The Shaolin Tong Bi Quan sets are another mess, not as bad as the others, but with the added mystery of just what are they really supposed to be?
You clearly need to know Shaolin Hong Quan and Pao Quan first before you can master the Tong Bi Quan set.
Tong Bi Quan means "Through the arms" or "Tunnel Arm" Boxing.
It is erroneously sometimes pinyin-ized as "Tong Bei" Quan, which is something entirely different, meaning "Through the Back" Boxing.
Tong Bi was synonymous with "long fist" in ancient times.
The style that was now know as Tong Bei Quan was developed by a Taoist Priest named Dong Cheng during the late 1500s. He learned Shaolin Quan from two students of Bai Yufeng (complete info is in my forthcoming book!). From them he learned Shaolin Taizu Chang Quan sets, Hong Quan sets, and Pao Quan sets. He created something he called Tong Bi Quan after observing some Yellow Gibbons interacting in the mountain slopes and incorporated the long arm movements into his Shaolin Quan. Later still he learned Six Harmony Spear at Qianzai Temple and also Rou Quan. He met up with the nephew (or grandson?) of Zhang San Feng, who practiced Nei Jia Quan. From him, he exchanged routines, teaching Zhang some Taizu and other Shaolin sets and from him learning the Taoist 13 Gong (often called 13 Skills or 13 Postures). He merged all this and developed what was called Tongbei Quan. You can date the lineages of his students from what time period that they learned had from him by them having Quan Pu manuals that are labeled either Tong Bi or Tong Bei. They are very different from each other.
He went on the later influence that founding of Chen Taiji Quan, but that's another long story.
Hence you have to say "Shaolin" Tongbi Quan in order to be clear that you don't mean the other Tongbi Quan style from Dong Cheng of Henan.
Now, back to SHAOLIN TONG BI Quan.
It's movements CLEARLY are found within Hong Quan and Pao Quan. Shaolin Tong Bi Quan shares with them the postures of Single Whip, Tui Shou (push hand), Cloud Peak overhead, and more. But, it also features movements found in the Taizu Chang Quan set and the Shaolin Ape-Monkey Quan set. One important feature of Shaolin Tong Bi Quan is its great use of the Spear Hand posture, in fact it is heavily emphasized. There is also much use of the "lying head on pillow" movement that is found in the Rou Quan and Lao Hong Quan sets from the Dengfeng area and the Shi Degen and Liu Zhen Hai lineages.
There has been some conjecture that Shaolin Tongbi Quan comes from Han Tong's Tongbi Quan, which is mentioned as one of the base styles that Shaolin Quan is based on, including the Taizu Chang Quan set.
But, at Shaolin, the Tongbi Quan sets were practiced mostly by the guards that watched the South, East, and West gate entrances to the Shaolin Temple grounds.
But, when you look further at the movements of Shaolin Tongbi Quan, they share a lot in common with the other most practiced style within that region of Shaolin, which is what?
The Liu Bu Jia (Da Hong Quan - Big Swan Fist), which was practiced by many military people. The Shaolin Tongbi Quan sets contain one important posture not seen in anything else but sets that are related to Liu Bu Jia Da Hong Quan, which is the San Huang Bang (Three Dazzling Wings). The Bang is the same part of the body as the Bi in Chinese, the upper arms (forearms).
I really think that Shaolin Tongbi Quan must have came from village Da Hong Quan. Here's some important points:
1 - Shaolin Tongbi Quan was practiced at the gates on the Shaolin grounds by the temple guards, not in the regular areas.
2 - Tongbi means Tunneling Arms, Through the Arms, etc., and is another way of saying Long Fist.
3 - Shaolin Tongbi Quan was practiced there since the Song dynasty. It was one of the martial arts that Fu Ju brought together to create the TZ Chang Quan 32 set.
4 - If this is true, and General Han Tong practiced Tongbi (which is what the ancient Shaolin books say and other books), then since General Han Tong practiced the same martial arts as Zhao Kuangyin, being from the same army, and since Da Hong Quan (Big Swan Fist) was practiced in the military since the Sui dynasty, and since it is clear that Lao Hong Quan that came from Zhao Kuangyin is very much derived from Da Hong Quan (Big Swan Fist), THEN this Shaolin Tongbi is indeed also derived from Da Hong Quan (Big Swan Fist).
5 - Big Swan Fist shares all the Single Whip and other movements that overlap between Shaolin Hong Quan, Pao Quan, and Tongbi Quan. In fact, they practiced them first and for much longer.
6 - Centuries later the guard posts and shrine area of Shaolin practiced the Shaolin Kan Jia Quan style, and the Big Swan Fist books say that Shaolin Kan Jia came from Big Swan Fist (and the sets clearly show this), then more than likely Shaolin Kanjia developed out of Shaolin Tongbi Quan.
Anyway, that's my opinion from analyzing the movements and postures and history of the area.
Now, today there seems to be only a few Shaolin Tongbi Quan sets practiced.
The Shaolin Encyclopedia and the Tagou Books show only two Shaolin Tongbi Quan sets: Xiao Tong Bi and Da Tong Bi. Again, like the Xiao and Da Pao Quan sets, the Xiao Tong Bi set is very long and the Da Tong Bi Quan set is very short.
In fact, the Xiao Tongbi set seems to have three seams; three points where the opening salute is given and the set starts again. So, maybe there originally was three separate sets that are now merged into one.
The Xiao and Da Tongbi Quan sets shown the Shaolin Encyclopedia and the Tagou Books match each other pretty much. The main different being two:
1 - the direction you are facing when doing certain postures are turned around in the Tagou books, but then return back to facing the same way.
2 - both sets are much longer in the Shaolin Encyclopedia. In this case, which is not often, the Tagou sets seem to be abbreviated a lot.
I compared these two other written sources. The Shaolin sets were the same in all the Shaolin sources I checked, all were longer than the Tagou sets.
BUT, Liu Zhenhai has another book (Shaolin Temple Tao Lu, 1996, isbn 7534947530) in which he shows two sets that are similar to the Shaolin and Tagou Xiao and Da Tongbi Quan set, but much more longer and finely detailed:
1. Yi Lu Tong Bei Quan - 74 postures / 95 movements
2. Er Lu Tong Bei Quan - 32 postures / 46 movements
In Liu Zhenhai's version of the sets, there clearly is shown the movements from the Da Hong Quan (Big Swan Boxing) style, such as San Huang Bang and movements from the Shaolin Ape-Monkey set that are not found in almost all other modern versions of the Xiao and Da Tongbi Quan sets.
Today's Shaolin Xiao and Da Tongbi Quan sets when shown appear to be smoothed over and modernized enough to hide the original roots that are apparent in its postures and movements that link to other sets and styles.
I will prepare and post on youtube Liu Zhenhai's vcds of his Shaolin Tongbi Quan sets. He has three VCDs labeled as Xiao Tongbi Quan Yi Lu, Er Lu, and San Lu.
Also, I will gather up whatever versions of these sets that can be found on Youtube that you can see.
One last thing, Shi Deyang not only teaches the main Xiao and Tongbi Quan sets, but also Tongbi Quan sets from other gate tradition. The different gates practiced different routines from each other in case one gate was overcome in battle then the other ones would know different material, which would give better chances to overcome the invaders.
- Shi deyang also has 3 vcds out that are labeled Xiao Tongbi Quan Yi Lu, Er Lu, and San Lu.
- And, he has 3 vcds labeled Nan Yuan (South gate) Da Tongbi Quan Yi Lu, Er Lu, and San Lu.
- Finally, he has one VCD of Da Tongbi Quan as well.
These sets came from his late master Suxi.
Anyone that wants to add info to this posting, please do, thanks!
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Originally Posted by RenDaHai
