CHENJIAGOU: THE HISTORY OF THE TAIJI VILLAGE

Chenjiagou, the birthplace of Taijiquan, alongside the Shaolin Temple and the Wudang Mountain,is  one of the most significant martial arts locations in China and is often referred to simply as the “Taiji Village”. It is located in Henan Province in central China, and is surrounded by four large cities - Xinxiang to the east, Zhengzhou to the south, Luoyang to the west and Jiaozuo to the north. An examination of the history of Chenjiagou shows how difficult it has been for the village to preserve its legacy. A combination of political, social and environmental factors has conspired that at times challenged the very survival of Taijiquan in its birthplace.

Traditional Community

To chart the experience of generations of Taijiquan practitioners in Chenjiagou in any kind of meaningful way one must consider how they perceived the world. To Western eyes Chenjiagou, like many remote rural communities throughout the world, seems to give off a sense of timeless permanence. Each generation of the Chen clan preserved and built upon the family art passed down to them. In Understanding Folk Religion (1999, p179), Paul Hiebert captures this sense: “Emphasis on membership in a greater family provides people with a strong sense of identity. Including ancestors provides a sense of stability and continuity”. Ancestor worship served to strengthen ties of kinship to the extent that within traditional Chinese social organisation, the concept of the patrilineal family is taken to be the essential cohesive unit in society. Blood kinship is unquestionably the social tie of greatest significance (Hucker, 1975,p57).

Chen Bu’s Journey to Chenjiagou

While Taijiquan was widely acknowledged to have been created in the late seventeenth century, the villagers of Chenjiagou trace their ancestry back to Chen Bu, the historical patriarch of the Chen clan. Chen Bu founded the village during the turbulent early years of the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644). It was a time of war, devastation and chaos as the previous Yuan dynasty (1271-1368) was coming to an end. Law and order were non-existent and the population lived in poverty and fear. Ultimately the warrior Zhu Yuanzhang emerged victorious and took control of the whole of China establishing the Ming dynasty. During a raid to the Huaiqing prefecture (today’s Qinyang city, which in those days governed eight counties, including Wen County where Chenjiagou is located), Zhu Yuanzhang’s men were met with fierce resistance by the Yuan general Tien Moer and sustained huge casualties. However, a single prefecture could not hold off sustained attacks from the vast army of Zhu Yuanzhang. It was finally defeated by lack of supplies and reinforcements, and the few remaining Yuan soldiers dispersed (Chen Xiaowang, 2004, p1).

The consequences for the region were catastrophic. “After Zhu Yuanzhang ascended the throne, he turned his anger on the common people of Huaiqing Prefecture, accusing them of helping the resistance against the imperial soldiers. He sent his solders to “clean” Huaiqing three times by slaying all the innocent people. It is said that after the Ming soldiers finished pillaging a place, they often left placed money, food, cloths, etc. at the crossroad in the centre of a village. If these items were picked up, a new search would ensue. Although people went into hiding with their families, eight to nine out of ten did not manage to escape the massacre.

After the three cleansings of the prefecture and its eight counties, an area of several thousand square kilometres were littered with blood and bodies. Almost no crops could be seen and not a single rooster could be heard in the thousand villages” (Chen Xiaowang, 2004, p1)

Historical records of the period tell of the implementation of a policy of mass migration and wasteland reclamation. A migration office was established in Shanxi Province, and local inhabitants were compelled to relocate to now-sparsely populated areas devastated by the war (one of which was Huaiqing Prefecture). One of those forced to move was Chen Bu. According to Chen Xiaowang (2004, p1) Chen Bu “originated from Dongtuhe village, Hezhou (today’s Jincheng County), Shanxi. In the first year of Hongwu, Chen Bu with his whole family fled from famine to Hongdong. In the fifth year of Hongwu (1372) he was amongst the ones who were forced by government officials to move to Henan’s Huaiqing Prefecture”. Since the traditional starting point for all migrations was beneath a scholar tree (huaishu), the saying persists today that the Chen family ancestors came from “Shanxi Hongdong Big Scholar Tree”” (Gaffney and Sim, 2002, p10).”

Upon arrival at the designated region, Chen Bu settled in the south-eastern section, with the Yellow River to the south, Taihang Mountains in the north, and a wide fertile flood plain. A village was gradually established which was named Chen Bu Zhuang (Chen Bu’s village). The village bears his name to this day though it is now part of Wen County instead of Qinyang. The village, however, proved less than ideal as it was on low lying ground and was prone to flooding. Undaunted Chen Bu moved about five kilometres to the east, to Qing Feng Ling (Green Wind Ridge). The place was named Chang Yang Village after a temple there. Chen Bu soon made his presence felt leading an attack to destroy a nearby bandit stronghold that had been terrorizing the village. Chen Bu’s reputation grew and he established a martial arts school in order to train the villagers.

Despite his many heroic exploits the eventual way the village acquired its name is somewhat prosaic. “Areas on both sides of the Yellow River were frequently flooded. Many failed attempts were made to deepen the river. Parallel drainage ditches, therefore, were created to help deal with floodwaters. These came to be associated with families. Chen Bu’s family name gave Chang Yang Village its modern name of Chenjiagou, meaning “Chen Family Ditch”. The name gou, which means drainage ditch, was attached to “Chen family” (Chen Jia)” (Gaffney and Sim, 2002, p10-11).

The Birth of Taijiquan

While the art of Taijiquan was yet to make an appearance the martial tradition of the Chen clan continued. It seems likely that the martial art practiced was external in nature. “The close proximity of the village to the Shaolin Temple gives credence to the theory that it may have been some form of Shaolin Boxing. The Chen family was famous for several generations for their Paocui (Cannon Fist) boxing and was known as the “Paocui Chen Family” (Paocui Chen Jia)” (Gaffney and Sim, 2002, p12).

Detailed historical records of people, events and martial arts started from the time of Chen Wangting (1600-1680), the man who created Taijiquan. According to Annals of Huaiqing Prefecture, Wen County Annals and Anping County Annals, in 1641, before the fall of the Ming dynasty, Chen Wangting was a military officer and served as Commander in the Garrison Force of Wen County. The Genealogy of Chen Families stated that at the end of the Ming dynasty Chen Wangting was already famous for his martial skills, “having once defeated more than 1000 bandits and was a born warrior, as can be proven by the sword he used in combat.” (Gaffney and Sim, 2002, p12).

Some three centuries earlier the Emperor Hongwu (imperial name of Zhu Yuanzhang, founder of the Ming dynasty), had established a powerful military machine with a million-man standing army. This was divided into basic garrison units or wei of roughly five thousand men which were further subdivided into smaller companies known as so. For major campaigns, soldiers were assembled from wei and so from the four corners of the country under the instruction of commanders from the capital. However, by Chen Wangting’s time, in the final years of the Ming dynasty, the wei-so system had become a bureaucratic nightmare.

According to Charles Hucker (1975, p327) “…the wei-so standing army declined in strength and fighting ability. It was supplemented by local militiamen, then by conscripts from the general population, and finally in the last Ming century by recruited mercenaries in awesome numbers. In the last Ming decades the military rolls swelled to a reported total of four million men. But they were poorly equipped, ill trained, and irregularly fed and clothed; only a small fraction of the total can have been effective soldiers.”

Chen Wangting was fiercely loyal to the Ming dynasty and its fall put paid to any ambitions of advancement he held. Consequently he retired to Chenjiagou where he lived out the rest of his days. It is not hard to imagine the frustration that this warrior, pensioned off at the peak of his powers, must have felt. It was during this period that he began to compile a unique form of martial art combining various disciplines and assimilating the essence of many martial skills existing at the time. In developing his new art Chen Wangting appears to have been heavily influenced by the famous general and outstanding military strategist Qi Jiguang (1528-1587). Qi was most famous for successfully defending China against rampaging pirates from Japan. He also successfully defeated the Mongolian invaders from the north. His tactics involved feigning weakness and retreating before the enemy. After leading them far inland and lulling them into a false sense of superiority, Qi’s forces overwhelmed the invaders in a sudden and decisive counterattack (Millinger and Fang, 1976, p220-224). This was to be adopted by Chen Wangting to become Taijiquan’s central tenet of “not meeting strength with strength” and “leading an opponent into emptiness”.

“Between 1559 and 1561, General Qi compiled his classic text on strategy and martial arts, called Ji Qiao Xin Shu (New Book of Effective Techniques). This comprehensive manual comprises of fourteen chapters with four dedicated to the practice of wushu. The most widely quoted chapter is the “Quan Jing” (Canon of Boxing), which depicts an effective and powerful repertoire assimilating the arts of sixteen different martial systems of the time” (Gaffney and Sim, 2002, p15). Like Chen Wangting later, Qi placed great emphasis on martial effectiveness deriding the use of “flowery fists and embroidered legs” (movements which are spectacular to look at but of no practical use).

“Chen Wangting and Qi Jiguang were not of the same dynasty, but Chen admired Qi’s patriotism and the way he had absorbed the best of the various martial schools. He was especially influenced by Qi’s arrangement of the different martial systems. Society was in turmoil during the period of Chen Wangting’s middle age and the country was being invaded by foreigners. Unable to do his duty for the country and unable to fulfill his ambitions, Chen Wangting retired to the village with his constant companion “Huangting Jing” (Canon of the Yellow Chamber) with the intention of organizing the different martial arts systems of his time. In this way Chen Wangting, following Qi Jiguang, is renowned for the research and collation of folk martial arts. This was the base from where he later created Taijiquan” (Chen Xiaowang, 2004, p3).

Chen, however, did more than simply incorporate the essential theories of Qi Jiguang. His new system was highly innovative adding “the novel concepts of hiding firmness in softness and using different movements to overcome the unpredictable and changing moves of the opponent, thereby raising external fighting skills to a higher level. Power is generated from within, with the use of “internal energy to become outward strength.” This theory is embodied in Chen’s “Song of the Canon of Boxing”: “Actions are varied and executed in a way that is completely unpredictable to the opponent, and I rely on twining movements and numerous hand-touching actions.” “Hand-touching” denotes the close contact of the arms to develop sensitivity to react quickly--“nobody knows me, while I alone know everybody.””

In a poem written not long before his death, Chen Wangting reflected: “Sighing for past years when I was strong and sharp. Sweeping away dangerous obstacles without fear! All the favors bestowed on me by the emperor are in vain. Now old and fragile, I am left only with the book of Huang Ting for company. In moments of listlessness I study martial arts. In times of activity I cultivate the land. In leisure I teach disciples and descendants so that they may be worthy members of society” (Gaffney and Sim, 2002, p12-13).

Chen Changxing - Breaking With Tradition

Up until the time of Chen Changxing (1771-1853), the fourteenth generation of the Chen Clan, Taijiquan was a closely guarded secret of the Chen family. Chen Changxing carried out escort duties to neighboring bandit lands, particularly the Shandong Province. His words revealed a no-nonsense approach to combat that balanced the physical and psychological aspects necessary to be successful.

For example, in his “Important Words on Martial Applications”, Chen Changxing said: “To get the upper hand in fighting, look around and examine the shape of the ground. Hands must be fast, feet light. Examine the opponent’s movements like a cat. Heart (mind) must be in order and clear … If the hands arrive and the body also arrives [at the same moment], then defeating the enemy is like smashing a weed” (Chen Xiaowang, 1990, p266).

Chen Changxing seems to have been a practical individual not afraid to break with tradition. The original art passed down from Chen Wangting’s time comprised of five boxing routines that Chen Changxing synthesized into what is known today as the Old Frame First Routine (Laojia Yilu) and Second Routine (Laojia Erlu), also known as the Pao Cui or Cannon Fist Form. These make up the foundation forms from which subsequent generations of Chen Village practitioners have developed their capabilities until the present day (Chen Xiaoxing, 2003). The change from the original forms represents the biggest change of all in the evolution of Chen Taijiquan.

Chen Changxing’s second momentous break with tradition was to teach Taijiquan to Yang Luchan (1799-1871) – the first time the art had been transmitted to someone outside the Chen clan. While today this may not sound so startling, at the time the significance of the clan cannot be over-emphasized. In fact the secrecy of the rural family clans is one important reason why many family martial systems were able to develop their own unique characteristics and flavor. A vital condition for the development of the many local fighting systems was the patriarchal family system. The primary importance traditionally placed in the family, it’s setting itself strictly apart from other clans and its autonomous way of life preserved the distinctive family combat systems over generations. Outsiders were strictly excluded from learning the clan secrets. By breaking this taboo, Chen changing paved the way for the development of the widely practiced Yang style Taijiquan and thereon to other Taiji styles.

Today when most people practice martial arts for sport, health and recreation it is easy to lose sight of the life and death seriousness of martial skill in the past. Chinese scholar Jarek Szymanski (2002) refers to Wu Wenhan’s book “The Complete Book of the Essence and Applications of Wu (Yuxiang) style Taijiquan” that contains a fascinating insight into the combat history of Chen style Taijiquan. It relates two official government documents that record the defense of Huaiqing County (where Chenjiagou is located) against the Taiping rebellion army in 1853. One is entitled “Veritable Record of Taiping Army Attacking Huaiqing County”, which was written by Tian Guilin, who was responsible for “defending the western town” in Huaiqing. The other is the “Daily Records of Huaiqing Defence” compiled by a local schoolteacher called Ye Zhiji (Szymanski, 2002).

“Neither Tian nor Ye were Taijiquan practitioners. Both were government officials, and hence their accounts can be considered objective descriptions of the events”. According to the documents, once the Taiping army crossed the Yellow River and attacked Huaiqing County, the local militia was defeated and dispersed, and government troops escaped. Of all the villages only Chenjiagou resisted. In his “Veritable Record” under 29th day of the 5th month

Tian Guilin noted: “The head of the thieves (i.e. Taiping rebels) called Big Headed Ram (Da Tou Yang) invaded Chenjiagou. This thief was extremely bold and strong; he was able to carry two big canons under his arms and swiftly attack the town. The battles which destroyed whole towns were conducted under the command of this thief. Fortunately Chen Zhongshen and Chen Jishen, two brothers from Chenjiagou, were very skilled in using spears and long poles. They used long poles to pull Big Headed Ram down from the horse, and then they cut his head off. The thieves got very angry, and the whole group went on to Zhaobao Jie burning everything, then to Henei and villages around Baofeng, and no soldiers came to their rescue (of these areas, fortunately Chen Zhongshen and others managed to escape.”

The documents stated that only the inhabitants of Chenjiagou took an active part in the resistance against the Taiping rebels. This would imply that Chenjiagou, unlike the other villages in the area, had a stronger martial tradition and used it to defend themselves (Szymanski, 2002).

The Modern Era

During the early years of the last century Taijiquan practice in Chenjiagou reached its zenith, with almost everyone in the village training the art. At the same time, the establishment of a Taijiquan school and a more formalized teaching syllabus led to the development of many famous practitioners. In order to express their respect for the family art, the villagers re-constructed many of the dwellings of famous practitioners of the past and built many Taijiquan related structures (Wang Jie, 2006, p4).

However, the good times were not to last and the fall of the Qing dynasty in 1912 brought a resurgence of regional warlordism to many parts of China, including Henan Province (Hucker, 1975, p328). On top of this much of China suffered a period of devastating natural disasters. During the early 1920s much of Henan province, along with the neighboring provinces of Shandong, Shanxi, Shaanxi and Hebei suffered a catastrophic period of famine caused by the severe droughts of 1919. In The Search for Modern China, Jonathan Spence (1999, p298-9) described a shattered scene where: “In farm villages … the combination of withered crops and inadequate government relief was disastrous: at least 500,000 people died, and out of an estimated 48.8 million in these five provinces, over 19.8 million were declared destitute”. Villagers were reduced to eating straw and leaves and epidemics such as typhus cut a swathe through many too frail to fight back.

The disastrous combination of events meant that the numbers of people practicing Taijiquan in the village was getting less and less. At the request of his nephew Chen Zhaopei, of the 17th generation of the Chen Clan, Chen Fake (1887-1957) went to Beijing to teach in 1928. In those days travel was difficult and Beijing must have seemed like the other side of the world to villagers, most of whom had spent their entire lives without venturing out. One can imagine the somber mood the night before he was to leave when Chen Fake went to the family temple to bid farewell to his fellow villagers and to demonstrate his Taijiquan one last time. Noted Xiaojia (Small Frame) practitioner Chen Liqing, a young child at the time, witnessed the event: “Chen Fake demonstrated Laojia Yilu. During the fajing movements you could hear the power from the wind and the candle-flames flickered. At that time the temple was made of mud and when he stamped five of the roof tiles were dislodged and came down. One person tried to test his strength and was bounced off the wall. When he finished he saluted those present in the room” (Chen Liqing, 2005). Chen Zhaopei, an eighteenth generation master of Chen style Taijiquan, who had left the village shortly before Chen Fake to teach throughout China, was deeply troubled that there would be no one left to transmit Taijiquan on into the next generation. He had himself learned Taiji from several renowned masters including his uncles Chen Fadou and Chen Fa-ke, Chen Yanxi and Chen Xin. In 1958, after retiring from work the sixty-five year old Chen Zhaopei assumed the daunting responsibility himself, returning home to Chenjiagou to teach.

Chen Zhaopei’s son, Chen Kesen (1993) recalled his father’s decision to pick up the mantle of preserving Taijiquan in its birthplace: “He willingly returned to the spartan village life of Chenjiagou. After he returned to the village, he set up a Taijiquan school in his own home, bearing all of the costs himself. At the same time, he also set up a training class in the county town, Wenxian, teaching the members of the government, the workers and staff of the Mining School, and coaching the teachers and students. There was a vigorous renaissance of Taijiquan in old Wenxian. Who knew that this good scene would not last for long”?

Chen Zhaopei set about improving and tightening the standard of Chen Style Tajiquan in the village, bringing under his tutelage many new devotees. The resurrection of the dwindling Chen style Taijiquan is generally attributed to this period of time. His most celebrated disciples today are Chen Xiaowang, Wang Xian, Zhu Tiancai and Chen Zhenglei, described collectively as the “Four Buddha’s Warriors” by a journalist in the early 1980s. All were sent out to take part in various competitions and demonstrations, slowly increasing the profile of Chen style Taijiquan (Zhu Tiancai, 2000). The combination of his affectionate and easy-going nature and serious attitude to training attracted many students. Reminiscing about this period, Chen Xiaowang remembered: “at that time learning from my uncle Chen Zhaopei was very gruelling (2005,p76)”.

The Impact of the Cultural Revolution

In 1966 Mao Zedong and his close supporters instigated the Cultural Revolution, an immense and distorted movement that for ten years inflicted fear and anarchy on China. By arousing peasant-powered mass violence, Mao let loose a whirlwind of social turmoil. Individuals deemed to be a si lei fenzi or “four-bad-categories element” were labelled as “bad class” and suffered severe discrimination. The four groups were defined as a landlord, rich peasant, counter-revolutionary or rotten element. Throughout the countryside, anyone unlucky enough to be branded within these categories was shown little mercy in the highly emotional environment during the “Maoist struggle sessions”. In The Class System in Rural China: A Case Study, Jonathan Unger (1984 pp121-141) documented the creation of caste-like pariah groups and their maltreatment during the post-revolutionary period. His study focused upon a small rural community in Guangdong province (coincidentally also called the Chen Village) with many similarities to Chenjiagou: “As a symbol of polluted status, during the 1960s and 1970s the dozen or so elderly “four bad elements”…had to sweep dung from the village square before mass meetings were held there. To symbolise further that most of them were irredeemably among the damned, they were not permitted to attend any political sessions or participate in Mao study groups”.

At its heart, the Cultural Revolution demanded a comprehensive assault on the “four old” elements within Chinese society: “old customs, old habits, old culture, and old thinking” (Spence, 1999, p575). During this period, the Red Guard burnt many historic Taijiquan documents. One story recounts how Wang Xian was deeply upset to witness the destruction of such irreplaceable manuscripts. Coming into possession of one such copy, he was determined that it be preserved. Wang wrapped it in plastic and plastered it into the ceiling of his home. Discovery of his actions could have had dire consequences both to himself and his family.

During the Cultural Revolution and the period of civil unrest just preceding it, most of the Taijiquan related structures in the village were destroyed (Wang Jie, 2006, p6). The location of Chen Changxing’s grave was lost with the removal of its head stone and a number of priceless artefacts were lost, including Chen Wanting’s sword, and a portrait of Chen Wanting with Jiang Fa. Disastrously for the progress of Taijiquan in the village, many Taiji experts suffered greatly throughout this time.

The combination of incessant Maoist indoctrination with hard labour was the norm in villages all over China throughout the Cultural Revolution. Chen Xiaoxing (2003) the Principal of the Chenjiagou Taijiquan School recalled how at the time he was required to toil for twelve hours a day in a brick factory. Chen Kesen recalled how his father, Chen Zhaopei, was persecuted and subjected to humiliating public “struggle sessions” during the Cultural Revolution, but courageously carried on teaching secretly at night. His prized disciples continued to study under him clandestinely during these sessions causing him to compose the following verse: “At eighty years I teach Taiji, without concern for whether the road ahead is bad or good, the wind howls the rain beats down and the difficulties are many, I delight in seeing the next generation of successors filling my home village (Chen Kesen, 1993).”

In an radio interview conducted for BBC Radio’s Eastern Horizon programme, noted Chen Taijiquan teacher Chen Zhenglei explained: “The biggest setback for Tai Chi and all martial arts was during the Cultural Revolution when people were not able to practice freely and martial arts became outlawed. Tai Chi and other martial arts diminished in China. When China opened its gates again to the rest of the world, its rich culture was promoted and martial arts became standardised and simplified in the process. This had its pros and cons too, allowing more people to learn, but this ultimately diluted and changed the virtues of the traditional form”.

However, from the mid 1970s the political climate began to soften and the outlook became brighter for Taijiquan in Chenjiagou. In 1974 the eighteenth generation standard-bearer Chen Zhaokui returned to the village to teach the Xinjia (New Frame). In 1978, a host of new writings was given wide circulation through the state-controlled press and journals. “Focusing on the horrors and tragedies experienced by many in the Cultural Revolution, this “literature of the wounded” as it was called stimulated debate and reflection about China’s past and its future prospects. Signs seemed to point to a cultural thaw, among which one could include the convening of a conference (in far-off Kunming in Yunnan, admittedly) to study the long-taboo subject of comparative religion, with papers delivered on Buddhism and Daoism, Islam and Christianity” (Spence, 1999, p621).

Opening up of China

Chen style Taijiquan has enjoyed a surge of popularity around the world in the last few decades. As the current generation of masters from Chenjiagou, finally got the opportunity to travel and demonstrate their skills, more and more people have been exposed to the traditional village art. Before, to many, Taijiquan was synonymous with the more widely seen Yang style or the various government approved versions of Taiji. Since the change of policy within the country and the opening up of China’s economy, the district government has begun the process of building up Chenjiagou again. As the birthplace of Taijiquan, the village carries with it profound cultural and historical significance of interest not just in China, but the world over. Plans are afoot to develop Chenjiagou as a tourist attraction and in recent years the district government has invited architects from Beijing to survey and plan possible projects. At present nothing definite has been decided and the only officially designated tourist attractions in the village are the Taiji Temple and the House where Yang Luchan learned Taijiquan (Chen Bing, 2005).

Twentieth generation practitioner Chen Bing (2005) optimistically looks forward the day when Chenjiagou and Taijiquan will go out into the international arena on a scale to match the nearby Shaolin Temple. However, he provides the caveat of the requirement of higher-level government support: “If the central government takes an interest then the steps towards development will be much lighter. Individual influence is small and if you just rely on the villagers, teachers and instructors the development will be much slower and smaller. You need the infrastructure behind it and at the moment the climate is favorable”.

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