Chung-Hua Institute

Chinese martial arts training is always a rarity in small town America. When I was a kid growing up in Dover, Delaware, you had only one choice if you were learning martial arts formally - Rigby's Isshinryu Karate School - owned by my parents' next door neighbor. That same isshinryu karate school is still doing well, although it moved to a larger location, and it's still the main martial arts studio in town.

Before I came back to visit my parents for the holidays this year, I did an online search for Chinese martial arts in Delaware, just to see if anything popped up. Surprisingly, I found an instructor who had made his way over from mainland China's Liaoning province to a city about 1 hour north of my parents. "Kevin" Zhen-Kang Sun came to Delaware in 1997 at the invitation of the University of Delaware to teach modern wushu, tai-chi, and self-defense courses. His classes have been a hit with the U of D students, and northern Delaware locals have even started forming small classes for him to teach.

Surprised to have found a Chinese martial arts instructor in my former home state, I had to meet Sun. It's one of those things where my curiosity just got the best of me. Sun made the 90 minute drive to Dover through snowy roads to meet with me at a local Chinese restaurant (another thing that had popped up since I'd left). Knowing his background reflected a great deal of modern wushu training, I wasn't expecting to talk about much more than that, but Sun's background in traditional Chinese martial arts reads like a kung-fu novel. He trained with his grandfather, and his entire family was involved in martial arts, and he'd trained with some of the great living legends in mainland China. Among the styles he's proficient in are mi zhong quan, which means "lost track boxing" and is tied to the great Huo Yuan-Jia, the founder of the famous Jing-Wu Academy. (See Jet Li's movie "Fist of Legend" to learn more about the Jing Wu Academy and Huo Yuan-Jia.) Sun also trained with Lu Zi-Jian, one of China's "immortal masters" who has lived to over 108 years of age and still teaches in Nanjing.

Lu is revered in China as one of the leading authorities on Taoist martial arts from E-mei Mountain, and he learned the sophisticated baguazhang "eight trigram palm" system from Li Chang-Ye, a student of the system's founder. Sun trained rigorously with Lu and learned the combat applications of the system in addition to its beautiful forms. Slowly becoming known as one of the three internal styles of Chinese martial art, baguazhang has garnered a greater following in the past few years. Its basic forms reflect a pattern of walking in a circle, an exercise which develops the baguazhang practitioner's ability to avoid and ensnare an attacker with deft footwork and body positioning.

Over lunch, Sun took the time to break down some of baguazhang's essential form and combat points to me, to the point that we had to duck into a smaller room so as to not alarm the patrons with our fighting techniques. According to Sun, there are five main qualities that each movement and posture of the system should have, four of which he explained to me. Each of those five qualities applies to three body parts, making a reference back to the number eight again.

The first quality, roundedness, applies to the structure of the thumb & forefinger while holding the trademark bagua palm. This rounded quality applies to the hips, where they should be tucked under slightly as if sitting, and also should be reflected in the thighs, such that they are opened slightly outward to create a spring-like force supporting the body from the ground. The back should also be rounded in such a way as to provide a forward power to the arms.

Twisting is the second quality that Sun explained, beginning with the neck. The neck must stay relaxed and be able to turn freely, keeping the awareness on the palm and the positioning of the opponent. The lower back also reflects a twisting quality as well, coiling the body like a whip to issue power. The arms should also be twisted outward slightly to provide a kind of springing power to defend the centerline.

The third quality of upward-pointedness is universal in the internal martial arts. The fingertips of the palm should be directed upward to push the chi energy through the entire arm to the extremities. The chi is also the reason for keeping the tip of the tongue touching the palate, allowing the front and back meridians to connect for maximum power. The head is held upward for proper posture.

Emptiness is the fourth quality, which applies to the arch of the foot, the center of the chest, and the center of the palm. When the arch of the foot is held higher, it keeps the toes and heel gripping the ground. The center of the chest is rounded, similar to the proper posture in tai-chi, so as to keep natural posture and not waste energy. Finally, the center of the palm is rounded to keep the laogong acupuncture point protected while filling the palm with its power.

True to his traditional nature, Sun kept the fifth point to himself, but he did explain the exceptional footwork of baguazhang briefly. Baguazhang is noted for a "muddy step". which keeps the sole of the foot gliding along the floor, never lifting it high off the ground and making the steps harder for the opponent to detect. The deft footwork allows for trapping, jamming, and sweeping kicks, as well as superior positioning in combat. Sun outlined the essential points while demonstrating to me. The knees should always be kept bent, and that relates to preventing the body from bobbing up and down while maintaining a lower, more stable center of gravity. The body moves side to side and front to back, allowing the practitioner to ensnare an incoming attack or rush in to an opening left by a careless opponent. Sun describes this kind of body positioning saying, "The body should be turning quickly and smoothly like an eagle in flight, and like an eagle, the eyes should be sharp, stable, and alert." Back to the footwork, Sun re-emphasizes its importance to the baguazhang fighter describing it like "a tiger on the prowl, stalking its prey."

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To contact Zhen-Kang "Kevin" Sun, you can e-mail him at zksun@udel.edu or find him at the Carpenter Sports Building at the University of Delaware.