Bajiquan originated in the southeastern villages of Cang County, in the Hebei province of China. The original name of this style seems to be ''Baziquan", meaning ''rake fist'', possibly due to the typical shape of the fist formed when practicing this style.

Around the KangXi period in the Qing Dynasty, it was changed to "bajiquan". which sounded very much the same in northern Chinese dialects. This was probably due to the unsophisticated nature of the original name. There are a few interpretations of the name "bajiquan". One is to remind the practitioners of this style that the eight primary locations of the body (head. shoulders, elbows, hands, buttock, kua, knees. and feet) should have their functions trained to their extreme perfection. The other is to denote the unique characteristics of bajiquan's "internal strength", or jing, where the jings generated are always extended to the eight extreme directions.

Bajiquan is a very practical and powerful style. It,s external appearance is rather simplistic while the usage of the internal body mechanics is quite sophisticated. Its notorious power is derived from the long, harsh and often unbearable training in the basic body usage. When fighting using this style, the practitioner would approach the opponent from a long range distance to body-to-body contact distance. During the time of the closing of the distance, the eight locations of the body are continuously employed in all the directions, and every technique becomes faster and more powerful than the previous. It's a very fierce and ruthless style.

Above illustrates the application of a typical bajiquan technique "Beng" demonstrated by Master Kang Tain Cheng (on photo - left).
After the interception of the opponent's right punch, shortens the range while executing a punch, setting the opponent up for the primary technique, he then enters the opponent's "outer gate", breaks the opponent's root, and executes the downward - scissoring force with the same attacking hand, This is a typical bajiquan strategy the power from the body is released in a way that does not require one to retract the attacking hand in order to issue the follow - up strike, thus enabling the same hand to issue multiple power releases in succession. The first punch could be used as a major strike as well as a set-up for the next.

IF YOU READ anything about the Chinese martial arts you will probably be told that there arc External styles and Internal styles, and that the 'external' styles arc 'hard' or depend mainly on 'muscle power' or 'strength'; the 'internal' forms, on the other hand, are 'soft', 'flexible' and ulilise something called 'internal energy, or power'. Furthermore, there are said to be numerous 'external' styles, particularly [he so-called Shaolin fighting arts, and only three 'internal' styles, ie Tai Chi Quan, Pa-Kua, and Hsing-Yi.

In China there are thousands of styles of Wushu (kungfu) and it is quite ridiculous to suppose that only three of them should be 'internal'. The idea of the three 'internal' styles only started to become popular during the 1920s and there are, in fact, many other 'internal' styles including Lio Ho Pa Fa, Shi-San Taibao, Tzu-ran Quan, Wu Xing Quan, Yi Quan, Tzu-men Quan, Southern White Crane, 18 Lohan style, and Ba-Ji also written as 'Pa-Chi'. The latter style, Baji (or Ba-Ji), has long been practised in China and Taiwan but until recently has been unknown in the West. What follows is a brief attempt to give some background and information about Baji style.

Let us consider first why this martial art was called Baji. In the ancient book the 'Huai Nan Zi' it is said that between the Heavens and the Earth there are nine 'Jio' and eight 'Ji'; beyond the nine 'Jio' there are eight 'Yan'; beyond the eight 'Yan' there are eight 'Hong'. 'Yan' means remoteness, extending into the far distance, 'hong' means breadth; so Baji was said to be something which spreads and extends out to infinity.

As regards who the originator of Baji was or even when it was first practiced it is very difficult to say but according to the old texts a man named Wu Zhong (nicknamed Hong Sheng 1712-1802), also the founder of Ba Men Chuan (eight doors style) in North China, started to practice Wusnu when he was eight. He liked martial arts and practised day and night, in all weathers. One night Wu Zhong was practising Wushu in the courtyard and an old man suddenly jumped from the roof and stood in front of him, laughed at him and said he was not practising properly. Wu Zhong asked who he was but the old man didn't answer and started to do some kung-fu - Wu Zhong had never in his life seen such techniques so he asked the old man to sit down and tell him what he was doing. The old man told Wu Zhong a great deal about martial arts theory and techniques, most of which he had never previously heard. Wu Zhong asked him what style he was doing, the old man said it was 'Baji Chuan'. Immediately Wu Zhong knelt down and begged him to accept him as his student. The old man refused and said, "I'm going to travel a lol. how can I teach you?" But Wu Zhong persisted, performed three kowtows, and told him how much it would mean to him to be taught by him.
The old man, realizing Wu Zhong was sincere and had a deep love for Wushu, was so impressed by his determination and enthusiasm that he agreed to accept him as a student. So he stayed at Wu Zhong's house and started to leach him. After ten years of practice [he old man said: "I've taught you almost everything and I have to go now." Wu Zhong was very upset, kowtowed and said: "Master. you have been teaching me for ten years but you have never mentioned your name or who you are." The old man said, "My surname is known only to my closest students - it is Lai." The old man was Lai Kou Yuan, one of the great and almost legendary masters of the part-Later, after Wu Zhong had improved on Ba-Ji and it became more advanced he was invited by the great nobleman Wang Gong Da Ren to leach 150 of his retainers in his palace. Baji started to become popular.

Wu Zhong subsequently passed the style on to Li Da-Zhong and Chang Kemin; Li then taught his son Li Gui-Zhao, and Chang taught his son Chang Jing-Xing. Through several more generations the art was passed on to the great 20th century master Ma Fu-Luo, still alive today in his 80s, living in Ningxia, China. Ma Fu-Luo is the head of the Hui minority people in his province and a strict Muslim not considering himself to be a Chinese. Indeed, in the past he has led a battalion of resistance fighters against both the Japanese and the Chinese. Until recently he has refused to teach Baji to any Chinese or non - Muslim.
In 1984 Master Ji Jlan Cheng met him and saw him perform Baji. Master Ji had previously studied Baji at the famous Wushu Institute of Chengdu but when he observed Master Ma he noticed thal the Baji as practised by Ma Fu-Luo was absolutely other style, much more power, then he studed before.