[xtypo_dropcap]M[/xtypo_dropcap]aster Xie Jin, head of the Yongtai Chicken-style Kungfu research committee in Yunling Village, Fujian Province, recently demonstrated in public for the first time a deadly technique that has been passed down secretly for generations.
Holding a struggling chicken in one hand, Master Xie touched a specific point on the animal with his right index finger. Instantly, the chicken stopped moving, with its head drooping. After Master Xie tapped the point again, the chicken jumped up and ran around.
Because the technique can cause serious injury, Master Xie didn’t demonstrate it on a person, but used a chicken instead.
The Fuzhou Evening News had visited Master Xie after hearing about the mysterious 200-years-old acupressure technique that has been passed down secretly through word of mouth in the village, which is nestled amidst mountains near Fuzhou City, Fujian Province.
According to Master Xie, the technique cannot be taught to those with a fiery temper, nor can it be taught to female students or students from outside the village.
“My father taught this skill to me. Today is the first time the technique is [publicly] demonstrated,” Master Xie said. “Even though I’ve released the acupressure, the hen will become thinner and thinner. If I had used more pressure just now, it would have died right away.
Nearly everyone in Yunling Village, Yongtai County near Fuzhou, has special skills, and they all practice Chinese Kungfu. The village has been dubbed “a place of crouching tigers and hidden dragons,” the Fuzhou Evening News said in its a recent report.
Chicken Kungfu
Yunling Village is the birth place of Yongtai Chicken-style Kungfu, a branch of the Nanquan, or Southern Fist, school. Nanquan Kungfu also includes Tiger style, Crane style, Monkey style, and others.
A villager by the name of Xie Jinyu said that during the Qing Dynasty, under emperor Yongzheng, monk Tiezhu from Shaolin Temple passed down Yongtai Chicken Kungfu to his first generation secular student Xie Yousheng. Since then, it has been passed down for over 200 years.
During the second half of the Qing Dynasty, Kungfu became extremely popular in Yunling. Because of its remote location, the village was frequently pillaged by bandits. Therefore most villagers started to practice Kungfu to stay fit and to protect themselves. Today, almost everyone of the some 1,200 residents practices Kungfu.
Kungfu Fair
Xie Wenda, 87, is the oldest Kungfu trainer in the village. He said since 1976 many villagers have left the area to open Yongtai Chicken style Kungfu schools elsewhere. He himself has taught between 300 to 400 students.
Although many of the villagers work or do business outside the village, they all come home for Chinese New Year and to participate in the annual village Kungfu Fair that lasts about 40 days.
Yunling Village consists of six sub-villages, and each has its own Kungfu school that participates in competitions during the fair.
Secret Technique
Master Xie explained that the acupressure technique is still a secret, kept among a limited number of people, but many villagers have grasped the knowledge of energy channels, and they use this knowledge to cure illnesses for people in other places.
He explained that acupressure has to take the change of seasons and time of the day into consideration, as different acupuncture points need to be selected at different times.
In the interview, he emphasized the danger and secrecy associated with the technique: “If someone hurts people with this technique intentionally, he is not allowed to teach anyone else,” Master Xie said.
Read the original Chinese article.
