The Xingyiquan and Baguazhang Program
形意拳 八卦掌
The Masich Internal Arts Method approach to internal arts is focused primarily on
Yang-style Taijiquan. However, It is difficult to fully appreciate taijiquan without some exposure to other neijiaquan arts. Indeed, in Chinese martial arts history it is rare to find master level taijiquan practitioners who do not have a working knowledge of other martial arts styles, especially those of the internal schools. ‘Form-and-will fist’ (xingyiquan) and ‘eight-trigrams palm' (baguazhang) are sister arts to taijiquan and form part of The Masich Internal Arts Method. Approached from a taijiquan core principles perspective, xingyiquan, with its five-fists, and baguazhang, with its eight-palms, are studied as augmentations of traditional Yang-style Taijiquan technique.
Sam Masich appears in the the books Xingyiquan: Theory, Applications, Fighting Tactics and Spirit, and Baguazhang: Emei Baguazhang written by Liang Shou-Yu and Yang Jwing-Ming as well as the two-part instruction program Vital Xingyiquan with Liang Shou-Yu. To follow is an overview of the Masich Internal Arts Method Xingyiquan and Baguazhang Program.
Xingyiquan 形意拳
Known in English as ‘Form and will boxing,’ xingyiquan provides another look at internal arts principles according to the five-phases (wuxing 五行) concept. Built around the ‘five-phases fists’ (五行拳), 'splitting fist' (pi quan 劈拳), 'crushing fist' (beng quan 弸拳), 'drilling fist' (zuan quan 钻拳), 'cannon fist' (pao quan 炮拳), 'crossing fist' (heng quan 橫拳), xingyiquan is a powerful and aggressive style.
As part of it's Xingyiquan Program, The Masich Internal Arts Method includes:
◦ Xingyiquan individual five-fists
◦ Xingyiquan linking fists
◦ Xingyiquan sparring exercises
◦ Xingyiquan ‘peaceful body cannon’
Baguazhang 八卦掌
The ‘eight-trigrams palm’ follows the ancient eight-trigrams (bagua 八卦) concept and is built around eight ‘mother’ palm methods: 'upward palm' (yang zhang 仰掌) (heaven), ‘downward palm' (fu zhang 俯掌) (earth), ‘upright palm' (shu zhang 豎掌), ‘embrace palm' (bao zhang 抱掌), ‘split palm' (pi zhang 劈掌), ‘hold-up palm' (liao zhang 撩掌), ‘pick-up palm' (tiao zhang 挑掌), and ‘spiral palm' (luoxuan zhang 螺旋掌).
As part of it's Baguazhang Program, The Masich Internal Arts Method includes:
◦ Baguazhang eight 'mother' palms
◦ Baguazhang eight palm changes
◦ Baguazhang sparring exercises
◦ Baguazhang eight palm changes—partner
