Baguazhang's Lotus Body Origins
/The video below is the first in a series I plan to make showing the 27 close links between Baguazhang, Kathak, Krishna, and Nezha. Here is an excerpt from my book:
In China, everyone knew the story of the Buddha walking through mud and lotus flowers blossoming in his footsteps. Nezha’s body was made of lotus flowers. The iconography of Baguazhang conveys the idea of walking through mud to produce an indestructible lotus body. Nezha, like the Buddha, is originally from India. In the Twentieth Century the culture-wide iconographic bond between history, literature, and theater was severed by the YMCA Consensus. This type of self-apparent knowledge became hidden…
…The basic lotus-hands pattern in Kathak is a key movement pattern used to develop spiraling power in Baguazhang. The spinning tea cups exercise is basic training for both Kathak and Baguazhang. When combined, lotus hands and tea cups integrate to become an advanced whole-body movement pattern that underlies all Baguazhang movement. This whole-body integration then becomes the basis for improvisation.
Improvisation is a big part of both Kathak and Baguazhang. Advanced fighters and dancers must be capable improvisors, but both arts are outliers in their respective cultures because of the emphasis they both put on improvisation. No other dance form in India emphasizes improvisation to the extent that Kathak does. Baguazhang is an improvisational martial art, rote forms were later additions. Again, Kathak is Krishna, Krishna is Nezha, Nezha is Bagua.
