In the central years of the Ming Dynasty (1400 A.D.) there lived a Daoist priest of the Wudang monastery named Zhang San Feng. According to legend, this revered ascetic often ventured deep into the wilds of the mountains to gather apothecary herbs. During one of his journeys, he chanced upon a fight between a white crane and a snake, and the combat of the two beasts struck him with inspiration. Combining concepts from the Book of Changes (I Ching) with the Doctrine of the Mean and Neo-Confucian thought, Zhang San Feng united these philosophies with the traditional forms of Chinese martial skill to create a new style of martial art, a style that could be practiced by all ages, which would strengthen the body and teach self-defense. After his epiphany, Zhang San Feng left the monastery and gave his new martial art the name of “Tai Chi Chuan” — a name that continues to be used by generations today.
Later, Tai Chi Chuan was passed on to the Shanxi native Wang Zong Yue who perfected the theory of Tai Chi in the Treatise on Tai Chi Chuan. This volume, which he penned for posterity, has since become known as the Tai Chi Chuan “bible.” Wang Zong Yue was also responsible for spreading the art of Tai Chi Chuan into the plains of central China when he taught his skills to Master Jiang Fa of the town of Zhao Bao in the Henan province.
The quintessential objective of Tai Chi is to become as “hard as iron, soft as cotton, slippery as a fish, and tenacious as glue” and its stances express these ideals with an understated elegance that makes it one of the most beautiful martial arts in the world. Tai Chi movements are natural and unforced, and seek to emulate the grace of passing clouds and flowing water: drifting apart and then gathering together again with quiet finesse. But its philosophy of attack and defense draws inspiration from the sudden and deceptive nature of ocean waves — emphasizing change and malleability — to attack at the most unexpected moment to leave an opponent senseless.
Over time, the original style of Tai Chi has since evolved and branched into six major schools: Zhao Bao style, Chen style, Yang style, Wu style, another Wu Style and Sun style. Although all originated from the same source, each has developed its own unique fighting flair as Tai Chi Chuan practitioners have spread all around the globe.
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