| BA-GUA ZHANG (Pa Kua Chang) |
 |
| Circle walking is one of the characters that can be observed easily in this style. All beginners start the training by walking the circle, in addition to the practice of stance and posture. It is commonly agreed that The Late Master DONG Hai Chuan (about 1813~1882) is the founder of Bagua zhang, or at least the first person who had introduced the style to the public. Since The Late Master DONG taught his disciple by tailoring his teaching according to the skill of his disciples, the style transmitted by the later generations shows certain degree of variety in practice. However, the priciple elements of the style remain the same. The Late Master DONG had more than 50 official disciples. Among these disciples, The Late Masters YIN Fu, CHEN Ting Hua and LIANG Zheng Pu are the most famous. Although the lineage of each branch of Bagua zhang can be easily traced back to The Late Master DONG Hai Chuan, it is unclear from whom The Late Master DONG had learnt the art. Many people believe that The Late Master DONG learned the art from a Taoist called DONG Men Lin from Jiu Hua Mountain in Anhui Province. The Late Master LI Zi Ming (25 JUN 1903~23 JAN 1993) is a disciple of The Late Master LIANG Zheng Pu (passed away on 13 AUG 1934). He traveled a lot with The Late Master LIANG when he was young and thus had the opportunities to learn from other masters of the style. The Late Master LI was the pioneer of the art and was considered as a living treasure in China. He has had several official disciples. All of his disciples have their name graved on the stelle of his tomb, which is located just beside the tomb of The Late Masters DONG Hai Chuan and LIANG Zheng Pu at Wan An Cimetry in Beijing. The names of those from the 5th generation of the lineage have been graved on the stelle as well. One of The Late Master LI's prominent disciples is Master LI Gong Cheng (23 DEC 1942~ ) from Beijing (Peking). Master LI gives classes of Bagua zhang in Beijing and he is the author of several books on Bagua zhang. He is considered as one of the pioneer in Bagua zhang albeit his frequent absence in the public events. ONG Ming Thong learned Bagua zhang from Master LI Gong Cheng and is the representative of Master LI outside China. |
| Bagua zhang (Pa Kua Chang) is considered as an internal style (Neijia) by many martial artists. The name can be translated as "Eight Trigrams Palm". Its history is relatively recent compared to other internal styles such as Tai-ji quan and Xing-yi quan, and can be traced back to late 19 th century. |
| CONTENTS OF BAGUA ZHANG: Basic exercises Circle walking Exercises with partners Weapons training Qi Gong |
 |