Why do practitioners of Baguazhang constantly walk in circles?
Baguazhang, also known as Turning Palm, is vividly described by some as the “Millstone Door” due to practitioners’ continuous left and right rotational walking in circles. The Bagua Song by Master Dong Haichuan goes: “Travel the ends of the earth with the primordial qi, the true essence of Bagua is my domain, every move does not stray from the change of feet, standing still is deemed to have fallen to the ground.” The constant walking in circles, rotating left and right, is a major characteristic of the Bagua martial art school, making it unique, efficient, and an important skill.
The emphasis on continuous walking and turning in Baguazhang is because its principles are based on the Yi Jing (Book of Changes). It’s understood that the movement of celestial bodies, the changes in the universe, the cycle of seasons, day and night transitions, the transmission of life, human body structure, concepts of space and time, and social changes, among others, all involve circular movement—not in a mechanical, simple trajectory repetition, but in a process from quantitative change to qualitative change. Walking in circles is a human-designed movement that aligns with the natural laws of the universe. Bagua ancestors adopted this method to enhance circular movement, inspired by the principles of the Yi Jing and derived from long-term engagements with nature, from human struggles against the wild and in combat experiences. Circular movement aligns with the natural laws of change in all things. Constantly reinforcing the concept of the circle and its movements is a martial art fitness and self-defense secret, a way for martial artists to reach high levels, achieve great success, prevent decline, resist violence, and practice the unity of heaven and man.
From our own experiences, we fully realize that the method of walking in circles significantly stimulates all parts of the body including joints, muscles, ligaments, blood vessels, nerves, internal organs, meridians, etc., in a natural twisting and stretching manner. It’s highly effective for disease prevention, strengthening the body, improving physical quality, enhancing defensive capabilities, and improving combat and technical skills.
The late Baguazhang master Li Ziming always emphasized in his teachings both domestically and internationally that “walking is the ancestor of a hundred practices.” “A hundred practices are not as good as one walk,” “Walking is the best strategy,” “Walking is the key to strengthening the body, winning in combat,” and often instructed his disciples, “Once you enter the Bagua door, you must continue to walk in circles for life.” He said, “The skills of Bagua ancestors were all developed through years of left and right circular walking. After reaching a certain level, the entire body and the nine segments (palm, fist, elbow, wrist, shoulder, waist, hip, knee, foot) become like a freely rotating vajra sphere, untouchable by others—a touch would result in being thrown off balance or struck.” When discussing Baguazhang’s tactical approach to hand-to-hand combat, he said: “The tactic of Baguazhang in hand-to-hand combat is to invite you in if you do not come, and to evade if you do come.” Contemporary martial artist Wang Peisheng also often emphasized “cross hands when meeting, and follow the circle when stepping,” “When hands meet, it’s like fish entering a net,”… all emphasizing the word “walk.” Walking allows for flexible maneuvering, concentration of one’s advantages, attacking the opponent’s weaknesses, making the opponent unable to coordinate their attacks or defenses effectively, being passive in all aspects.
Walking in circles is a method; by reinforcing this method, we strengthen our own concept of the circle. Only through effective methods can we constantly reinforce the concept of the circle in our minds, forming a good, stable program, making the natural consciousness of the circle, the natural movement of the circle, and the natural reaction of the circle become natural. This requires years of hard training, serious study of the Yi Jing, careful observation in daily life, work, and various social activities, earnest experience, continuous practice, and constant summarization.
Why does Baguazhang emphasize using palms over fists?
Baguazhang, as the name suggests, is based on the trigrams of the I Ching and primarily focuses on palm techniques. The reason for emphasizing the use of palms includes four aspects: First, palms are longer than fists. There’s a saying in the martial arts world, “An inch longer, an inch stronger.” In a hand-to-hand comparison, whether barehanded or with weapons, being longer by an inch is more advantageous. Since palms are several inches longer than fists, using palms fully utilizes the physiological conditions of the human body, capitalizing on strengths and avoiding weaknesses. Second, palms have greater force than fists. There’s another saying, “Better to take a punch than a palm strike.” Palms have a smaller contact area compared to fists. According to physics,
with the same force applied, the smaller the contact area, the greater the pressure. For example, shoemakers in the past could pierce a shoe sole with an awl due to its sharp point, but not as easily with a nail. Since the area of palm and fingers is small, it’s also easier to hit vital points, and the degree of injury to the opponent is much greater than using fists. Of course, using palms and fingers to strike might also cause self-injury. The ways to avoid this include two methods: one is to practice palm and finger strength, paying attention to channeling energy to the fingertips during walking and practicing punches. Over time, finger strength will naturally increase, and additional exercises like iron sand palm can also be practiced to enhance penetrating power. Another method is to use palms properly; Baguazhang manuals require combining poking and striking with wrist movement, relaxing the shoulders, extending the waist, and following steps to drill, meaning to use poking and striking with wrist movement in combination. When using palms and fingers to poke, fingers should not be straight but slightly curled inwards like roof tiles, not fully exerting force, focusing on the base of the palm, preferably spiraling out with the palm, touching like a dragonfly skimming water, retracting upon contact, and then striking with the base of the palm. This can confuse the opponent, making it hard for them to defend, not only can it damage their muscles and bones, but it can also block their qi and meridians, causing serious injury to the opponent while preventing one’s own palm and fingers from being injured. Third, using palms for striking allows for more versatility. Striking with palms allows for piercing, poking, collapsing, shaving, slicing, pressing, intercepting, twisting, buckling, pushing, supporting, drilling, flipping, grinding, dusting, slapping, and hitting; when retracting the palm, it allows for grabbing, hooking, leading, carrying, lifting, hanging, twisting, shaking, and exploding, etc., offering a rich and varied range of hand techniques, more versatile than using fists. Fourth, from the perspective of fitness, the practice and application of Baguazhang can fully stimulate the meridians of the three yin and three yang of the hand, allowing qi and blood to reach the tips without obstruction, greatly benefiting health and treatment.
Why does Baguazhang prohibit the “Three Harms”?
The “Three Harms” refer to “straining qi,” “straining force,” and “lifting the chest and pulling in the abdomen.” Why are they called “Three Harms”? Because straining qi requires holding one’s breath, which can lead to chest congestion and qi surging. Over time, it can damage the lungs. Straining force also requires holding one’s breath, straining force is equivalent to combining straining qi and straining force, which not only can damage the lungs but also affect the entire blood circulation, preventing qi and strength from reaching smoothly. This loses the agility and integrated strength, detrimental to both fitness and combat. If not prohibited in practice and combat, it would be highly detrimental to both health and martial effectiveness. The correct method is to always strive for naturalness in all aspects, internally and externally, at all times, ensuring qi sinks to the dantian, the chest is relaxed and the back is pulled up, breathing is natural, intention is used without force, clever force is used instead of brute force, combined force instead of divided force, and following force instead of opposing force. Only then can one achieve health and longevity, continuously improve sensitivity and adaptability, and constantly enhance combat skills.
What does “understanding the nine sections, maintaining the eight reversals” mean in Baguazhang? Why is this requirement made?
The so-called nine sections divide the human body into three sections, each further divided into three sections. That is, the head as the tip section, the body as the middle section, and the legs as the root section; the upper limbs with the hand as the tip section, the elbow as the middle section, and the shoulder as the root section; the lower limbs with the foot as the tip section, the knee as the middle section, and the hip as the root section. Baguazhang’s power generation starts from the root, passes through the middle, and reaches the tip. Without a clear root section, there is no source of strength, and the hand’s power is empty; without a clear middle section, the power does not flow, losing agility; without a clear tip section, the power does not penetrate, making it difficult to succeed in attacks. The “eight reversals” refer to eight aspects in which Baguazhang differs from other martial arts. Reversal implies going against the norm, against the usual way. These are the main movement characteristics of Baguazhang, summarized from long-term training and combat experience.
The content of the “eight reversals” is as follows:
First reversal: Generally,
people step forward with the rear leg first and retreat with the front foot first, while Baguazhang practitioners advance with the front foot first and retreat with the rear foot first. For example, when attacking from a right empty stance, the right foot advances half a step first, followed by the left foot stepping forward a big step, then the right foot follows up half a step, changing to a left empty stance; similarly, when retreating, the left foot retreats half a step first, followed by the right foot retreating a big step, then the left foot retreats half a step again, changing to a left empty stance. This method is agile, quick, stable, and concealed, allowing for forward and backward movement without obviously changing the center of gravity. This step method also makes it difficult for opponents to manipulate your center of gravity and is more concealed.
Second reversal: Generally, people advance with straight steps, while Baguazhang requires entering with straight steps and exiting with side-curved steps, crossing with horizontal steps, and returning with reverse steps; the footwork is flexible and ingenious, allowing for smooth turning.
Third reversal: Generally, people use various hand strikes and kicks when engaging, jumping and hopping around, while Baguazhang practitioners wait quietly for movement, responding to changes with movement, maintaining a fixed rule against myriad changes, preserving strength, and acting opportunistically to control the overall situation and manage changes.
Fourth reversal: Generally, people use fists for striking, with various techniques, while Baguazhang practitioners use palms to cover elbows, direct palm strikes, wrist strikes, usually not grasping the opponent fully but using finger and palm strength.
Fifth reversal: Generally, people strike with the tips, focusing only on local strength, while Baguazhang practitioners start with the root to use the whole body’s strength for striking.
Sixth reversal: Generally, people use fists to strike opponents, while Baguazhang practitioners mainly use palms, which are quicker, longer, and more powerful than fists.
Seventh reversal: Generally, people need to turn around to face the rear, while Baguazhang practitioners can move in all directions with their steps, flexible and changeable; others practice six-directional punches, but Baguazhang requires considering ten directions (the four cardinal directions, four corners, and the upper and lower spaces).
Eighth reversal: Generally, people advance and retreat with their bodies upright, while Baguazhang practitioners switch positions and rotate, following the palms with their steps.
