Shayuquan evolution   Shayuquan stems from the substantiation of the original principles of Taijiquan, and other "external", "internal" and "self-defence" martial arts, in the light of the latest scientific knowledge, such as physics, functional anatomy and bionics. Ömer Humbaraci and 30 of his students from Hamburg and Rome developed Shayuquan between 1993 and 2004. A remarkable teacher and researcher, he studied various western and oriental martial arts and sports for more than 45 years. He was particularly interested in finding means to reach efficiency (doing more with less) and freeing "internal martial arts" from confusion, mysticism and philosophical speculation. Together with the Sinologist Juliane Koch, he worked at a practical translation from classical Chinese of the famous "Taijiquan Jing" (Treatise on the Long Fist). The results were gathered in a book (French, unpublished) with the title "The Secret of the Chinese Cash-string". The teachings of this treatise had a great influence on the development of Shayuquan. (Upper right corner: Zhang Sanfeng, patron of Taijiquan and presumed author of the "Taijiquan Jing", design by Juliane Koch)   Fields of knowledge that contributed to the development of Shayuquan: Newtonian physics (mechanics & statics), geophysics, functional anatomy (osteology and myology), sport science, general physiology, neurology, bionics, zoology, (marine) biology, hydrodynamics, biocinematics according to Dr. W. Packi, lateral thinking according to Edward de Bono, semiotics, general semantics according to Alfred Korzybski, behavioural psychology, ethology, ethnology (shamanism), communication and anti-communication, Sinology (Chinese language and culture, in particular archaic characters, martial art classics and military treatises) traditional Chinese medicine (especially Qigong and Tuina), theology, history of art, iconography, etc. The methods applied were: "trial and error", "verification" and especially "falsification", videotaping and slow motion study of practical applications, and the subjective and objective evaluation of their effects in various contest situations. The aim of this research was to reach physical efficiency in body and mind techniques (more effect with less energy consumption) - exactly what "internal martial arts" claim for themselves.   Glossary (simplified)   Bionics: applied science that tries to solve technical problems by studying natural models. One of the first to use this method in the West was Leonardo da Vinci. He said: "Those who orientated themselves at anything else but Nature, master of all masters, belaboured in vain". On the other hand, Taoists preached the "Wu Wei" principle, which can also be understood as "Not acting against the nature of things". Ethology: science of the behaviour of animals and human beings; research in behaviour.   Verification: to confirm the correctness of something by examination and comparison with ascertained values.   Falsification: to contradict an assertion or a theory by means of empiric observation or logical proof. back to top