Jiang Rong Qiao


Jiang Rong Qiao 姜容樵, 1891-1974 was a famous martial artist from Hebei. His specialized focus in the internal arts led him to develop his own system of Bagua which became recognized and known as Jiang Style Baguazhang.

Biography

In 1926, Jiang Rong Qiao began teaching kung fu in Nanjing. Jiang was instrumental in developing sets that combined Bagua, Xingyi, and Taijiquan. This includes a Tajiquan set known as Taiji Zhang Quan, which is based on sequences from Jiang’s Bagua and Xingyi, as well as the Old Chen-style t'ai chi ch'uan. Some students of Jiang Rong Qiao point to these combined forms as a legacy of his teacher, Zhang Zhaodong. The practice of internal style Chinese martial arts has been called Neijia kung fu. Because Jiang Rong Qiao taught Baguazhang along with Xingyiquan, it is difficult to categorize the practice he taught as anything other than Neijia kung fu.
Jiang had an accident and went blind. Jiang's adopted daughter, Zou Shu Xian, taught classes and helped produce his most famous book, Bagua Palms Practice Method. This was the first Baguazhang book published in China after the 1949 revolution. This book greatly enhanced Jiang's reputation as one of the most famous Chinese Internal style Martial Artists of his generation. Jiang Rong Qiao died at the age of 84. Several of his closest students were: Sha Guo Zhen, Zou Shu Xian, Ji Yuan Song, and Yang Bang Tai.

Jiang Rongqiao's Books

Jiang Rongqiao authored a number of books :
Xingyi Mu Quan ;
Baguazhang Lianxifa ;
Xingyi Za Si Chui and Ba Shi Quan;
Xingyi Lianhuan Quan;
Bagua Mysterious Spear;
Qingping Sword;
Tiger Tail Whip.