Category: Biography

Grandmaster Ma Hailong was born in 1935 into one of China’s most distinguished 

martial arts families. His great-grandfather, Quan You (1834 – 1902), was an officer of the Imperial Guards Brigade in Beijing’s Forbidden City. At this time, Yang Luchan (1799-1872) was a martial arts instructor there and for many years Quan You studied with Yang Luchan and his eldest son, Yang Banhou. 

Grandmaster Ma’s grandfather, Wu Jianquan (1870-1942), was a cavalry officer who subsequently taught Tai Chi Chuan and developed from his father’s art what is now the Wu style. Utilizing the “small frame” his father had learned from Yang Luchan, he made important modifications utilizing narrower circles and the distinctive footwork and body positions now seen in Wu style Tai Chi Chuan. In 1914, along with his colleagues Yang Shaohou, Yang Chengfu and Sun Lutang, he began teaching publicly at the Beijing Physical Culture Research Institute. As he taught to the general public, he continued to make modifications to his style, refining the more overt martial techniques in much the same way that Yang style has, making the motions slower and smoother for a wider appeal. In 1928, Wu Jianquan moved to Shanghai and formed the Wu style Tai Chi Chuan Association in 1935.

Grandmaster Ma’s father, Ma Yuehliang (1901-1998), began studying with Wu Jianquan at the age of 18. In 1930 he married Master Wu’s daughter, Wu Yinghua (1906-1996), and served as deputy director of the Shanghai Association.

From the age of 6, Grandmaster Ma began learning Tai Chi Chuan in this especially rich environment. Both his parents were accomplished teachers and his uncles had studied intensively with his grandfather. He remains dedicated to this day to sharing his family’s traditions.

For over 70 years Grandmaster Ma has been practicing his family’s techniques and is now President of the Shanghai Wu Style Tai Chi Chuan Association. His traditions emphasize focused, tranquil and consistent practice. Master Ma’s performances are characterized by a high degree of expressed equilibrium and natural calmness. He holds a doctorate in Chemistry and since his retirement as a professor, he dedicates his efforts to expanding the practice of Wu style Tai Chi Chuan.

It is an honor to have Grandmaster Ma Hailong at the 2014 Symposium.

Wu/Hao Style Tai Chi Chuan will be represented at the 2014 International Tai Chi Chuan Symposium by Grandmaster Zhong Zhenshan. Grandmaster Zhong Zhenshan was born in the town of Guangfu, Yongnian County, Hebei Province in 1949. He became a formal disciple to Yao Jizu at the age of 13.

He has many notable accomplishments in Tai Chi Chuan practice and theory. A prolific author, Grandmaster Zhong Zhenshan has published more than 20 essays about Tai Chi Chuan, such as “On Listening Jin and Understanding Jin”, “The Softness and Hardness of Taijiquan”, “On Adhering, Connecting, Sticking and Following”, “The Mechanical Tenets of Listening Jin and Understanding Jin”, “A Brief Talk on Life Cultivation and Fighting of Wu-Style Taijiquan”, among others.

In 1996, he was one of the compilers for “The Contest Form of Wu-Style Taijiquan”. In 1998, he helped Yao Jizu compile “The Complete Book of WuStyle Taijiquan”. In 2006, his “Wu-Style Taijiquan” became part of “The Treasures of Chinese Martial Arts”. In 2009, he published “The Course of Wu-Style Taijiquan Duanwei”.

Grandmaster Zhong Zhenshan has won gold medals in Tai Chi Chuan contests many times. He has successively held the post of general instructor for the one thousand-person Tai Chi Chuan performances at the Yongnian International Tai Chi Chuan Conference. He was named a great Tai Chi Chuan Master in 1998 and has performed many demonstrations for various Tai Chi Chuan conferences. He continues to teach in China and abroad.

Grandmaster Zhong Zhenshan is one of the 5th generation representatives of Wu/Hao Style Tai Chi Chuan and is the 5th generation lineage holder of the style. It is an honor to have Grandmaster Zhong Zhenshan at the 2014 International Tai Chi Chuan Symposium.

Yang  Style Tai Chi  Chuan  will be represented  at  the  Symposium by Grandmaster Yang Jun, a 6th generation descendent who officially became the 5th generation direct-line inheritor of Yang Family Tai Chi Chuan in 2009.

Grandmaster Yang Jun was born in 1968 in Taiyuan, Shanxi, China.  He grew up in a martial arts family, living with his grandparents and watching his grandfather, Grandmaster   Yang  Zhenduo,   train   students.     He  began  training   with  his grandfather at age five.

In 1989, he graduated from Shanxi University with a degree in physical education. He often assisted his grandfather teaching domestically, and in the 1990s began assisting his grandfather internationally.  In 1995, he received the title of “Shanxi Province Famous Wushu Master” by the Chinese Wushu Association.   He was also active in the Shanxi Province Yang Family Tai Chi Chuan Association and is a former Vice-President of that organization.

In 1999, Grandmaster  Yang Jun created the International  Tai Chi Chuan Association and moved to the US, with his grandfather’s support, to develop the Association. The Association was created to bring traditional Yang Family Tai Chi Chuan practitioners together to promote a system that would bring the family’s standard of practice to a worldwide audience, and also develop teachers.  It has one of the most complete systems of training, allowing members to make progress from  being a  beginning  student  with little knowledge of Tai Chi Chuan  to becoming a highly qualified instructor. The Association is organized to include a ranking system, judge registry, instructor    registry,   and teacher academy.

One of Grandmaster Yang Jun’s finest achievements has been the global growth and development of the Yang Family Tai Chi Chuan Association. Starting with no members, today the Association is the largest organized group of Yang Style Tai Chi Chuan practitioners outside of China. He has grown it to thousands of members, with teachers in 22 countries and 62 Yang Chengfu Tai Chi Chuan Centers and affiliated schools. Grandmaster Yang Jun has been especially successful in spreading his family art widely in Europe to now eleven European countries and has also greatly expanded the number of countries in South America. He has also grown greatly the number of centers throughout Asia and North America. As a result, thousands of people worldwide have been able to benefit from learning Tai Chi Chuan. He has also produced a variety of training DVDs, including teaching and demonstrating the traditional 103 hand form and 49 hand form, sword, saber, and push hands.

Grandmaster Yang Jun currently lives in the Seattle area and is the Director of the Yang Chengfu Tai Chi Chuan Center in Redmond, Washington, USA. Every year he travels widely nationally and internationally to teach numerous seminars. Since 2012, he has been a guest professor for the Tai Chi Chuan program at Handan University, China. Recently, he created the Yang Family Tai Chi Chuan Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting health and longevity to all through Tai Chi Chuan, educating teachers and practitioners, and preserving traditional Chinese martial arts culture and training. He is the President of the 2014 International Tai Chi Chuan Symposium; a project of this Foundation.

It is an honor to have Grandmaster Yang Jun at the 2014 Symposium.

On Sunday July 6, 2014 before the formal opening ceremonies, the International Tai Chi Chuan Symposium will feature two 2-hour Pre-Symposium workshops with Grandmaster He Youlu. Grandmaster He (pronounced with a soft “e” as in “her”) was born in 1963 in the town of Zhaobao, Wen County, Henan Province. He is the lineal descendant of He Zhaoyuan, the founder of He Style (also referred to as “Zhaobao He Style”) Tai Chi Chuan. A 7th Duan Chinese martial artist, Grandmaster He is the President of the He Style Tai Chi Chuan Academy in Wen County and is the representative successor of  the He Style’s cultural heritage. He is also the Chairman of the He Style Tai Chi Chuan Association in Jiaozuo, Henan Province.

For many years, Grandmaster He Youlu has devoted himself to the study, popularization and teaching of Tai Chi Chuan. In order to spread Tai Chi culture, he has travelled to many places, both in China and abroad. He has acquired mastery of both Tai Chi practice and theory, and compiled three monographs: He Style Taiji Spectrum, Thirteen Forms of He Style Taiji, and One Hundred and Eight Forms of He Style Taiji (Chinese editions with English Translation). He has also made various teaching DVDs and VCDs including He Style Taijiquan, Taiji Sword, Taiji Broadsword, Taiji Spear, and Push Hands. These were published by the People’s Sports Press and Haiyan Press. Grandmaster He also gave a series of lectures about the learning of He Style Tai Chi Chuan in Treasures of Chinese Martial Arts, a full-length documentary made in 2008 which was approved by the Chinese Wushu Association and supervised by the Martial Arts Institute of China State General Administration of Sports. Also in 2008, he became the chief editor of the Textbook Series of Chinese Wushu Duanwei System: He Style Taijiquan, a book approved by the Chinese Chinese Wushu Association and published by Higher Education Press.

History and Characteristics of He Style Tai Chi Chuan

He Style Tai Chi Chuan (sometimes referred to as Zhaobao style, named after the original town of Zhaobao) was founded by He Zhaoyuan (1810-1890) in the late Qing dynasty. He Zhaoyuan was a native of the town of Zhaobao, Wen County, Henan Province. He came from a family that studied Chinese medicine and began to learn Tai Chi Chuan from Chen Qingping in his hometown. Later he worked in Beijing and because of his great skill was appointed to the military post of Wuxinlang. Under the influence of Li Tangjie, he reformed his Tai Chi and developed an original style that would be called He Style Tai Chi Chuan. He Zhaoyuan taught his sons He Jingzhi and He Renzhi as well as his grandson He Qingxi. He Qingxi (1857-1936) passed his teachings to his son He Xuexin. He Xuexin passed his knowledge to his grandson He Youlu who is the current representative of He Style Tai Chi Chuan and the Director of the He Style Tai Chi Chuan Academy in Wen County.

There are 72 postures in traditional He Style Tai Chi Chuan. The philosophy of Yi (changes), Yin and Yang, the five elements, the eight trigrams, Confucianism, and theories of Chinese medicine have influenced the development of this style. The circular movement and the pursuit of hardness in gentleness enable the coordination of the body and the footwork. The frequent changes of Yin and Yang guarantee a  myriad of skills and techniques, achieving the effects of being slippery as fish, sticky as glue, soft as cotton, and hard as steel. He Style Tai Chi Chuan requires internal and external coordination, which promotes the circulation of chi and blood, and the balance of internal organs and energy channels to enhance health, cure illnesses,  and prolong life.

The playing principle of He Style is gentle, circular, and natural. The playing rhythm may be either quick or slow and the frame may be either large or small.

It is an honor to have Grandmaster He join us for the 2014 International Tai Chi
Chuan Symposium in Louisville, Kentucky, USA.

The    2014    Symposium    features    Grandmasters from    five   main    styles   of   Tai   Chi   Chuan. Chen   Style,  originating   from   Chen   Wangting (1600-1680),     is     a     style     that      is     often demonstrated   more  dynamically  than  other  styles.    The rhythm   of  movement   changes  frequently   and   includes brief   stopping    for   gathering   energy   before   releasing energy back to  the  opponent.    Externally it appears  quite dynamic   and   martial   with   coordinated   stomping   and fist-pounding for a sudden release of energy. Chen Style is also characterized by a more visible emphasis on silk reeling than other Tai Chi styles.

Chen  Style Tai  Chi  Chuan  will be  represented  at  the Symposium by Grandmaster Chen Zhenglei. He was born into a family with over 300 years of martial  arts tradition  and is widely recognized as one  of the  leading representatives of Chen Style Tai Chi Chuan in the world today.

Grandmaster  Chen  Zhenglei is a 19th generation descendant of the Chen family and the 11th generation direct-line successor of Chen Family Tai Chi Chuan. He  was born  in  1949 in  Chenjiagou, Wen  County,  Henan  Province, China. He  began  studying  when he was 8 years old with his uncle Chen Zhaopei (1893-1972) who  was his  main instructor. He later studied with another  uncle, Chen Zhaokui  (1928-1981), the son of Chen Fake.

From 1974 to 1987, Grandmaster Chen Zhenglei won numerous    gold    medals in competitions and also successfully defended  his title  as Grand  Champion of Tai Chi Chuan  in two consecutive National Tai Chi Chuan competitions. Since 1983 he has travelled extensively  at  the  international   level and has tens of thousands  of students worldwide. Devoted to the teaching of his art, Grandmaster Chen has authored a  wide  series of  Chen  Style Tai  Chi Chuan  books and  DVDs covering all traditional  forms and weapons.  These training  materials are highly regarded in the world of Tai Chi Chuan and have been  translated  into  many  languages. He has also authored  many important articles   and    books   explaining   Tai Chi’s theory, fundamentals, and relationship to the Chinese meridian system.

Grandmaster Chen Zhenglei has held many important administrative roles in various martial arts organizations, including the head coach at the Chen Village National Tai Chi Center. Currently, he is the vice-president of the Chen Family Tai Chi Chuan Association of Henan Province and the director of the Chen Village Tai Chi Chuan Training Center of Zhengzhou. He is also a committee member of the Chinese Wushu Association, the vice-chairman of the Henan Province Wushu Association, a senior National Wushu Master, and a committee member of the Chinese Sports and Science Institute. In recent years, Grandmaster Chen has continued to receive many important honors. In 1995, he was officially recognized as one of China’s modern day Top Ten Martial Arts Masters.

In 2011, he received the distinction of being on the Cambridge List of the Most Distinguished Chinese People in the World. Recently, in 2012, he was certified as a 9th Duan Tai Chi Master by the Chinese Wushu Association. Only a handful of Tai Chi Masters in the world hold the prestigious rank of 9th Duan, the highest rank, and most earn their title later in life. One of the most skillful Tai Chi Masters in the world, it is an honor to have Grandmaster Chen Zhenglei participate in the 2014 Symposium.

A Conversation with Grandmaster Chen Zhenglei

In Issue #20 (2006), the International Yang Family Tai Chi Chuan Association Journal published an interview with Grandmaster Chen Zhenglei by Dave Barrett. A portion of this interview is reprinted below:

DB: My first teacher always encouraged us by saying “Catch the feeling!” Sometimes the feeling is there for just a small part of a sequence, but maybe with the next practice a little bit more.

CZ: In my experience with Western students, I know that sometimes they only practice once a week, sometimes twice or three times a week. Because they don’t practice every day, this kind of feeling develops very slowly. In China we say that if you practice for one day you get one day’s benefit. With daily practice you can steadily improve. If you don’t practice for one day you lose ten days of development. So practice every day without stopping. Western students must understand this clearly. Practice every day! Not once or twice a week.

DB: When you practice today and you hear the voice of your teacher in your mind, what is he saying?

CZ: In my younger years when I practiced, I was quite serious about my work. My whole life I have followed the teachings of my uncles, Chen Zhaopei and Chen Zhaokui. When they taught I always watched very carefully. At that time my deep feeling was that I wanted to grow up to be like them. I listened to their voices and watched their motions closely. At that time there were no recorders or video cameras. My eyes were the camera and my mind was the recorder. If I needed to check something, I would sit down, close my eyes and review. If I was not satisfied with my practice, I would check my memories and think about my uncles. Sometimes I would hear them criticizing my efforts using rough language to spur my practice onwards.

DB: So you still hear this?

CZ:Yes, even now when I may not want to practice I hear my uncles’ voices pushing me, giving me energy to practice. It doesn’t matter what difficulties I’ve been through. In the 1980s when I met people who wished to challenge me, I’d hear my uncles giving me confidence to win these challenges.

Throughout my career, I have been through five stages. First, when I was a farmer up to the time I was 25 years old I was studying with my uncles. The next ten years I was working in a factory while continuing my martial arts training. I was traveling around as a salesman and I made contacts with other teachers and I was able to benefit from these friendships and improve our factory sales. During these ten years, I would often represent our village at competitions. The third stage found me working with national sports officials and I became a professional coach. I continued my training and began to teach a large number of students, some of whom won many competition honors. In the fourth stage, I began to organize regional and national competitions. Now at the fifth stage, I’ve got a job I really like, traveling internationally and sharing my family traditions.

When I was living in Chenjiagou, I focused on my own training and my individual duty to our family. At the second stage I began to travel and see that perhaps there might be a career in the martial arts. In the third and fourth periods, because I met many other teachers and was working as a player, coach and manager, I began to realize this could be a very good family business as well. Now that I travel internationally meeting many people who have a love of this art, now my focus is on how we can spread Tai Chi Chuan. I’ve been working on books and videos and I feel a true calling to this work. It is more than just a business. I’ve been fortunate to receive recognition within China as one of the top ten Masters and I’m getting a lot of support from my students and no longer have to work a factory job. Now that China is open, I wish to spread traditional Chinese arts throughout the world so that more people can enjoy Tai Chi Chuan practice.