Wu-style t'ai chi ch'uan

Wu-style t'ai chi ch'uan
(吳氏太極拳)

Wu Yanxia in the posture Grasp Bird's Tail during a form demonstration in Toronto, 1995

Wu Yanxia in the posture Grasp Bird's Tail during a form demonstration in Toronto, 1995
Also known as Wu-style taijiquan
Wu family taijiquan
Wu school of taijiquan
Wu-shi taijiquan
Ng Style Tai Chi
Date founded late 19th century
Country of origin China
Founder Wu Jianquan
Current head Wu Guangyu
5th gen. Wu
Arts taught T'ai chi ch'uan
Ancestor arts Yang-style taijiquan
Practitioners Wu Quanyou,
Wu Gongyi,
Ma Yueh-liang (馬岳樑),
Wu Yanxia
Official website WuStyle.com

The Wu family style (Chinese: 吳家 or 吳氏; pinyin: wújiā or wúshì) t'ai chi ch'uan (Taijiquan) of Wu Quanyou and Wu Chien-ch'uan (Wu Jianquan) is the second most popular form of t'ai chi ch'uan in the world today, after the Yang style,[1] and fourth in terms of family seniority.[2] This style is different from the Wu style of t'ai chi ch'uan (武氏) founded by Wu Yu-hsiang. While the names are distinct in pronunciation (Chinese: 武氏; pinyin: wǔshì) and the Chinese characters used to write them are different, they are often romanized the same way.

History

Wu Quanyou was a military officer cadet of Manchu ancestry in the Yellow Banner camp (see Qing Dynasty Military) in the Forbidden City, Beijing and also a hereditary officer of the Imperial Guards Brigade.[3] At that time, Yang Lu-ch'an was the martial arts instructor in the Imperial Guards, teaching t'ai chi ch'uan, and in 1850 Wu Ch'uan-yu became one of his students.[2]

In 1870, Wu Ch'uan-yu was asked to become the senior disciple of Yang Pan-hou, Yang Lu-ch'an's oldest adult son, and an instructor as well to the Manchu military.[1][2] Wu Ch'uan-yu had three primary disciples: his son Wu Chien-ch'uan, Wang Mao Zhai and Guo Fen.[4]

Wu Ch'uan-yu's son, Wu Chien-ch'uan, and grandchildren: grandsons Wu Kung-i and Wu Kung-tsao as well as granddaughter Wu Ying-hua were well known teachers.[3]

Wu Chien-ch'uan became the most widely known teacher in his family, and is therefore considered the co-founder of the Wu style by his family and their students.[5] He taught large numbers of people and his refinements to the art more clearly distinguish Wu style from Yang style training.[5]

Wu Chien-ch'uan moved his family south from Beijing (where an important school founded by other students of his father is headquartered, popularly known as the Northern Wu style) to Shanghai in 1928, where he founded the Chien-ch'uan T'ai Chi Ch'uan Association (鑑泉太極拳社) in 1935.[3]

Wu Kung-i then moved the family headquarters to Hong Kong in 1948.
His younger sister Wu Ying-hua and her husband, Ma Yueh-liang (Ma Yueliang, 馬岳樑, 1901-1999), stayed behind to manage the original Shanghai school.[6]
Between 1983 and her death in 1996 Wu Ying-hua was the highest-ranked instructor in the Wu family system. Her descendants continue teaching and today manage the Shanghai school as well as schools in Europe:

Wu Kung-i's children were also full-time martial art teachers:

T'ai chi ch'uan lineage tree with Wu-style focus

Note:


Key:NEIJIA
Solid linesDirect teacher-student.
Dot linesPartial influence
/taught informally
/limited time.
TAIJIQUAN
Dash linesIndividual(s) omitted.
Dash crossBranch continues.CHEN-STYLEZhaobao-style
YANG-STYLE
(王蘭亭)
Wang Lanting
1840–?
2nd gen. Yang
(杨健侯)
Yang Jianhou
1839–1917
2nd gen. Yang
2nd gen. Yangjia Michuan
(杨班侯)
Yang Banhou
1837–1892
2nd gen. Yang
2nd gen.
Guang Ping Yang
Yang Small Frame
WU (HAO)-STYLEZhaobao He-style
Li-style(杨少侯)
Yang Shaohou
1862–1930
3rd gen. Yang
Yang Small Frame
(吴全佑)
Wu Quanyou
1834–1902
1st gen. Wu
(齊閣臣)
Qi Gechen
2nd gen. Wu
(夏公甫)
Xia Gongfu
2nd gen. Wu
(吴鉴泉)
Wu Jianquan
1870–1942
2nd gen. Wu
WU-STYLE
108 Form
(常遠亭)
Chang Yuanting
1860–1918
2nd gen. Wu
(郭松亭)
Guo Songting
2nd gen. Wu
(王茂齋)
Wang Maozhai
1862–1940
2nd gen. Wu
SUN-STYLE
(董英杰)
Dong Yingjie
1891–1960
4th gen. Yang
(齊敏軒)
Qi Minxuan
3rd gen. Wu
(鄭榮光)
Cheng Wing Kwong
1903–1967
3rd gen. Wu
(吴英华)
Wu Yinghua
1907–1997
3rd gen. Wu
(吴公儀)
Wu Gongyi
1900–1970
3rd gen. Wu
(吴公藻)
Wu Gongzao
1903–1983
3rd gen. Wu
(马岳梁)
Ma Yueliang
1901–1998
3rd gen. Wu
(杨禹廷)
Yang Yuting
1887–1982
3rd gen. Wu
(鄭天熊)
Zheng Tianxiong
1930–2005
Wudang-style
(吴大揆)
Wu Dakui
1923–1972
4th gen. Wu
(吴雁霞)
Wu Yanxia
1930–2001
4th gen. Wu
(吴大新)
Wu Daxin
1933–2005
4th gen. Wu
Li Liqun
1924–2013
4th gen. Wu
(王培生)
Wang Peisheng
1919–2004
4th gen. Wu
(吴光宇)
Wu Guangyu
1946–Present
5th gen. Wu
(骆舒焕)
Luo Shuhuan
1935–1987
5th gen. Wu
CHEN-STYLEYANG-STYLEWU-STYLESUN-STYLEWU (HAO)-STYLE

Training

The Wu style's distinctive hand form, pushing hands and weapons trainings emphasize parallel footwork and horse stance training with the feet relatively closer together than the modern Yang or Chen styles, small circle hand techniques (although large circle techniques are trained as well) and differs from the other t'ai chi family styles martially with Wu style's initial focus on grappling, throws (shuai chiao), tumbling, jumping, footsweeps, pressure point leverage and joint locks and breaks, which are trained in addition to more conventional t'ai chi sparring and fencing at advanced levels.[5]

Generational senior instructors of the Wu family t'ai chi ch'uan schools

1st Generation

2nd generation

3rd Generation

4th Generation

5th Generation

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 Yip, Y. L. (Autumn 2002). "Pivot". Qi, The Journal of Traditional Eastern Health and Fitness (Insight Graphics Publishers) 12 (3). ISSN 1056-4004.
  2. 1 2 3 Wile, Douglas (1995). Lost T'ai-chi Classics from the Late Ch'ing Dynasty (Chinese Philosophy and Culture). State University of New York Press. ISBN 978-0791426548.
  3. 1 2 3 Wu, Kung-tsao (2006) [1980]. Wu Family T'ai Chi Ch'uan (吳家太極拳). Chien-ch’uan T’ai-chi Ch’uan Association. ISBN 0-9780499-0-X.
  4. Zhang, Tina (2006). Classical Northern Wu Style Tai Ji Quan. Berkeley, California: Blue Snake Books. ISBN 978-1583941546.
  5. 1 2 3 Philip-Simpson, Margaret (June 1995). "A Look at Wu Style Teaching Methods". T’AI CHI The International Magazine of T’ai Chi Ch'uan (Wayfarer Publications) 19 (3). ISSN 0730-1049.
  6. Li, Liqun (October 1998). "A Remembrance of Ma Yueh-liang". T’AI CHI The International Magazine of T’ai Chi Ch’uan (Wayfarer Publications) 22 (5). ISSN 0730-1049.
  7. Cai, Naibiao (2006). "In Memory of Wu Daxin". Journal of Asian Martial Arts (Via Media Publishing) 15 (1). ISSN 1057-8358.

External links

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