The art of Xingyiquan has several possible origins. One states that Da Mo, also known as Bodhidharma, the great Indian monk, allegedly introduced boxing to the Shaolin Temple, but most scholars hold that view as aprocryphal. Another possibility, and the most popular explanation, credits the famous General Yue Wu Mu Wang for creating the art during the Song dynasty (960-1279).

Yue Wu Mu, orginally called Yue Fei (1103-1141), was from the Honan province. He was a national warrior hero fighting back during the invasion of the Jin Tribe. He is one of the best known patriotic generals in China's history. The Jin Tribe invaded Song Dynasty and kidnapped two Song emperors and imposed conditions on the government which would have been unacceptable to all patriots. Unfortunately the Prime Minister of the time, Qin Guei, was prepared to buy a delusory peace at the price of surrendering Song territory. Yue attempted to continue the fight but was recalled by the Prime Minister. He was betrayed, imprisoned and put to death in 1141. This was at a time when the Government was prepared to abandon all the territory north of the Huai River, the conquests in Honan by Yue were forgotten, and the Song Dynasty fell from this moment into a state of intolerable weakness and decline.

Yue is also remembered for the inscription on his back. According to the legend, four Chinese characters, "Jing zhong bao guo", were inscribed with a hot-iron on Yo Fei's back by his mother, meaning "With the utmost loyalty save the State." He was canonized in 1174.

Legend has it that he wrote a manuscript on Xingyiquan that is highly studied and quoted. While the manuscript does hold valuable insight into the art, its authorship is questionable, as is Yue's role as Xingyi's creator because of his almost mythical status and also due to the fact that eagle claw boxing, which he created, has few similarities with Xingyi.

The following is a poem written by Yeu in 1133 when he was 31 years old.

'Wrath set my hair bristling in my helmet.
Standing by the rails see the drizzling rain has ceased,
Raising my eyes to the skies I shout in my vigorous aspiration.
At the age of thirty fame and heroic deeds are nothing but earth and dust.
With clouds or the moon, my battle fields have covered eight thousand li long.
Do not tarry, The hair of young men might grow white with deep regret."

"The shame heaped on us in the year of Jing Kang is not yet wiped away.
When will the sorrows of the Emperor's subjects come to an end?
O let us ride on war chariots through to the Ho Lan Pass.
Our ambitions are to drive away foreign invaders,
while talking and laughing let them shed blood.
O let's start afresh,
To recover our dear rivers and mountains,
Then we will pay our tribute to Heaven."

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