Huatuowuqin Opera
01 · Historical Records
Hua Tuo's Five Animal Exercises originated in Bozhou. A set of health-preserving exercise routines created by Hua Tuo, the great physician of the Eastern Han Dynasty, it builds on the ancient daoyin (guided movement and breathing) arts of nourishing life, draws on Chinese medicine's theories of yin-yang and the five elements, visceral manifestations, the meridian system, and the movement of qi and blood, and was devised by observing the postures and activities of animals, modeling the images and movements of the tiger, deer, monkey, bear, and bird. The earliest record of Hua Tuo's creation of the Five Animal Exercises is found in the 'Biography of Hua Tuo' in the Records of the Three Kingdoms (Sanguo Zhi), written by Chen Shou of the Western Jin Dynasty; Tao Hongjing, the famous physician of the Northern and Southern Dynasties period, described the specific movements of the 'Five Animal Exercises' in his work Yangxing Yanming Lu (Nourishing Life and Extending Years). Development was faster during the Ming and Qing dynasties, and specialized treatises increased. During the Republican era, Hua Tuo's Five Animal Exercises circulated mainly in Xiaohua Village, Hua Tuo's hometown in Bozhou, and the surrounding areas.
02 · Core Techniques & Process
The exercises were very popular in the Sui, Tang, Song, and Yuan periods, and eminent figures such as Sun Simiao, Liu Zongyuan, and Lu You all discussed or described their mechanisms and the scenes of practice at the time. Inheritors of successive generations, including Lu Wuju, Dong Wenhuan, and Liu Shirong, continually carried forward the Five Animal Exercises.
The tiger, deer, ape, bear and bird plays
The five sets modelled on the tiger, deer, ape, bear and bird, performed in sequence with breath work and suited to all ages.
The Records of the Three Kingdoms and the Record of Nurturing Life
The art's earliest record is in Chen Shou's history, while Tao Hongjing's Record of Nurturing Life sets out the actual movements.
Sun Simiao, Liu Zongyuan and Lu You on the plays
Widely practised in the Sui, Tang and Song, the plays were discussed or described by Sun Simiao, Liu Zongyuan and the poet Lu You.
Lu Wuju, Dong Wenhuan and Liu Shirong
Successive Bozhou inheritors carried the plays forward, Dong Wenhuan teaching it for over sixty years and training a cohort of direct disciples.
Zhou Jinzhong, Ma Weicai and Xiu Haiyan
Contemporary direct disciples who teach in Bozhou and beyond, continuing the lineage rooted in Hua Tuo's home village.
Guiding exercise and the five phases
Hua Tuo built the plays from ancient guiding exercise and the medicine of yin-yang, the five phases and the channels, founding exercise as therapy.
03 · Regional Records & Related Items
Hua Tuo's Five Animal Exercises originated in Bozhou City, Anhui Province. Bozhou lies beside the Guo River in northern Anhui and is Hua Tuo's hometown; the exercises circulate mainly in Xiaohua Village, Hua Tuo's hometown in Qiaocheng District, and the surrounding areas, where villagers have practiced for generations and often hold group exercises at fairs and temple fairs. The Bozhou Hua Tuo Five Animal Exercises Association is the protecting unit; inheritors of successive generations, including Lu Wuju, Dong Wenhuan, and Liu Shirong, did much for the codification and promotion of the exercises; the direct disciples trained by Dong Wenhuan — Zhou Jinzhong, Ma Weicai, Xiu Haiyan, and others — now teach at sites in Bozhou and beyond. Each of the five animal exercises has its own emphasis: the tiger exercise mainly strengthens the sinews and bones and develops issuing force; the deer exercise mainly trains the waist and spine and promotes stretching; the monkey exercise mainly develops agility and leaping; the bear exercise mainly cultivates steadiness and internal force; the bird (crane) exercise mainly develops balance and breathing.
04 · Cultural Value & Contemporary Safeguarding
Hua Tuo's Five Animal Exercises faithfully reflects the evolution of the fitness culture of the Chinese people, pioneered the use of exercise as medical treatment to cure illness and build health, and displays the deep aesthetic foundations of health-preserving philosophy and Daoist culture, giving it important historical value as well as value for health preservation and medical therapy. Dong Wenhuan (recorded in the official file of the associated inheritor): A performer of the Five Animal Exercises. Male, Han ethnicity, born in October 1923, died in March 2013, a native of Bozhou City, Anhui Province. Representative inheritor of Hua Tuo's Five Animal Exercises, a fourth-batch national-level intangible cultural heritage project. Over more than sixty years of transmitting Hua Tuo's Five Animal Exercises, he trained a group of direct disciples represented by Zhou Jinzhong, Ma Weicai, and Xiu Haiyan.
05 · Associated Representative Bearers
Representative bearers recorded under this item, organized by national nomination batch:
- Dong Wenhuan 04-1744
- Chen Jing
06 · Authoritative Sources & Bibliography
Sources
China Intangible Cultural Heritage Network (ihchina.cn)
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