Ji Ji Zhuang 技击桩

jì jī zhuāng

The combat standing postures (as against Yang Sheng Zhuang). All follow the same principle — Mo Jin in six directions and mixed — and differ only in the position and angle of the body, “so that Hunyuan Li can be used in any fighting situation” (Yao Zongxun). The standard weight distribution is 70 % on the rear leg; the exception is Xiang Long Zhuang (70 % forward). The combat postures too are practised in three bodily positions — standing, sitting, lying (站坐躺). This is emphatically not a makeshift for the infirm: when sitting, the feet are lifted clear of the floor, the drive from the legs falls away, and Hun Yuan Li must be carried by the Yi alone — sitting detaches the search for force from the ground reaction. What is trained is holding the whole-body force even in unfavourable positions: on the ground, lying down, under one-sided load.

The difference lies in the image

Ji Ji Zhuang (技击桩, “combat posts”) are the Zhan Zhuang postures that go beyond the health stances. What separates them is, notably, not the posture first but the visualisation (Yi): instead of water and a balloon there are now wild animals and opponents.

“In Ji Ji Zhuang: wild animals, strong enemies — a wild tiger hurls itself at you from the front.”

What they train

Maintaining Hun Yuan Li in any bodily state — including extreme positions unfavourable for fighting. This is the actual difference from the health stances.
Courage and instinctive reaction under stress (杀气, Sha Qi).
The unity of spirit, intent and force (心意力) within the posture itself.

Standing, sitting, lying

Every combat stance is practised in three body positions: 站 standing, 坐 sitting, 躺 lying. This is readily misread as a concession to the weak — here it is the opposite.

In the sitting or lying version the familiar ground pressure of the feet is absent; on a hard seat the feet are even deliberately lifted. What is practised is finding the force without support from the ground. “In every situation you should be able to show force.”

For the combat orientation this is not a makeshift but the point: someone lying on the ground or standing twisted has no clean stance — that is precisely what is being trained for. The one-legged 单腿一拓桩 is explicitly described as preparation for ground and prone positions.