Intro to Hong Chuan

ORIGINS
There are two different schools that are both called Hong Chuan: One originated in northern China, the other is widely known in
the south of China. The southern Hong Chuan is also called Hong Jia ("Hung Gar" in Cantonese) Chuan, and is considered first
in the list of the famous “Five Chuans and Thirteen Famous Schools of Canton”. This school has two principal origin stories:
The first says it came from the teachings of the Shaolin Temple and reached Canton from Henan and Fujian at the time when
the falling Ming dynasty was being replaced by the Ching dynasty (mid 17th century). The second story says it is a school of
martial arts created by Hong Shi Guan, a Fujian tea merchant. Both of these legends involve the Shaolin Temple closely.

Another common story is that it was the school of martial arts taught in secret, underground, to rebel forces fighting against
the Manchurian Ching government, whom Chinese peasants deemed foreign invaders. Thus, Hong Chuan did not originate from
a single person, nor was it limited to a single school of teaching.

The most prevalent legend says that Hong Chuan came from the folk hero Hong Shi Guan himself. Of course, we do not object
to such an origin myth for Hong Chuan. However, in the several hundred years leading to its wide acceptance, numerous
masters arose, making many individual changes, according to varying needs, to make it more concise and effective. It is like
the development of a language, not all the changes of phrases can ever be completed solely by a single person at a single
moment.

There are two different aspects of martial arts in this school: The first utilizes wide steps and long-reaching strikes, using
more distinct and obvious movements. The second concentrates on shorter-ranged strikes and smaller stances and specializes
on close combat.

There are many famous forms in Hong Chuan. For example, Gong Zi Fu Hu Chuan ("Gong Zi" refers to the "I" –shaped layout of
the form, while "Fu Hu" means "tiger-taming"), Hu He Shuang Shing Chuan (Tiger-Crane Double Form), Tie Hsian Chuan (Iron
Thread Fist), Wu Chin Chuan (Five Animals Fist), Wu Hsing Chuan (Five Forms Fist) and Shi Hsing Chuan (Ten Forms Fist) are
all widely known. Weapons include the major weapons of dao (or broadsword, a falchion-like single-edged weapon), sword, staff
and spear. The more exotic weapons include double forks, folded fan, umbrella, bars with side handles and shafted blades. The
basics of the forms include the Twelve Chiao Shou ("Bridge Hands", arm symbolizing a bridge, as it is meant to make contact
with the enemy) and the Twelve Chiao Ma (literally "Bridge Horse", referring to stances). These, together with the following
points of note, form the basis for the principles behind Hong Chuan: “Upright stances, stable Chi, sinking Chiao ("bridge",
meaning arms), swallowing waist, withdrawing body, and concentrating mind”.

Because there are many differing characteristics of Hong Chuan, some theories change according to the specific animal form
involved. For example, the Tiger and the Leopard are more “gang” aligned, or hard force oriented. Therefore, their practice
will focus on the fierceness and exertion of strength, with the body staying upright, the stances being more regular, and the Chi
flow more abrupt and forceful. These all contribute to the training of one’s sinews and bones and help deliver force. The Snake
form is more “rou” aligned, or soft flow oriented. The Chi should be sinking and smooth, and the movements and utilization of
internal forces should be continuous, in accordance with the flows of Chi. The Crane form is concerned more with skill and its
movements are mostly precise, agile maneuvers. The Chi is drawn higher with a clear mind, and the hand techniques utilize
subtle differences in the palm and some angles formed by joints. The Dragon trains the spirit and fights fluidly. It forges
“gang” and “rou”, or hard and soft, into complementing twins, incorporating internal force with spirit. The body is flexible and
shifts often; the steps are at times stable, at times fluid. It changes according to the situation and shifts with the movements,
encompassing all forms into one.

Thus, this school of martial arts combines the hardest, the softest, the most skillful and the most fluid into one. The forms
begin from one, progress into ten different forms, and in the end return to one. It is a manifestation of the natural principle of
the duality of the unchanging and the changing. In this manner, the practitioner is led to the true way of martial art through all
the different forms as different mirrors.

Here, we will introduce to you the most famous forms of Hong Chuan, and its major martial art concepts:

THE THREE TREASURES OF HONG CHUAN
In general, the three treasures of Hong Chuan are Gong Zi Fu Hu Chuan, Tie Hsian Chuan and Hu He Shuang Hsing Chuan.

Gong Zi Fu Hu Chuan, according to legend, was created by Hong Shi Guan by modifying the Shaolin Form “Eighteen Lohans
Tame the Tiger”. The layout of the form is H-shaped, and the Chinese character “Gong” looks like the letter "H" turned 90
degrees while "Zi" means "written character" in Chinese. Together these denote the layout of the form. It is the most
representative form of Hong Chuan, and is mainly used to train Chiao Shou, Chiao Ma and develop Chi and internal force. It is
known for its imposing moves and forceful strikes. The required standards for this form include: "Sink the shoulder blades,
spread out the back, send the forces deep into the bone marrow, use the body to moderate Chi flow, use Chi to guide and drive
out force." So that such spirit may be felt: “When one exhales, the shout shakes the mountains and the rivers, when one steps,
the wind swirls the clouds up in the sky.”

Tie Hsian Chuan is the form used most extensively to train internal force. It is a secret form that Hong Shi Guan obtained from
the Shaolin Temple. The movements are wide and the stances low and spread apart. Its main characteristic is to use the body
to moderate Chi flow, using the Chi to guide and drive out force. With the opening and closing of bodily movements, alongside
the twelve Chiao Shou guides, the interaction between “gang” and “rou”, coupled with using Chi to train the internal organs, it
can effect the saying “Internally, develop the Chi”. There is also another legend which states that Tie Hsian Chuan came from
Tie Chiao San, a folk hero who is one of the famous "Ten Tigers of Canton". It is a close-combat form that specializes in
moderating internal organs with different emotional expressions, such as happiness, anger, sadness and joyfulness, to
strengthen the body.

According to legend, Hu He Shuang Hsing Chuan is a form that was created by Hong Shi Guan after he met with Fang Yong
Chun, a legendary female martial artist. It mainly adopts the forcefulness and power of the Tiger and the lightness, precision
and agility of the Crane and merges them into one. From this union came a famous saying: “When you combine Tiger and
Crane, there's no equal match found in all the world.” Roughly speaking, this form is most noted for its numerous variations in
hand techniques, steps and intricate uses of the torso. Combined with the characteristics of both Tiger and Crane, this makes
it an application-oriented and multi-faceted high-level form.

Why are these three forms called the three treasures of Hong Chuan? Because Gong Zi Fu Hu Chuan is a form that concentrates
on the basics, offers sound training for stable hands and proper stances, and develops internal force. These form the basis for
all further Hong Chuan forms, so most people consider it the mother form of Hong Chuan as well as its most representative
form. Tie Shian Chuan mainly trains the manipulation and strength of internal force, and is the best manifestation of the
saying: "Externally, train the sinews, bones and skin; internally, train the Chi”. For this reason, Tie Shian Chuan is called the
highest treasure of Hong Chuan. Hu He Shuang Shing is the form most oriented towards performance and application, so these
three forms complement each other in an inseparable way.

FIVE ANIMALS FIST AND FIVE FORMS FIST
Among the forms of Hong Chuan, there are two sets of forms each simulating five animals. The "Five Animals Fist" are forms
created in imitation of Dragon, Tiger, Leopard, Snake and Crane, while the "Five Forms Fist" include the five animal forms of
Tiger, Crane, Dragon, Snake and Monkey. Both of these sets are considered mid-level forms in Hong Chuan, and all are
considered application-oriented forms.

The keys to the Five Animals are: “The Tiger trains the bone, the Leopard trains strength, the Snake trains the Chi, the Crane
trains precision and the Dragon trains the spirit.” The keys to the Five Forms are: "The Tiger is forceful and trains the strength
of the bone; the Crane is light and skillful, which trains the understanding of combat angles of both offense and defense; the
Snake is gliding, winds around the enemy, and trains the sinking and continuity of Chi; the Monkey is accurate and sharp-eyed,
and makes you swift and agile; the Dragon plays out the spirit and the mind fully, so it transforms and controls gang (hard) and
rou (soft) completely."

Thus, the Tiger is strong, the Crane is light, the Dragon combines hard and soft, the Snake is continuous in Chi and the Monkey
is swift and agile. So another saying says: “The Tiger is powerful as if coming down from a mountain forest, the Crane is ready
as if resting on the branches and feeding, the Dragon is free as if roaming in the sky between clouds, the Snake is smooth as if
gliding swiftly in the grass, the Monkey is alert as if dashing up a tree to grab fruit.”

Many of Hong Chuan’s forms imitate the forms and spirits of animals, utilizing these in training with the following goal: “Learn
the forms, know the spirits, reach the true understanding.” This is of the same principle as is stated in the Art of War: “Face
them with the normal and regular, overwhelm them with the strange and unexpected.” Because there are different paths of
training in Hong Chuan, some concerned mainly with Chi and internal force while others attain victory from the application of
various movements, they use different forms and their varying functions to offer the practitioner a choice to best fit his
personal ideal, and raise his abilities by interchanging between different systems.