Xing Yi is one of the Major Internal or Wudang Martial Arts. My group and I practice Xing Yi in Fresno Ca. What I practice is what I preach. I tend to Focus on the first Fist of the 5 Elements in depth. At times it is good to teach a few of the applications along with the introduction of the posture which I find to help the student grasp something to build on. This works for me when teaching students that have a more of a Left Brain or organizational/logical approach. Those students that have a right-Brained approach seem to do better with the “Follow me” approach and can almost mimic my movements on the first few walk-throughs. The key is to find a way to practice and make sure that everyone get’s what is being taught before moving on.

Why focus on the First Fist/Element so much?

The reason I focus on the Pi Chuan or Splitting fist is because it’s the Mother Fist of Xing Yi Quan. It is MY understanding that the reason it is the First element is because Metal represents the Tiger in the Dragon Tiger Classic. (One of the Ancient Cannons of Alchemy of China.) The Tiger is the Mother and the Dragon is the Father that combine to create the Golden Elixir Pill. That’s why you will see some branches of Xing yi start their Animal Forms with the Tiger. Some Styles will put the Dragon before the Tiger, but others believe it could cause some kind of imbalance. From what I gather, some start with the Dragon because they are following the Creation Process of the Five Elements, starting with the Spring Season (Representing sprouting growth of a new year, Dragon, Spring, Wood, ect).

I hope that one would just practice the forms until they are mastered, and that what I have written above can help with the understanding this very simple yet complex and sometimes mysterious art. I am still on the path of learning and would welcome any input or corrections. Thank you for reading.

Dan Vasquez

Fresno Internal Martial Arts Society