Part II

Gu Liu-Xin:

In 1958, the government of China formed a national commission to oversee Wu Shu. One of its first tasks was to create a standardized Simplified Yang Style Tai Chi Form. The commission published a book on the Form that was little more than a series of photographs and diagrams showing the movements. Eventually, a famous master, Gu Liu-Xin, wrote a book entitled “How to Practice Simplified Yang Style Tai Chi“. In it, he described the need to develop a “spiral force“, internal energy (Nei Jing), and the flow of Chi when practicing Tai Chi. He stated that, although the external movements had been simplified the internal movements still required traditional effort. Master Gu, who studied Yang Style Tai Chi under Yang Cheng-Fu and Chen style under Chen Fa-Ke was certainly qualified to write such a treatise. [Ed. See page 5 Ji Hong Tai Chi Magazine issue 2]. He had been an avid martial artist for several decades when he was appointed the Deputy Director of the Shanghai Institute of Physical Culture. He was so highly regarded that Chou En-Lai, Premier of the People’s Republic of China, asked Master Gu to go to North Viet Nam and teach Tai Chi to Ho Chi-Minh. Gu’s book, however, began a quiet debate throughout China with his theories on spiral force in Yang Style.

It was Gu Liu-Xin, after all, who used his position to preserve and promote Tai Chi and Wu Shu in China when the official government position was to discourage martial arts practice as a remnant from the “Old” China. Gu was respectful to others and encouraged masters of other styles to bring their skills out in the open for the benefit of all people. He considered Wu Shu to be a National Treasure of China and strove to preserve and develop it further. Gu turned the former French Greyhound Race Track in Shanghai into a permanent learning centre for the Martial Arts called the Shanghai Wushu Centre. Many famous and well-respected masters of different styles came to the Centre to teach and conduct seminars.

My father, however, was from a small community and did not know who Gu Liu-Xin was. He obtained a copy of Gu’s book and was delighted to discover that Gu expounded the same theories on “spiral force” and spring-like compression power that my father had developed. He differed from Gu on a few relatively minor points and said as much in a review of Gu’s book. Because of Gu’s fame and influence, the newspaper was reluctant to publish an article even slightly critical of Master Gu. Instead, they forwarded a copy of my father’s review to Master Gu requesting instructions.

Master Gu was very impressed with the quality of the writing and the deep insights of the author. He wrote directly to my father and enclosed a magazine article about his teaching experiences in Vietnam. This was the beginning of a regular correspondence between my father and Gu Liu-Xin that lasted the rest of my father’s life. They exchanged letters every month. They discussed all aspects of Tai Chi history, theory and training.

My Father’s Time in Shanghai:

In 1963, Gu Liu-Xin organized a National Wushu Championship in Shanghai. Famous masters from all across China were invited to give demonstrations and workshops. In addition, each province was asked to send a team to compete and one judge to participate. Master Gu specifically invited my father to be an adjudicator. Unfortunately, Guang Dong Province was unable to come up with the funding for transportation so my father paid his own train fare to Shanghai. Master Gu honoured my father by meeting his train in Shanghai. Although they had corresponded for some time, this was the first face-to-face meeting between my father and Gu Liu-Xin. He again complimented my father on his insights and skills for one who had trained such a relatively short period of time. My father’s response was “Do not ask how long one has practiced Tai Chi. Instead ask how much energy has been applied to your practice. It is not time, but effort, that will determine your progress.”

Instead of taking my father to this hotel from the train station, Master Gu informed him they were going to meet Hao Shao-Ru, the acknowledged Grandmaster of the Wu (Hao) Style. On the way, Master explained that he was very impressed with my father’s scholarly research of the Tai Chi Classics and his insights into Tai Chi Theories. He wanted my father to intensively study the Wu (Hao) Style while in Shanghai for a long-range project he was planning. He explained that, in his view, the Wu (Hao) style could claim it had the best insight of advanced Tai Chi principles.

Master Gu introduced my father to Hao Shao-Ru and asked Master Hao to teach the fundamentals of Wu (Hao) style to my father. Because of Gu Liu-Xin’s position, Master Hao accepted my father as a student. Gu instructed my father to work diligently and learn as much as he could during his brief stay in Shanghai.

After introducing my father to Hao Shao-Ru, Master Gu took my father to his hotel. Before my father could unpack, Master Gu asked to push hands. After several bouts, my father asked Gu if he was using Xing-Yi instead of Tai Chi. Gu exclusively used a quick, straight-line attack. This was my father’s first experience with the short-range offensive style of Tui Shou (push hands). Gu explained that there were three traditional forms of Push Hands:

1. Large Circle/Spiral or Long Range
2. Medium Range or Subtle Spiral
3. Short Range or Invisible Spiral

Gu was a proponent of the Short Range style and explained that one must have very strong internal pressure or the Invisible Spiral method will be ineffective. His Push Hands was almost entirely offense, using short, quick, tightly spiraled movements. Over the course of the next three months, my father would often push hands with Gu. From this practice, he learned to build up his internal pressure and to redirect an opponent’s force back on him using sudden, smaller movements. My father incorporated this teaching with the Large Circle long-range techniques he learned from his Yang Style training. My father considered Gu Liu-Xin a true Tai Chi master, a valued teacher and a good friend. Master Gu used his reputation and influence to open many doors for my father and helped him meet and study with some of the most famous Tai Chi masters of the day. My father realized he must keep his mind open to all styles and to avoid insulating himself from other theories and practices.

Hao Shao-Ru:

My father began his training every morning in the park with Master Hao. Several times a week he would go to Hao’s home for private lessons and , later joined special classes for advanced students. Hao Shao-Ru was an extremely accomplished Tai Chi master from the old school. His skills came from a lifetime of hard work and practical experience. His teaching method was to show the student a movement and expect the student to practice on his own. He would not show the student the next move until he had mastered the previous one to Hao’s satisfaction. The Wu (Hao) style places a much greater emphasis on maintaining a constant, strong internal pressure throughout the body. In addition, it requires the practitioner to “curve the pelvis up” in order to maintain a straight spine or main bow. The style is characterized by small movements that are led by the “Dan Tian“. My father felt Hao Shao-Ru had incredible internal power and was one of the top Push-Hands experts he had ever met. At one workshop, Hao demonstrated “sticky spear” training by throwing his opponent out of the ring! The second attempt resulted in Hao causing his opponent’s spear to go flying out of his hands! In both instances, my father could detect only the slightest external movement. Later, when pushing hands against Hao, my father said “The harder I pushed, the stronger his rebound force! Yet I seldom detected any movement!”

My father spent the entire first month without progressing beyond the first movement. Hao could see that my father had not mastered the correct posture, but was unable to explain what my father’s error was. Finally, my father approached a visiting senior student and begged for guidance. The student pointed out my father was not “curving his pelvis up” and, thus, had not attained the correct posture. My father’s background in Yang and Wu styles had not prepared him for this modification in straightening the spine. Hao Style theory holds that, by curling the tailbone under, you create a “platform” for the Dan Tian. Thus, when you “sink your Chi“, you can compress the Dan Tian to a much greater degree and consequently create enormous internal pressure. This pressure allows one to absorb any external force by dispersing it evenly and then redirect it in a tightly focused direction back onto your opponent. My father adjusted his posture and practiced incessantly. The same time he had his breakthrough in learning the fundamentals of Hao Style, my father had a further revelation in his grasp of Tai Chi principals and in particular, his understanding of the internal movements of the Hao Style. He began to better understand the deeper meaning behind many of the various theories. The concept of “the 5 Bows“, along with “emptying the chest” and “relax the shoulders” started to take on a more profound significance for my father. The change was remarkable! He progressed swiftly after that and soon learned all the movements of the form. He discussed his revelation with Master Hao, who was very impressed that my father could put into words the principles that he (Hao) had understood instinctively for years. Hao Shao-Ru later commented that “he has been training and teaching for many years but had never taught anyone of Luo Ji-Hong’s caliber before.” Towards the end of his stay in Shanghai, my father even assisted Master Hao in his demonstrations. Master Hao would demonstrate a principal and my father, with his extensive education and research, would explain the theory behind it.

For the entire three months of my father’s stay in Shanghai, he practiced Wu (Hao) style several times a day. Even after he returned home, Wu (Hao) style became part of his daily practice. From Master Hao Shao-Ru, my father learned how to create intense internal power that would enable him to receive, dissipate and redirect an opponent’s external force.

In 1975, it became apparent why Gu Liu-Xin had wanted my father to study the Wu (Hao) style. Gu was compiling what he hoped would become the definitive text on the 5 major styles of Tai Chi Chuan. With Hao Shao-Ru’s approval, he asked my father to write the chapter on Wu (Hao) style. The first two generations of the Wu Style, Wu Yu-Xiang (1812-1880) and Li Ye-Yu (1832-1892), were well-educated men who wrote comprehensive treatises on Tai Chi. Both Master Gu and Master Hao felt my father had the education and practical training to best interpret and modernize these classic writings.

Unfortunately, because of political turmoil in China during this time, the book was never published and all my father’s notes were destroyed.

 

Zhang Da-Quan:

Prior to his departure for Shanghai, my father obtained a letter of introduction from Shui Tze-Yi (a famous Wu Style teacher in Beijing) to Master Zhang Da-Quan. Zhang was a classmate of Wu Ji-Quan himself. Master Zhang invited my father into his home. After a brief discussion, they cleared the furniture out of the main room, Master Zhang blindfolded himself and proceeded to push hands with my father. Zhang demonstrated an incredible mastery of “Dong Jing” or “understanding skill“. Whatever direction my father moved, Master Zhang could locate his centre of gravity and direct my father off balance. At the same time, he was able to control my father’s force using Large Circle movements. Not only was Master Zhang blindfolded, he was also 84 years old at the time! [Ed. For a description of a student’s experience pushing hands with Zhang Da-Quan, see page 39 of Ji Hong Tai Chi Magazine issue 1].

My father began training under Master Zhang and was constantly amazed at the master’s skill in Tui Shou (push hands). One time, while practicing in a park, my father observed Zhang pushing hands with a number of students. My father noticed that Zhang would often rock back on his heels while pushing. He had discovered Zhang’s weakness! When it came to my father’s turn to push against the Master, he faced a dilemma. Should he exploit the apparent error in Zhang’s technique or should he allow the old master to save face by letting him win? My father chose not to take advantage and, consequently, was easily pushed by Master Zhang. Soon afterwards, one of Zhang’s senior students came up to my father and said “I noticed you thought you had the Master at a disadvantage, but you refrained from pressing. It was fortunate for you that you did not. Watch!” At that moment, another new student (with a strong background in the external martial arts), who had come to the same conclusion as my father, was pushing against Zhang and obviously concentrating on the master’s heels. Without any apparent effort, Zhang sent him flying a considerable distance into a puddle. My father suddenly realized that, instead of being off-balance when rocking back on his heels, Zhang Da-Quan was actually narrowing his central axis. Thus, a small movement from the axis resulted in a large, powerful movement further away from his body. My father studied this concept diligently and credited Zhang Da-Quan with teaching him how to narrow his own central axis and control an opponent’s focal point. He felt this resulted in greater flexibility in his movements and a faster reaction time.

Shao Pin Gen:

It was in Shanghai that my father met Shao Pin Gen, another Wu Style practitioner. One day, as he was leaving a particularly grueling training session, my father was introduced to Shao. As they shook hands, my father unconsciously “dissolved” Shao’s energy. Shao, who detected the movement, exclaimed “Excellent! But why didn’t you take the next step? (i.e. Peng)” My father was puzzled at first, the suddenly realized he had still been thinking about his Push Hands training. Shao was able to detect the very subtle movements of my father’s energy from just a handshake! He invited my father to his home where they sat discussing Tai Chi through the night until the next morning! This was the beginning of a lasting friendship between Shao and my father.

Shao had suffered from polio as a child and was paralyzed in one leg. As an adult, he weight only 105 lbs. Nevertheless, he was an enthusiastic practitioner of Tai Chi and, like my father, trained constantly. Because of his disability, he could not use the powerful, direct short-range style of push hands. Instead, he developed lightning-fast reactions. My father described him like “a grasshopper’s antennae – deceptively soft, yet incredibly fast“. From Shao Pin Gen, my father learned to sharpen his own reaction time and developed the ability to focus all his energy at a small point on his opponent in a split-second. Because of his friendship with my father, Master Shao allowed me considerable insight into his abilities and training when I visited him in 1985.

My father later described the three months the spent in Shanghai as an “eye-opening and profound experience”. He had discovered different facets of Tai Chi from several different masters. From Fu Zhong-Wen my father received advanced instruction in the Yang Style Form and Push Hands along with the rarely taught Yang style Fa Jing exercises. Ma Yueh-Liang instructed my father in Wu Style Push Hands while his wife, Wu Ying-Hua taught him the Wu Form. My father impressed these masters with his dedication and devotion to Tai Chi. Later on, these same masters generously gave me advanced instruction in their arts. In 1983, Ma Yueh-Liang taught me Wu Style sword while Wu Ying-Hua instructed me in the Form. They later wrote a very flattering letter to my father about me. In 1985-86, I studied Yang Style with Fu Zhong-Wen.

During his brief stay in Shanghai, my father compared himself to a bee, flirting from flower to flower sampling various nectars. He had wanted to experience as much as he could in a relatively short period of time, hoping to examine and analyze these experiences once he returned home. Thanks to his scholarly training, he kept two sets of journals during his time in Shanghai. One was a verbatim account of the teachings and demonstrations he experienced. The second was his initial interpretations and analysis. Regrettably, both journals were destroyed during the Cultural Revolution.

Luo Hong-Yuan
(transcribed by David Ward and Bosco Yiu)