The complete book of tai chi chuan: a comprehensive guide to the principles and practice- revised ed
The Complete Book of Tai Chi Chuan: A Comprehensive Guide to the Principles and Practice- Revised Edition Wong Kiew Kit
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Wong Kiew Kit, popularly known as Sifu Wong, is the fourth generation successor of Venerable Jiang Nan from the famous Shaolin Monastery in China and Grandmaster of Shaolin Wahnam Institute of Kungfu and Chi Kung. He received the “Chi Kung Master of the Year” Award during the Second World Congress on Chi Kung held in San Francisco in 1997.
He is an internationally acclaimed author of books on the Shaolin arts and Buddhism including Introduction to Shaolin Kungfu (1981), The Art of Chi Kung (1993), The Art of Shaolin Kungfu (1996), The Complete Book of Tai Chi Chuan (1996), Chi Kung for Health and Vitality (1997), The Complete Book of Zen (1998), The Complete Book of Chinese Medicine (2002), The Complete Book of Shaolin (2002), Sukhavati: Western Paradise (2002), The Shaolin Arts: Master Answers Series (2002) and The Way of the Master (2014).
Since 1987, Sifu Wong has spent more time teaching chi kung than kungfu, because he feels that while kungfu serves as an interesting hobby, chi kung serves an urgent public need, particularly in overcoming degenerative and psychiatric illnesses.
Sifu Wong is one of the few masters who has generously introduced the once secretive Shaolin Chi Kung to the public, and has helped many people to obtain relief or overcome so-called “incurable” diseases like hypertension, asthma, rheumatism, arthritis, diabetes, migraine, gastritis, gall stones, kidney failure, depression, anxiety and even cancer.
He stresses the Shaolin philosophy of sharing goodness with all humanity, and is now dedicated to spreading the wonders and benefits of the Shaolin
arts to people all over the world irrespective of race, culture and religion.
Sifu Wong's website: www.shaolin.org
By the same author
Introduction to Shaolin Kungfu (Available in English)
The Art of Chi Kung (Available in English, Russian, German, Spanish and Greek)
The Art of Shaolin Kungfu (Available in English, Greek, Russian, Polish and Italian)
The Complete Book of Tai Chi Chuan (Available in English, Portuguese, Italian, Greek, Dutch, Russian and Spanish)
Chi Kung for Health and Vitality (Available in English, Polish and Portuguese)
The Complete Book of Zen (Available in English, Spanish, Greek, Italian, Russian and Hebrew)
The Complete Book of Chinese Medicine (Available in English and Spanish)
The Complete Book of Shaolin (Available in English)
Sukhavati: Western Paradise (Available in English)
The Shaolin Arts: Master Answers Series (Available in English)
Published by Cosmos Internet Sdn. Bhd. (Company No. 514408-V) No. 18 (Bangunan Kedai), Lorong Intan C/2, Taman Intan, 08000 Sungai Petani, Kedah, Malaysia.
The publication, either written or pictorial, may not be reproduced, lent, rent, copied, translated or stored in any electronic or mechanical machines in a readable format without the written permission of the publisher.
Disclaimer
We caution all our readers to consult their primary healthcare provider or professional alternative healthcare practitioners as this publication should not be considered as medical advice to patients or readers. We encourage all our readers to consult and discuss both the advantages and disadvantages of alternative and complementary medicine with their primary healthcare provider or professional alternative healthcare practitioners. By reading this publication, the reader agrees to the terms of this disclaimer and further waives any rights or claims he or she may have against the Publisher, Author and/or any other parties involved in the publication or the distribution of this publication.
First published in 1996 by Element Books
Published in 2001 by Vermilion
Published in 2002 by Tuttle Publishing
Revised Edition published in 2016 by Cosmos Internet
Printed by Thunder Print Sdn. Bhd.
ISBN (13-digits) 978-983-40879-9-9
This book is dedicated to all great teachers of Tai Chi Chuan, present and past, whose dedication to the art has helped to bring tremendous benefits to all people irrespective of race, culture and religion.
Contents
List of Illustration
Preface
1 Tai Chi Chuan as a Martial Art
The Aims and Benefits of Practising Tai Chi Chuan
A Concise and Comprehensive Martial Art
The Mechanics and Psychology of Different Arts
Internal Force, Not Brute Strength
An Art of Convenience and Culture
The Richness of Tai Chi Chuan Theory
Tai Chi Chuan in Health, Character Development and Philosophy
2 The Concept of Yin-yang in Tai Chi Chuan
What You May Have Missed in Your Tai Chi Class
The Philosophy of Yin-yang
Yin-yang in Tai Chi Form and Force Training
Yin-yang in Tai Chi Chuan Application
Yin-yang in Tai Chi Philosophy
3 The Historical Development of the Various Styles
Health, Combat and Spiritual Joy in Tai Chi Chuan
The Earliest References to Tai Chi
Zhang San Feng and the Origin of Tai Chi Chuan
Early Tai Chi Chuan Masters
Chen Wang Ting and Chen Style Tai Chi Chuan
The Old, the New, the Small and the Big
Yang Lu Chan and Yang Style Tai Chi Chuan
The Wu and the Sun Styles
The Three Stages of
4 Advice from the Great Masters : Achieving Better Results in a Shorter Time
The Song of Secrets for Training in the 13 Techniques
The Five Characters Formula
The Ten Important Points of Tai Chi Chuan
5 Fundamental Hand Movements and Footwork
Acquiring Balance and Gracefulness in Tai Chi Movements
The 13 Techniques of Tai Chi
The Secret of Tai Chi Internal Force
Developing Poise and Balance
The Four Primary Hand Techniques
The Four Secondary Hand Techniques
Does Tai Chi Chuan Cause Knee Injury?
6 The Importance of Chi Kung in Tai Chi Chuan
The Development of Internal Force
Health, Combat and Spirituality
The Internal Force of Tai Chi Chuan Training
Developing a Pearl of Intrinsic Energy
7 The Poetry of Energy and Mind
Tai Chi Chuan with Breath Control and Visualisation
The Purposes of Set Practice
Simplified Tai Chi Chuan Set - Sequence 1
Simplified Tai Chi Chuan Set - Sequence 2
Simplified Tai Chi Chuan Set - Sequence 3
Simplified Tai Chi Chuan Set - Sequence 4
Simplified Tai Chi Chuan Set - Sequence 5
Simplified Tai Chi Chuan Set - Sequence 6
The 48-Pattern Tai Chi Chuan Set
8 Techniques and Skills of Pushing Hands
How to Sense Your Opponent's Weakness
The Principles of Pushing Hands
Sharpening Your Skills of Perception
Throwing Your Partner Off the Ground
Seeking the Best Angle and Closing Up
Advanced Techniques of Pushing Hands
Pushing Hands and Combat Efficiency
9 Specific Techniques for Combat Situations
Applying Tai Chi Chuan Patterns for Self-defence
Requirements for Combat Proficiency
From Lifting Water to Repulse Monkey
The Profundity of Grasping Sparrow's Tail
From Cloud Hands to Needle at Sea Bottom
The Final Eight Patterns
10 Combat Sequences and Tactics
Techniques, Tactics and Skills for Effective Fighting
Martial Arts as Sports
The Depth and Scope of Tai Chi Chuan
The Why and How of Combat Sequences
Sequence 1 Triple Punches - Warding Off
Sequence 2 Three-level Attacks - Green Dragon
Sequence 3 Whirlwind Kick - Low Stance Single Whip
Sequence 4 Hiding Flowers - Playing the Lute
11 More Combat Sequences and Tactics
Some Amazing Ways to Overcome an Opponent
Factors in Winning a Combat
Sequence 5 Felling a Tree - Rolling Back
Sequence 6 Pushing Mountains - Thrust Kick
Sequence 7 Pull Horse - Thrust Kick
Sequence 8 Eagle Claw - Shoulder Strike
Sequence 9 Taming Tiger - Flying Diagonally
12 Enriching Daily Life with Tai Chi Chuan
How Tai Chi Chuan Enhances Health, Work and Play
The Chinese Concept of Health
Energy and Chinese Medicine
The Effects of Tai Chi Chuan on Health
More Energy for Work and Play
A Healthy Body and a Relaxed Mind
13 Wudang Tai Chi Chuan
Attaining Cosmic Reality Through Tai Chi Chuan
Tai Chi Chuan and Spiritual Development
The Patterns of Wudang Tai Chi Chuan
14
Chen Style Tai Chi Chuan
Tai Chi Chuan of the Hard and Fast
Transition from Spirituality to Health
The Patterns of Chen Style Tai Chi Chuan
15
Yang Style Tai Chi Chuan
Gentle, Graceful Movements for Health
The Most Widely Practised Style of Tai Chi Chuan
The Patterns of Yang Style Tai Chi Chuan
16 The Wu Style of Wu Yu Xiang
Small Movements and Body Technique for Combat
External Form for Internal Power
The Patterns of Wu Yu Xiang Style Tai Chi Chuan
17 The Tai Chi Chuan of Wu Quan You
How to Avoid Being Hurt in Combat
For Health and for Combat
The Patterns of Wu Quan You Style Tai Chi Chuan
18 Sun Style Tai Chi Chuan
High Patterns and Agile Movements
Some Advice on Tai Chi Chuan Practice
The Patterns of Sun Style Tai Chi Chuan
19 Tai Chi Chuan Weapons
Transmitting Energy to Extended Hands
Why Weapons Are Not Widely Used in Tai Chi Chuan
Some Functions of Weapon Training
Sword, Scimitar and Staff
20 The Philosophy of Tai Chi Chuan
The Evergreen Classic of Wang Zong Yue
The Treatise on Tai Chi Chuan
Explanation of the Treatise
Three Levels of Attainment
21 Taoism and Spiritual Development in Tai Chi Chuan
Attaining Immortality and Returning to the Void
Tai Chi Chuan Principles in the Tao Te Ching
Attaining the Tao
Immortality and the Great Void
Notes
Further Reading Useful Addresses
Index
List of Illustrations
Chapter 2
Fig 2.1 The Tai Chi symbol
Fig 2.2 Hard and soft kungfu forms
Fig 2.3 Yin-yang of circular and straight
Chapter 3
Fig 3.1 The “family tree” of Tai Chi Chuan
Chapter 5
Fig 5.1 From the Infinite Ultimate Stance to the Tai Chi Stance
Fig 5.2 Bow-arrow and Four-six Stances (left)
Fig 5.3 Bow-arrow and Four-six Stances (right)
Fig 5.4 Single-leg Stances
Fig 5.5 Lifting Up Hands and other positions
Fig 5.6 Foot positions for the leg movements
Fig 5.7 Foot positions for the major stances
Fig 5.8 The four primary hand movements
Fig 5.9 The four secondary hand movements
Fig 5.10 Felling an opponent with kao
Fig 5.11 Dislocating an opponent's elbow with kao
Chapter 6
Fig 6.1 Lifting Water
Fig 6.2 Abdominal breathing
Chapter 7
Fig 7.1 Simplified Tai Chi Chuan Set - Sequence 1
Fig 7.2 Simplified Tai Chi Chuan Set - Sequence 2
Fig 7.3 Simplified Tai Chi Chuan Set - Sequence 3
Fig 7.4 Simplified Tai Chi Chuan Set - Sequence 4
Fig 7.5 Simplified Tai Chi Chuan Set - Sequence 5
Fig 7.6 Simplified Tai Chi Chuan Set - Sequence 6
Fig 7.7 48-Pattern Tai Chi Chuan Set - Sequence 1
Fig 7.8 48-Pattern Tai Chi Chuan Set - Sequence 2
Fig 7.9 48-Pattern Tai Chi Chuan Set - Sequence 3
Fig 7.10 48-Pattern Tai Chi Chuan Set - Sequence 4
Fig 7.11 48-Pattern Tai Chi Chuan Set - Sequence 5
Fig 7.12 48-Pattern Tai Chi Chuan Set - Sequence 6
Chapter 8
Fig 8.1 The peng-lu exercise
Fig 8.2 Neutralising an opponent's push
Fig 8.3 Drag step and push step
Fig 8.4 The qi-an exercise
Fig 8.5 Pull step and roll step
Fig 8.6 Attacking from the side
Fig 8.7 The closing up technique
Fig 8.8 Inner and outer circles for Pushing Hands
Fig 8.9 Advanced Pushing Hands
Fig 8.10 Overcoming a side kick with the lu technique
Fig 8.11 Overcoming a round-house kick with lie
Chapter 9
Fig 9.1 Applications of Tai Chi Chuan patterns (1)
Fig 9.2 Some applications of Grasping Sparrow's Tail
Fig 9.3 Using minimum force against maximum force
Fig 9.4 Applications of Tai Chi Chuan patterns (2)
Fig 9.5 Applications of Tai Chi Chuan patterns (3)
Chapter 10
Fig 10.1 Postures to be avoided in Tai Chi Chuan
Fig 10.2 Countering a triple punch
Fig 10.3 Countering a three-level attack
Fig 10.4 Low Stance Single Whip against a whirlwind kick
Fig 10.5 Hiding Flowers and Playing the Lute
Chapter 11
Fig 11.1 Countering a felling attack
Fig 11.2 Countering a pushing attack
Fig 11.3 Countering a pulling attack
Fig 11.4 Countering a gripping attack
Fig 11.5 Flying Diagonally from Taming the Tiger
Chapter 13
Fig 13.1 Wudang Tai Chi Chuan - Section 1
Fig 13.2 Wudang Tai Chi Chuan - Section 2
Fig 13.3 Wudang Tai Chi Chuan - Section 3
Fig 13.4 Wudang Tai Chi Chuan - Section 4
Fig 13.5 Wudang Tai Chi Chuan - Section 5
Fig 13.6 Wudang Tai Chi Chuan - Section 6
Fig 13.7 Wudang Tai Chi Chuan - Section 7
Fig 13.8 Wudang Tai Chi Chuan - Section 8
Chapter 14
Fig 14.1 Chen Style Tai Chi Chuan - Section 1
Fig 14.2 Chen Style Tai Chi Chuan - Section 2
Fig 14.3 Chen Style Tai Chi Chuan - Section 3
Fig 14.4 Chen Style Tai Chi Chuan - Section 4
Fig 14.5 Chen Style Tai Chi Chuan - Section 5
Chapter 15
Fig 15.1 Yang Style Tai Chi Chuan - Section 1
Fig 15.2 Yang Style Tai Chi Chuan - Section 2
Fig 15.3 Yang Style Tai Chi Chuan - Section 3
Fig 15.4 Yang Style Tai Chi Chuan - Section 4
Fig 15.5 Yang Style Tai Chi Chuan - Section 5
Fig 15.6 Yang Style Tai Chi Chuan - Section 6
Fig 15.7 Yang Style Tai Chi Chuan - Section 7
Fig 15.8 Yang Style Tai Chi Chuan - Section 8
Chapter 16
Fig 16.1 Wu Yu Xiang Style Tai Chi Chuan - Sequence 1
Fig 16.2 Wu Yu Xiang Style Tai Chi Chuan - Sequence 2
Fig 16.3 Wu Yu Xiang Style Tai Chi Chuan - Sequence 3
Fig 16.4 Wu Yu Xiang Style Tai Chi Chuan - Sequence 4
Fig 16.5 Wu Yu Xiang Style Tai Chi Chuan - Sequence 5
Fig 16.6 Wu Yu Xiang Style Tai Chi Chuan - Sequence 6
Fig 16.7 Wu Yu Xiang Style Tai Chi Chuan - Sequence 7
Fig 16.8 Wu Yu Xiang Style Tai Chi Chuan - Sequence 8
Chapter 17
Fig 17.1 The Tai Chi Chuan Style of Wu Quan You - Sequence 1
Fig 17.2 The Tai Chi Chuan Style of Wu Quan You - Sequence 2
Fig 17.3 The Tai Chi Chuan Style of Wu Quan You - Sequence 3
Fig 17.4 The Tai Chi Chuan Style of Wu Quan You - Sequence 4
Fig 17.5 The Tai Chi Chuan Style of Wu Quan You - Sequence 5
Chapter 18
Fig 18.1 Sun Style Tai Chi Chuan - Sequence 1
Fig 18.2 Sun Style Tai Chi Chuan - Sequence 2
Fig 18.3 Sun Style Tai Chi Chuan - Sequence 3
Fig 18.4 Sun Style Tai Chi Chuan - Sequence 4
Fig 18.5 Sun Style Tai Chi Chuan - Sequence 5
Fig 18.6 Sun Style Tai Chi Chuan - Sequence 6
Fig 18.7 Sun Style Tai Chi Chuan - Sequence 7
Fig 18.8 Sun Style Tai Chi Chuan - Sequence 8
Chapter 19
Fig 19.1 Dainty sword against hardy staff
Fig 19.2 Tai Chi sword patterns
Fig 19.3 Tai Chi scimitar patterns
Fig 19.4 Application of the Tai Chi staff
Fig 19.5 Tai Chi staff patterns
Chapter 21
Fig 21.1 Lotus positions for silent sitting
Preface
Tai Chi Chuan, or Taijiquan in Romanised Chinese, is a wonderful art, but more than 90 percent of those who practise it gain less than 10 percent of its potential benefits! This book will not only justify this claim, but will also provide the information you need to gain the remaining 90 percent of the benefits. Although it is written from personal experience, much of the information given is derived from the writings of the greatest masters of the art, mainly in classical Chinese, which have been cherished by Tai Chi Chuan practitioners throughout the ages.
For those who are unfamiliar with Tai Chi Chuan, it is a time-tested art which gently exercises the body, the energy flow and the mind, and can be used for health, longevity, self-defence, mental freshness and spiritual development, irrespective of your race, culture or religion. It has been described both as poetry in motion and, erroneously, as shadow boxing and slow calisthenics. “Poetry in motion” is an apt description of the beauty and grace of Tai Chi Chuan, but the terms “shadow boxing” and “slow calisthenics” reveal lack of understanding of its depth and dimension.
This book, as its title suggests, gives a complete explanation of Tai Chi Chuan, from the most basic to the most advanced levels. It has something for everybody interested in the art, or in their own or others' well-being. This is what Tai Chi Chuan aims at, including the attainment of grace and balance, the promotion of physical and emotional health and the development of internal force or energy flow - for which Tai Chi Chuan is well known but little understood. It shows how to apply Tai Chi Chuan for combat, especially how to use an opponent's strength against him - or herself, and compares the various styles which have evolved to meet different needs. It will also help you understand how the early masters employed Tai Chi Chuan for spiritual cultivation.
Yet, despite its extensive and often deep coverage, no prior knowledge of Tai Chi Chuan is required. If you want to enjoy its wonderful benefits,
however, you must practise it correctly and consistently; no amount of reading can make you a competent Tai Chi Chuan practitioner. This book provides invaluable information, culled from the accumulated wisdom of the greatest Tai Chi Chuan masters, but unless you put it into practice it will remain simply theoretical knowledge, giving you perhaps some reading pleasure. You may be able to discuss Tai Chi Chuan intelligently with your friends, and even offer good advice to some practitioners, but you yourself are unlikely to acquire the type of radiant health, graceful agility and mental clarity that such advice is intended to accomplish.
Apart from some advanced training, such as that involving energy and mind control which requires a master's personal guidance, the book is written as a self-teaching manual. But as many fine movements cannot easily learnt from a book, however clear its presentation, it is advisable for beginners to seek personal instruction from a competent teacher. It is a common mistake for students to rush their learning; if there is one golden rule on which all masters would agree, it is to practise the correct methods patiently. All the established methods have passed the test of time; if a particular method is said by many masters to produce certain effects, it means that thousands of people who followed that methods have experienced the effects. If you fail to do so, it is usually because you have not practised sufficiently or correctly.
Nevertheless, practising patiently does not mean following a method blindly. If a student who has practised Tai Chi Chuan for many years still remains sickly, weak, emotionally unstable or mentally dull, then he or she has not been judicious or wise. Such a person should either turn to something else, or seek more information from masters or books to improve his or her practice. Generally, people who have correctly practised an established method for a year should reap the benefits that method is reputed to bring.
This book offers many of the established methods taught by some of the greatest Tai Chi Chuan masters in history. Besides explaining in detail the fundamental techniques common to all styles, and the Simplified Tai Chi Chuan Set which helped literally millions of the Chinese population to remain healthy and sane despite the traumatic effects of numerous wars and three revolutions in recent times, it presents all the various styles of Tai Chi Chuan in the way in which their best-known masters taught and demonstrated them.
Since Tai Chi Chuan is a very effective martial art, combat applications are treated in detail, and martial artists can discover the Tai Chi Chuan
tactics for remaining unhurt even if one loses a fight - in many other martial system getting hurt is inevitable even for the victor. There are also numerous exercises to put principles like “soft overcoming hard” and “flowing the opponent's momentum into practice”.
Virtually all the great masters have stressed that the significance of Tai Chi Chuan lies in its internal aspects and not its external form; most Tai Chi students know that this is an internal art but few understand what this really means and fewer still can experience its internal aspects. This book aims to help students overcome this problem: by explaining the relevant principles as well as providing suitable exercises, it shows you how to realise the Tai Chi Chuan tenet that every movement of this internal art is a training of energy and mind.
Although Tai Chi Chuan has a rich philosophy, usually recorded in poetic language, and some examples are found in this book, it is geared towards practical use in combat and, more significantly, in our daily life. In other words, if you have practised Tai Chi Chuan for 20 years, but cannot yet defend yourself when an assailant attacks you, or are still prone to anger or nervousness, or lack the energy to run and jump irrespective of how old you are, you have wasted your time. This book explains why and how Tai Chi Chuan enhances your health, work and play.
Many people, especially in the West, are surprised to discover that Tai Chi Chuan is a martial art; they are even more surprised to learn that it was originally devised for spiritual cultivation, irrespective of one's religious conviction or lack of it. This book traces Taoist connection, and shows how an aspirant can practise Tai Chi Chuan for spiritual development.
My original idea for the title of this book was The Wonders of Taijiquan, for it was the desire to share the wonderful benefits of this art that prompted me to write this book. But my capable editor, having the readers' interest in mind, suggested The Complete Book of Tai Chi Chuan, which I must admit is better. I would like to comment briefly on the word “complete”. The book is complete in the sense that it presents every aspect of Tai Chi Chuan a student might wish to know about, including littleknown but interesting snippets such as why the stances in one Wu Style are higher than those of another, or how the flowing movements in all Tai Chi Chuan styles are linked to Lao Tzu's teaching in the Tao Te Ching. Even the question of knee injury, which appears to be a contemporary serious problem among many Tai Chi practitioners in America, is discussed. But it does not mean that all the important information about Tai Chi Chuan is found here in its entirety. There is so much wisdom in
Tai Chi Chuan that volumes could be written on the material contained in each chapter.
For me personally, the writing of this book is both unexpected accomplishment and a rewarding learning process. I never thought of writing a book on Tai Chi Chuan, and for a long time I even resisted teaching Tai Chi Chuan despite many requests and despite knowing that it has many wonderful benefits. The reason was that I thought I would do better to stick to teaching aspiring students Shaolin Kungfu, as that was the best system I could offer them. Although I have learnt Tai Chi Chuan for more than 20 years, my training is mainly in the Shaolin arts. I have been privileged to learn from distinguished Shaolin masters with a succession line extending directly back to the famous Shaolin Monastery, and I cherish the belief that a good teacher should always give his best to his students.
However, years ago when I was teaching Shaolin Chi Kung to students who were also Tai Chi Chuan teachers, and therefore incidentally imparted some Tai Chi Chuan principles and methods to them, I came to realise that my reason for teaching only Shaolin Kungfu - the fact that it was what I am best at - was only valid from my own perspective. From the students' perspective, Tai Chi Chuan would be more beneficial, because, apart from the fact that their circumstances were more conducive to Tai Chi Chuan practice, not many people actually have the endurance and discipline needed for Shaolin Kungfu training. And when I notice that 90 percent of those practising Tai Chi Chuan were gaining less than 10 percent of its potential benefits, mainly because they lacked the kind of knowledge that was once regarded as top secret in the martial arts field, the desire to write a book and share this knowledge took shape.
Grandmaster Wong Kiew Kit
Shaolin Wahnam Institute
1 Tai Chi Chuan as a Martial Art
The Aims and Benefits of Practising Tai Chi Chuan
A typical Tai Chi Chuan master frequently exhibits many of the qualities of a model martial artist: while confident of his martial skills, he is soft -spoken, humble, tolerant and at peace with himself and with others
A Concise and Comprehensive Martial Art
Tai Chi Chuan, or Taijiquan as it is spelt in Romanised Chinese, is one of the most wonderful martial arts in the world. This chapter explains why; so if you are not getting the best from your Tai Chi practice you will at least know what you are lacking. Other chapters show how you can derive the full benefits from Tai Chi Chuan.
Some people may be unaware that it is actually a martial art at all, yet it is extremely effective for combat, from the viewpoint of technique as well as force. The amazing thing about Tai Chi Chuan is that to defend yourself against almost any form of physical aggression, you need to know only a few fighting patterns!
You do not have to learn a mass of martial art patterns because past masters have reduced a wide variety of fighting techniques to about 20 Tai Chi Chuan patterns which you can use to meet almost any attack. It is a concise, comprehensive fighting system which covers all four of the main categories of attack - hitting, kicking, throwing or gripping.
Because of the nature of many other martial arts, their exponents often have difficulty if opponents use attacks that fall outside the categories in which their respective arts specialise. For example, Karate specialises in hitting, so a Karate exponent meeting someone who use Taekwondo or Siamese Boxing, which specialise in kicking, would be handicapped, because the Karate repertoire does not include many kicking techniques. If a Taekwondo exponent meets a Judo expert, the former would have difficulty overcoming the latter's throws, because in Taekwondo, throws are seldom used. Conversely, the Judo expert would be hard pressed to defend against Taekwondo kicks or Karate punches because the normal Judo training provides little practice against such combat situations. One way to prepare yourself to handle any fighting situation is to learn all these different martial arts. A better alternative is to learn Tai Chi Chuan; it not only saves time and effort, it also gives advantages not found in these other martial arts.
Besides the conciseness of the fighting techniques, there is also the advantage of better control of force. A Tai Chi Chuan master can cause devastating injury to his opponent without leaving any outward marks, whereas the injuries caused in most other martial arts are often a reminder
of how gruesome fighting is, and how brutal some martial artists can be. The Tai Chi Chuan masters would not usually hurt their opponents, however, first because their training is such that they tend to be very calm rather than violent in a fight, and secondly because they can demonstrate their superiority in a gracious way which is not readily available in most other martial arts. They can, for example, throw their opponents several feet, thereby making their victory quite clear, yet without hurting them. In some martial arts, where the urge to win has been over-emphasised and aggressive emotion blindly aroused, the exponents may have to break their opponent's bones or smash their heads before victory is conceded.
The Mechanics and Psychology of Different Arts
Unbelievable violence and hostility are found in some systems, even in sparring between fellow students. It is not uncommon to find instructors themselves yelling “Go for him! Kill! Kill!” at their students. It is hardly surprising that such students come out of their training sessions with bruises and pains in their bodies, and arrogance and hatred in their hearts. Such unacceptable behaviour is not found in Tai Chi Chuan training, not because Tai Chi Chuan practitioners are necessary morally superior, but because the nature of the training is such that a calm disposition and a feeling for one's sparring partners are developed intrinsically, and harbouring selfish, aggressive attitudes would work against the practitioners themselves.
An investigation into the mechanics and psychology of the training methods of the different martial arts reveals their different effects. In other arts, mechanical strength and speed are necessary in sparring. When one student punches or kicks another, if the defender does not block or avoid the attack in time, the fast, direct momentum of the attacking technique is such that it is very difficult for the attacker to hold back the punch or kick. When the partner is hit, therefore, it can be very painful. The basic strategy in these arts is to strike the opponent as hard and as fast as possible, with little or no concern for one's own defence. Both sides concentrate on attack, usually hurting each other, and the more one is hit, the more one wants to get even. This desire for vengeance is accentuated by a stoic philosophy which teaches that in combat, one's sole aim is to strike down one's opponent, irrespective of who he or she is - a philosophy going back to a time when a warrior took a misplaced pride in killing without question whoever his lord had instructed him to kill, even if the victim was his own father.
The mechanism and psychology of Tai Chi Chuan are totally different. Because the basic combat strategy is to flow with one's opponent's movements rather than going against them, a Tai Chi Chuan exponent must be relaxed and calm in combat in order to use the skills and techniques effectively. As the striking force is derived from internal energy flow and not from mechanical momentum, one can exert force at the point of contact. This means that if one accidentally hits a sparring partner, it will not hurt because one will not back up the hit with force.
Moreover, the approach to sparring in Tai Chi Chuan is different from that in other aggressive martial arts. Instead of exchanging blows, Tai Chi Chuan students develop sparring skills in a specially devised art known as Pushing Hands, in which their arms are in gentle contact with one another in a rhythmic motion. The aim is to sense the other's weakness, such as unguarded opening or a moment of imbalance, so that one exponent can push the other off without causing any hurt. It is significant that in Pushing Hands, one not only flows with one's partner's movements, but also with his or her feelings! If one senses that one's partner feels hesitant, anxious or distracted, for example, one exploits the opportunity and throws the other person off. Pushing Hands will be explained later.
The philosophy of Tai Chi Chuan originated not with warlords whose aim was to kill, but with Taoist masters whose aim was to prolong life and attain immortality. This different in philosophy and history has led to a difference in the basic psychology of the art's exponents. Taoism is well known for its love of freedom, its disregard for mundane trifles, and its penchant for joviality. Translated into Tai Chi Chuan, it manifests as a carefree, joyful and spontaneous attitude in solo practice as well as in sparring with partners.
Internal Force, Not Brute Strength
The approach to force development in Tai Chi Chuan is internal, with the emphasis on mind power and intrinsic energy flow. Thus, if you practise Tai Chi Chuan, your force training does not require you to hit sandbags, lift dumb-bells, jab your fingers into granules, strike your shins against poles, or do any of the tough and painful conditioning that leaves calluses on your hands and feet. Yet the force developed, if you know how to make use of cosmic energy, is greater than all the sandbags and dumb-bells put together.
In external force training, the force developed is usually localised and specific. For example, if you strike your palms against sandbags or kick your shins against poles in your training, the force you will develop will be localised at your palms and shins. Its use is also usually specific - having powerful palm strikes and shin kicks. But in the internal force training of Tai Chi Chuan, the force developed is usually versatile and capable of varied uses. If you enhance your mind power through meditation and your intrinsic energy through chi kung practice, you can not only develop a clear mind to observe your opponent's moves calmly and be able to channel you intrinsic energy to your palms or legs for powerful strikes, but also increase your mental focus and clarity of thought, as well as facilitating harmonious energy flow for better physical and emotional health. Moreover, you also have the advantage of convenience: if you adopt internal force training, you need not worry about carrying your sandbags and dumb-bells with you whenever you travel. Numerous methods of internal force training will be described later.
Many people believe that in Judo brute strength is not necessarily a winning factor. A classic illustration of Judo shows s small girl using a little finger to push a gigantic sumo wrestler, who is already off balance, to fall backwards. In real life, however, a sumo wrestler is unlikely to be caught off balance in such a position. Even if he were, all he, or anybody else for that matter, would have to do to save himself would be to take a step backwards to regain balance. The truth is that it needs a lot of strength, in Judo or any other art, to throw even an ordinary person downunless that person is naive enough to be caught in a falling position.
Tai Chi Chuan rather than in Judo is the art that best demonstrates that
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IN WINTER COSTUME
As the law provides that the daughter of a slave must take the place of her parent, should she die, it is plainly in the interests of the owner to promote the marriage of his slaves. Slaves who receive compensation for their services are entitled to marry whom they
please; quarters are provided for the couple. The master of the house, however, has no claim upon the services of the husband. The slave who voluntarily assigns herself to slavery and receives no price for her services may not marry without consent. In these cases it is not an unusual custom for her master, in the course of a few years, to restore her liberty.
Hitherto, the position of the Korean woman has been so humble that her education has been unnecessary. Save among those who belong to the less reputable classes, the literary and artistic faculties are left uncultivated. Among the courtesans, however, the mental abilities are trained and developed with a view to making them brilliant and entertaining companions. The one sign of their profession is the culture, the charm, and the scope of their attainments. These “leaves of sunlight,” a feature of public life in Korea, stand apart in a class of their own. They are called gisaing, and correspond to the geisha of Japan; the duties, environment, and mode of existence of the two are almost identical. Officially, they are attached to a department of Government, and are controlled by a bureau of their own, in common with the Court musicians. They are supported from the national treasury, and they are in evidence at official dinners and all palace entertainments. They read and recite; they dance and sing; they become accomplished artists and musicians. They dress with exceptional taste; they move with exceeding grace; they are delicate in appearance, very frail and very human, very tender, sympathetic, and imaginative. By their artistic and intellectual endowment, the dancing girls, ironically enough, are debarred from the positions for which their talents so peculiarly fit them. They may move through, and as a fact do live in, the highest society. They are met at the houses of the most distinguished; they may be selected as the concubines of the Emperor, become the femmes d’amour of a prince, the puppets of the noble. A man of breeding may not marry them, however, although they typify everything that is brightest, liveliest, and most beautiful. Amongst their own sex, their reputation is in accordance with their standard of morality, a distinction being made between those whose careers are embellished with the quasi chastity of a concubine, and those who
are identified with the more pretentious display of the mere prostitute.
A PALACE CONCUBINE
In the hope that their children may achieve that success which will ensure their support in their old age, parents, when stricken with poverty, dedicate their daughters to the career of a gisaing, much as they apprentice their sons to that of a eunuch. The girls are chosen for the perfect regularity of their features. Their freedom from blemish, when first selected, is essential. They are usually pretty, elegant, and dainty. It is almost certain that they are the prettiest women in Korea, and, although the order is extensive and the class is gathered from all over the kingdom, the most beautiful and accomplished gisaing come from Pyöng-an. The arts and graces in which they are so carefully educated, procure their elevation to
positions in the households of their protectors, superior to that which is held by the legal wife. As a consequence, Korean folk-lore abounds with stories of the strife and wifely lamentation arising from the ardent and prolonged devotion of husbands to girls, whom fate prevents their taking to a closer union. The women are slight of stature, with diminutive, pretty feet, and graceful, shapely hands. They are quiet and unassuming in their manner. Their smile is bright; their deportment modest, their appearance winsome. They wear upon state occasions voluminous, silk-gauze skirts of variegated hues; a diaphanous silken jacket, with long loose sleeves, extending beyond the hands, protects the shoulders; jewelled girdles, pressing their naked breasts, sustain their draperies. An elaborate, heavy and artificial head-dress of black hair, twisted in plaits and decorated with many silver ornaments, is worn. The music of the dance is plaintive and the song of the dancer somewhat melancholy. Many movements are executed in stockinged feet; the dances are quite free from indelicacy and suggestiveness. Indeed, several are curiously pleasing.
DANCING WOMEN OF THE COURT
Upon one occasion, Yi-cha-sun, the brother of the Emperor, invited me to watch the dress rehearsal of an approaching Palace festival. Although this exceptional consideration was shown me unsolicited, I found it quite impossible to secure permission to photograph the gliding, graceful figures of the dancers. When my chair deposited me at the yamen the dance was already in progress. The chairs of the officials and chattering groups of the servants of the dancers filled the compound; soldiers of the Imperial Guard kept watch before the gates. The air was filled with the tremulous notes of the pipes and viols, whose plaintive screaming was punctuated with the booming of drums. Within a building, the walls of which were open to the air, the rows of dancers were visible as they swayed slowly and almost imperceptibly with the music.
From the dais where my host was sitting the dance was radiant with colour. There were eighteen performers, grouped in three equal divisions, and, as the streaming sunshine played upon the shimmering surface of their dresses, the lithe and graceful figures of the dancers floated in the brilliant reflection of a sea of sparkling light. The dance was almost without motion, so slowly were its fantastic figures developed. Never once were their arms dropped from their horizontal position, nor did the size and weight of their head-dresses appear to fatigue the little women. Very slowly, the seated band gave forth the air. Very slowly, the dancers moved in the open space before us, their arms upraised, their gauze and silken draperies clustering round them, their hair piled high, and held in its curious shape by many jewelled and enamelled pins, which sparkled in the sunshine. The air was solemn; and, as if the movement were ceremonial, their voices rose and fell in a lingering harmony of passionate expression. At times, the three sets came together, the hues of the silken skirts blending in one vivid blaze of barbaric splendour. Then, as another movement succeeded, the eighteen figures broke apart and, poised upon their toes, in stately and measured unison circled round the floor, their arms rising and falling, their bodies bending and swaying, in dreamy undulation.
The dance epitomised the poetry and grace of human motion. The dainty attitudes of the performers had a gentle delicacy which was
delightful. The long silken robes revealed a singular grace of deportment, and one looked upon dancers who were clothed from head to foot, not naked, brazen and unashamed, like those of our own burlesque, with infinite relief and infinite satisfaction. There was power and purpose in their movements; artistic subtlety in their poses. Their flowing robes emphasised the simplicity of their gestures; the pallor of their faces was unconcealed; their glances were timid; their manner modest. The strange eerie notes of the curious instruments, the fluctuating cadence of the song, the gliding motion of the dancers, the dazzling sheen of the silks, the vivid colours of the skirts, the flush of flesh beneath the silken shouldercoats, appealed to one silently and signally, stirring the emotions with an enthusiasm which was irrepressible.
The fascinating figures approached softly, smoothly sliding; and, as they glided slowly forward, the song of the music welled into passionate lamentation. The character of the dance changed. No longer advancing, the dancers moved in time to the beating of the drums; rotating circles of colour, their arms swaying, their bodies swinging backwards and forwards, as their retreating footsteps took them from us. The little figures seemed unconscious of their art; the musicians ignorant of the qualities of their wailing. Nevertheless, the masterly restraint of the band, the conception, skill and execution of the dancers, made up a triumph of technique.
As the dance swept to its climax, nothing so accentuated the admiration of the audience as their perfect stillness. From the outer courts came for a brief instant the clatter of servants and the screams of angry stallions. Threatening glances quickly hushed the slaves, nothing breaking the magnetism of the dance for long. The dance ended, it became the turn of others to rehearse their individual contributions, while those who were now free sat chatting with my host, eating sweets, smoking cigarettes, cigars, or affecting the long native pipe. Many, discarding their head-dresses, lay upon their sitting mats, their eyes closed in momentary rest as their servants fanned them. His Highness apparently appreciated the familiarity with which they treated him. In the enjoyment and encouragement of
their little jokes he squeezed their cheeks and pinched their arms, as he sat among them.
BOYS
CHAPTER V
The Court of Korea The Emperor and his Chancellor The Empress and some Palace factions
HIS IMPERIAL HIGHNESS, PRINCE YICHA-SUN
A study of the morals and personalities of the Court of Korea throws no little light upon the interesting phases of its contemporary condition, even affording some explanation of the political differences and difficulties which, if now in the past, may be
expected none the less to crop up again. Since the dastardly murder by the Japanese of the Queen, who held the reins of Government with strong hands, the power of the Emperor has been controlled by one or other of the Palace factions. His Majesty is now almost a cypher in the management of his Empire. Nominally, the Emperor of Korea enjoys the prerogative and independence of an autocrat; in reality he is in the hands of that party whose intrigues for the time being may have given them the upper hand. He is the slave of the superb immoralities of his women. When he breaks away from their gentle thraldom, in the endeavour to free himself from their political associations, his exceedingly able and unscrupulous Minister, Yi Yong-ik, the chief of the Household Bureau, rules him with a rod of iron. It matters not in what direction the will of his Majesty should lie, it is certain to be thwarted with the connivance of Palace concubines or by the direct bribery of Ministers. If the King dared, Yi Yong-ik would be degraded at once. No previous Minister has proved so successful, however, in supplying the Court with money; and, as the Emperor dreads an empty treasury, he maintains him in his confidence.
HIS IMPERIAL MAJESTY THE EMPEROR
In the position of Minister of Finance and Treasurer of the Imperial Palace, which he once filled, Yi Yong-ik opposed foreign supervision of the revenues of the Maritime Customs. Acting in concert with the Russian and French Ministers, he was primarily responsible for the most recent crisis in the affairs of Mr. McLeavy Brown, the Chief Comptroller and Executive Administrator of the Korean Maritime Customs. At a time when the Imperial household was in need of money, Yi Yong-ik created the desire for a loan by withholding the revenue of the Privy Purse from his master. It was explained to his Majesty that his financial embarrassments were due to the action of his Chief Commissioner of Customs in locking up the proceeds of the Customs. Supported by the influence of the Russian and French Ministers, Yi Yong-ik suggested that the Customs revenue should
become the security for the loan which was being pressed upon him by a French syndicate. When Mr. McLeavy Brown heard of the transaction between the agent of the syndicate and the Minister of Finance, he at once repudiated any hypothecation of the revenues of the Customs for such a purpose. In co-operation with the French and Russian Ministers, Yi Yong-ik, upon a variety of pretexts, attempted to bring about the peremptory dismissal of the Chief Commissioner of the Customs. He was foiled in this by the unexpected demonstration of a British Squadron in Chemulpo Harbour, and the attendant preparation and embarkation of a field force at Wei-haiwei. Upon the withdrawal of the guarantee of the Customs revenue the Franco-Russian scheme collapsed, the agent of the interested syndicate returning to Europe to complain of the action of the British Minister and the Chief Commissioner of Customs.
Yi Yong-ik is an instance, together with that afforded by Lady Om, of a Korean of most humble birth rising to a position of great importance in the administration of the country. A man of low parentage, he attached himself to the fortunes of Min Yeung-ik, gradually forcing himself upon the notice of his patron, as also of his sovereign. The services which Yi Yong-ik rendered to the throne during the émeute of 1884, when he was a chair coolie in the service of the late Queen, found responsive echo in the memories of their Majesties, who procured his preferment. He was advanced to a position in which his admitted sagacity, strength of mind, and shrewdness were of material assistance, continuing to rise until he became Minister of Finance He has thus made his own position from very insignificant beginnings, and, in justice to him, it may be said that he serves the interests of his Majesty to the best of his ability. Nevertheless he is in turn feared and detested. Numerous attempts have been made against him, while, within the last few months, failing to take his life by poisoned food, some unknown enemies discharged an infernal machine in the room at the Seoul Hospital where he was confined during an attack of sickness. Alternately upon the crest of the wave or in the backwash of the tide, Yi Yong-ik remains the most enduring personality in the Court. The Russian influence is behind him, while the Emperor also is secretly upon the side of his energetic Minister. At a moment, recently, when
the opposition against him became too strong, Yi Yong-ik took refuge upon a Russian warship, which at once carried him to Port Arthur. From this retreat he negotiated for a safe return with his Majesty, who at once granted him a strong escort. Yi Yong-ik then returned and, proceeding at once to the Palace, quickly reinstated himself in the good graces of his master, thus again thwarting the plans and secret machinations of his opponents.
His Majesty the Emperor of Korea was fifty years old in September 1900, being called to the throne in 1864, when he was thirteen. He was married at the age of fifteen to the Princess Min, a lady of birth, of the same age as her husband. It was she who was wantonly assassinated by the Japanese in 1895. The son of this union is the Crown Prince. His Majesty is somewhat short of stature, as compared with the average height of the Korean. He is only five feet four inches. His face is pleasant; impassive in repose, brightening with an engaging smile when in conversation. His voice is soft and pleasing to the ear; he talks with easy assurance, some vivacity and nervous energy.
During an audience with a foreigner, the manner of the Emperor has an air of frankness and singular bonhomie. He talks with every one, pointing his remarks with graceful gestures, and interrupting his sentences with melodious and infectious laughter. The mark of the Emperor’s favour is the receipt of a fan. When a foreigner is presented to him, it is customary to find upon the conclusion of the audience a small parcel awaiting his acceptance, containing a few paper fans and sometimes a roll of silk. The Emperor rarely exceeds this limit to his Imperial patronage, for, like the rest of his people, he cannot afford to be unduly generous.
The dress of his Majesty upon these occasions is remarkable for its impressive and Imperial grandeur A long golden silk robe of state, embroidered with gold braid, with a girdle of golden cord, edged with a heavy gold fringe, covers him. While the magnificence of this attire excites envy in the heart of any one who sees it, the ease and dignity of his carriage suggest his complete unconsciousness of the impression which he is creating in the minds of his guests.
The Emperor is ignorant of Western languages, but he is an earnest student of those educational works which have been translated for the purposes of the schools he has established in his capital. In this way he has become singularly well informed upon many subjects. He speaks and writes Chinese with fluency, and he is a most profound student of the history of his own people. The method and system of his rule is based on the thesis of his own personal supervision of all public business. If there be some little difference between the Utopia of his intentions and the actual achievement of his government, it is impossible to deny his assiduity and perseverance. He is a kind, amiable, and merciful potentate, desirous of the advancement of his country. He works at night, continuing the sessions and conferences with his Ministers until after dawn. He has faults, many, according to the Western standards by which I have no intention of judging him. He has also many virtues; and, he receives, and deserves, the sympathy of all foreigners in the vast works of reform which he has encouraged in his dominions.
THE HALL OF AUDIENCE, SEOUL
His Majesty is progressive. In view of the number and magnitude of the developments which have taken place under his rule, it is impossible to credit him with any of those prejudices against Western innovations which have distinguished the East from time immemorial. There are special schools in Seoul for teaching English, French, German, Russian, Chinese and Japanese; there is a School of Law, a School of Engineering and Science, a School of Medicine, and a Military Academy. These are but a few minor indications of the freedom of his rule, the sure sign of a later prosperity. He is tolerant of missionaries, and he is said to favour their activities. It is certain that his rule permits great liberty of action, while it is distinguished by extraordinary immunity from persecution. His reign is in happy contrast with the inter-regnum of the Regent, Tai Won Kun, who regarded priests and converts as a pest, and who eradicated them to the best of his ability.
As the autocratic monarch of a country, whose oldest associations are opposed to all external interference, the attitude of his Majesty has been instinct with the most humane principles, with great integrity of purpose and much enlightenment. It cannot be said that his reign has been a failure, or that it has not tended to the benefit of his people and his realms. Certain evil practices still exist, but his faults as an Emperor are, to a great extent, due to the worthlessness of his officials. Indeed, he frequently receives the condemnation which should be passed upon the minds and morals of his Ministers.
Saving Yi Yong-ik, the most important figure in the Court is the mature and elderly Lady Om, the wife of his Majesty. In a Court which is abandoned to every phase of Eastern immorality, it is a little disappointing to find that the first lady in the land no longer possesses those charms of face and figure, which should explain her position. There is no doubt that the Lady Om is a clever woman. She is most remarkably astute in her management of the Emperor, whose profound attachment to her is a curious paradox. Lady Om is mature, fat, and feebly, if freely, frolicsome. Her face is pitted with small-pox; her teeth are uneven; her skin is of a saffron tint. There is some suggestion of a squint in her dark eyes, a possible reminder of the pest which afflicts all Koreans. She paints very little and she
eschews garlic. Her domination of the Emperor is wonderful. Except at rare intervals, and then only when the assent of Lady Om to the visit of a new beauty has been given, he has no eye for any other woman. Nevertheless, the Lady Om has not always been a Palace beauty; she was not always the shining light of the Imperial harem. Her amours have made Korean history; only two of her five children belong to the Emperor; yet one of these may become the future occupant of his father’s throne.
THEIR IMPERIAL HIGHNESSES THE CROWN PRINCE AND PRINCESS
In her maiden days, she became the mistress of a Chinaman; tiring of him she passed into the grace and favour of a Cabinet Minister. He introduced her to the service of the late Queen, whose acquaintance she made at the house of her father, a Palace
attendant of low degree, with quarters within the walls. By the time that she became a woman in the service of her Majesty, the Lady Om had presented a child to each of her respective partners. As the virtue of the women in attendance upon the Queen had of necessity to be assured, her previous admirers kept their counsel for the safety of their own heads. The Lady Om boasted abilities which distinguished her among the other maids in attendance. She sang to perfection, danced with consummate grace; painted with no little delicacy and originality, and could read, write, and speak Chinese and Korean with agreeable fluency The Queen took a fancy to her apparently innocent, guileless, and very lovable attendant. Imitating the excellent example of his illustrious spouse, his Majesty sealed the rape of virtue with a kingly smile. The Queen grew restless. Suspicion, confirmed by appearances, developed into certainty, and the Lady Om fled from the Palace to escape the anger and jealousy of her late mistress. The third child, of whom Lady Om became the mother, was born beyond the capital, in the place of refuge where the errant Griselle had taken up her abode. Meanwhile, Lady Om avoided the parental establishment within the purlieus of the Palace. Upon the death of her third child she sought the protection of another high official. With him she dwelt in safety, peace, and happiness, becoming, through her strange faculty of presenting each admirer with evidences of her innocence, the subject of some ribald songs. Since her return to Imperial favour, these verses have been suppressed, and may not be uttered upon pain of emasculation.
It now seemed as if the Lady Om had settled down, but the events of 1895, culminating in the foul murder of the late Queen, prompted her to renew her acquaintance with the unhappy Emperor. She became a Palace attendant again, and at once cleverly succeeded in bringing herself before the Imperial notice. She was sweetly sympathetic towards his Majesty; her commiseration, her tenderness, her suppliant air of injured innocence, almost immediately captivated him. She was raised to the rank of an Imperial concubine; money was showered upon her, and she proceeded immediately to exercise an influence over the Emperor which has never relaxed. She became a power at Court and once again a mother. Her influence is now directed towards the definite
maintenance of her own interests. She wishes her son to be the future Emperor; she is now living in a palace, and, since she is the apple of his Majesty’s eye, she permits nothing to endanger the stakes for which she is playing. Recently Kim Yueng-chun, an official of importance but of precarious position, wishing to secure himself in the consideration of his sovereign, introduced a new beauty, whose purity and loveliness were unquestioned. Lady Om heard of Lady Kang and said nothing. Within two weeks, however, the Minister was removed upon some small pretext, and subsequently tortured, mutilated, and strangled. The Lady Kang found that if the mills of Lady Om grind slowly, they grind exceedingly small.
Lady Om is a lover of ancient customs; by ancient customs she made her way; by ancient customs she proposes to keep it. Her power increases daily, and a stately edifice has been erected in the centre of the capital to commemorate her virtues. A few months before her marriage to the Emperor, when there was ample indication of the trend of events, the Emperor published a decree which declared that Lady Om had become an Imperial concubine of the First Class. This did not give her Imperial status; but it conferred upon her son Imperial rank. By reason of this decree, however, he will, at some future date, ascend the throne, while it opened a way for Lady Om to secure recognition in Korea as the lawful spouse of her royal admirer.
A MINOR ROYALTY
CHAPTER VI
The passing of the Emperor An Imperial pageant
The Emperor passed one morning in procession from the Imperial Palace, which adjoins the British Legation upon its south wall, to the newly erected Temple of Ancestors, the eastern wall of which marks the limits of the Legation grounds. The festival was in no way public; yet, such was the splendour of the pageant, that this progress of eight hundred yards, leaving the Palace by its south gate and entering again by the eastern gate, cost over two thousand pounds. No warning of the Imperial plans was given to his Majesty’s subjects. Just before the hour of his departure, however, the Emperor expressed the hope that the British Minister and myself would be interested in the procession, inviting us to watch the spectacle from the Legation domain. Information of the movements of the Court was, of course, bruited abroad. Large crowds gathered around the precincts of the Palace and the Temple, attracted by the efforts which the soldiers were making to form a cordon round the scene. Hundreds of soldiers were told off to guard the approaches to the Temple. One battalion of infantry was installed in the grounds of the Imperial Korean Customs, another occupied the gates and garden of the British Legation.
Despite the fact that the route of the procession lay between the high walls of a private passage, some twenty-five feet wide, leading from the offices of the Customs to the grounds of the Legation, into which a postern gate gives access from the Palace, and through which no Korean is ever permitted to pass, soldiers, one pace apart, faced one another upon opposite sides of the road. The public, seeing nothing of the ceremony, gathered such consolation as was possible from the spectacle of the masses of infantry occupying the Palace Square. Occasional glimpses of Palace officials were also secured, and the blatant discord of triumphant song, with which the
private musicians of the Emperor greeted his arrival and the passing of the Court, fell faintly upon expectant ears. It is, however, the proud privilege of the Koreans to pay for these promenades of the Court. If they did not see the august countenance of his Majesty upon this occasion, it is to be hoped that they derived some consolation for the heavy taxation, with which they are burdened, from the brave show made by the brand new uniforms of the troops. The plumes, gold lace and swords of the officers, and the rifles and bayonets of the men would have fascinated any crowd. Until the moment of departure, the army lay around upon the road, sleeping in the dust, or squatted in the shade upon the steps of buildings, partaking of breakfast—a decomposed mass of sun-dried, raw fish and rice which stunk horribly, but which they devoured greedily, tearing it into shreds with their fingers. Occasionally a loyal citizen brought them water or passed round a pipe, taking the opportunity to run his finger along the edge of a bayonet, or over the surface of a coat.
The Emperor was passing in this festive state to pay homage to the tablets of his ancestors upon their transference to a fresh abode. The gorgeousness of the pageant burst upon the colourless monotony of the capital with all the violent splendour and vivid beauty of an Arabian sunset. It was right and proper that the magnificence of the celebration should be unrestricted. The importance of the occasion was without parallel in the festivals of the year. The momentary brilliancy of the picture, which centres round the usually secluded sovereign at such a moment, implied the glorification of a dynasty, which has already occupied the throne of Korea for more than five centuries. Quaint and stately as the pageant was, the splendour of a barbaric mediævalism is best seen in processions of a more public character.
