traced to the seventeenth century. Written texts attributed to the eighteenth
century, discovered in a salt shop in the nineteenth century, are augmented
by the then-current scholarly thought of martial artists living through tur-
bulent times in Yongnian, located in Hebei province. When taiji became
popular in Beijing at the turn of the twentieth century, these writings, per-
ceptions, and practices were solidified and adopted by all major styles and
branches of the movement.
The very term taijicomes from the Zhou dynasty and an anonymous
text, the Yijing(I Ching;the Book of Changes). Over three thousand years
ago, the author wrote, “In all changes exists taiji, which cause the two op-
posites in all things. The two opposites cause the four seasons, and the four
seasons cause the eight natural phenomena.”
Laozi, in about the fourth century B.C., wrote the Dao de Jing (Tao-te
Ching), a text explaining the Dao, the nature of things and underlying prin-
ciples. Through applying the principle of noncontention, one learns to mas-
ter others.
Others labeled as contributors to the philosophic transmission include
the philosopher Fu Xi, and even the reclusive poet and explorer of myste-
rious powers, Xu Xuanping of the Tang dynasty (A.D. 618–907).
Another famous Daoist, Zhang Sanfeng, is said by many to have been
the actual founder of taiji. What is confusing is that records from Wudang
Mountain, a stunningly beautiful place that has been the center of Taoism
since the seventh century, include two Zhang Sanfengs—one from the twelfth
century and another from the fourteenth century. Legends first written down
in the 1867 Ma Tungwenmanuscript, and adopted for many years by the
Yang Family, credit Zhang Sanfeng as creator of taiji. In fact, most taiji man-
uals from 1921 on credit Zhang Sanfeng as the founder without research.
According to legend, Zhang Sanfeng of the twelfth century was on the
road while besieged by bandits and took refuge on Wudang Mountain. The
spirit of Wudang Mountain came in a dream and taught him a new method
of fighting, taiji, and he easily defeated a hundred bandits. The Zhang San-
feng of the fourteenth century is said to have been a “mad” alchemist
searching for immortality by observing tortoises and cranes, two long-lived
creatures. One day he observed a crane and snake fighting, and from this
graceful battle he came up with the Thirteen Postures of Taiji.
Both Zhang Sanfengs have been the subjects of many popular books
and motion pictures. Both men combine the spiritual cultivation of Taoism
with the skills of wushu,but historians have found no direct clear links.
What is clear is a body of skills from Wenxian County, Henan
province, that represents the beginnings of all major forms of taijiquan.
This includes physical forms and training practices stemming from the sev-
enteenth century and some clear writings and supporting historical data.618 Taijiquan (Tai Chi Ch’uan)