the fact that Baguazhang claims its roots as "foreigners" shows the humility of those who belonged to the school. This is because it does not claim famous heroes, but anonymous "foreigners" whose existence cannot even be proven. However, even here, there is a "connotation" so that future generations can create "legends".

Foreigners are generally people who cannot be explained, cannot be proven, and whose origins are unclear. In other words, they are people who, even if they bring up a person, will not help to give authority to their school or school. A typical example is the "unknown commoner."

A certain martial arts founder may get a big hint from the technique or quirks of a completely unknown person who happens to spar with him for entertainment or socializing. He may get a hint from a quirk that a student suddenly shows while playing with local children or teaching a person with a low level of skill. It is also common for a martial arts founder to get a hint for a martial art from the predatory or hunting behavior of an animal he happens to see.

Those who explain the circumstances of the founding of Tensho have assigned the small triggers, hints, and realizations that were a great help to the founder in creating the martial art to an unknown person or event called a "foreigner," and have turned it into the "explanation of the roots," which is the most difficult part of founding a martial art or martial art.

As I will explain later, the roots of "Tensho" are the martial arts that Mr. Dong trained (based on the theory he understood after practicing Tan Huan Zhang and Shuang Huan Zhang, it is speculated to be sword arts or Fujipai Heitojutsu). They transformed the martial art into one that could be used as a decoy guard, and used it as a tool for success in the imperial court.

The reason why a martial art that even the weak could protect the royal family was born was not because they wanted to protect the royal family from the bottom of their hearts. It was created to be recognized by the royal family, to establish themselves, and to gain peace in the future.

To reveal such ambitious reasons and the trigger for its creation is not desirable in terms of increasing the authority of the martial art. Therefore, it seems that the inclusion of the mysterious and inexplicable element of "foreigners" added "authority" that makes it seem as if it was born from a major trigger such as the needs of the times, and "tradition" that makes it seem as if it is a martial art that has been passed down for generations.

What is the purpose of Baguazhang, and what is the core of the technical system that achieves that purpose?

The purpose of Chuanzhang (Bagua Zhang) is "to allow the weak to act as decoys and protect the royal family."

The purpose of Chuanzhang is "to decoy and protect the Qing Dynasty royal family and their favorite concubines."

It is very important to understand the purpose. Once the purpose is clear, the technical system of the martial art can be understood.

Martial arts that are generally rational have a technical system that is designed to achieve the purpose. The technical system realizes intermediate goals to achieve the purpose, and as a result, the "purpose" is achieved. Therefore, the technical system corresponds to the "strategy" in military science.

To sum up

Objective "To escort the Qing Dynasty royal family and their favorite concubines as a decoy" ← Intermediate goal "Keep moving and defending, sometimes suddenly slow, to attract the enemy for a certain period of time until allies arrive and become a decoy" ← Measures to achieve intermediate goal "Mobile guerrilla warfare, improving stamina to keep moving for a certain period of time, and techniques to swing around objects around you"

It becomes.

When did the change from Chuanzhang to Baguazhang occur due to the Baguazhang Yin-Yang theory?

It is well known that Master Cheng Tinghua, a great disciple of Master Dong Haichuan, was in charge of much of the instruction since Master Dong was alive. It is thought that the purpose and technical system began to change from that time.

Looking at his appearance in his later years, Master Dong is depicted as being well-built. There is no trace of the long arms and thin body described in the history of martial arts. It is possible that he practiced mobile guerrilla warfare less in his later years.

As he became famous and many disciples gathered, he established his status, and there was no longer a need to fight against many opponents in mobile guerrilla warfare. Furthermore, as his disciples grew up and taught the techniques that were in line with the martial arts that they had mastered, Master Dong's Chuanzhang gradually disappeared from the public eye.

The only time "Chuanzhang" was taught purely was when Master Dong taught many disciples directly, before Master Cheng Tinghua was trained. Master Cheng was a rare master. It was inevitable that his techniques brought about major changes to Chuanzhang.

One of the early disciples who received direct instruction from Mr. Dong moved from Beijing to Fujian Province in the south and spread Chuanzhang there. The Yang family, whose teacher was Mr. Yang, who taught me in my mid-teens, was one of the families to which it was passed down. It is possible that the ancestors of the Yang family were disciples of Mr. Dong, but Mr. Yang clearly denied this.

Unlike other Baguazhang schools that flourished in Beijing, Chuanzhang, which was passed down in the countryside of Fujian Province, has not had any technical exchange with other schools and has been passed down to the present day as the original "Chuanzhang" technical system, and by chance it was passed down to Mizuno, the representative of Shuishimen.

The birth of Baguazhang, its early days, and the path to change

The early days of "Zhuanzhang"

Field sword techniques used by the Fuji Pai Bing (the vanguard infantry with wisteria shields and swords) unit that Dong Haichuan trained in + assassination techniques used in the imperial court + martial arts that Dong Haichuan mastered (said to be "Bafanzhang" handed down in Wen'an County, but details unknown).

Because Dong was a eunuch, he created a martial art that could be used by court ladies and eunuchs in the imperial court, sold it to the royal family, and it was adopted, and he rose to prominence as a martial arts instructor. Recognized by the royal family, "Zhuanzhang" became famous as it served as the guard for the imperial court eunuchs.

There is no conclusive theory as to why he created a martial art that could be used by court ladies and eunuchs. However, since Chuan Zhang was recognized and became famous by the royal family soon after its creation, it is thought that Dong created it as a system of techniques that could be adopted and marketed it with the aim of being adopted as a martial art for guarding the palace.

These are fused together to create "Tensho"

Establishment period of "Tensho"

From the theory of Tan Huan Zhang, which is a retreat slide retreat battle against the enemy's body technique, Tan Huan Dao (the prototype stage of Tensho) is created.

Tan Huan Dao is a transitional technique, so it is not included in Tensho Sword Technique.

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Tan Huan Zhang

Tanking the good hand speed without a weapon, it is a form in which the piercing palm is struck with both hands.

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Shuang Huan Zhang

The body technique of using the whole body to manipulate the sword became Shuang Huan Zhang, which became the basic body technique for each weapon in the late Qing Dynasty Zhuan Zhang style of Baguazhang.

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Main Zhuan Zhang Styles (Xiao Zhang, Tui Zhang, Yin Yang Fish Zhang, and To Tian Zhang) developed from the theory of Tan Huan Zhang

At this time, there was no influence from the Baguazhang Yin Yang theory, so there was no fixation on the number eight, such as making the number of techniques "eight."

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Techniques against enemies in front → Shunseishou can be used

A retreat with a diagonal backward slide alone would not pose a threat to assassins or intruders, but would instead harm those who should be protected, so in order to be adopted as a guardian martial art, a form of movement against enemies in front was created by making use of a diagonal backward slide form. At this point, it fulfilled its function as a guardian martial art, and was soon adopted as the official martial art of the Qing Dynasty's Prince Su's palace.

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Turning Palm Sword Technique0RFloating Body Great Sword※It is unclear which came first

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Double Body Spear Technique

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Single Attack Style(Developed from Junshi Zhang to make it less likely to kill the momentum)

Transition from "Turning Palm" to "Bagua Zhang"

The name was changed from "Turning Palm" to "Bagua Zhang" due to the modification based on the Bagua Yin-Yang theory.

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The four main turning palm styles were replaced by eight techniques due to the Bagua Yin-Yang theory, and became the "Standard Bagua Zhang Style".

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"Lao Ba Zhang" was born, and Tan Huan Zhang and Shun Shi Zhang became the components of Lao Ba Zhang.

※ Tan Huan Zhang, Shuang Huan Zhang, Back Body Palm, Pi Shu Zhang, Shun Shi Zhang, Shun Po Zhang, Downward Exercise Palm (Katosho *different from the Downward Exercise Palm of the Standard Eight Palms), and Three Piercing Palm

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The modernization of Baguazhang accelerates. Liu Dekuan of the Cheng School of Baguazhang incorporated elements of Xingyiquan and created the 64 Baguazhang, which was passed down to all schools of Baguazhang. This was a major opportunity to move towards Baguazhang as a martial art, intended for use against one person, against strong opponents, and in matches with other schools.

The technical system of late Qing Zhuanzhang-style Baguazhang

As explained above in What is the purpose of Baguazhang and what is the core of the technical system to achieve that purpose? , the purpose of late Qing Zhuanzhang-style Baguazhang, which inherits the technical system from the time of its establishment, is different from that of modern martial art Baguazhang, which has become a modern martial art, so the technical system is fundamentally different.

In particular, the changes in Baguazhang are so different that they can be said to be completely different things because of the difference in purpose. Please take a good look at the table below showing the differences in style.

For those who have not yet advanced in training, it may seem that the ``diagonal rear slide retreat battle'' and the ``front enemy irregular step attack'' are not that different in appearance, but they do not make much difference.

However, the difference between the two within the same school is too great. This is not a matter of which is right and which is wrong. It is a special example that shows that even the same martial arts school can become something different if the purpose changes.

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