COVER STORY
Poetry
In Motion
Taijiquany an ancient, elegant Chine martial art recently listed as a world intangible cultural heritage, is increasingly popular
at home and abroad
By Xia Yuanyuan
D resd in a w hite silk Toijiquan uniform, 23-year-old
Halvin Pierre Junior Bessayi goes through the flowing
quences of the ancient martial art emingly in a mov
ing meditation.
“It m akes me feel harm ony with nature and people，” he told ChinAfrica.
As a student from Gabon who is studying for his m aster^ degree in diplomacy at China Foreign Affairs University, Bessayi has encountered various aspects of Chine culture during his time in the country, one of which is Taijiquan.
“Since childhood，I have en amazing action movies starring Bruce Lee, Jackie Chan and Jet Li, and I w as always curious to learn Chine martial arts," he said. Once he arrived in China in 2017, he cho Taijiquan as an additional cour to realize his dream of mastering the techniques of Chine martial arts.
In recent years, Taijiquan, also known as Tai Chi or Chine boxing, a traditional Chine martial art, has becom e a well- know n physical exerci worldwide. On D ecem ber 17, 2020, it w as added to UNESCO's Reprentative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.
*1 felt proud when I heard the news. Its inclusion [in the UNESCO list] is of great significance to the promotion of w ushu (martial arts), and especially Taijiquan, globally,w said Bessayi.
Origin of Taijiquan
Taijiquan is a major division of Chine martial arts. Literally, it m eans Tai - supreme, ji - ultimate and quart - fist.
记载拼音There have been different stories about the origin of the martial art. A traditional legend goes that a w i man, Zhang Sanfeng, during the Song Dynasty (960-1279) developed Taijiquan after he had witnesd a fight between a sparrow and a snake.
The other story about its origin goes back to the mid-17th century in Chenjiagou, a village in Wenxian County in central China s Henan Province. It is said that a retired general and village head named Chen Wangting combined his kungfu training with elem ents of Chine philosophy to create Chen style Taijiquan. Popular belief holds that many m odern styles of Taijiquan have been derived from the Chen style. Wenxian is listed as Taijiquan's birthplace on the UNESCO website.
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m. M
People practice Taijiquan in front
of the Taijiquan Ancestral Shrine in
Chenjiagou Village of Wenxian County,
Henan Province, on April 27, 2017
王欣瑶Taijiquan master Ma Honglin (front) teaches enthusiasts to practice Taijiquan in Cangzhou City of north China's Hebei Province, on July 27, 2014
A part from the Chen style, the m ost famous forms of Taijiquan practiced today also include Yang, Wu, Woo and Sun styles. All the five styles have Ihe sam e origin and sh are m any sim ilarities. However, each style has its own unique characteristics and emphasizes a particular aspect of movement.
Nowadays, when most people talk about Taijiquan, they are usually referring to the Yang style, which has already spread throughout the world and is practiced by millions of people.Soft but deep strength
Bessayi said Taijiquan is different from what he imagined before he started to practice it.In his mind, Chine kungfu is pow erful, fast and aggressive, like a tiger, and it is about glamor and razzle-dazzle. However, after his arrival in China and w andering around campus, he saw a number of older people practicing Taijiquan in slow synchronized movements.4<I stopped and watched their movements cloly. It fascinated me, and the veiy next day at registration time, I rushed to the admin office to choo it as my additional cour," Bessayi told ChinAft ica.
Taijiquan s basic m ovem ents cen ter on wubu (five steps) and bafa (eight techniques) with a ries of routines, exercis and tuishou (hand-pushing skills, performed w ith a counterpart).
Influenced by Taoism, Confucian thought and theories of traditional Chine medicine, Taijiquan is considered as an internal martial art, utilizing the internal energy, or qi, and following the simple principle of "subduing the vigorous by the soft.M The martial art emphasizes the yin and yang cycle (balance of negative and positive) which express the continuous flow of energy in a circular motion that generates two opposite forces, plus and minus, which interact and balance w ith each other to bring existence to the physical and metaphysical world.
Benefits for mental and physical health
In m odern society, Taijiquan is popular becau people are eking longevity, stress reduction and improved health through the mind-body exercis.
“Especially in larger cities, people are constantly distracted and stresd. They need to keep calm and relaxed by practicing Taijiquan. This sort of slow-paced lifestyle is good for both mental and physical health,” said Chen Sitan, founder and Chairman of tlie Tai Chi Qigong Association of America (TCQAA), in an interview with Xinhua.Involving slow m ovem ents and deep breaths, Taijiq
王克迪
uan has many physical and emotional benefits, which include decrea in anxiety and depression and improvements in cognition. It may also help to manage symptoms of some chronic dias.
Taijiquan is an internal martial art. It is a state of mind and a source of power and inspiration.It reflects the beauty of Chine culture.
BEDIS ZOUITEN
菊花插件
A Taijiquan instructor from Tunisia
such as chronic obstructive pulm onary dia, according to the TCQAA.
In South Africa, Taijiquan has num erous followers as it is believed to boost the im m une system , low er blood pressure, relieve stress and im prove balance and coordination.
Abdul Kader Baynes, President of the South Africa Taijiquan Authority, said that in the country people are increasingly suffering from dias such as diabetes, as well as joint pains, especially the youth.' People should learn the wellness exerci [Tai/iquan]. Anybody can do it and anybody can benefit from it,” he said.
抱枕的做法More than a t of martial art skills and kicking and punching, the discipline is a mental process.
For Moussa Paul Korongo, a 28-year-old student from Mali, practicing Taijiquan is a way to integrate the body and mind. “In pursuing the wholeness of the lf through Taijiquan, I learned perverance, forbearance, and focus," he told ChinAfrica.
中国古装色倩片A door to Chine culture
For 18-year-old Kenyan Derrick Okuku and dozens of other youths at the Children Garden Home and School in Nairobi, Capital of Kenya, Taijiquan means a chance to learn about the Chine culture.
Okuku had little knowledge about China before his kungfu teacher Li Hao's visit. In 2018, Li became a volunteer with the TUNZA Africa International Volunteer (T A T V ) group, an information platform for Chine youth to get oppoitunities to volunteer and internship in Africa. After ai riving at the Children Garden Home and School, Li w as tasked with designing a cour for local students. Having practiced Taijiquan for many years,
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February 2021
A Taijiquan master from China's Donghua University teaches students Taijiquan at Moi University in Eldoret, Kenya, on March 30, 2015
the 22-year-old young man cho to teach the martial art.
"Taijiquan is a shortcut for local young people to understand Chine culture. It*s not simply a sport, but the Chine culture, philosophy, and hum anitarian ideals are all imprinted in the art," Li told ChinAJrica.In Umisia the martial ait also opens doors for people to learn Chine culture. In the country’s capital Tunis, Bedis Zouiten is known as one of the most talented Taijiquan instructors in Africa. He acquired the skills from disciples of influential Chine mas ters, and now, for over two decades, Zouiten has been training adepts across Tunisia."Taijiquan is an internal martial art. It is a state of mind and a source of power and inspiration. It reflects the beauty of Chine culture," he told CGTN.
Practitioners com e from many regions and social backgrounds. Zouiten believes that he s spreading peace thi ough the martial art. "Any man, woman or child on earth can learn Taijiquan. This discipline gives power and lf-confidence. The praction- ers reject violence becau they can control the feeling of anger through the dissipation of negative energy," he said.
Innovative way of promotion
In an c ie n t tim e s, th e in h e rita n c e of Taijiquan w as carried out strictly through transmission from the masters to their disciples. However, today, China has taken measures to promote the martial art.
The Chine Government and schools work together to improve the popularity of the traditional Chine maitial aits on school cam pus. In Xi an Jiaotong University, Taijiquan is a compulsory class.
Wang Yunbing, Director of Xi'an Jiaotong University^ sports center, said, "Taijiquan is not only a sports exerci to help keep fit, but also a tradition embodying ancient philosophical ideas. Moreover, students can practice it with little space/'
Taijiquan is also effectively being promoted via the Internet. Ye Yongxiang, the sixth-generation heir to the Yang Style Taijiquan, has started teaching the practice online, in order to share the time-honored martial art with people around the world.Born in the m id-1980s in Shanghai, Ye first learned about Taijiquan from her mother, a professional martial artist.
Early in 2017, Ye t up her own Taijiquan stu d io in S hanghai. T apping into the
country’s fast-growing online community, she began using video stream ing to teach the martial art.
With her preci, accessible language and multi-angle demonstrations, Ye is now known on China s vibrant cyber community as the Taijiquan goddess. Her micro-blogging platform Weibo now has m o
re than 70,000 followers and her online interactions with university lectures have attracted thousands of young people to the ancient martial art.
Through her two decades of learning and teaching Taijiquan, Ye has obrved a shift in people's attitude tow ard the tradition, which ud to only be valued as a form of physical exerci.
串的组词According to Zhang Shan, form er Vice Chairman of Chine Wushu Association, the number of people practicing Taijiquan in China exceeds 50 million as of March 2019, while more than 150 countries and regions have launched Taijiquan programs. Around the globe, m ore than 150 million people practice the martial art according to Zhang. CA
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