The Scholar-Fighter: Chang Nai-zhou and His Book on Martial Art

Abstract

The article explores the theoretical foundations, practical techniques and social context of the martial art school created in the late 18th century by Chang Naizhou, a native of Henan рrov. An educated man, Chang left a detailed description of the principles and methods of his school. The legacy of Chang Naizhou and the emergence of a large number of enthusiasts of martial arts among the educated elite of society indicates the formation in Qing China a new synthesis of elite and popular culture, which combined the traditions of Confucianism, Taoist and Buddhist selfcultivation and the folklore motifs. A stratum of professional fighters emerged, closely integrated both with the local society and its paramilitary formations (self-defense units, sworn brotherhoods, associations of participants in temple festivals, schools of martial arts, etc.) and the ruling elite of the empire and its military administration. At the heart of Chang Naizhou's method is the concept of configurations of force (shi 势), which are created by the action of the vital energy of the organism (so-called qi 气) and in turn strengthen and direct this action. The primary substrate of this energy is the so-called "centered qi", which in the spiritual-somatic practice of martial arts generates a great variety of properties and qualities of life experience and makes possible the unity of consciousness and physical body. The force in this case is the result of an interaction of the polar elements of Being. Chang Naizhou introduces many original concepts and techniques of martial art, but his outlook is determined by the common arsenal of Chinese tradition. Thus, his school reflected the nature of the whole Chinese civilization: the diversity of forms rooted in a comprehensive structural unity.