The Myth

Recently I’ve been made aware of some interesting theories about the meaning behind “Single Whip” 單鞭 (dān biān)

Basically the claim is that the posture resembles a farmer carrying something on a pole or yoke and that the name refers to this yoke.

This yoke or shoulder pole is called 扁擔 (biǎndan)

So right away, simply linguistically, this claim is a little bit problematic.

English	Character	Pinyin Romanization.
Single Whip	單 鞭	dān biān
Shoulder Pole	扁 擔	biǎndan

We’re dealing with four completely different characters with completely different meanings. The dan in biandan is POLE not single.

To a native Chinese speaker this is like comparing apples to tennis balls. It’s just a ridiculous claim. We can rest our case there comfortably.

But that’s not really sufficient proof for the modern Western thinker, so let’s look to the historical record.

The Historical Record

The first recorded mention of single whip… let me back up… the first recorded mention of the discipline of barehanded boxing exercise routines, can be found in General Qi Jiguang’s Boxing Classic dated 1560.

[4] 抝單鞭黃花緊進披挑腿左右難防搶步上拳連劈揭沈香勢推倒泰山
With SINGLE WHIP IN A CROSSED STANCE, I advance like a virgin squeezing her legs tight.
The opponent throws out kicks on my left and right, difficult to defend against,
but I charge forward, my fists in succession chopping and tearing through.
In an “agarwood stance” [i.e. deeply rooted], I should be able to push over Mt. Tai.

[24] 一條鞭橫直披砍兩進腿當面傷人不怕他力粗膽大我巧好打通神
With SINGLE WHIP, one arm drapes over horizontally and the other cleaves through vertically.
I advance with both legs, going straight in to injure the opponent.
I have no fear that he may have a savage strength and a berserking boldness.
My great skill will hit him with a superhuman power.

• 抝 (Ào) – Swing
• 單 (Dān) – Single
• 鞭 (Biān) – Whip

The 鐵鞭 (Tiě biān) is a truncheon or “Sword Breaker” weapon. The term Bian can sometimes refer to a flexible leather whip, or a sectioned weapon in the case of a three section staff 三節鞭 (sān jié biān). or nine section whip 九節鞭 (jiǔ jié biān).

A 單鞭 (dān biān) or single whip isn’t a thing. All we can do is guess about the intended meaning and hope the exercise can help give us some increased insight into our practice. My limited studies in Chinese literature have exposed me to a language that is quite playful and referential. A single term can refer to many different things intentionally and I believe that there is a strong case to be made for this when considering “Single Whip” 單鞭 (dān biān).

First, if we consider 三節鞭 (sān jié biān) and 九節鞭 (jiǔ jié biān), perhaps 單鞭 (dān biān) is meant to imply a single sectioned rod, which draws me in the direction of the “Sword Breaker”.

I believe one intention may be to draw a similarity to the Single Sword “單刀” (dān dāo), since according to period manuals, the techniques of the Single-Edged Broadsword map almost completely onto the techniques of the Sword Breaker. On consideration I believe this is true both of the Single handed and Two handed variety and even when dual-wielding Single Handed weapons.

Change my mind…

So what does the single mean? It could mean a One Handed Iron Bar Mace or Sword Breaker or Cudgel or Stick, or it could also refer to a Two-Handed Iron Bar Mace or Sword Breaker or Cudgel or Stick.

In Cheng Chong Dou’s Broadsword manual he explains that “單刀” (dān dāo) refers to using both hands to hold a single weapon.

Does this mean that perhaps 單鞭 (dān biān) implies a cudgel that requires two hands? Using both sides to achieve the same goal? The entire body unified into a single powerful blow?

Perhaps if we consider a flexible leather whip we could get something out of it.

A leather whip works by adding the elastic strength of the woven material to the wave as it travels the length of the core. From a heavy handle base to the tiny stinging tip the energy accelerates as the cross-section mass of the whip diminishes. This is how a small initial movement can accelerate the tiny striker on the end to supersonic speeds and CRACK.

If we consider the hook hand to be the handle of the whip and the opposite hand to be the strike, and follow the direct path across the shoulders from one hand to the other, we can achieve the same rolling wave of energy, and with the stepping and waist turn even add a little more to the strike.

Of course it is a direct mistake to limit any movement to a single application, much less this crowning jewel of Taijiquan. Explore it yourself!

A Connection To Daoist Alchemy?

Another interesting historical note here is Zhao Gong Ming.

I can’t not see the single whip posture in his pose. Rear hand holding the 鐵鞭 (Tiě biān) aloft, often shown stepping off the tiger in a pose resembling a bow stance, front hand bent in the penultimate transition of the stance.

The Military Door God Zhao Gong Ming is often depicted riding a tiger, and is one of the Gods of Wealth. Zhao holds an iron whip while the scissors in front of him are another weapon that he uses. The motif of the three unbroken lines on his forehead is an emblem in the Eight Trigrams. It represents ‘yang’ (阳), which means the presence of the sun and light and hence his capability of warding off evil spirits. Prints of Zhao are usually paired with prints depicting Randeng Daoren （燃灯道人）as Military Door Gods. The print was produced in Taohuawu, a village in Suzhou province in China famous for its New Year prints. The production house, Wang Rong Xing （王荣兴）, was established around the 18th century.

https://www.roots.gov.sg/Collection-Landing/listing/1247257

Zhao Gong Ming and Randeng Daoren were popular figures around the time Qi Ji Jiang was writing his manual, and around the time Taijiquan was coming out of the Chen village in the 1800s these prints were widely available from Hong Kong printing houses.

The pose with bian held high, and often stepping forward in a bow stance getting off of or while riding the tiger was very common and would be instantly recognizable during all of Taijiquan’s formative years.

Zhao Gong Ming is the Military God of Wealth, and Randeng Daoren is the “Burning Lamp Taoist”. They are both strongly associated with Taoism, immortality, the trigrams, the Taijitu, good fortune, and luck.

When we consider the images chosen for the rest of the form “Golden Rooster”, “Sparrow’s Tail”, “Ride the Tiger”, “Send the Needle to the Sea Bottom”, they borrow from classical mythology and poetry and literary sources, they do not often refer to mundane farming equipment associated with common laborers. So when adapting the Qi Jiquang posture names into something meaningful for the cultural, religious, and intellectual stimulation of the target audience, why not evoke this power stance?

I believe there is no question that when reaching for an image or metaphor to describe this movement and perhaps bring good fortune to the practitioner, the form designers would be far more likely to be thinking of this weapon and/or this God of Wealth and Fortune, than a scrambled homophone describing a farmer’s implement.

Looking further the legend of Zhao Gong Ming says that after he became an immortal he ascended to heaven, where he guards the cauldron where Celestial Master Zhang brews the golden elixir of immortality and dispenses it when it’s complete. When Zhang Dao Ling made his pills of immortality he plead to the Jade Emperor for protection and Zhao Gong Ming was sent to protect him.

Given the strong ties to Buddhist, Taoist, and Confucian thought and the history of the weapon and posture itself, it seems very likely that Single Whip or 單鞭 (dān biān) the name refers to the (鐵鞭) Tie Bian and the posture itself could be taken to evoke Door Guard Zhao Gong Ming as the Taijiquan practitioner engages in brewing the golden elixir of immortality through the alchemical properties of Taijiquan, if that’s the sort of intention one is bringing to their practice.

As far as the other option, about all I’ve seen to support it is “well it looks like that so it makes more sense to me.”

What do you think?

Some versions of Single Whip:

THE TAIJI MANUAL OF XU YUSHENG

（3）單鞭式
SINGLE WHIP

（釋名）單者、單手之意。鞭者、如鞭之擊人也。單式練習時。亦可改為雙手。同時向左右分擊。名雙鞭式。
Explanation of the name:
“Single” means with one hand. “Whip” means it is like you are hitting someone with a whip. When practicing this as a single posture, you can also change to using both hands spreading to the sides at the same time, in which case the posture would be called DOUBLE WHIP.
（動作）有二、（一）垂腕、（二）伸臂放掌、
Two movements:
1. Hang from your [right] wrist.
2. Extend your [left] arm, sending out your palm.
（圖解）（一）由前勢右臂不動。手腕下垂。五指微攏作鈎形。右足尖微向左前轉。約九十度。（二）屈左臂。左掌循右臂左行。經胸前略作上弧形。向左伸與右臂成一直線。坐左腕。五指分張微屈向上。食指對鼻。肘彎微屈。同時左足略抬。向左前方踏出半步。與足尖作同一方向。兩足成斜平行方形。足尖隨手落下。作弓箭步樁。使全身重點移於右足。
Explanation for the drawing:
1. From the previous posture, your right arm stays where it is, but your hand hangs down from your wrist, your fingers gently gathering to make a hook shape, while your toes subtly turn about ninety degrees to the forward left.
2. Your left arm bends and the palm traces along your right arm to the left, passes in front of your chest in a slight upward arc, then extends to the left, making a straight line with your right arm, your left wrist sitting, fingers upward, spread and slightly bent, forefinger at nose level, elbow slightly bent. At the same time, your left foot slightly lifts and takes a half step out to the forward left, toes pointing to the same direction, the feet standing parallel on diagonal lines, the foot coming down fully with the positioning of your hand, making a bow & arrow stance, causing the weight to shift to your right [left] foot.

（注意）前手向前運勁時。後手須用通臂勁以助之。略含自上下擊之意。而左右二足相隨。務須一致。後肩與前肩水平勿上聳。此勢為四肢曁背部之運動也。
Points for attention:
When your front hand moves forward, your rear hand must put energy through the arm to assist it, and there is a slight intention of striking downward from above. Your feet are to coordinate with each other and must move in unison. Your shoulders are to be level with each other, neither one rising up. This posture exercises your limbs and back.
（應用）敵以順手進擊時。乘勢引領其臂。使敵身略前傾。卽伸掌進擊其胸。用推按勁。或切勁均可。
Application:
An opponent uses his front hand to advance and strike me, I take advantage of his momentum to draw his arm in, causing him to slightly lean forward, then extend my palm to strike his chest with either a pushing energy or a cutting energy.