- Wang Xiangzhai
Wang Xiangzhai 王薌齋 (1885-1963), also known as Nibao, Zhenghe, Yuseng, was a Chinese
xingyiquan master, responsible for founding the martial art ofYiquan .Biography
He was born in
1885 , the24th of November in theHebei province. As he was a very weak child, his parents decided to send him to the famousXingyiquan masterGuo yunshen to improve his health.The Wang family had always had connections with the Guo familly, horse breeders in the average. Master Guo Yunshen taught him
zhanzhuang gong (post standing postures) that the young Xiangzhai had to keep standing for hours.During his young adult life, Wang Xiangzhai became a soldier in
Beijing and at the age of 33, he went all around China, studying martial arts with many famous masters including monkHeng Lin ,Xinyiquan masterXie Tiefu , southern white crane style mastersFang Yizhuang andJin Shaofeng .After 7 years of research and study, Wang established himself in Beijing and penetrated the circle of famous masters in this city as well as in Tianjin and Shanghai. At this period of his life, he met up with the respected
Liuhebafa Chuan masterWu Yi Hui and became friends with theBaguazhang masterZhang zhaodong .He started to teach many influential martial artists including Hong Lianshun, Zhao Daoxin, the Han brothers (xingqiao and xingyuan),
Yao Zongxun ,Wang Shujin (who studiedZhan zhuang for one year), and others.He first named his teaching Yiquan, in reference of the
Xingyiquan and Xinyiquan styles. Later, in the 40's, one of his disciple who was a journalist publicly called it Dachengquan, which means "great achievement boxing". It is still known by both these names today.He received the visit of many Japanese experts during the war. One,
Kenichi Sawai became his student and created his own school inJapan calling his martial artTaikiken .At the end of his life he performed research into the healing aspect of
Zhan zhuang and worked with different hospitals.He died in
1963 inTianjin , from a disease.He was one of the first Chinese teachers to publicly teach the practice of
Zhan zhuang , or 'standing like a tree' methods.External links
* [http://www.martialdevelopment.com/blog/four-paradoxes-of-standing-meditation/ The Paradoxes of Wang Xiangzhai's Standing Meditation]
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