XinJia - first glimpse
XinJia, "New Frame", was created by Chen FaKe, Chen XiaoWang's grandfather. Identical in outline to the Old Frame LaoJia, it contains many elaborations of the spiral where complex patterns of Qi change rhythm and direction.
Many years ago on a summer's afternoon nearing the solstice, I was standing by a stone wall before our house in Lunigiana. The grasses and wildflowers grew a foot high on the terrace above me. A swift and contained movement fixed my gaze : a snake appeared out of the tall grass, followed by a parallel motion nearby which I first took to be its tail in a doubled writhing. But it was a second snake, and I watched for a long time the two vipers twine and withdraw continuously in silent combat, oblivious of my presence.
Some years later, we were with Chen XiaoWang in Oxford. We had taken him to the University Parks where, delighted with the magnificent trees there, he took the chance to have himself filmed performing XinJia. It was a transfixing experience - here was the vipers' dance : primal, awesome, unforgettable.