Huaquan
| Also known as | China Fist, Glorious Boxing |
|---|---|
| Focus | Striking, Chin Na, weapons training |
| Country of origin |
 China
|
| Creator | Cai Mao |
| Famous practitioners | Cai Tai Cai Gang Cai Wanzhi Ding Yushan Cai Guigin Cai Longyun |
| Parenthood | Northern Taoist Kung Fu, Chin Na |
| Olympic sport | Wushu (sport) |
Huaquan (simplified Chinese: 华拳; traditional Chinese: 華拳) is a style of Long Fist Kung Fu (Changquan) which is believed to have originated in the Former Song Dynasty (420–479 AD) around the Hua Shan (Hua Mountain) area of Shaanxi Province.
There are written legends from the Kaiyuan reign (713–741 AD) of the Tang Dynasty (618–906 AD) about a Mount Hua knight named Cai Mao, who was famous for his prowess in combat and swordplay. Apparently Cai Mao had killed an enemy, a noble from Chang'an and had to go into hiding to escape the family's wrath.
400 years later we hear of Cai's descendants, Cai Tai and Cai Gang of Jining in Shandong Province; were reputed using the Hua Quan style in public competitions. It is because of this historical record that many credit these two brothers with preserving Hua Quan as we know it today. However, it was Cai Wanzhi of Jining during the reign of Jaiqing during the Ming Dynasty (1368–1644) who is credited with the finishing touches on Hua Quan by writing the book "The Secrets of Huaquan"; the finishing touches could just be that he wrote the book, nobody can say for sure. Cai Wanzhi had based the book on the traditional philosophy of combining the "three pure essences", or treasures, of Spirit (Shen),Intrinsic Energy (Chi), and Internal force (Jing). Therefore, this specific style of Kung Fu is sometimes referred to as "Kung Fu of Essence." It is also known as Glorious/Magnificent Boxing, China Fist, or "The Fist of Hua Mountain." (Hua, or "Wah"- meaning Glorious, is also synonymous for the word China/Chinese). In modern-day Hua Quan is considered to be one of the five major styles of Long Fist Gong Fu. It may be important to note that due to its translation and spelling, there is a different style of Hua Quan meaning "Flower Fist." ("Meihuaquan").
In classical and contemporary works of literary fiction and cinema (Wuxia stories), Hua Quan is renowned for its swordplay skill. Historically the temples and monasteries on Hua Shan are quite ancient and the monks were renowned masters of Neidan, (Internal Alchemy) and the mountain was a designation for many martial artists, giving up common earthly life. Hua Shan is one of China's five Sacred Peaks of Taoism. According to sources Zhang San-feng, the Taoist sage and patriarch of Taijiquan studied at the monasteries of Hua Shan after his time at Shaolin in Song Shan and before retiring to Wudang Shan. The lesser-known internal martial-art style of Liu He Ba Fa was also developed on Hua Shan by the Taoist sage Chen Tuan (871–989) during the Song Dynasty (960–1280 AD). It is important to note that the Hua Shan area played an important role for self-cultivation and Chinese Martial Arts development, like many of the other mountain regions (Song Shan, Er-Mei, Wudang, etc.).
...
Wikipedia