WUDANG QUAN YUAN-WUDANG KUNGFU CENTER (Lucca, Italy)

 Yin Fu springing palms

The Yin Fu school is  characterized by two different lines  called Xiaojia ("Small structure") and Dajia ("Great Structure"). Yin Fu (1841-1909)  was a big fighter even before to know the Founder of the Baguazhang, Dong Haichuan, being specialized in some schools of Shaolin as tantui ("Springing Kicks ") and Paochui ("cannonade Hits"). When he knew Dong, the young Yin Fu immediately recognized the superiority of the movement and of the palm-play of Dong and became his best student. He covered this role for almost all the life of the teacher until, for a family accident (he  re-married against Dong's wish ), he fell in disgrace and  was replaced by Cheng Tinghua in the graces of the teacher. In the history of the Chinese Kungfu he is introduced as the most important student of Dong , followed later immediately by Cheng Tinghua.

YIN FU (1841-1909).

Master Zhu Baozhen writes that in the beginning Yin Fu wanted only to practise the techniques of kick and palm of  Bagua and didn't appreciate to study the movement around the circle typical of the Baguazhang. Dong "a lot of times  told him to practise every thing but he didn't have desire of it. He responded despising Bagua Lianhuan Zhang ("The Eight Diagrams Palms in Continuous Series  ").  Mr. Dong, hiding his feelings and his intentions, faced him saying: "If you still despise them, you won't have your teeth anymore! ". Yin Fu, incessantly laughed as before. Suddenly Dong struck him using two fingers, making to fall him the two incisive. Yin Fu was absolutely amazed and since then he applied himself completely to the study of  Baguazhang."

Zhu Baozhen and Loriano Belluomini

He became excellent in the use of  Bagua, his palms were compared to pellets and he were famous for the use of the two fingers. The principal technique of the Yin style  is Chuan Zhang, "penetrating palms" and it differs from the Cheng school  for the fact that doesn't have "Single Change" and "Double Change"; it has on the contrary Chong Zhang, "direct palm" and Kai Zhang, "palm that opens"; besides its footwork is smaller and fast than the style Cheng footwork. There are  64 consecutive palms going around the circle and they differentiate themselves from the Cheng school palms because they almost everytime enter the circle, representing more realistically the fighting use of  Bagua. At variance with the Cheng style , and due to the original ability in the "springing kicks ", the  Yin-Xiaojia school also introduces an exceptional series of techniques of kicking, sweeping etc.; the same palm form  is different, as it can be seen by the photo under. The Cheng school , that uses the "Dragon Palm  " as the Xingyiquan,  holds the  thumb well open and the other  fingers separated; the Yin school , that uses the "Ox tongue Palm ",  holds the thumb open but closed toward the center of the palm (apart Xie Peiqi that  holds it closed, supported to the center of the palm) and the  other fingers shut together as to form the point of a spear. The footsteps are more natural that the ones in the Cheng school , there is not emphasis on to rub the foot on the ground but  the stepping has to be small and fast. It doesn't exist a true " kou bu" that it is so characteristic of the Cheng school . Another curious difference is in the terminology. The palms of the Yin school  are called YING ZHANG ("hard Palms"), those of the Cheng school  "ROU ZHANG" ("soft Palms"); the single techniques of palm simply are called in the Cheng school  "Palms" ("First palm... eighth palm") while in the Yin school  it is used the term SHI ("Positions"): "First position--- eighth position". Despite this and for love of simplicity also in the Yin school   the techniques are defined ZHANG today, "Palms."

The Yin school position. The thumb is a little closed toward the palm centre ("Ox tongue palm") ( a picture that  Zhu Baozhen gave me).

There is a series of 12 kicks (called Bagua lianhuan tui) that  originate from the Shaolin Tantui, and are performed holding the hands widened to the two sides and that are found again  in the forms. These kicks are: BAI, "kick toward the outside" (the Lotus kick also present in  Taijiquan), KOU, "kick toward the inside", TI, " point kick  ", QU, called also CHUANXIN TUI, "kick that pierces the heart", also given using the point but with the foot externally rotated, DOU that is a sweeping kick , BENG that is given to the front using the external edge of the foot, FAN that is given using the foot externally rotated and that  uses for striking "the heart" of the foot(i.e. the plant), CHUAI a kick side using the heel, PI ("to break") that it strikes  ahead with the heel, HOU DENG TUI (GUN TUI) a heel kick   toward the back, JIE ("to intercept") that it uses downward the plant of the foot and finally QIE ("to cut"), given downward with the external edge of the foot. To these DIAN TUI is added, kick given " to touch by the foot point" and a series of other kicks.

BENG TUI performed by a young Zhu Baozhen's student	HOU DENG TUI

As in the Cheng school , so also the Yin school  has contents that  almost vary from teacher to teacher. For instance Xie Peiqi has an  extremely complex system based on Eight Animals, very focused on the power, and his school belongs to the classification "Dajia" or "Great structure" that  privileges the hardness. Another school that has a series of Eight Animals is that one of Gong Baotian. These Eight Animals  are very different from those of Xie Peiqi and this school ( classified as "Xiaojia") it appears a lot "flowery". Belonging to the "Small structure" there is also the school of Zhu Baozhen that it appears however very more dynamic, springing and essential (this is true for the Yin school  since Zhu also teaches the Cheng school  and his "taolus" are some mixed ones even if they have the tendency to privilege the  Yin Fu palms ). 
Here we will give a look to the contents exposed by the various masters of the past(cfr. Wuhun 4/1994:18-20): 

YIN YUZHANG ( Yin Fu's fourth son): Eight Great Palms (BA Da Zhang): 1) (diyi shi ) HUAN ZHANG (palm change)  2)  DA ZHANG (contacting palm), KAI ZHANG (opening palm)  3) CHUAN ZHANG (penetrsating palms), PU ZHANG (throwing palms), TUO ZHANG (lifting palms), TIAN ZHANG (blocking palms)   4) TIAO ZHANG (springing up palms ), ZHEN ZHANG (smashing palms), YE ZHANG (striking toward the inside-low palm), LIAO ZHANG (going up palm)   5) CHONG ZHANG (straight hitting palm), QIE ZHANG (cutting palm), TUI ZHANG (pushing palm)   6) JIE ZHANG (intercepting palm), XUE ZHANG (cutting palm), ZHA ZHANG (splitting palm), SHUAI ZHANG (throwing palm), PI ZHANG (slapping palm), BAO ZHANG (embracing palm)   7) BI ZHANG (sealing palm), TAN ZHANG (fingering palm), KAO ZHANG (knocking palm)   8) JI ZHANG (pressing palm), ZHUANG ZHANG (knocking together palms). Beside these, PEI XIRONG wrote a book called Bagua Sanshou 64 lu that presents 64 duilian taught by Yin Yuzhang; I studied some of these in Shanghai under Pei Wujun,  Pei Xirong's son.

Yin Fu fourth son, Yin Yuzhang	Xie Peiqi, inside home (in a picture he gave me).

GONG BAOTIAN(1871-1943): According to Liu Yunjiao(dead some years ago in Taiwan) he had eight changes with the same names of the Cheng school: 1) DANHUAN ZHANG    2) SHUANGHUAN ZHANG   3) ZHUANSHEN ZHANG  4) FANSHEN ZHANG   5) SANCHUAN ZHANG   6) BEISHEN ZHANG   7) SHUANGZHUANG ZHANG   8) YAOSHEN ZHANG. I have seen the palms performance on some Adam Hsu's videos  and they seem very similar to those of the Cheng school; further, this school has:XIAO KAIMEN ("Little Door-opening"- an introductory form), BIANHUA ZHANG (changing palms- in wich the palms are performed in several combinations), LIANHUAN ZHANG (idem), TUISHOU, DUILIAN SANSHOU ZHANG; weapons include ZIWU YUANYANG YUE (half-moon double swords), PANGUAN BI ( " the judge brushes"), DAO ( broadsword), JIAN (straight sword), QIANG (spear), GOU (hooks).  GONG BAOZHAI (another Gong Baotian student  living in Taiwan) teaches differently:  1) BA ZHANG QUAN  2) BA MU ZHANG   3) SIXIANG  4) LIANGYI; weapons: JIAN, DAO, GUN, QIANG ; furthermore he teaches some external forms: Bagua Pao chui and Eight Bagong Quan (entitled according the Diagrams) . Very interesting appears also the   HUANG ZHICHENG's system, (he is a  Sun Ruwen ( 1896-1984)student,; Sun was a  Gong Baotianstudent); here the hands are open as in the Cheng school and he teaches  QIANGUA BAGUAZHANG (Ba neigua-Qianzi men), i.e.  the Diagram QIAN (Heaven)Bagua:the palm-names are: CHUAN ZHANG, TAN ZHANG, LIAO ZHANG, FAN ZHANG, MO ZHANG, TUI ZHANG, BAO ZHANG, TUO ZHANG.                                                                                                                                                                   

CAO ZHONGSHENG (1865-1949): In 1942 his student Lu Jinkui wrote the book Caoshi Baguazhang in wich he exposed 64 Palms; furthermore he quoted Luohan Quan and Paochui as forms practiced by Yin Fu; weapons: Bagua jian, Qixing gan (7 Stars stick), Yinyuang yue (half-moon swords), Panguan bi (judge brushes), Shiba jie dao ( 18 cutting broadsword ), Hutou shuanggou (tiger head hooks), Qinglong dao (Green Dragon broadsword), Daqiang (great spear). His student  Chi Shixin is bringing on this art.

 HE JINKUI. Son in law of Yin Fu and his student. He had two sons, He Zhongqi and He Zhongxiang.  His taolu were: Paochui,Mianquan (Boxe mild as cotton), Baguazhang 64 shi, 72 sanshou zhang. Weapons: Bagua zhuandao (broadsword), lianhuan dao, Zilu dao, Chunqiu dao, Simen qiang ( 4 Directions spear), Bagua zhuanqiang , Shuangtou she ("Two heads snake" =two points spear), Fangbian chaan ("expedient-shovel), Lujue dao (deer horn broadsword = ziwu yuanyang yue ? ). Qixing gan (7 Star stick), Panguan bi (  Judge brushes ). Note: Zhu Baozhen studied under He Zhongqi and He Zhongxiang, therefore his program comes from this  Yin Fu branch.       

MEN BAOZHEN (1873-1958):  Xie Peiqi's teacher. Tauhgt 8 Animals :  Dragon = Tuo zhang, the style I studied under  Xie Peiqi ) ; Bear = Beishen zhang  , Snake = Shunshi zhang ; Lion = Zhangxie zhang ;  Phoenix = Fenglun zhang ; Cock = Woshi zhang ; Unicorn = Fanshen zhang ; Monkey = Baoshi zhang . Furthermore: Luohan Quan and the tecniques of liberation from qinna captures . Weapons: Yuanyang yue;  Qixing gan, Panguan bi, Lujue   bàng (Deer horn stick), Zilu zhuanhuan dao, Zhuan jian, Zhuan qiang (spear), Tang (?bell? drum? ).

Unfortunately in time many things were lost, as said Guo Yi, a martial art scholar in Beijing who wrote: " Regretfully, there are very few complete systems of Baguazhang left. In the Yin style, many of the Baguazhang skills are lost and thus it ius very difficult to give a complete and detailed description of Yin Fu's Baguazhang. Take the Luohanquan shiba tang as an example. This was an important training method in Yin system, however, if the old men of the fourth and fifth generations of Baguazhang get together today, they can only work out four or five of the 18 routines as taught by Yin" (Pa Kua Chang Journal 4/1, 1993,p.7 with some name adaptations).The same it is true for Paochui ("Cannon-punches"). Fortunately enough this form still lives in the  Fu Zhensong system (Paoquan, wrongly heard as Baoquan-Leopard quan, as in Taiji the basic form Lanzhayi was changed in Lanquewei ).In the Fu Zhensong program there are other forms that seem to go back to this school: For instance Bagua simian qiang , possibly the same as Simen qiang (cfr He Jinkui) and many techniques that use Fanshen (body overturning) similar to the  Dragon movements that I studied under   Xie Peiqi or the heel stepping that seems go back to Ma Gui, the most famous Yin Fu's student.

In pages to follow we will talk of the Zhu Baozhen program .

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