A Remembrance of My Teacher: Wang Zhuang Hong

A Remembrance of My Teacher: Wang Zhuang Hong

It was in 1993 when I first knew Master Wang Zhuang Hong.  I recall that evening we met in a park in Hong Kong with several of my fellow taijiquan practitioners.  Master Wang talked about many theories that I had never even heard of before.  We were totally awed by his thorough understanding of the art and the effortless demonstration of his high level skills.  Our eyes were opened that evening; we all finally realized that taijiquan uses a kind of energy distinctly different from that of any other style of martial art. 

In the six years before our first meeting, I had been endlessly searching, without success, for a master to teach me the true meaning of taijiquan.  All I ended up learning were just a bunch of san-shou skills.  Theory was seldom mentioned.  Sure, every teacher I met told me to relax during practice and not to use force.  However, during the push hands sessions, they all inevitably used brute force regardless of what techniques they applied.  This discrepancy between what I was told and real-life application had always perplexed me:  How can you win by force if you don’t practice using force?  How can taijiquan ever be used to counter those external martial arts that focus entirely on speed and force?

Before we bid farewell to Master Wang, I asked him a question which had been on my mind all these years: “What is the difference between external and internal martial arts?”  Master Wang did not answer me.  He just told me to stand firm, put his palms on my shoulders, and then pressed in a spiral fashion.  I was immediately repelled back several steps; at the same time, I felt as if a firecracker had exploded inside me and all my hair was on end!  My mind went blank for several seconds.  I was stunned.  This was an experience I had never felt before in my study until then.  Now I finally appreciated the power of true internal martial arts.  I was completely overwhelmed by it.  Deep down, I felt fortunate that I had finally found a master who knew the true meaning of taijiquan and could show it.  I also felt fortunate that Master Wang was kind enough not to demonstrate his power on my chest!

Almost in the blink of an eye, my wife, Rainbow, and I had been studying with Master Wang for 16 years since that fateful evening.  In addition to letting us experience taijiquan through our body, he painstakingly taught us many traditional Chinese philosophies, including yin-yang, five elements, I-Ching, calligraphy, Daoism, and Buddhism.  His knowledge of all these subjects was indeed profound.  Yet he was able to explain very difficult concepts in simple terms.   This greatly opened our minds and allowed us to gain a deeper appreciation of our Chinese heritage.  I know I would have never reached my current level of understanding of taijquan and Chinese philosophies without his guidance.  Even so, every time I heard Master Wang’s teaching, I felt I had reached yet a higher level and realized my own inadequacies.  At the same time, this made me admire his wisdom and comprehension even more. 

Master Wang had a special way of teaching us.  He would give us a demonstration of a technique or a movement, and then he explained the theory behind it without going into the specific details of how to achieve the skill.  This really forced us to think hard, study the taijiquan classics again and again to try to understand the technique or movement, and finally test the idea in our push hands sessions.  He explained that he had deliberately told us only 30% of the knowledge so that we were forced to acquire the rest ourselves.  That way, we would not just blindly copy him, but would have to develop our skills according to the true theory.  He understood this method is a tough road to follow, and many of my classmates became discouraged and dropped out, but he believed this is the only way to reach the highest level.

Master Wang remained low-key about his many achievements in his over forty-year teaching career, which included winning the grand championship at the 1987 international wushu competition in Los Angeles.  According to my fellow students from Shanghai, Master Wang had numerous encounters with many well-known martial artists while he was living there due to his fame.  Yet he never mentioned those exciting bouts to us, although he had won every single one of them. 

Master Wang could generate power like a tidal wave against rocks which shakes people to the core, but he never demonstrated it in public.  During our push hands practice, he would every now and then propel us against the wall “just for fun.”  However, he emphasized that what he used was real martial arts skill.  He said that often in public demonstrations, many such feats are prearranged - they are nothing but “show business” and only serve to lower the standards of martial arts.  “Real martial arts skill can be used against enemies under dire circumstances. You learn taijiquan not because you want to use it to hurt people.  But you should be able to utilize it if necessary.  However, you should do it without force!”    

Master Wang insisted that he was simply an interpreter of nature.  He often told us to learn from nature, and that nature is really our true teacher.  “All the Chinese philosophies are just interpreting nature,” he said, “Those of the highest level are the ones that can best interpret nature.”

Master Wang Zhuang Hong passed away peacefully in his sleep on December 27^th, 2008 at Kowloon Hospital in Hong Kong.  My wife and I, and our fellow students were all devastated by the loss of a great mentor.  I wrote this article in memory of my beloved teacher.

By Patrick Siu Wah Chan

Translated by Dominic Chan and Theresa Cancro Chan