Introduction to Ancient Xiangqi Manuals
There are many ancient Xiangqi manuals that are still extant. These are an integral part of the cultural heritage of the Chinese and they reflect the wisdom of the Chinese forefathers.
Basically, most of the ancient Xiangqi manuals can be divided into 2 types: books on openings and books on various endgames or midgames which are the equivalent of today’s endgame compositions ( the term "endgame composition" was only coined a few decades ago). I believe there should be more of these Xiangqi manuals. Unfortunately, many of these priceless cultural gems were destroyed during the various wars or simply lost in the sands of time. To date, there are about thirty ancient Xiangqi manuals that are still extant.
Why devote an entire section to ancient manuals? Wouldn't it be more practical to study contemporary Xiangqi?
The following are the reasons why:
1) They are the basics and foundations of what Xiangqi is today. It does not matter how fancy or how brilliant a new opening or variation is, they can all be traced back to the ancient manuals. The same goes for midgames and endgames. Strategies and tactics abound in these ancient manuals.
2) They represent the cumulative wisdom of centuries of study of Xiangqi, some dating over 500 years ago.
3) In ALL the books that I have in my collection, be it beginner's manuals, specific openings... they were highly recommended reading material.
4) There is a saying in Chinese called 温故知新 (wēn gù zhī xīn) which roughly translates as you revise the ancients to know the new. For ancient manuals on opening variations, even in modern-day tournaments, these opening variations are often seen over and over again. They are time-proven strategies. The endgame compositions (or problems as they are known in International Chess Terminology) are also good training grounds to sharpen your ability to see and calculate variations. In this section, I will introduce the ancient Xiangqi manuals. The translation of the names of ancient manuals has been an issue which I have striven to overcome over the years. For book titles that I cannot translate, the Hanyu Pinyin would be used. Mistakes will be made, so please tell me at
Note: Books/articles/periodicals etc. in Chinese are punctuated with the symbols "《》" or Guillemets as they are called in English.
List of still extant ancient manuals
《事林广记》(shì lín guǎng jì) Encyclopedia of Everything (earliest extant records of Xiangqi)
《梦入神机》 (mèng rù shén jī ) Dreams of Divine Positions (now available in print and ebook)
《自出洞来无敌手》(zì chū dòng lái wú dí shǒu) The Invincible Xiangqi Manual ( which loosely translated would mean Invincible after training in the Caverns).
《金鹏十八变》 (jīn péng shí bā biàn) The 18 Stances of the Golden Roc (roc = mystical bird of prey from yahoo.dictionary). The contents of this ancient manual are the same as the Elegant Pastime Manual and Secret in the Tangerine and have been assimilated into both books.
《适情雅趣》(shì qíng yǎ qù ) - Elegant Pastime Manual (now available in print and ebook)
《橘中秘》 The Secret in the Tangerine (now available in print and ebook)
As there have are many ancient manuals whose titles contained "Plum Flower" and were related, they have been grouped into one page for discussion.
List of Plum Flower Manuals :
《梅花谱》(méi huā pǔ) （王再越）(wáng zài yuè) Plum Flower Manual by Wang (the original),
《无双品 梅花谱 》(wú shuāng pǐn méi huā pǔ) Wu Shuang Pin Plum Flower Manual
《崇本堂 梅花谱》(chóng běn táng méi huā pǔ) Chong Ben Tang Plum Flower Manual
《梅花泉》(méi huā quán) Plum Flower Springs Manual
《郑氏 梅花谱》(Zhèng shì méi huā pǔ) Zheng's Plum Flower Manual
《吴著 梅花谱 》(Wú zhù méi huā pǔ) Wu's Plum Flower Manual
《善庆堂 梅花谱 》(shàn qìng táng méi huā pǔ) Shan Qing Tang Plum Flower Manual
《反梅花谱》(fǎn méi huā pǔ) Anti-Plum Flower Manual
《三才图会》 (sān cái tú huì) - San Cai Tu Hui
《韬略元机》 (tāo lüè yuán jī) Strategical Considerations
《吴绍龙象棋谱》(wú shào lóng xiàng qí pǔ ) Wu Shaolong's Xiangqi Manual
《象棋满盘谱》 (xiàng qí mǎn pán pǔ) - A Collected Manual of Xiangqi Games
《石杨遗局》 (shí yáng yí jú) The Games of Shi and Yang
《万宝全书》 (wàn bǎo quán shū) Wan Bao Quan Shu
《百变象戏谱》 (bǎi jú xiàng xì pǔ) One Hundred Variations in Xiangqi
《神妙变化象棋谱》 (shén miào biàn huà xiàngqí pǔ) - Magnificent Variations Xiangqi Manual
《百局象戏谱》 (bǎi jú xiàng xì pǔ) One Hundred Boards of Xiangqi
《吴绍龙象棋谱》 (wú shào lóng xiàng qí pǔ ) Wu Shaolong's Xiangqi Manual 01 02
《心武残篇》 (xīn wǔ cán piān) Heart of the Warrior (Remains)
《竹香斋象戏谱》 (zhú xiāng zhāi xiàng xì pǔ ) Recluse of the Fragrant Bamboo
《蕉竹斋》 (jiāo zhú zhāi) Jiao Zhu Zhai
《渊深海阔》 (yuān shēn hǎi kuò) Fathomless Ocean
《烂柯神机》 (làn kē shén jī) Lan Ke Shen Ji (now available in print and ebook)
《烂柯真机》 (làn kē zhēn jī) Lan Ke Zhen Ji
《蕉窗逸品》 (jiāo chuāng yì pǐn) Leisurely Pursuits at the Window by the Banana Fields
《湖涯集》 (hú yá jí) Cliff by the Lake Collection
《象棋老谱》 (xiàng qí lǎo pǔ) - An Old Xiangqi Manual
《象戏新谱》 (xiàng xì xīn pǔ) A New Manual of Xiangqi
《会珍阁》 (huì zhēn gé ) Hui Zhen Ge
《棋谱秘录》 (qí pǔ mì lù) A Secret Xiangqi Manual
《新镌金鹏变法象棋谱》(xīn juān jīn péng biàn fǎ xiàng qí pǔ) Xin Juan Golden Roc Xiangqi Manual
《效古子象棋谱》 (xiào gǔ zǐ xiàngqí pǔ ) Xiao Guzi's Xiangqi Manual
Alleged ancient manuals... (Inner Mongolian Publisher said so... nevertheless ok puzzles)
《极巧穷极》 (jí qiǎo qióng jí ) Extremely Brilliant and Superb Xiangqi Manual . (alleged ancient manual according to publisher...)
《錦囊妙手》 (jǐn náng miào shǒu) Gems in the Satchet (alleged ancient manual according to publisher...)