It is dusty when you approach the village; the landscape is flat, fields can be seen, a few trees criss-cross the corridors, a canal crosses the main road. Finally a couple of small, mostly one-story brick buildings. Market-women are standing by the roadside and offer fruits and vegetables, dogs are lying in the shade or are strolling around the streets, children are playing in the yards or and on the boardwalk.
Chenjiagou in Henan Province, a three-hour bus ride from the provincial capital Zhengzhou, may look like any typical rural village in China. And yet, this village is the place of origin of an art that is by now taught and practiced worldwide. An art that promotes health, awakens the spirits and increases well-being and inner contentment. This martial art was invented, no, created by a general, right here, in this small, unimposing village! Chenjiagou in Henan Province is the home and origin of – Taijiquan!
A first indication of this historical importance is obtained if one continues along the village street and finally comes across two arches about eight meters high and fifteen meters wide. They stand at the beginning and at the end of a section of road that is perhaps two hundred meters long, which is dominated by two buildings: the entrance to the Taiji school of the Chen family, and the steps or the outer walls of the Chen Wangting Temple. Chen Wangting was a respected general who served under the Ming Dynasty, which was replaced by the Qing Dynasty in 1644. Chen Wangting then retired to his home village of Chenjiagou, reflected on his previous life, read old writings on health care and studied Daoism. The old general combined all his knowledge, experiences and experiences and finally created the original form of today’s Chen Taijiquan. All other styles known today, such as the Yang or the Wu style, are derived from this.
What they all have in common is that they are based on martial arts exercises, but at the same time have therapeutic and health-promoting effects and also have a meditative effect on the mind. Today’s grandmaster and main exponent of the Chen style in the 19th generation, Chen Xiaowang, describes Taijiquan as follows: “Taijiquan is a form of martial art that is based on the Yin-Yang theory and combines the effects of acupuncture and the movements of martial arts. That is why it is also called shadow ‘boxing’ ”.
The Chen Wangting Temple was also built thanks to the great commitment of the current Grand Master. Respecting and honoring the family tradition is deeply rooted, and so there is a statue of the founder of the Chen style in the square after the entrance, which, as it were, greets the visitor. In several small halls, the history of Taijiquan, the respective representatives of the Chen style and the various types of exercises and applications are discussed with statues and wall paintings. If you leave the temple at the end of the tour through a small side entrance, you come to the ancestral cemetery of the Chen family, where dozen almost three meter high stone steles commemorate well-known family members. Ancestor worship and commemoration of the deceased is a loud thing in China, and so there are fired firecrackers and firecrackers, also small gifts and flowers on many of the steles. Past the steles, you finally reach a spacious park in which various statues or flower arrangements address the martial arts and Daoism
Most of the attention, however, is a five-story pagoda: a modern museum has been set up in the mighty building in traditional architectural style, which provides information about Taiji, its roots and different styles, as well as individual forms of weapons. When you finally stand on the viewing platform at the top, the view extends far over the adjacent fields and a new building area to the old core of the village and finally back to the Chen Wangting Temple.
The famous Taiji school of the Chen family is only a few meters away from this temple. A large gate serves as the entrance, and immediately behind it there is a huge courtyard with a gym in the center. Around ten young people are practicing Taiji in front of this gym, a teacher is giving instructions and observing the statements. There are four or five elderly men standing next to them, all with a practice sword in hand, practicing the sword form. The movements are slow and flowing, the turns are harmonious – soft and yet powerful. Behind them, about fifteen children are practicing, the maybe ten-year-old boys and girls learn to approach Taiji in a playful way, with some brave ones doing jumps and even flips!
And Germans are also in Chenjiagou this spring and are practicing together with other guests from Brazil, England and the USA under the guidance of Grand Master Chen Xiaowang. Jan Silberstorff heads the German group, he himself lived in the village for a long time and also learned Taiji from the grandmaster and other family members. Today Jan Silberstorff is head of WCTAG, the branch of the World Chen Taiji Association in Germany. He mentions some positive aspects of Taiji: “It reduces stress, there is just an incredible sense of well-being, a clear mind and life is really fun.”
Sonja is in China for the fourth time with Jan Silberstorff and WCTAG – and in Chenjiagou. She is also impressed by the atmosphere and the internationality at the Taiji school and finds this experience very enriching. Together with her husband, she has been practicing Taiji for almost 18 years and can therefore add other positive aspects from her own experience: “Well, Taiji affects my whole life for me. Definitely on your health. I’ve had big back problems, with syringes and a corset and all those things. That has changed incredibly. The posture has improved and the whole well-being is better. I have much, much better body awareness than I have ever had and I also notice much earlier when something is wrong. And it affects the whole rest of life. ”
The main reason for all these positive phenomena is the stimulation and promotion of “Qi”, the “life force” in our body. Grand Master Chen Xiaowang describes this power as follows: “The West sees Qi as energy. The Chinese believe that there is vitality in the individual body passages. In my opinion, the function on the nerves is the most essential part of Qi. ”How this Qi works can be seen when you experience the Grand Master in class. Just like Roland, he has been practicing Taiji for a year and a half and says of Grandmaster Chen Xiaowang’s lessons:
“Yes, Chen Xiaowang… I have to say, this time I saw him here for the first time, personally. And of course he lives from his aura that he brings with him, his charisma, his perfection … When you see him like that, that’s simply impressive and motivates you to take up intensive training again. ”
Over the centuries, the knowledge of Taijiquan and its use was only passed on within the Chen family. At the beginning of the 20th century, this cultural treasure was also spread in other parts of China. Today there are Taiji schools and associations on every continent, and Grandmaster Chen Xiaowang is still traveling around the world in his function as the official representative of the Chen style in the 19th generation to find out about this art, which originated in a small Chinese village to make known all the positive aspects associated with it.
First published on german.cri.cn
