A Short History Of Hsing-I Chuan

Although there is no agreement among historians and authorities on the subject as to the origin of Hsing-I Chuan, available documents suggest that the origin of Hsing-I Chuan should be dated at least as far back as the Liang Dynasty (ca.550 AD).

Chi Lung-Feng is often credited with being the founder of Hsing-I Chuan. This writer believes that it is more likely he was responsible for standardizing the Art. Born or residing at or near Shanghai in the late Ming Dynasty, he supposedly learned it from a wandering Taoist boxer in the Chung-Nan Mountains. Chi, an expert Pugilist and Spear Master, passed his art to Ts'ao Chi-Wu, who was to become the commanding general of Shansi Province in the K'ang Hsi reign of the Ch'ing Dynasty, and to Ma Hsueh-Li. Tsao Chi Wu taught the Tai brothers who taught Li Neng Jan who taught Kuo Yun Shen ('Divine Crushing Fist'). It was the students of Kuo Yun Shen who were most responsible for the proliferation of Hsing-I Chuan.

During the late Southern Song Dynasty, Hsing-I Chuan was taught to the soldiers in Marshall Yueh Fei's army, and due to the Art's popularity, Marshall Yueh is also credited with being the founder of the Art.

Due to its Taoist heritage, and to the fact that the Five Fists of Hsing-I Chuan are found in Wudang Tai-Chi Chuan, many Hsing-I practitioners believe that Hsing-I, like Tai Chi Chuan, also originated at the Wudang Mountains.

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Last modified: August 2017