Random Thoughts
BEIJING TRAINING DIARY – APRIL
Apart from continuing with my own training, due to the relatively long (3 day) public holiday for Labour Day in China, I was able to take advantage of the break to meet two taiji teachers Read more…
Random Thoughts
Beijing Training Diary (March) – The Dachengquan / Yiquan Divide
Training-wise don’t have much to report for March due to being sent to Henan for a work project for several weeks (nowhere near taiji’s fabled Chen Village or Shaolin temple unfortunately!). However, I did manage Read more…
Random Thoughts
Beijing Training Diary – February
Having recently moved to Beijing for work, I have decided to start a training diary, mostly as an exercise in self-discipline. As most of the month was taken up with the miscellaneous yet important errands that come along with Read more…
Taijiquan
Reminiscences of Chen Fake’s Early Student Yang Yichen
（The following is a translation of an article that first appeared in the August 2010 issue of Wuhun magazine) When discussing the modern development of Chen style taijiquan, now generally speaking people start from Chen Read more…
Taijiquan
Stories of Dong Yingjie’s teacher, Hao style master Li Baoyu
In the taiji community many people know that Tung family taiji comes from the teacher Dong [Tung] Yingjie, who was a top student of the famous Yang style master Yang Chengfu. However, it is not Read more…
Dai Style Xinyi
Talking Fists Podcast – Interview with Jon Dyer (Dai style Xinyi)
Apologies for the lack of posts this year, like many of my readers I have been caught up dealing with the Covid-19 bug which has hit so many countries all over the world. Hope all Read more…
China Trips
Xingyi Roots Series – Dai Style Xinyiquan
Xingyi Roots Series – Dai Style Xinyiquan Anyone who has studied the history of Xingyiquan (形意拳) will know that the ancestor art to modern Xingyi is Dai style Xinyiquan (戴氏心意拳), where the name of the Read more…
China Trips
Xingyi Roots Series – Shanxi XYQ – Song family visit
Of course, as a student of Song style a visit to Taigu would not be complete without reporting in to the Song family courtyard to get corrections from the Song family. They very kindly allowed Read more…
China Trips
Xingyi Roots Series – Shanxi XYQ – Che Style in Taigu
Thanks to an introduction from a Song style kungfu brother (shixiong) who lives in Taigu, our group had the privilege of meeting several of the local teachers of Che style xingyi. As Che style is Read more…
China Trips
Xingyi Roots Series – Hebei Xingyiquan – Tang Shengjun
The next teacher in our Xingyi Roots series was Tang Shengjun, whose great-grandfather, Tang Weilu, was another prominent disciple of Li Cunyi. After being forgotten for most of the 20th century, Tang was again catapulted Read more…