There have been a few enquiries about the Chen style Taijiquan Practical Method:

1. The Chen style Taijiquan Practical Method is a transmission of the Chen Family style Hong Junsheng learned from Chen Fake.
2. This is not the “Chen Family style Taijiquan”, this is the “Chen style Taijiquan Practical Method”.  To be precise, “Chen Family Taijiquan” refers to the original style that was practiced within the Chen Family.  As Hong Junsheng (Master Chen Zhonghua’s teacher),  directly learned from Chen Fake, his style is Chen Family Taijiquan.  When students learned from Hong, their style is called Chen Style Taijiquan as there is no more family affiliation with the next generation.
3. The “Chen style Taijiquan Practical Method” was formally introduced by Hong Junsheng in 1988 when he published his book “Chen Shi Taijiquan Shiyong Quanfa” (Practical Chen Style Taijiquan)
4. Hong Junsheng was the only person to study daily under Chen Fake (1887-1957) for 15 years consecutively before moving to Jinan in 1944 (the Japanese invasion and occupation made living conditions undesirable in Beijing).
5. The term “Practical” took shape in Hong’s mind in 1956, when he went to Beijing to receive his final instructions from Chen Fake.  Chen Fake, demonstrating the applications for every move and posture of Yilu (First routine) and Erlu (Second – Cannon Fist – routine), would always say, “This is the ‘Practical’ way of using the movement in the routine”, and, “Every move in this form is ‘Practical’.”  Recognising that movements in the routines were not exactly the same as those which were taught in the applications, Hong asked Chen Fake whether it might be beneficial to practice movements in the routines exactly the way they are applied in fighting or push hands.  Chen Fake gave his blessings to this advancement in teaching, and for the following six months, Chen and Hong worked closely together for hours every day at the Taoranting (Joyous Pavilion) Park, going over every detail of the routines and practice, ensuring that the ‘Practical’ structures were included into the routines.  Enriched so deeply during this process of the highest levels of “indoor” transmission, Hong Junsheng’s “Practical Method” crystallized.  This is the “Practical Method” Hong Junsheng taught in Jinan from 1957 until he passed away in 1997.
6. Hong Junsheng published books including “Chen Shi Taijiquan”, “Chen Shi Taijiquan Shiyong Quanfa (Practical Chen Style Taijiquan)”, “Chen Shi Taijiquan Techniques”, and “Interpretation of Taijiquan Treatise of Wang Zengyue”. In 1994, he was working on his last book, “Comparisons of Characteristics and Methods of the Five Styles of Taijiquan”. The book was completed but, unfortunately for all Taiji practitioners, not published.
7. Hong’s single-minded devotion to the theories and practices made him one of the most important authorities and leading source of information in the Chen style. Many other famous masters such as Gu Liuxin (1908–1991) and Chen Zhaokui (1928-1981) often sought his advice.  Chen Zhaokui is the son of Chen Fake and responsible for bringing the Family gongfu back to Chen Jia Gou (Chen Village) and teaching it to Chen Xiaowang, Chen Zhenglei, Wang Xian, and Zhu Tiancai among others.  Chen Zhaokui was the only one who taught the fighting applications in Chen Village at that time.

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When faced with danger, have no fear;

When faced with difficulty, have no worries or stress;

When faced with injustice, have no anger;

At all times live life without guilt 

(by Grandmaster Hong Junsheng)