AKA Chen Hsiu-Feng

• Teachers: Yang Lu-Chan
• Students:

It is well known that Yang Family (i.e., Yang Style) T'ai Chi was developed toward the end of the Ch'ing Dynasty by the great master Yang Lu Ch'an. But the growth and eventual prevalence of Yang's T'ai Chi also contains a secret of extraordinary bitterness and grief. Toward the end of the Ch'ing Dynasty, after Yang Lu Ch'an had successively defeated eighteen masters of the martial arts in their training halls, he acquired the honorific title, “Yang the Unsurpassable.” He then wanted with all his heart to hand down the extraordinary skill which he had spent a lifetime in learning to his two sons Yang Pan Hou and Yang Chien Hou so that Yang Family T'ai Chi could be developed gloriously and brilliantly under his own descendents. With this in mind, Yang Lu Ch'an adopted a training program of unprecedented severity in supervising his two sons' practice of this art. Frequently he knocked his sons down, causing their heads to bleed and their mouths to be split open. Under this severe training, the two sons met with unspeakable suffering. One must realize that, although a martial arts man may say that all depends upon painstaking and hard practice, natural talent is also an indispensable ingredient. Pan Hou and Chien Hou, under their father's strict supervision, met with unbearable bitterness in their training. What the two sons found most difficult to bear was their father's insistence that they practice according to the maxim, “For ten years one sits near the window (studying), not allowing eyes to stray even once to the garden.” Lu Ch'an did not allow his sons to take even one step out of the family courtyard; they were to remain at home training day and night. One might well ask, how long could two youths in their prime endure such treatment? The result was that Yang Pan Hou once scaled the wall and escaped, but was intercepted and brought back. Yang Chien Hou tried to hang himself, but was rescued. Only after these two calamities did Yang Lu Ch'an come to realize the (correct) way of practicing martial art: each one has his own natural talent, and progress cannot be forced. So he could do nothing but become a bit more lenient in his supervision. But Yang Lu Ch'an had also admitted several “outsiders” as his personal disciples. Of these, the senior named Chen Hsiu Feng had attained the highest standard in the art. Just because of this, several incredible and unexpected events took place.

In 1872 Yang Lu Ch'an became ill and died and was brought to his native place for burial. His two sons and disciples carried his coffin to the hillside cemetery. When the coffin of the great Master of his generation had been lowered into the ground, the senior disciple Chen Hsiu Feng suddenly stood up before the tomb of his deceased teacher and before the earth had even dried he declared, “Yang's T'ai Chi is no longer in the hands of his descendants!” As soon as the words were out, everyone was startled. Chen Hsiu Feng, without politeness, went on to point out that while the Master was alive his two sons had never practiced his art well. Therefore Yang's secret and miraculous techniques had not fallen into the hands of the two brothers; but only Chen Hsiu Feng himself had acquired the Yang family's genuine teachings. Thereupon, Chen Hsiu Feng patted his chest and declared, “I am the only head disciple of the second generation of Yang family T'ai Chi. If there is anyone who is not convinced, please come up and try conclusions with me.” Yang Pan Hou and Yang Chien Hou never anticipated that this elder student would snatch away the title of Head Disciple even before the earth on their father's tomb had dried. They were furious and wanted to challenge the elder disciple, but upon considering the matter they remembered that even in daily practice sessions they were no match for Chen. As soon as they practiced with him, they were either knocked out or thrown over. If they were to contest the issue at this time, there would be no advantage whatever. The common saying has it . . . “When the gentleman takes revenge, seventeen years is not too late.” So Yang Pan Hou and Yang Chien Hou endured their shame and anger without saying a word. They merely shot fierce glances at Chen Hsiu Feng, and silently descended the hill.

To take up the tale again, when Yang Pan Hou and Yang Chien Hou returned home, they suffered from their inexpressible anger. They also regretted that they had not trained seriously during their father's lifetime because they did not wish to endure the hardships involved. But now they were of a mind to study and practice diligently, so they took out their deceased father's secret manuals and practiced the techniques described in them. The proverb says, “There is nothing difficult under heaven; a persevering will can overcome any obstacle.” Accordingly, Pan Hou and Chien Hou, after a period of hard practice, improved their skill by leaps and bounds. After three years they were no longer weaklings, so they went together to seek out Chen Hsiu Feng and challenge him in order to recover by force the title “Yang Family Head Disciple.” At that time Chen Hsiu Feng was teaching T'ai Chi in the Yen Ch'eng district of Honan and had accepted pupils there. Yang Pan Hou and Yang Chien Hou sought him out and found him.

After a few cold words of greeting, they came to the point, “Elder disciple, did you not say that the genuine teachings of the Yang Family are no longer in the hands of Yang's descendents?” Chen Hsiu Feng averted his eyes and replied, “Ah, I forget . . . How long ago did I say that?” Chien Hou, seeing that he was feigning ignorance, became very angry and flatly pointed out, “Three years ago, when we carried our deceased father's coffin up the hill and had barely finished burying him, you said those words.” Chen Hsiu Feng now put on the appearance of understanding completely and s aid with a hearty laugh, “Yes indeed! Three years ago I really did say that. But at that time I did it only to intimidate you two brothers to advance. Now all is well; you have practiced hard and after three years, the Yang Family title can return to your hands again.” As soon as he had said this, Chen immediately stretched out his right hand and, lifting the large armchair near him with the sticking energy of his palm, moved it and set it down in front of the two brothers saying, “Very good. You two brothers are not unworthy of being named sons of the great master Yang. This chair can be considered the Head Disciple's Chair. Please sit down.” When Chen Hsiu Feng showed off this technique, the Yang brothers looked at each other with their mouths hanging wide open in amazement.

The sticking energy of T'ai Chi is divided into three levels: highest, middle. and lowest. A person with the highest form of T'ai Chi sticking energy can use his flat palm to lift up anything without exerting any strength through his fingers. In terms of Yang Style T'ai Chi, only this can be called genuine sticking energy. The middle level of this energy is described by the saying, “As soon as one touches his clothing, the opponent is immediately thrown over.” That is to say, as soon as your palm touches the clothing of the other man, he is already in your trap. No sooner does your palm touch his clothing than he is thrown over. The phrase used in T'ai Chi practice, “Touching the opponent's clothing, he can be pushed down in (any of) eighteen ways” refers to this technique. As for the lowest level of technique, it requires that one touch the opponent's body with the hand in order to make him fall, that is, one grasps the opponent's body or limbs. There are two methods. One is borrowing his energy to issue your own energy (receive-attack); the other is to entice the opponent to issue energy, then, after neutralizing, to knock him over. This kind of energy is the most elementary T'ai Chi technique.

Chen Hsiu Feng relied only on the sticking energy of his one palm to raise an armchair of several tens of catties and set it down lightly in front of the two brothers. This highest level of sticking energy even Yang Pan Hou and Yang Chien Hou considered beyond their reach. However, Chen Hsiu Feng's courteous yielding up of the title invisibly relieved the unhappy feeling in the hearts of the brothers, and this can be considered the time when they buried the hatchet and all ended happily.