歌訣七

胸欲空兮氣欲沈,
背緊肩垂意前伸。
氣到丹田縮穀道,
直拔顛頂貫精神。


"The chest is empty and the Qi is sunk,
The back is straight, the shoulders are dropped, and the intention is forward.
Qi is led to Dan Tian, the coccyx is withdrawn.
The head is pulled straight upward to let the spirit of vitality pass through."

Based on the translations by 楊俊敏 Yang Jwing Ming and 梁守渝 Liang Shou You in 峨嵋八卦掌 "Baguazhang - Theory and Applications" and by Frank Allen and Tina Chunna Zhang in "The Whirling Circles of Ba Gua Zhang"

3 Comments

  1. The common or often used translation of 'song' is somewhat incorrect and misleading. This word should be retranslated. Associated with the martial exercise now simply called the LiuHe BaFa, which offers a 'Five word 'song' reference document 五字訣 or 五字歌 the concept of 'secret' and 'parting words of farwell of note is somewhat better, although confusing as chinese to english. Alternate would be 高明的方法 or within http://waterspirit6x8.tripod.com/id55.html
    dr. k.conor

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you for your comment.
      I agree with you. The standard translation of "song" (although all dictionnaries I saw agree on it) are probably a modern meaning. I hesitated to use "ballad", that would point to a oral tradition. After all, all these poems are oral lore being passed from master to student. I kept song because at the end of the day it is the common translation (used widely) and although not completely accurate, it is not absolutely incorrect either.
      I do not have any knowledge about Liuhe Bafa, its teachings or traditions. I am very interested about it though and will look at your site to start getting some knowledge.

      Delete
  2. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment