Wu Daxin or Wu Ta-hsin (1933–2005) was a Chinese

tai chi is a Chinese martial art. Initially developed for combat and self-defense, for most practitioners it has evolved into a sport and form of exercise. As an exercise, tai chi is performed as gentle, low-impact movement in which practitioners ...

teacher who lived most of his life in

Hong Kong Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...

. He was the great-grandson

Wu-style tai chi Wu-style tai chi ( zh, c=吳氏太极拳, p=Wúshì tàijíquán) is one of the five main styles of tai chi. It is second in popularity after Yang-style, and the fourth-oldest of the five major tai chi styles. It was developed by Wu Quanyou an ...

founder

Wu Quanyou Wu Quanyou ( zh, c=吴全佑, w=Wu Ch‘üan-yu; 1834–1902) was an influential teacher of the tai chi martial art in late Imperial China. His son is credited as the founder of the Wu-style tai chi. As he was of Manchu descent, and would hav ...

and the grandson of the well-known teacher

Wu Jianquan Wu Jianquan ( zh, c=吴鉴泉, w=Wu Chien-ch‘üan, p=Wú Jiànquán; 1870–1942) was a famous teacher and founder of the ''neijia'' martial art of Wu-style tai chi in late Imperial and early Republican China. Biography Wu Jianquan was ta ...

. He directed the Wu family's lineage for four years from the Wu family headquarters in Hong Kong after the death of his cousin

Wu Yanxia Wu Yanxia or Wu Yen-hsia (1930–2001) was a Chinese tai chi teacher of Manchu ancestry. Biography She was the daughter of Wu Gongyi (1900-1970) from whom she learned tai chi. She also helped teach her father's students. Wu Yanxia was the ...

Biography

Born into a

Manchu The Manchus (; ) are a Tungusic peoples, Tungusic East Asian people, East Asian ethnic group native to Manchuria in Northeast Asia. They are an officially recognized Ethnic minorities in China, ethnic minority in China and the people from wh ...

military family known for their contributions towards preserving knowledge of the traditional

Chinese martial arts Chinese martial arts, commonly referred to with umbrella terms Kung fu (term), kung fu (; ), kuoshu () or wushu (sport), wushu (), are Styles of Chinese martial arts, multiple fighting styles that have developed over the centuries in Greater Ch ...

, Wu Daxin endured strict training from his grandfather Wu Jianquan, uncle

Wu Gongyi Wu Gongyi ( zh, c=吳公儀, p=Wú Gōngyí, w=Wu Kung-i; 1898–1970) was a well-known teacher of the soft style martial art tai chi in China, and, after 1949, in British Hong Kong. He was also the "gate-keeper" of the Wu family from 1942 unt ...

and father

Wu Kung-tsao Wu Kung-tsao or Wu Gongzao (1902–1983) was a famous Chinese teacher of tai chi. He taught in Beijing, Shanghai, Changsha and Hong Kong. He was the second son of Wu Jianquan, the best known teacher of Wu-style tai chi, and the grandson of W ...

. He eventually became known as a teacher and for his expertise with the tai chi

sabre A sabre or saber ( ) is a type of backsword with a curved blade associated with the light cavalry of the Early Modern warfare, early modern and Napoleonic period, Napoleonic periods. Originally associated with Central European cavalry such a ...

and

sword A sword is an edged and bladed weapons, edged, bladed weapon intended for manual cutting or thrusting. Its blade, longer than a knife or dagger, is attached to a hilt and can be straight or curved. A thrusting sword tends to have a straighter ...

as well as for his ''

qigong Qigong ()) is a system of coordinated body-posture and movement, breathing, and meditation said to be useful for the purposes of health, spirituality, and martial arts training. With roots in Traditional Chinese Medicine, Chinese medicine, Chin ...

'' and

pushing hands Pushing hands, Push hands or tuishou (alternately spelled ''tuei shou'' or ''tuei sho'') is a two-person training routine practiced in internal Chinese martial arts such as ''baguazhang'', ''xingyiquan'', tai chi, and '' yiquan''. It is also ...

skills. When Wu Gongyi moved with his family to Hong Kong in the 1940s, Wu Daxin assisted him in the promotion and teaching of tai chi. During the 1950s, at the direction of Wu Gongyi, Wu Daxin and his cousins

Wu Ta-k'uei Wu Ta-k'uei or Wu Dakui (1923–1972) was a Chinese Wu-style tai chi teacher of Manchu ancestry. Biography The oldest son of Wu Gongyi, he was born in Beijing, raised in Shanghai (where he was first taught tai chi by his grandfather, Wu Jia ...

and Wu Daqi often travelled to

Malaysia Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia. Featuring the Tanjung Piai, southernmost point of continental Eurasia, it is a federation, federal constitutional monarchy consisting of States and federal territories of Malaysia, 13 states and thre ...

and

Singapore Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, is an island country and city-state in Southeast Asia. The country's territory comprises one main island, 63 satellite islands and islets, and one outlying islet. It is about one degree ...

to start and manage several Wu style academies. Later in his life, he also travelled extensively to

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South Ameri ...

, teaching tai chi in

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

Detroit Detroit ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 United State ...

and

Vancouver Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...

Generational senior instructors of the Wu family

''1st Generation'' *

(1834–1902), who learned from

Yang Luchan Yang Luchan ( zh, c=杨露禅, w=Yang Lu-ch'an, p=Yáng Lùchán), also known as Yang Fukui (1799–1872), was an influential Chinese practitioner and teacher of the internal style tai chi martial art. He is known as the founder of Yang-styl ...

and

Yang Banhou Yang Banhou (Yang Pan-hou; 1837–1890) was an influential teacher of tai chi in Qing dynasty China, known for his bellicose temperament. Biography He was the eldest son of Yang Luchan to survive to adulthood. Like his father, he was retaine ...

, was founded Wu-style tai chi and was its senior instructor from 1870 until his death. ''2nd generation'' *His oldest son,

(1870–1942), was senior instructor from 1902 to 1942. ''3rd Generation'' *His oldest son,

(1900–1970) was senior instructor from 1942 to 1970. *Wu Kung-i's younger brother,

(1903–1983) was senior instructor from 1970 to 1983. *Wu Kung-i's younger sister,

Wu Yinghua Wu Yinghua (1907–1996) was a famous Chinese teacher of Wu-style tai chi. She was born in Beijing and died in Shanghai. She was the eldest daughter of Wu Jianquan, the best known teacher of Wu-style tai chi. Her older brothers were Wu Gong ...

(1907–1997) was senior instructor from 1983 to 1997. ''4th Generation'' *Wu Kung-i's daughter,

(1930–2001) was senior from 1997 to 2001. *Wu Daxin (Wu Kung-tsao's son) was senior from 2001 to 2005. ''5th Generation'' *The current senior instructor of the Wu family is Wu Ta-k'uei's son

Wu Kuang-yu Eddie Wu Kuang-yu or Wu Guangyu (born 1946) is a Chinese-Canadian tai chi teacher. He is the eldest son of the late Wu Ta-k'uei and senior instructor of the Wu family and "Gatekeeper" of the Wu-style as taught in the Wu's tai chi Academies i ...

, born 1946.

Tai chi lineage tree with Wu-style focus

References

External links

*
International Wu Style Tai Chi Chuan Federation website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wu, Daxin 1923 births 2005 deaths Chinese tai chi practitioners Manchu martial artists Chinese emigrants to British Hong Kong