Kong Lingchun
01 · Lineage & Regional School
Kong Lingchun, Male, Han, from Cangzhoushihuanghua, Hebei, is a sixth-batch national representative bearer of Qingpingjian (Ⅵ-92). The tradition is documented in Cangzhoushihuanghua, Hebei. Within the regional tradition and school record of Qingpingjian in Cangzhoushihuanghua, Hebei: Jia-style Qingping Sword is the most influential transmission branch among the three lineages of Qingping swordsmanship in modern China, and is a classic, practical traditional sword method. Qingping Sword originated at the Celestial Masters' Mansion on Longhu Mountain in Jiangxi and was created by the Daoist priest Pan Yuangui. At first taught only among Daoist priests, it later passed from the Daoist community into lay society, where the Jia, Yuan, and Yang branches gradually formed. After spreading into Hebei, Jia-style Qingping Sword, through generations of dedicated research and combat tempering, formed a unique and complete swordsmanship system with a history of nearly two hundred years. It is now mainly transmitted in Huanghua City, Hebei Province, and its surrounding areas, with the Huanghua Cultural Center as the protection unit, and is the most influential transmission branch among the three lineages of Qingping swordsmanship in modern China. According to historical records, Qingping Sword originated at the Celestial Masters' Mansion on Longhu Mountain in Jiangxi and was created by the Daoist priest Pan Yuangui. It was at first transmitted among Daoist priests, and later passed from the Daoist community into lay society, forming three branches: the Jia, Yuan, and Yang styles. One of its branches, the Jia-style Qingping Sword, spread into Hebei and, after generations of dedicated research and combat tempering, formed a unique and complete swordsmanship system. It has a history of nearly two hundred years and is now mainly transmitted in Huanghua City, Hebei Province, and its surrounding areas.
02 · Mastery & Signature Works
The bearer record for Kong Lingchun is anchored in the documented technical standards of Qingpingjian in Cangzhoushihuanghua, Hebei. Within the documented technical tradition of Qingpingjian in Cangzhoushihuanghua, Hebei: The basic content of Jia-style Qingping Sword comprises four parts: basic exercises, routines, single-technique paired cutting practice, and adversarial live-fighting practice. Its basic exercises include hand shapes, stances, hand techniques, footwork, and twenty-six basic sword methods. The routines comprise six series totaling 373 forms: Greeting the Wind with a Fan, Wielding the Axe to Raise the Wind, Floating Clouds Covering the Crown, White Horse Parting Its Mane, Locking the Wind Pool from Afar, and Two Dragons Spouting Whiskers. The structure of the routines goes from shallow to deep and from simple to complex, deepening with each series. The sword manual annotates each of the 373 forms with 'sword notes' (jianpi), using hypothetical opponents to explain their different intended uses. Each form imposes extremely strict requirements on the line of entry, direction, and the target area of the attack. Practicing single-technique paired cutting with it is the foundation of live training in this swordsmanship. The adversarial live-fighting practice contains thirty-eight methods of wielding the sword, which highly summarize the laws of its sword use and represent the advanced stage of live sword training. At the same time, its theoretical system is complete. Jia-style Qingping Sword is distinguished by practical combat application: its structure is rigorous, its striking methods are coherent, its sword paths are close and direct, and its variations are diverse. When performed, it is light and nimble in its turns, subtle and ingenious in its indirect approaches, and free and elegant. Representative repertoire, works and technical entries recorded for the project include: "Six sequences, 373 postures": The routine comprises six sequences—waving the fan in the wind, the axe raising wind, clouds over the crown, the white horse parting its mane, locking the wind pool afar and two dragons spitting whiskers—in 373 postures. "The sword commentary": The manual annotates each of the 373 postures by imagining an opponent, demanding strict control of line, direction and target. "Thirty-eight ways of wielding the sword": The advanced stage of combat training, comprising thirty-eight methods that summarise the rules of using the sword. "Twenty-six fundamental sword methods": Part of the basic training alongside hand and foot positions and methods, grounding both routines and combat.
Six sequences, 373 postures
The routine comprises six sequences—waving the fan in the wind, the axe raising wind, clouds over the crown, the white horse parting its mane, locking the wind pool afar and two dragons spitting whiskers—in 373 postures.
The sword commentary
The manual annotates each of the 373 postures by imagining an opponent, demanding strict control of line, direction and target.
Thirty-eight ways of wielding the sword
The advanced stage of combat training, comprising thirty-eight methods that summarise the rules of using the sword.
Twenty-six fundamental sword methods
Part of the basic training alongside hand and foot positions and methods, grounding both routines and combat.
03 · Transmission & Safeguarding Status
In 2025, Kong Lingchun was announced in the sixth batch of national representative bearers for Qingpingjian, with Cangzhoushihuanghua, Hebei as the declared area. Within the documented safeguarding record of Qingpingjian in Cangzhoushihuanghua, Hebei: The project was inscribed in the national inventory in 2021 (batch 5), with Cangzhoushihuanghua, Hebei as its declared area, and Huanghua Cultural Center as its safeguarding unit. Since the project was inscribed in the national inventory, its declared area and safeguarding unit have carried out documentation, transmission and presentation within the national safeguarding framework. Together, the inventory record and the project archive form the public documentary basis for the bearer’s transmission practice.
04 · Associated Heritage Item Dossier
Historical origin
According to historical records, Qingping Sword originated at the Celestial Masters' Mansion on Longhu Mountain in Jiangxi and was created by the Daoist priest Pan Yuangui. It was at first transmitted among Daoist priests, and later passed from the Daoist community into lay society, forming three branches: the Jia, Yuan, and Yang styles. One of its branches, the Jia-style Qingping Sword, spread into Hebei and, after generations of dedicated research and combat tempering, formed a unique and complete swordsmanship system. It has a history of nearly two hundred years and is now mainly transmitted in Huanghua City, Hebei Province, and its surrounding areas.
05 · Fellow National Bearers Lineage
National representative bearers recorded under the same item code, ordered from the first to the sixth batch. Batch order is not a teacher–student relationship.
| Bearer | Declared area | Roster code | Relation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kong Lingchun | Cangzhoushihuanghua, Hebei | — | This page |
06 · Archival Sources & Bibliography
This static English edition is rendered at the edge for search engines, AI crawlers and readers without JavaScript. Compiled from official national representative bearer archival records and the associated project dossier, organized by topic and translated into English. 阅读中文版。