BaGuaZhang Kung Fu is a Chinese martial art, profound and traditional, that combines the effectiveness in combat with improvements in physical health and the study of ancient Chinese philosophies. The “Palm of the eight Trigrams” (BaGuaZhang literally) is considered in China the authentic treasure of Eastern culture. The style was transmitted us from the founder to Master Zhang DuGan; the BaGuaZhang School Vie della Seta (“Silk Roads”) managed by his disciple Vincenzo Spasaro through a clear and progressive teaching that allows the development of flexibility and fighting ability for which the BaGuaZhang Kung Fu is renowned.
There are a lot of efficacious martial “methods” for combat and also several practices for health improvement. BaGuaZhang though is the only style that combines in harmony personal defense and health, unifying and cementing together the concepts of “Art” and “Martial”.
BaGuaZhang enshrines an UNIQUE fighting method of defense and offense that is also beneficial to the scholar’s health, starting from the empowerment of the joints, so much that it can be considered a proper method for physical rehabilitation.
Every fighting technique brings also a benefit for health and vice versa and every movement is marvelously linked to the philosophies of the Eight Trigrams and the I-Ching, the Book of Changes.
The practice of BaGuaZhang represents an infinite and profound journey, and it is no coincidence that it is often chosen by practitioners of other styles who want to go beyond their own experiences.
In what exactly does the BaGuaZhang of the BaGuaZhang School - Silk Road actually differ from the other BaGuaZhang methods?
This style must be taught by really capable and prepared people, with skills difficult to find even in China itself. Master Zhang DuGan has taught this method for decades in an open manner, to the point that it can be said today that the BaGuaZhang enjoys a higher quality in Italy and Europe than in China.
To properly study such a profound style, one cannot simply make a research operation starting from the sequences of techniques and esoteric movements: without a proper guide, even those who consider themselves "Master" of the style are eventually on the same level as those who practiced for just one day, because the secrets of the BaGuaZhang have been revealed to a few people only. Master Zhang Dugan, a student of Grand Master Wang HanZhi, is the first Master to have made public the true teachings of BaGuaZhang, which today in China is for the most part an empty style, devoid of content.
The disciple Vincenzo Spasaro continue the teaching of Master Zhang DuGan in their school, making the original and traditional program more comprehensible to the practitioners through progressive learning, levels and exams that assess the level of quality of those who practice.
Who is the style recommended for?
From practitioners of all ages who start from scratch, to the ones who are teachers and masters of other martial arts, because through the BaGuaZhang an astonishing new world will be revealed before them.
The growth in our style, contrary to most of the other styles, is “qualitative” and not “quantitative”: it does not matter how many techniques you learn but how much your skills increase, the more you work with your joints and how you apply postures and strategies. The Kung Fu BaGuaZhang is a real Kung Fu, not esoteric: the fascinating movements of the style are not the purpose but the means by which the quality of the practitioner grows.
For this reason our school does NOT organize instructor courses: the quality is acquired through hard practice, dedication and gradual improvements, in other words: Kung Fu. Who wants to teach MUST first learn with humility.
The BaGuaZhang allows those who are less strong, both women and men, to defend themselves using joint strength and not muscles, and can be practiced at any age, even by elderly people who care about keeping a good health.
What are the foundations of BaGuaZhang?
The pivot of the style is Circle Walking (Zou Zhang), the foundation of both health and combat, also of meditation and the acquisition of the specific abilities of the Art, which allows to continuously improve through an endless circular path.
The second brick of BaGuaZhang is combat (Chuan Zhang), the exercise of “infinite change” through which one acquires health and learns to defend oneself.
In BaGuaZhang, the movements of eight basic animals are studied, leg techniques, weapons, sequences, health practices as well as in-depth theories of the style, its secrets and philosophy.
Where can you practice BaGuaZhang and how?
Our school has sites in Italy, more precisely in Piacenza, Parma-Fidenza, Reggio Emilia-Modena, Alessandria, and furthermore in: Ireland (Dublin), Germany (Mainz) and The Netherlands (Amsterdam).
Others will be added soon.
In these schools you can enroll to follow programs and levels ranging from basic to advanced.
An instructor who wants to have a taste of BaGuaZhang, can organize an stage across Europe with Vincenzo Spasaro, to throw a seed and possibly start a path of growth of their school in the Martial Art. Bagua Zhang is also called "the Divine Style" or "Tianxiadiyi Quan", meaning "The First Style on Earth" and it's considered the deepest treasure of Chinese kung fu.
