Baguazhang

Bāguàzhǎng is one of the major "internal" (a.k.a. Nèijiā) Chinese martial arts.

Bāguà zhǎng literally means "eight trigram palm," referring to the trigrams of the I Ching (Yijing), one of the canons of Taoism.

History
The creation of Baguazhang, as a formalised martial art, is attributed to Dong Haichuan (董海川) in the early 19th century, who apparently learned from Taoist, and possibly Buddhist, masters in the mountains of rural China. There is evidence to suggest a synthesis of several pre-existing martial arts taught and practiced in the region in which he lived, combined with Taoist circle walking. Dong Haichuan taught for many years in Beijing, eventually earning patronage by the Imperial court.

Famous disciples of Dong to become teachers were Yin Fu (尹福), Cheng Tinghua (程廷華), Song Changrong (宋長榮), Liu Fengchun (劉鳳春), Ma Weiqi (馬維棋), Liang Zhenpu(梁振蒲) and Liu Dekuan (刘德宽). Although they were all students of the same teacher, their methods of training and expressions of palm techniques differed. The Cheng and Liu styles are said to specialize in "Pushing" the palms, Yin style is known for "Threading" the palms, Song's followers practice "Plum Flower" (梅花 Mei Hua) palm technique and Ma style palms are known as "Hammers." Some of Dong Haichuan's students, including Cheng Tinghua, participated in the Boxer Rebellion. In general, most Bagua practitioners practice either the Yin (尹), Cheng (程), or Liang (梁) styles of Baguazhang, although Fan (樊), Shi (史), Liu (劉), Fu (傅), and other styles also exist. (The Liu style is a special case, in that it is rarely practiced alone, but as a complement to other styles.)

Of all of Dong Haichuan's students, Yin Fu studied with him the longest. Some practitioners of the Yin style say that Yin was the only disciple to learn both the entire Bagua fighting and healing systems of Dong Haichuan.

Styles List

 * Yin Style
 * Cheng Style
 * Liang Style
 * Gao Style
 * Fu Style
 * Shi Style
 * Yin Yang Style (i.e. Tian style)

Common Aspects
The practice of circle walking, or 'Turning the Circle', as it is sometimes called, is baguazhang's characteristic method of stance and movement training. Practitioners walk around the edge of a circle in various stances, facing the center, and periodically change direction as they execute forms. Students first learn flexibility through such exercises, then move on to more complex forms and internal power mechanics. The internal aspects of baguazhang are very similar to those of xingyi and tai chi.

Many distinctive styles of weapons are contained within baguazhang, including the uniquely crescent-shaped deerhorn knives, and the easily concealed "scholar's pen." Baguazhang is also known for practicing with extremely large weapons, such as the Bāguàdāo (八卦刀), or 'Bagua Broadsword.'

Baguazhang contains an extremely wide variety of techniques, including various strikes, low kicks, joint techniques, throws, and distinctively circular footwork.