Footnote
*In this book, Chinese terms are transliterated with the Wade-Giles system, except where the word is already widely used with a different spelling, as, for instance, “Peking, “Nanking,” etc.
Acknowledgments
The writing of this book was eased by the help and support of several friends and colleagues: John Lang, who diligently worked at every level of its preparation; James Klebau, a true professional, who caught the inner spirit of the forms in his fine photographs; Pat Kenny, who helped with the graphics; Bob Arief, AI Carson, Jay Falleson, Steve Goodson, and Irene Pittman, who proofread and corrected the manuscript; Y. W. Chang, Ann Carruthers, Pat McGowan, Chris Bates, Richard Cress, Danny Emerick, and Ben Lo, who acted as sounding-boards; Anne Pavay and Alice Smith, who patiently typed the manuscript; Stephen Comee, who studies under Wang Shu-chin’s successor and who worked hard as the editor and designer of this book; the Charles E. Tuttle Company, which agreed to publish this book; and all the masters and teachers of the Chinese internal martial arts who have given their time and instruction—without their generosity we would never have been able to study these arts. To all of these and to others who helped bring this project to fruition, the authors gratefully bow in deep thanks.
Robert W. Smith
Allen Pittman
Flat Rock, NC
| PART ONE | Introduction to Pa-kua Boxing |
1
What Is Pa- kua?
She moved in circles,
and those circles moved....
—T. Roethke
“I Knew a Woman”
PHILOSOPHY AND PRACTICE
Pa-kua, pronounced “ba-gwa,” is one of the three martial arts that comprise the internal system (nei-chia) of Chinese boxing. The theory of Pa-kua, based on the Book of Changes (I Ching), is difficult, but actualized as Pa-kua chang (Pa-kua Palm), a boxing-meditational exercise, it is even more difficult. Done to cultivate the tao (the way), the circling movements of Pa-kua both manifest Heaven and Earth and order and organize yin and yang. They follow the seasons and benefit man. When practicing Pa-kua, you walk the circle as though macrocosmically walking in the universe, affecting and being affected microcosmically by the changes inside your body.
The name as well as the rationale of Pa-kua derive from the system of philosophy that gave rise to the Book of Changes—an ancient metaphysical treatise over three thousand years old but timeless in its wisdom. Originally a manual of oracles, the Book of Changes evolved into a compilation of ethical enumerations, eventually becoming such a compendium of knowledge that it was chosen as one of the Five Classics of Confucianism. It became a common source for both Confucian and Taoist philosophy. The central theme of the book, as well as of the system of boxing, is that everything is in flux. While the book’s basic idea is the continuous process of change underlying all existence, Pa-kua has absorbed these ideas and transmuted them into a system of exercise and self-defense.
Originally, the Book of Changes contained a collection of linear signs meant to be used as oracles. In the most rudimentary sense, these oracles confined themselves to the answers “yes” and “no.” Thus, “yes” was symbolized by a single unbroken yang line(——), and “no” by a single broken yin line (— —). Time brought a need for differentiation and amplification, which required additional lines. Thus, the eight trigrams (or units of three lines
The eight trigrams that form the basis of the Book of Changes are as follows:
| Name | Attribute | Image | Part of Body |
| Ch’ien, Creative | Strong | Heaven | Head, heart |
| K’un, Receptive | Yielding | Earth | Spleen, stomach |
| Chen, Arousing | Movement | Thunder | Liver, throat |
| K’an, Abysmal | Dangerous | Water | Kidneys, ears |
| Ken, Stillness | Resting | Mountain | Back, hands/feet |
| Sun, Gentle | Penetrating | Wind | Intestines |
| Li, Clinging | Brilliance | Fire | Heart, spirit |
| Tui, Joyous | Joyful | Lake | Lungs, chest |
In turn, these trigrams are often arranged in a circle around a T’ai-chi (Great Ultimate) symbol, the familiar diagram divided into yin and yang (Fig. 1). As the two yin and yang lines combine into groups of three, they gather at the eight directions to form the eight trigrams.
1. The Pa-kua Diagram
The sixty-four hexagrams evolved from the combinations of the eight trigrams being paired with one another. The theory behind this is explained in the Book of Changes, where the trigrams are also identified with the human body.
The diagram of the eight trigrams shown in Figure 1 is based upon the philosophy of the Book of Changes. The symbology is broad enough to embrace all things in Heaven and Earth, and narrow enough to represent the workings of the human body. It forms a path that can be followed both in cultivating the tao and in studying Pa-kua boxing. It also forms the essence of Pa-kua: “If you do not understand the philosophical theory expounded by the diagram, but only perform the movements of Pa-kua,” Wang Shu-chin writes, “you will merely be doing calisthenics.”
The basic eight trigrams from the Book of Canges are correlated with the fundamental eight Pa-kua forms as follows:
1.
2.