搖身掌 yao shen zhang
This can also be translated as Weaving Body Change.
The first four dragon changes are palm changes. They concentrate on koubu and baibu. The next four are body changes. They concentrate more on directional changing. This fifth change particularly so.
Dodging Body Change trains double koubu and double baibu stepping, dodging the body, using the elbow to strike, connecting the tanzhang to an elbow strike. The koubu is always placed and then the body turns, so that the turning is very smooth and upright.
Description: Starting in dragon form with the left hand up.
Action One: Koubu, baibu directly to liaozhang (without first lifting the arm like the second change did). Step the koubu a bit into the circle and the baibu directly away from the circle.
Action Two: ‘Stab to heaven and thrust into the ground’ similar to the second change.
Action Three: Koubu to right gaizhang onto the line of the circle. At this point the feet are on the circle and the belly is facing into the centre. Keep the gaizhang high.
Action Four: Hook the right hand, keeping it at the same height. Drop stance and thread the left palm along the left leg.
Action Five: Step the right foot forward into a smooth stance right chuanzhang.
Action Six: Koubu the right foot without changing direction yet. Baibu the left foot and turn the body fully around to do the crab form facing into the centre of the circle. The hands are higher than the shoulders. Make sure the body is upright, no leaning at all. This could be an elbow strike, so must remain balanced.
Action Seven: Step the left foot across the circle arc and reach the left hand along the line of the circle. Right tanzhang, grabbing with the left hand, with a follow-in step to take a small mabu feeling stance.
Action Eight: Step the right foot back and reach the right hand along the line of the circle. Left tanzhang, grabbing with the right hand, with a follow-in step to take a small mabu.
Action Nine: Koubu the right foot and hook the right hand. Drop stance, continuing in the same direction as the tanzhang, and thread the right palm back along the line of the circle.
Action Ten: Move forward and koubu to ‘hide a flower under a leaf’.
Action Eleven: Turn to dragon form, you have changed sides.
In the variation that I know, it is all the same, you just add a palm up chuanzhang after each tanzhang. This is a bit more lively, adding an advancing step for the chuanzhang.
