Yaode Tang, Song Jiang martial art and battle array tradition.

The Yao De Tang martial hall tradition of Xianggong Boxing and Song Jiang Nine Province Eight Diagram Battle Array.
The Yao De Martial Hall tradition is exclusively found among members of the Chen clan in Longhai and Longwen counties in Zhangzhou prefecture of Fujian province.
This tradition practices Xianggong Boxing* and is known for it's practice of the Song Jiang Jiu Zhou Bagua Zhen "Song Jiang's Nine Province Eight Diagram Battle Array"**.
According to the oral mythology of the style the tradition traces back to the teachings of an itinerant martial artist who came from Anxi county in Quanzhou during the early to mid 19th century. After arriving in Shaban village Juemei town in Longhai county, this teacher was hired as a martial instructor by members of the Chen clan. There he instructed members of the village militia in Xianggong boxing and weapon arts and associated battle arrays and ritual practices.
The name and identity of this teacher is no longer known however there is a recently created modern theory claiming that Yao De Tang may have developed as an offshoot of Wei De Tang Double Branch Battle Boxing. This based on the similarity of names (ie "--- De Tang") and Wei De Tang being founded by a man named Cai Daxin from Yongchun county which is also in Quanzhou prefecture. The theory claims that Yao De Tang was founded by a member of Wei De Tang who was surnamed Yao so they changed the first word to his family name. This modern theory is pure conjecture at best and is questionable in a number of aspects, but this has not stopped people from repeating it like it's fact.
As was common the Shaban militia met in the center of town at the Chen clan ancestral hall. This is where the weapons of the militia were kept (and still are) in racks along the walls in the great hall of ancestral temple, which in the Shaban village Chen clan ancestral temple was known as the Yao De Tang "Hall of Glorious Virtue".
Later this tradition spread to other branches of the Chen clan who had split off to start new villages nearby. But by clan rules the tradition of Yao De Tang was never passed to anyone who was not surnamed Chen.
Before any practice of the battle arrays a ritual is held worshipping Xiang Gong Ye (Tian Du Yuanshuai). This ritual involves drinking and ablutions with ritual wine, blessing with ox horn blocks, various recitations, leaping across the incense burner, etc. all common features of southern Chinese martial rituals. This ritual is designed to remove any negative influences attached to the troops and allow them to receive the blessings and protection of the gods so that they can return unharmed from the battlefield.
The troops are then led onto the field and directed by the "Dragon Tiger Flag". There they go through a number of formations with names such Long Snake, Field Snail, Two Dragons Leave Water, Golden Dragon Bites Tail, The Eight Diagram array features various fluid transformations and is said to have ten attacking and defensive arrays within it.
Along with the arrays various forms from among the 36 empty handed forms of Xiang Gong Boxing are shown as well as variety of weapon forms and paired empty handed and weapon forms.
The Chen family Song Jiang array tradition is split into small, medium, and large arrays. These feature respectively 24, 48, and 108 men. Along with the size the battle arrays get more complex and the large arrays are said to be very difficult to practice as well as organize. Given the size of the villages and numbers of people it is very rare that a large array can ever be seen. It has been since the middle of the Republican era when large arrays were publicly performed.
Xiang Gong is a title of Tian Du Yuan Shuai, however in some Minnan folk traditions either the title of Xianggong, Tian Du Yuanshuai or both are associated with Song Jiang. This is often explained by the close similarity between the pronunciation of Xiang Gong and Song Jiang in some Minnan dialects. Tian Du Yuan Shuai is a very popular deity across Fujian and Guangdong as well as in other parts of southern China to a greater or lesser extent. While the stories, titles, rituals, etc. change by location and tradition, he is broadly associated with music, dancing, opera, and with public martial displays) .
** Battle Array traditions were historically widely practiced across by village and private militia and often had aspects of entertainment as they featured as part of local festival rites. Many people act as if Song Jiang Battle Array is something especially unusual, however most martial halls in Southern Fujian practice their own complex battle array traditions. The name of the Song Jiang battle array is famous because the Neimen district of Kaohsiung in Taiwan where it has been practiced for the last 150 years or so started promoting it as a tourist attraction.

[@TeaSerpent]

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