Shaoxing China
Beautiful place and historical place
Linqing Elbow Hammers' Eight Direction Hammers
Línqīng Zhǒu Chuí, Bā Fāng Chuí / Bāguà Chuí
Linqing area Elbow Hammer system
Eight Direction Hammers A.K.A. Eight Diagram Hammers
The purpose of this form is to learn to freely change from method to method with breaks in movement or awareness and how to embody the energies of the Eight Diagrams and the principle of change while in combat.
The Zhou Chui style comes from Linqing county in western Shandong province's Liaocheng prefecture.
It originated in the late Qing dynasty (about 1874) from the teachings of Zhang DongHuai of Linqing county's Tang Township, Yaopo Village.
He was born to a family with a long tradition as doctors, in addition to being a renowned doctor famous for his skill in treating typhoid and other serious illnesses his father was also a county level scholar in the imperial exam system and a well known calligrapher. Zhang Dong Huai not only inherited the family medical system from his father but was also taught calligraphy and began to study the classics at a young age, with special emphasis given to the study of the Yi Jing. However it was from his grandfather that he began learning the martial arts. His grandfather practiced a rare style he referred to simply as Zhou Fa Elbow Methods,it was this that he began to study at an early age. Later he left his village to wander for a few years in search of further instruction. When he returned he immediately made a name for himself by defeating both the sons of the local criminal family that for years had been using their muscle to extort money, favors, and land from the local farmers.
After this he began to compile what he had learned, rewriting the the manuals containing the secrets of his grandfather's Zhong Fa Elbow Methods to include his new understandings of martial arts along and to conform to the teachings of the Yi Jing. The art he created was named Zhou Chui Elbow Hammers and consisted of various Qigong and conditioning exercises, push hands type training for sensitivity along with sparring sets and practices and 10 Tang trips/roads of Elbow Hammers with 210 total postures.
His reputation continued to grow attracting many challenges, with each new victory he acquired more students. At this period the YiHe Tuan Boxer Rebellion began in western Shandong. Many of his students took part in the rebellion, after it was over they were among those who were hunted in vengeance by the western powers. It is said that to save the lives of his students he took the blame on himself and committed suicide. This was seen as an act of heroism by the local people, he saved the lives of many young men who went on to teach his art.
Later some of his students revised the Lao/Old 10 Tang of 210 postures into the Xin/New 10 Tang of 130 postures to simplify learning and remembering the forms.
By the late 1970's Zhou Chui had become rare even in it's place of origin, the Old Ten Roads were lost to the people of Linqing county and most masters only knew section of the New Ten Roads.
However a student of the Zhou Chui style named Shen XiaoSheng having learned the first 5 of the new roads from his teacher was searching for someone who could teach him the rest of the system. He was told by the older people of Linqing that a man named Zhou ZiYan had mastered the entire Old Ten Roads.
Zhou ZiYan had moved to Beijing nearly half a century before as a young man to study Yi Quan at the invitation of master Wang XiangZai. Upon arrival in Beijing he was challenged by several of master Wang's top students and soundly defeated them all using his Zhou Chui techniques. Over time he became one of master Wang's top students in the art of YiQuan.
When Shen XiaoSheng arrived in Beijing he found that master although Zhou ZiYan was well known in the Beijing area he had only ever taught YiQuan. Despite this he had continued to practice Zhou Chui in private and was the last person to possess the entire original system. Learning that Shen XiaoSheng had come from Linqing and that the original art had been all but lost there he agreed to take him as a student, teaching him the entire contents of the system. Later several other masters came from the Linqing area to learn from him bringing the Old Ten Roads back to Linqing where they are now practiced along side the New Ten Roads.
The Linqing area has long been a major center of martial arts in western Shandong, and is known throughout China as the birthplace of TanTui. Besides TanTui, Mei Hua Zhuang, Da Hong Quan, Cha Quan and many other styles can be found in the villages of Linqing county.
Linqing Elbow Hammers
Línqīng Zhǒu Chuí Linqing area Elbow Hammers
The Zhou Chui style comes from Linqing county in western Shandong province's Liaocheng prefecture.
It originated in the late Qing dynasty (about 1874) from the teachings of Zhang DongHuai of Linqing county's Tang Township, Yaopo Village.
He was born to a family with a long tradition as doctors, in addition to being a renowned doctor famous for his skill in treating typhoid and other serious illnesses his father was also a county level scholar in the imperial exam system and a well known calligrapher. Zhang Dong Huai not only inherited the family medical system from his father but was also taught calligraphy and began to study the classics at a young age, with special emphasis given to the study of the Yi Jing. However it was from his grandfather that he began learning the martial arts. His grandfather practiced a rare style he referred to simply as Zhou Fa Elbow Methods,it was this that he began to study at an early age. Later he left his village to wander for a few years in search of further instruction. When he returned he immediately made a name for himself by defeating both the sons of the local criminal family that for years had been using their muscle to extort money, favors, and land from the local farmers.
After this he began to compile what he had learned, rewriting the the manuals containing the secrets of his grandfather's Zhong Fa Elbow Methods to include his new understandings of martial arts along and to conform to the teachings of the Yi Jing. The art he created was named Zhou Chui Elbow Hammers and consisted of various Qigong and conditioning exercises, push hands type training for sensitivity along with sparring sets and practices and 10 Tang trips/roads of Elbow Hammers with 210 total postures.
His reputation continued to grow attracting many challenges, with each new victory he acquired more students. At this period the YiHe Tuan Boxer Rebellion began in western Shandong. Many of his students took part in the rebellion, after it was over they were among those who were hunted in vengeance by the western powers. It is said that to save the lives of his students he took the blame on himself and committed suicide. This was seen as an act of heroism by the local people, he saved the lives of many young men who went on to teach his art.
Later some of his students revised the Lao/Old 10 Tang of 210 postures into the Xin/New 10 Tang of 130 postures to simplify learning and remembering the forms.
By the late 1970's Zhou Chui had become rare even in it's place of origin, the Old Ten Roads were lost to the people of Linqing county and most masters only knew section of the New Ten Roads.
However a student of the Zhou Chui style named Shen XiaoSheng having learned the first 5 of the new roads from his teacher was searching for someone who could teach him the rest of the system. He was told by the older people of Linqing that a man named Zhou ZiYan had mastered the entire Old Ten Roads.
Zhou ZiYan had moved to Beijing nearly half a century before as a young man to study Yi Quan at the invitation of master Wang XiangZai. Upon arrival in Beijing he was challenged by several of master Wang's top students and soundly defeated them all using his Zhou Chui techniques. Over time he became one of master Wang's top students in the art of YiQuan.
When Shen XiaoSheng arrived in Beijing he found that master although Zhou ZiYan was well known in the Beijing area he had only ever taught YiQuan. Despite this he had continued to practice Zhou Chui in private and was the last person to possess the entire original system. Learning that Shen XiaoSheng had come from Linqing and that the original art had been all but lost there he agreed to take him as a student, teaching him the entire contents of the system.
Later several other masters came from the Linqing area to learn from him bringing the Old Ten Roads back to Linqing where they are now practiced along side the New Ten Roads.
The Linqing area has long been a major center of martial arts in western Shandong, and is known throughout China as the birthplace of TanTui. Besides TanTui, Mei Hua Zhuang, Da Hong Quan, Cha Quan and many other styles can be found in the villages of Linqing county.
Yellow River | Wikipedia audio article
This is an audio version of the Wikipedia Article:
Yellow River
00:01:07 1 Name
00:02:27 2 History
00:02:35 2.1 Dynamics
00:05:17 2.2 Ancient times
00:06:40 2.3 Medieval times
00:09:26 2.4 Recent times
00:11:02 3 Geography
00:12:51 3.1 Upper reaches
00:16:19 3.2 Middle reaches
00:18:24 3.3 Lower reaches
00:19:33 3.4 Tributaries
00:20:17 4 Characteristics
00:22:47 5 Hydroelectric power dams
00:24:39 6 Crossings
00:26:41 7 Aquaculture
00:27:52 8 Pollution
00:29:03 9 In culture
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- Socrates
SUMMARY
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The Yellow River or Huang He (listen ) is the second longest river in Asia, after the Yangtze River, and the sixth longest river system in the world at the estimated length of 5,464 km (3,395 mi). Originating in the Bayan Har Mountains in Qinghai province of Western China, it flows through nine provinces, and it empties into the Bohai Sea near the city of Dongying in Shandong province. The Yellow River basin has an east–west extent of about 1,900 kilometers (1,180 mi) and a north–south extent of about 1,100 km (680 mi). Its total drainage area is about 752,546 square kilometers (290,560 sq mi).
Its basin was the birthplace of ancient Chinese civilization, and it was the most prosperous region in early Chinese history. There are frequent devastating floods and course changes produced by the continual elevation of the river bed, sometimes above the level of its surrounding farm fields.