As well as a world-renowned practitioner and teacher of the Chen style of Taijiquan, Grandmaster Chen is a famous calligrapher, and sells his work to fund restoration work in Chenjiagou, the ancestral home of Chen taijiquan in Henan Province, China. This year Chris bought ‘Tai Ji Quan’ or (Tai Chi Chuan in Cantonese), which translates as something like ‘Grand Ultimate Fist’. Underneath Master Chen writes that he made this calligraphy in the village of Chenjiagou in 2014. It seemed a special example of his calligraphy to keep as a momento of my discipleship ceremony held there. Chenjiagou is the village where Master Chen’s 9th generation ancestor Chen Wanting developed the family style of Chen Taijiquan, and he returns there each year from his worldwide travels to teach at the Chen Taijiquan school and initiate new disciples in the Chen family Temple. It is a wonderful place to visit as tai ji is practiced and taught everywhere you look, children as young as five, perform long complex routines with perfect poise and balance.
Chinese calligraphy is a beautiful and complex art form, and is considered like a form of ‘qi gong’ or ‘tai ji’ exercise, the mind is quietened, and the quality of the brush strokes express the energy, freedom, relaxation and vitality of Master Chen’s mastery as seen also in his tai ji. He will often choose words that express the heart of tai ji, such as ‘Jing Qi Shen’, Essence, Energy, Spirit, or ‘The Book and the Sword’, which represents culture and martial arts.
Master Chen on a visit to the Chinese Embassy in London, see the link below.
Chen Xiaowang creates Calligraphy at the Chinese Embassy in London in 2013