Zhang Sanfeng—Founder of Tai Chi Chuan
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He is considered the founder of Tai Chi Chuan or Tai chi boxing—an internal martial arts style.
Zhang Sanfeng—the man himself—was claimed to have written that, "in every movement, every part of the body must be light, agile, and connected in a sequence. The postures continuous, the movement rooted in the feet, released through the legs, focused on the waist, and expressed with the fingers."
One story has it that Zhang saw a bird of prey attacking a snake. He noticed how the snake defended itself by keeping still and alert, before counter-attacking and killing the bird.
With his knowledge of Taoism and Shaolin kung fu, an external or hard fighting style, Zhang was inspired to create a new martial art based on softness and yielding.
Many details of Zhang's life remain unclear. Much of what has been written about him varies according to different sources.
Zhang was a legendary Chinese Taoist priest, believed to hav...