Yang Beijing and Yang (Pai) Kuang P'ing

Commentary by D. D. Harrington (http://www2.gol.com/users/ddh/index.html)

YANG BEIJING AND YANG (PAI) KUANG P'ING

The movements of the Beijing style are known for a large transfer of weight from the back leg to the front leg creating - the bow stance- an elongated weight shift between Yin and Yang in the foot work ( a stance commonly found in Shaolin). It is also distinguished by large upper body circular movements which, in some instances, complete parts of movements present in the Kuang P'ing set. Another major difference between the Kuang P'ing and Beijing sets is that the Kuang P'ing set emphasizes a shift to the center between front and back legs as in single whip and push. Over time, this concentration on finding the center between the legs develops delicate sensitivity in the shifts between the legs. It, also, forces the back leg to maintain a roundness that allows the hips to be open. This is in keeping with the movements in the Chen style of old and is present in Chen today. Additionally, Kuang P'ing uses small spiral circles within and in tandem with large circles.

The classic by Wang, Tsun-yue referred to as the Lun (Kung Hsin Chieh) says not to leave the circle and not to leave the square. How to achieve the square in the circle is left to the student to discern. There is a very important distinction in the way the feet work with the upper body in the practice of the Kuang P'ing set. It is generally necessary that up and down motions of the arms coincide with the transfer of weight from one leg to another when stepping through (embrace tiger return to mountain/monkey) while horizontal movements are done with both feet touching the ground. This allows for the horizontal motion to have foundation and the front leg to revolve so that a continuous spiral motion can be brought into play. At any point of the circle the square can be used: in striking, to advance, to retreat or to bring an opposite spiral movement into action.

In an encounter with another person the up and down motion is often used to put the other person off balance, stop an opponent from striking or set one up for a strike. The horizontal motion cuts crosswise and is used to break up another's defenses so that a strike may be issued. It must be understood that both the up and down motion and horizontal motion will in the end development be one quality-inwardly distinguishable and outwardly indistinguishable. The key here is how the weak may overcome the strong and how four ounces may topple ten thousand pounds. One has to think of the derailment of a train and at what point the twisting motion in the compartment connections break the forward motion of the train and derails it. In this situation a weaker force is applied to overcome a stronger force through the use of square attention on an exact point while in spiral motion.

Kuo, Lien-ying's chronicle on Tai Chi makes clear that no matter what style one practices all forms of Tai Chi must conform to the classic qualities of the art as they have been recorded throughout history. This means there is only one Tai Chi Chuan. These qualities are referred to as the Ba-gua (8) gates and Wu-hsing (Five Elemental Phases of Change) steps. Together they constitute Tai Chi's 13 movements.