In November 2014, Kung Fu Tai Chi publisher Gigi Oh was invited to join over 250 members at the 2nd World Wu Yihui Liuhe Bafa Quan Conference (吳翼翬六合八法拳國際聯盟) held at the Gladden Hotel in Dongguan, Guangdong Province, in China. Liuhe Bafa, or Six Harmonies and Eight Methods, are commonly coupled concepts cited by many different schools of Kung Fu. These are universal principles, useful to any fighting system. They are also embodied in a stand-alone internal style sometimes referred to as “ Water Boxing.” Wu Yihui Liuhe Bafa Quan is one of the dominant sects of Liuhe Bafa in China today. Founded by Grandmaster Wu Yihui (1887–1958), it is recognized by the Chinese government as an Intangible Cultural Heritage, an honor bestowed on only a few martial arts at this time.
The Six Harmonies is an old Daoist philosophy that perceives the human body as a microcosm of the cosmos, the unity of Heaven and Earth. Each Harmony is expressed by the unity of two Chinese characters. Translating these from Chinese to English tends to detract from their meaning, as each character expresses a much deeper concept. The terms used are poetic, used symbolically to allude to more profound ideas. In Western terms, the Harmonies might best be viewed as visualizations, although this is a simplification of the notion. Advocates of Wu Yihui Liuhe Bafa Quan believe that understanding the Six Harmonies and Eight Methods can change your previous learned martial arts principles. Implementing Liuhe Bafa principles on any given martial technique and changing the frame structure and power, force can be increased by at least 50%. According to Wu Yihui Liuhe Bafa Quan, the Six Harmonies are: Body and Heart, Heart and Mind, Mind and Qi, Qi and Sheng (sheng means focus 神), Sheng and Action, and Action and Kong (kong is a Daoist concept usually translated as “emptiness.” 空) The Eight Methods are: Energy, Bone, Shape, Follow, Lifting, Return, Withhold, and Conceal. To list the Six Harmonies and Eight Methods in such a perfunctory manner does the concepts a great disservice as each notion embodies a profound idea. To the uninitiated, these concepts are abstract.
While in Dongguan, Gigi Oh sat down with three prominent proponents of Liuhe Bafa in hopes of penetrating its meaning. Liuhe Bafa draws deeply from Daoism, which is a philosophical approach to life as well as a form of Chinese shamanism. Like Gnosticism, it can challenge the individual to seek one’s own interpretation. From this standpoint, each practitioner must develop a personal understanding of his or her own Six Harmonies and Eight Methods. Gigi got insights from Master Zhang Lijuan (臧麗娟) from Los Angeles, leader of a U.S. delegation to the Conference, Master Mok Kifai (莫其輝), leader of the Hong Kong delegation, and Master Kam Tong (金彤) also known by his stage name Jin Tong (‘Golden Boy’ 金童). Master Kam is a movie star, action choreographer and an instructor for the Hong Kong Police Witness Protection Program and G4 Protection Groups.
Master Zhang Lijuan on Six Harmonies and Eight Methods
“Liuhe Bafa uses your ‘heart and mind’ to practice, not your body. When Hermit Chen Tuan [Chen Tuan (陈摶 872–989 CE) is the legendary founder of original Liuhe Bafa; Wu Yihua founded a modern sect –ed.] created this form, he was enlightened in the realm of heaven and human harmonized in one. Each posture, from the title to its execution, is like a three-dimensional Chinese brush painting and tells a story. While the artistic conception is extremely beautiful, the movements are very physical demanding. Each posture can be broken down further into many movements. For example, the first posture ‘Stopping to ask the way (停車問路)’ can be broken down into thirty-one movements. It’s hard for a beginner to learn Liuhe Bafa, but if the student persists, after learning four postures, they will stay to finish. It will take about two years to finish learning the framework of the Wu Yihui Liuhe Bafa Quan 66 Posture form. Follow the external movements and the internal energy generated is like wave of water, faster and more powerful than other martial arts forms. You feel the energy of the wave washing toxins away from your body. Liuhe Bafa fajin (power emission 發勁) uses spiral energy like a ‘sudden quake’ versus the ‘silk reeling’ of Chen Tai Chi. For me, its power is like a saw that cuts through the layers of tightly wound silk threads.”
Master Mok Kifai on Six Harmonies and Eight Methods
“There are ups and downs. One posture leads to another. When I practice, sometimes I feel I am as relaxed as a moving cloud. Sometimes I visualize I am facing against an enemy. The strong qi circulation rotates your inner organs, increases metabolism and can open your Micro and Macro Cosmic Orbit. It will take twenty minutes to two hours to complete a set of the Liuhe Bafa 66 postures. You always understand your body more after each practice. After you learn Liuhe Bafa, you can bring its concepts to any other Kung Fu forms. It even increases my tennis play.”
Master Kam Tong on Six Harmonies and Eight Methods
“You can’t see where the strike comes from because the energy is not from my hand. It’s from my inner body. The fajin from internal organs is different. Fajin from your heart is towards the back. First, your heart must be fully relaxed and open, and then you can use your shoulder blades for fajin. Fajin from your liver is forward. Spleen is a horizontal force and lung is downward force.”
When demonstrating this notion, Kam Tong often tells his opponent which part of the body will feel his energy strike prior to his demonstration.
“Do not use strength to exert energy. Relaxation is the key (fali bu yongli 發力不用力). When you deliver a punch, don’t use the punching hand to deliver the power. Use your rear hand instead. To achieve the ultimate force of your punch, the front hand spirals out from shoulder like an electric drill. Stretch the lumbar spine to embrace the vertebra to generate vertical and horizontal forces. Add the fajin from your liver, plus the energy from the lower limbs and crotch movements. Do this and your entire body will be like a turning wheel.
“When I teach the police special forces, they don’t have the time to learn the entire form. I teach them the Liuhe Bafa body structure and force mechanisms to increase their effectiveness and power in a short period of time.
“My teacher Chen Yiren (陳亦人) was a disciple of Wu Yihui. He taught me all he could. The question is how much I learned. And I probably only learned a third of his wisdom.”
