This article is based on the most common questions that I received for email from various parts of the world. In the attempt to show our vision on this fascinating style of martial art of Chinese origin, named Xying Yi Quan, I reproduced some questions and I looked for answers them of clear form.
I don't have anything against practitioners of Xying Yi Quan or any another style that does not use in its methodology of education the constantly practice of free combat. I respect to all in the same way, but I believe in reality practice when we talk about real combat. We are all practitioners and as such we have the right to have different opinions.
Before displaying the questions most frequent, I give a brief summary of my path as well as of my School.
 Zhan Zhong |
My Path
I
initiated my practice in the Chinese Martial Arts in the end of the
decade of '70s with Master Wu Chaoxiang. I studied internal styles Ba-Gua
and Xying Yi Quan and parallel I practiced with Wu Jy Cheng (son of
Wu Chaoxiang), the styles of Tan Tui and the basics of a style of Northern
Shaolin.
After years of studies and practice, I knew already in years '80s, the
famous Master Chan Kwok Wai, where I became practicing student. With
Master Chan I learned the Northern Shaolin style and little golden bell
chi kun, of the ancestry of the Master Kuo Lun Chan and later the style
Choy Li Fut (both Bak-sing and Hung-sing branches).
From the beginning of the decade of '90s, after the invitation of the
former Master Wu Chaoxiang, I returned to the studies, in this time
much deeper, of the style Xying Yi Quan, the ancestry of the Master
Che I Zai. I graduated as a si-fu and I received the chinese name of
Ma Hei Kao (great black horse), entering for the family tree of the
style and assuming the commitment that my master gave me, to spread
out its style.
 Sifu Marcello teaching basic technics to his sons. |
Currently I dedicate myself almost that exclusively to the practice and teach of Chinese Martial Arts, with the methodology of our school, which contains its centrality in Xying Yi Quan style.
 Appliyng fa-djin with the tiger movement. |
A "ESCOLA MARCIAL CHINESA"
(The "Chinese Martial School")
Our
school has as objective the practice of the Chinese Martial Art in
its classic form. It was created not alone to teach to the traditional
forms of movement and the philosophy of the styles, but to all focus
it's training in fight terms, for the housekeeping of the student
in the self-defense in real situations of combat.
The main style of the School is the Xying Yi Quan. For being an extremely
complex style, it almost requires a perfect architecture that in its
movements, as well as maturity in martial arts, what it becomes of
difficult understanding to the beginning student. By this reason the
Xying Yi Quan is taught to the practitioners already with a certain
previous martial knowledge.
 Basic technique of lethal attacks |
Our school has as objective the practice of the Chinese Martial Art
in its classic form. It was created not alone to teach to the traditional
forms of movement and the philosophy of the styles, but to all focus
it's training in fight terms, for the housekeeping of the student
in the self-defense in real situations of combat.
With the objective to make possible our students, conditions of self-defense
and martial culture, all the basic one of the School is initiated
with the techniques of styles TAN TUI and CHOY LI FUT.
Reaffirming, our School do have a purely martial character, and because
of this we abstain from participating in competitions and events of
that sort. Ours techniques are trained aiming at the reality with
the objective to prepare our students for real situations of combat.
 Tsop Choy (left) & Sow Choy - Choy Li Fut Style. |
What is the definition of martial arts?
Many
forms exist to define the term Martial Art, but all have a point
in common: practical of combat. Martial art is more of the one than
a fight system, it is related to three important points: the self-discipline,
the culture of the health and the capacity of self-defense. This
nothing has to do with practicing sports, which are nothing more
than people disputing something inside of code of rules, trying
to achieve some trophy or medal.
The styles of Chinese Martial Art unhappily known in western hemisphere
as kung fu, had been created as practical forms of combat. I am
saying unhappily with respect to the word Kung Fu, because this
hinders that the true styles are recognized for its names and allows
that any curious quack or false instructor a handful of movements,
that supposedly allows and hangs a board saying: "Here we teach
Kung Fu".
 Defense against knife attack. |
I affirm that Martial Art nothing has to have with development spiritual, fetching of illumination, or any thing of the sort. The history has several examples of Masters who had obtained done considered fantastic, but the same history says that such facts had been consequence of a total commitment with the practice of the art.
Xying Yi Quan is a Style Of Martial Art?
If
it was not Martial Art I would not practice nor teach. This is a
style that can be defined as strong, direct and efficient, that
can be summarized by an only word... ESPECIALIZATION.
The style all is based on specific forces and its mutations, we
can find in this style the three cited basic points in the first
question.
 Tiger Form and application. |
I have seen diverse texts speaking on the internal part of the style, but very little on the practical application of its combat techniques. It can be said that the practical one of the style is based on the replication of singular techniques or the combination of few movements.
Is Basic the Practical One of Fight in Style of Xying Yi Quan.
To
answer this question, we borrow the reply of a famous Master of
the past.
It counts the history that Master Che Yizhai daily practiced fight
throughout with its student Li Fuzhen. This deduces that as said
my Prof. Wu Chaoxiang: "Is at the moment of the fight that
we test our style and we develop our knowledge". If we catch
the great celebrities masters who all cite (Master Guo Yun Chen,
Li Cun Yi, Wang Xiang Zhai, and many others), we will see that absolutely
all were great fighters.
 Beginner students in fight training. |
Then I ask: How to form fighters without fight? How to preserve
the style in its complete without the application of its techniques?
How to apply the style in the current reality without fighting inside
of the universe of fights that in surround them?
 Beginner students in fight training. |
I live in Brazil, half-world distant of Asia, but any young guy
knows how to throw a shin-kick of Thai, a jab of English boxing
or a strangulation of grappling. Do you all think that practicing
pushing hands or two-men forms; somebody would have conditions to
defend himself in this universe? The practice of fighting is basic.
Is it Necessary for Conditioning to Fight?
We
will one more time use the history of a great Master to answer the
question.
In the book "The study of form-mind boxing" is counted
that the Master Sun Lu Tang trained daily beating in metal cannons,
in order to condition its blows.
 Technique of Iron Palm (left) and breaking a brick on the shin. |
It has years behind when in the height of
its career, the famous Mike Tyson had one fight with one another
boxer and when applying one punch, he broke his pulse. Do you think
that this would happen with the celebrity Matsutatsu Oyama (founder
of the Kyokushinkai style)?
 Conditioning on a tree (only allowed for students who practice Little Golden Bell). |
For this reason I affirm with certainty that conditioning of the weapons we use is something necessary. I don't say that it is necessary to injury the body, but I preach, practice and teach the conditioning and endurance of natural weapons. In our school we have the advantage of practicing Little Golden Bell breathing that allow us to condition the natural weapons, in a hard-core way, without any health prejudice.
by
MARCELLO LUIZ TEIXEIRA
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, December of 2001.
Marcello's
website: XING YI CHUEN