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To
preserve his art, Ban-Hou secretly taught a stable boy, Wang
Jiao-Yu, the true system. Wang Jiao-Yu taught the system to
Kuo Lien Ying and Wang Chih Chien, both of whom passed on
the art to the fifth generation, Dr. Yun Chung Chiang. As
a side note, the secrecy and the disparity in Yang Ban-Hou's
Tai Chi were later confirmed by Pu Ru, the brother of the
last Ching dynasty's emperor. Pu Ru was a renowned artist
from whom Dr. Chiang learned Chinese calligraphy and Northern
style painting.
The
Guang Ping Style Tai Chi, as compared with the Beijing Style,
is a system for long life and for martial applications. The
sixty-four movements are performed with bent knees and straight
back. The legs are open resembling a buttress. The steps are
soft and the movements are akin to reeling silks (neither
too taut, nor too slack). The postures and movements all accord
with the principles of yin and yang, the six internal (heart
to mind, mind to chi, and chi to jing) and external (hand
to feet, elbow to knee, and shoulder to hip) harmonies. Martial
applications in Tai Chi are secondary to good health and longevity.
A beginner should practice with the body relaxed and the breathing
should be natural. Advanced students apply mind/body principles
and breathing techniques to the movements.
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