Baguazhang fixed palm is the basic method of practicing Baguazhang, and it is also an important method for practicing qi and nourishing qi. Therefore, not only beginners take fixed palm as a foundation-building method, but also veteran boxers who have practiced for many years take it as a compulsory course and practice it every day. For example, the 98-year-old Tie Enfang still insists on practicing sinking palm in his later years. I have practiced Baguazhang for many years, and I have some experience in the internal practice of Baguazhang fixed palm, and I have a preliminary understanding of the magic and mystery of Baguazhang. Now I am not afraid to tell you everything, and I hope you can criticize and correct me.
1, Sinking palm
(Take turning left as an example) Raise your palms upwards and put them together above your head, then turn your palms downwards and sink them through your face, chest, abdomen and hips, keep moving upwards, move your center to your right leg, sit on your body, lift your left leg and stretch your feet straight forward, turn your waist and hips in a circle, then transfer the center to your left leg, and step forward with your right leg and right foot, and keep turning your legs alternately in a circle. The key points of this posture: let your arms hang naturally, your palms and fingers face each other, your tiger’s mouth is open, your elbows are supported outwards, your palms are lightly pressed, your neck is upright, your chin is retracted, your chest is empty, your ribs are relaxed, and your eyes are looking straight into the circle.
This posture is a basic palm method that must be learned by Baguazhang practitioners. After a period of practice, you can experience the method of turning your palms in Baguazhang very well.
As time goes by and your skills improve, you will feel your body getting hot, especially the perineum where the qi is activated from time to time. This is the initial stage of internal strength practice. At this stage, the whole body gradually relaxes, the leg that steps forward gradually lengthens, the body’s limbs and waist gradually become one, the stiffness disappears, the whole strength comes out, the spring strength and round strength begin to appear. From this, it advances to the intermediate stage of internal power practice. In the intermediate stage, all the meridians of the body are opened, the true qi in the body gathers more and more, and flows to the limbs like mercury. When you step forward, there will be a stream of internal qi directly into the toes, and the whole body is like a rubber band, and the whole body moves with a single hair. It takes several years to enter the advanced stage of internal power practice. In the advanced stage, the internal qi opens up the whole body and spreads out of the body. When turning the palm, you will feel that there is a void from the waist and hips down, without a sense of edge, and the whole body is transparent and invisible.
2, Height-supporting Palm.
Stretch both palms flat to the left and right, lift the palms up, open the tiger’s mouth, face the elbows to the sky, keep the head upright, and slightly retract the lower jaw. The requirements for the lower limbs are the same as the previous style (the latter style will not be repeated).
The key points of this palm: sink shoulders and drop elbows, empty chest and tight back, relax arms, and pull the palms to both sides.
The palm of holding the sky is very comfortable to practice because the three yin and three yang meridians of the hand are all opened by stretching the arms flat. In the primary and intermediate stages, the qi reaches the four tips and the armpits are empty. As long as the fingers surge slightly, the limbs flow like mercury, and spontaneous qi radiates from the fingers to the chest from time to time, which is as fast as lightning and very shocking. At the advanced stage, you will feel that your arms are infinitely extended and the chest and abdomen are empty.
3, Moon-holding palm.
Raise both palms flat in front of the chest, as if holding something, with the palms facing outward, the tiger’s mouth open, the thumbs of both palms facing down, the other four fingers facing each other, and the eyes looking straight into the circle.
Key points of practice: Hold the moon with both palms, elbows and arms level with shoulders, empty chest and tight back.
In the primary and intermediate stages of this palm, as the skills are improved, the arms and back form an air circle, and the internal qi flows along the body and limbs. Second, the struggle force, spring force, and round force appear. At this stage, in order to avoid deviation, it is best to keep the center, do not forget or help consciously, and let the internal energy radiate from the center of the chest to the outside. After reaching the advanced stage, vortex ripples form around the chest and back and spread outward, the inside of the body is completely opened, and there is nothing below the arms.
4, the palm pointing to the sky and inserting the ground.
It is also called the palm pointing to the sky and scratching the ground. The action requires that the inner arm is raised, the palm and fingers are facing the sky, the upper and lower arms are straightened, close to the ear on the same side, and contain the force of internal rotation, and the palm on the outside is inserted downward, the palm and fingers point to the ground, the palm is turned outward, the back of the palm is close to the hip on the other side, the upper and lower arms are straightened downward, and contain the force of external rotation. Look straight at the inside of the circle, retract the chin, empty the chest and tighten the back, and relax the heart and ribs.
Practice points: The two arms should be pulled and stretched, and the internal and external twisting strength is twisted.
The palm pointing to the sky and inserting the ground can loosen the shoulders and lengthen the internal strength because the two arms are pulled and stretched, and the internal and external twisting strength is twisted. In the elementary and intermediate stages of internal power, the internal energy flows from the chest to the arms up and down. When turning in circles, you feel that the upper arms are infinitely extended and pointing to the sky, and the lower arms are infinitely downward, penetrating deep into the earth. On the basis of the big circle, turn a small circle of four or three steps, and feel that the arms are like a yellow dragon stirring water, making the internal energy of the body rotate and stir like a whirlpool. At the advanced stage, the body is transparent and integrated with the world.
5, Yin-Yang Fish Palm.
Action requirements: twist the neck and turn to face the inside of the circle, raise the outer arm flat, bend the elbow and hold the palm horizontally, with the palm facing outward, at the same height as the chest, the shoulders should be relaxed, and the upper and lower arms should be bent like holding something. The palm on the inside should be tucked back, with the palm facing back and placed above the waist. Try to lift it up, and the back of the palm should be at a certain distance from the body, and the back of the palm should not be attached to the waist. The shoulders should be relaxed, the chest should be empty, and the ribs and the pit of the stomach must be relaxed. As the body twists, the eyes should try to look back.
Key points: The front and back palms are supported, and the whole body is complete and flawless.
The yin-yang fish is a pictographic meaning. The front palm is like a fish body, and the back palm is like a fish tail. The whole body is twisted into the circle. In addition, we can also imagine the front and back palms and the body as a Tai Chi diagram. The front palm and the chest and abdomen are the yang fish, and the back hand and the back are the yin fish. When walking and turning, the head of the yang fish chases the tail of the yin fish into the circle, and the head of the yin rabbit chases the tail of the yang fish, so that the internal energy rotates with the yin-yang fish.
In the elementary and intermediate stages of internal power, you will feel the internal energy behind the gate of life expanding, and then the internal energy in the middle dantian of the chest with the tanzhong point as the center is surging. At the advanced stage, the middle and lower dantian are connected together, and the human body is like an inverted bell, empty.
6, Spear Palm.
On the outer hand, hold the palm upside down above the head, with the palm facing up and the palm pointing to the center of the circle. The inner arm is stretched out to the center of the circle, and the palm is held up to the level of the shoulder. Look at the middle finger and index finger of the inner hand. The two arms are shaped like holding a gun, so it is called the holding gun palm.
Practice points: Put the two hands together, follow the upper and lower parts, and the whole body is one.
In the primary and intermediate stages of internal power, the meridians and blood vessels of the body are all open, and the internal energy can flow freely, directly to the hands and feet. At the advanced stage, the three dantians of the lower, middle and upper parts are empty and swell, and finally the qi is transformed into one; the outer side of the two arms is combined with the inner side of the palm, the outer side of the palm is held up to the sky with one hand, and the inner side of the palm is infinitely extended, shaped like the sun Buddha, integrated with the heaven and earth.
7, Ball-Exploring Palm (Lion Ball-Rolling Palm).
The two arms are extended to the circle. On the inner arm, relax the shoulders and sink the elbows, lift the palms up, and stretch them horizontally to the circle. On the outer arm, extend the shoulders and extend the arms, with the palms facing down, slightly higher than the head, and look at the palms.
Practice points: Put the two palms together to hold the ball, and there should be a momentum of embracing the sky.
The ball-kneading palm is shaped like a lion rolling a ball and rotating along a circle. From the perspective of the key points of physical practice, the point is directly on the head and the Xuanguan on the head. The head and the Xuanguan belong to the Qian Gua in the hexagram. For this reason, this palm is also called the Qian Gua lion palm. In the elementary and intermediate stages of practicing this palm, from the feet to the head and the palm, the whole body is one, complete and flawless. In the advanced stage, the three dantians of the lower, middle and upper parts are surging, the qi is transformed into one, and diffused to the surroundings, forming a whole body that is transparent and invisible.
8, Pushing the mill palm.
The inner palm (front palm) is extended forward, the upper and lower arms are parallel to the shoulder, the shoulders are relaxed and the elbows are dropped, the elbows are pointed downward, and the palms are facing the circle. The palm and finger requirements are: the tiger’s mouth is rounded, the four fingers are slightly loose, the middle finger and the ring finger are spread, the palm is empty, the palm is upward, the thumb is at the level of the nose, and the index finger is at the level of the eyebrows, “the two eyes need to look through the tiger’s mouth”. Palm and arm requirements: naturally straighten, the elbow pit is facing the sky, “seemingly bent but not bent, seemingly straight but not straight”. Pull the force from the base of the shoulder toward the palm. Relax the arms. Cover the heart with the back elbow, with the elbow facing the sky, and the palm upright and the wrist collapsed. The tip of the index finger is aimed at the tip of the elbow of the forward palm, about 1 inch apart. Use the inward twisting of the waist to drive the shoulders inward, use the shoulders to push the arms, use the arms to push the elbows, and use the elbows to push the palms, so that the back palms have a push force behind the body, so as to form a tight back and empty chest.
Key points for practice: The two arms have the force of embracing inward, the neck is upright, the top of the head is pulled up, and the lower jaw is retracted. The heart and ribs must be relaxed.
The Pushing Mill Palm is the signature palm of Baguazhang. Due to the different inheritance and the practitioners’ personal qualities and understanding, there are many different types of people practicing this palm now. For this reason, more than ten years ago, someone questioned the rhyme of “Two eyes need to look through the tiger’s mouth”. I also published an article titled “Baguazhang’s “Looking through the tiger’s mouth” is beyond doubt” to put forward my own views. Now, based on my own practice experience, I will further describe the characteristics of “Looking through the tiger’s mouth” and “Looking through the index finger” as follows: The palm shape of “Looking through the tiger’s mouth” is because the two elbows are facing the sky and the two elbows are falling straight down, and the three yang and three yin hands are taken as a “shun” character, so its internal landing point is the Ren channel, while the palm shape of “Looking through the index finger” is because the front palm elbow and wrist are twisted inward and supported forward, and the three yang and three yin hands are taken as a “xing” character, so its internal landing point is the Du channel. Both have their own strengths and can be practiced interchangeably. For example, the rhyme of Baguazhang says: “The back seems to be without power but it is powerful. Without the back shape, it cannot be understood. It is round like the bottom of a dustpan and is tight. The palm penetration force is free and reversed.” To practice the power of tight back and empty chest and the two struggling forces, the palm shape of “looking with the index finger” can better practice the skills; and to practice internal energy and make the upper, middle and lower dantian open and become one, the palm shape of “looking with the tiger’s mouth” is the best.
Among the various forces of Baguazhang, it is very important to produce a kind of embracing force. For example, there are two sentences in the 36th song of Baguazhang: “First, the back palm folds the elbow to cover the heart, and then the hand turns and steps forward to follow; follow the front palm to the embracing force, and the front and back palms are a group of spirits.” In these two sentences, “follow the front palm to the embracing force” actually points out one of the characteristics of Baguazhang’s strength. The so-called embracing force refers to the power of the front hand and the back hand through the back left and right to combine like embracing something. For example, this palm is called the Embracing Single Fish Palm. The chest, abdomen and back are the body of the fish, and the two arms and two palms are the tail of the fish. The body and tail of the fish are completed from the back to the front palm by the embracing force. The palm shape of “looking from the tiger’s mouth” promotes the formation of the Yin-Yang fish, and because of the “top” of the three Yang and three Yin hands, the Yin-Yang fish expands and swells around the center line of the body, giving it vitality. With the improvement of kung fu, the Yin-Yang fish not only in the chest, but also in the abdomen, chest, head, (lower, middle, upper Danshan) in three dimensions, swells and radiates, reaching the advanced stage of the whole body being transparent and invisible. The “smooth” and “twisting” of the palm shape involve high-level issues such as “nurturing” and “developing” the internal power of Baguazhang.
Speaking of the internal power of this palm, the primary and intermediate kung fu is the same as the previous palms, for example, the body is numb and hot, the Dantian is swelled, the internal energy flows, etc., and the advanced kung fu is the whole body being transparent.
The above are the eight fixed palms of Liang Baguazhang.