Qingping Jian

The Institute offers instruction in the rare art of Qingping Jian, a complete Chinese sword fighting system. Authorities on Chinese weaponry consider Qingping Jian one of the "crown jewels" of Chinese swordsmanship. Qingping Jian consists of six straight sword routines characterized by a variety of swift, hard to predict directional changes designed to outwit rather than overpower an opponent. Hard and soft, as well as fast and slow moves are interwoven into a rich tapestry of techniques used to attack, defend, counter, deceive, entrap and evade an enemy. Because the routines demand excellent body mechanics, flexibility, nimble footwork, speed, balance, and timing, students should be at an advanced level before they begin training in Qingping Jian.

The routines are arranged in ascending order of difficulty. The first one emphasizes foundation skills, focusing on fundamental sword work, stable stances, balanced postures, and more evenly paced directional shifts. The other five routines involve much more complex sequencing and dynamic pacing. Many of Qingping Jian's basic techniques are common to other well known sword routines. These include: Dian (point), Beng (drop), Ci (stab), Yun (circle), Mo (press), Gua (parry), Tiao (stab upward), Liao (glide up), Ti (raise), Jie (intercept), Pi (split), Lan (obstruct), La (pull back), Chan (spiral), etc. However, what sets Qingping swordsmanship apart are the extraordinary ways the techniques are integrated and executed. Qingping Jian moves are famous for being light, quick, fluid, vigorous and elegant.