Category Archives: History

Ton Toi

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Brea Shaolin Kung Fu - Ton Toi

Brea Shaolin Kung Fu – Ton Toi

Ton Toi’s are a set of training exercises that are used by most styles of Kung Fu.  They originated in the northwest of China – probably having come from a long ago extinct style, but picked up and used by many current styles.

There are three types of Ton Toi’s. The 12 patterns or sets are the most often practiced. They have probably remained the same as they were taken in and used by other styles. Another type is the 10 smashing fists sets used by Tung-lung practitioners.  There is another 12 set Ton Toi’s that is used by Ba Gua styles.

Ton Toi’s mean “springing kicks”.  The sets are primarily used to develop powerful kicks.  Combined with hand sets that create a very strong body frame, Ton Toi’s prove to be very useful for all styles.

Bravery

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Brea Shaolin Kung Fu - Bravery

Brea Shaolin Kung Fu – Bravery

It’s not something you can see, but it has many colors and is incredibly important.

Bravery is one of the key requirements of the beginning student and becomes one of the major attributes of the advanced one.  It is also one of the primary reasons our school is ideal for today’s youth.  Many students who begin at our school do not have any martial arts experience, nor any familiarity with the Chinese language and culture.  Being that we are a traditional school, this can be intimidating and difficult for a westerner to adapt to.  Continuing on this course takes bravery.

Hundreds of kicks, holding stances for minutes on end, struggling to learn and remember movements, grueling sparring sessions with students possessing significantly more skill, training through injury, the pressures of preparing and testing for the next rank…. these are just a few of the many elements of kung fu that require bravery at our school.  It’s a personal decision each student must make to press on.

Students will also exhibit bravery out of school.  It might be as simple as stepping in to help someone in trouble to something more major like defending someone in a violent situation.  The bravery gained through the hard training provides a solid basis for the student to determine right from wrong and the strength and skill to act on it properly.

Science of Martial Arts

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Brea Shaolin Kung Fu

Brea Shaolin Kung Fu

“The true science of martial arts means practicing them in such a way that they will be useful at any time, and to teach them in such a way that they will be useful in all things.”

Miyamoto Musashi (1584-1645), founder of Niten-ryū style of swordsmanship.  The Book of Five Rings Trans. D.E. Tarver

Actions Speak Louder Than Words

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Brea Shaolin Kung Fu Martial Arts

Brea Shaolin Kung Fu Martial Arts

“For the warrior, the path to enlightenment comes by openly and objectively studying all forms of martial arts, sticking to the true path of the warrior, allowing no dishonesty in your heart, sharpening and trusting your intuition, and diligently practicing and clinging to the truth.  In time, once the clouds of confusion have cleared, you will come to true enlightenment.  

Many think that they are on the true path of enlightenment some through religion, and some through education.  But true enlightenment can be seen by what a person has done, not by what he says.  Those who have missed the mark may chatter all day long about this and that, but they have never done anything.  Anyone can make a good argument, by few can show good results.”

Miyamoto Musashi (1584-1645), founder of Niten-ryū style of swordsmanship.  The Book of Five Rings Trans. D.E. Tarver

A Kung Fu Formula

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Brea Shaolin Kung Fu Martial Arts - Formula

Brea Shaolin Kung Fu Martial Arts – Formula

When you are called on to perform a form there are a sequence of orders – a formula per se.  The name of the form first.  The name of the form (again), then “Ready!” second.  Thirdly, the name of the form, then “Begin”.  There is a reason even for this.

This same formula is used for possible conflict.  First order is to be aware of a possible situation or problem.  Second order is to size up the situation and be ready to act.  Third order, Act!

The psychology and mental discipline of a kung fu practitioner is as important as his speed and power.  All skill sets are learned through consistent practice and repetition in as many ways as possible.

Warrior State of Mind

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Brea Shaolin Martial Arts

Brea Shaolin Martial Arts

“Strive to remain calm and steady even in a crowd of people rushing here and there.  You are a warrior.  You should lead those that are less settled, not follow them.  This state of mind will only come with practice and time.

Miyamoto Musashi (1584-1645), founder of Niten-ryū style of swordsmanship.  The Book of Five Rings Trans. D.E. Tarver

Enlightenment and Martial Arts

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Enlightenment and Martial Arts

Enlightenment and Martial Arts

“The only secret to real enlightenment is to keep your heart and spirit true, work hard, and be honest with yourself.  Truth is not true because you want it to be.  You cannot bend the truth and still reach enlightenment.  You must accept truth whether you like it or not, and adjust all of your views to fit accordingly.”

Miyamoto Musashi (1584-1645), founder of Niten-ryū style of swordsmanship.  The Book of Five Rings Trans. D.E. Tarver

Massage and Your Martial Arts Practice

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Brea Shaolin Martial Arts - Massage

Brea Shaolin Martial Arts – Massage

Therapeutic massage in China has a very long history.  An ancient book dating back to first century AD says, “if the body is benumbed as a result of the blocking of the jingluo (or meridians), it may be cured by massage.”  Massage departments were established in the Imperial Court during the Sui and Tang Dynasties (581-907 A.D.)  Further development took place in subsequent dynasties.

Massage falls into the broad range of traditional Chinese medicine practices that have a history of thousands of years, which can’t/won’t be discussed in detail here.  Massage is a sibling of acupuncture, herbal medicine, qigong and exercise, and diet that make up Traditional Chinese Medicine.  It’s historical purpose is not simply to relax muscles and relieve stress, but to be an integral part of a complete medical system.  It’s goal is to cure diseases, both acute and chronic, by relieving symptoms and attacking the root of problems.  Traditional Chinese Massage treats not just sports injuries, joint and muscle related disorders (including dislocated joints), and minor broken bones, but also internal chronic disorders.   The ancients found massage as a method to treat atrophy, paralysis, digestive system disorders, and more.  Commonly known in the west, Acupressure is just one of the techniques of Chinese massage where pressure is applied to acupuncture points.

Your kung fu practice will likely benefit from consistent massage – be it administered by yourself, a western massage therapist, or a Traditional Chinese Medicine practitioner.  When sore, explore the sore area of your body by pressing and massaging the areas surrounding it.  You will likely find one or more places that help release pain and pressure.  If possible, find a qualified Traditional Chinese Medicine practitioner and find out for yourself how advanced Chinese massage can be a valuable piece of your overall health.

The Key To Tai Chi

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Brea Tai Chi Martial Arts

Brea Tai Chi Martial Arts

The Key To Tai Chi

By Jeffrey Reulbach

Everyone is aware that keys unlock and open doors.  Within every martial art there are keys that open doors to the highest level of skill in the style.  The key to unlocking the door to those higher levels of skill in Tai Chi is referred to in Chinese as sung.

Sung is usually translated by the word relax.  The concept of relaxing in Tai Chi does not mean to become limp or to recline.  To be loose or open are more closely related to the idea of sung.  When doing an empty hand form, push hands, sparring, weapons, or chi kung (energy work) the relaxation must be in total.

Of course, reaching a high level of sung doesn’t happen in an instant.  Developing the true relaxation of Tai Chi that enables the artist to be soft and yielding but not limp and weak is progressive.  To gain the real skill of Tai Chi self-defense you have to be relaxed in mind and body.

Relaxing the body means that you must free it of all unnecessary tension.  In other words, you have to use only the amount of muscular exertion needed for any action.  For example, when doing a push or palm strike the arm doesn’t get real tense or stiff, it remains soft but firm enough to get the job done.  To accomplish this means you have to pay very close attention to the movement in order to feel tension.  To get rid of tension in the body, you have to focus on loosening and opening the joints.  The relaxed tendon is an important part of issuing internal force.  Gaining the kind of sung in the body necessary for higher level skills calls for reeling tension in the joints, especially at the shoulder, elbows, wrists, hips, knees and ankles.  In addition, excellent physical posture and alignment with gravity aid in the development of physical relaxation.

Mental relaxation is the other side of the coin needed for skill in Tai Chi.  A sung mind is open and yet extremely focused.  Relaxing the mind also means to rid it of unnecessary tension.  The idea of getting rid of tension in the mind means that it only concentrates on the task at hand in the present, which means it is free from the shackles of the past and the anxiety of the future.

To rid the mind of tension, visualization is very important when doing a form.  Tai Chi is often referred to as “swimming on dry land” because of its appearance and the fact that swimming is a relaxing activity.  Applying the image of swimming means that you imagine you are moving through water, feeling the sensation of the water’s pressure on each movement.  The imagined water, over time, produces a buoyant feeling of floating and flowing in movement, and a calmness in mind.  Although there are other excellent visualizations, the “swimming on land” is extremely effective for releasing tension and developing sung.

Turning the key of relaxation in Tai Chi has many positive benefits.  It makes more use of your parasympathetic nervous system producing a calming effect.  The increase in relaxation helps to combat stress-related illness, which is a primary reason why so many turn to Tai Chi in the first place.  As a martial artist, relaxation gives you speed, heightened awareness, and the ability to adjust to an attacker smoothly in a self-defense situation.  The key to Tai Chi will not only benefit internal martial artists, but anyone who is willing to unlock and open the door.

The Base of a Mountain

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Martial Arts Foundation

Martial Arts Foundation

“In this world, if you start at the base of a mountain and travel far enough, you will find yourself on the other side at the base of the mountain again;  you are still at the base of the mountain, but in a completely different place.  This is the same for any path of study.  You start at the beginning and struggle uphill.  You go deeper and deeper into it until you find yourself on the other side with a heart of understanding.  This is the way of all learning, and it is the only path to enlightenment.  

Understanding this, I do not hold back knowledge from my students because they have not trained long enough.  Each person is different and understanding comes differently to each of us, so I try to gauge the student’s level of understanding and teach each one what he is ready for at that time.  I do not like pledges or oaths of secrecy.  There are no secrets.  Knowledge is open to all, but few truly want it.  There is no need to hide things; most people go out of their way to avoid the truth.  

With this in mind, teach the students everything they can handle and hide nothing, because very few of them will ever come to real understanding anyway.  Leave the knowledge in the open and only true warriors will find it.  Give them everything you have and help them past whatever shortcomings they have.  The teacher should help the student come to his own enlightenment.  Only this way will the student truly know strategy.”

Miyamoto Musashi (1584-1645), founder of Niten-ryū style of swordsmanship.  The Book of Five Rings Trans. D.E. Tarver

Martial Arts – Much More Than Fighting

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Brea Shaolin Kung Fu Martial Arts

Brea Shaolin Kung Fu Martial Arts

“Most people view martial arts from a very limited standpoint and see martial arts training as a way of fighting only.  Do not be deceived – martial arts is much more than simply training in fighting techniques.  In fact, the physical aspect is the least of the goals.  Those who view martial arts this way are far from enlightenment.”

Miyamoto Musashi (1584-1645), founder of Niten-ryū style of swordsmanship.  The Book of Five Rings Trans. D.E. Tarver

How Often Should I Train?

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Brea Shaolin Kung Fu martial arts

Preparing to Kick

The question of “How often should I train?” might not be asked out loud, but has probably been thought by many students thru the years.  In our modern world where a high level of martial arts skill is not a necessity for survival, it might seem like a simple question.  You train when you can fit it in… hopefully no less than 4 hours a week, which is perfectly fine.  But, to those who want more – for those who want to squeeze every ounce of kung fu from their training – the answer is different.  Your training becomes high on your priority list and you train as often as you possibly can – 3+ hours a day with a day or two off a week.  In fact, your goal is to not miss a class.

Only more advanced students comprehend how vast our school’s kung fu is with its multitudes of striking, shuai jiao (wrestling), chin na (joint locking), and weapon techniques.  When they do comprehend it, it’s both mind boggling and intimidating.  In the beginning, most students want to simply learn new things, but as training evolves you want to be able to utilize everything you learn in a fighting situation.  Even mastering a few techniques takes a great deal of commitment and focus.  For those who decide to make this kung fu their own, there are three keys:

  1. Daily (or almost daily) training for multiple hours and multiple years – it’s no longer a “hobby” or way to “stay in shape”
  2. Healthy diet of natural, whole foods – meat, vegetables, fruits, and nuts to provide maximum nutrients per calorie ingested
  3. Sleep – 8 hours a night to reenergize your body, rehabilitate sore muscles and damaged body parts, and relax your mind.

Assuming you eat and sleep well daily, you can train as much as your schedule and body allows.  Classes are scaled based on rank, which means lower ranks can expect more down time than higher ranks.  Thus, you can begin upping your training hours whenever possible.  Initially, you will likely notice your body is more fatigued and sore than normal after upping your training hours.  However, your body will adapt and get stronger in time (again, assuming sufficient sleep and nutrients) and you will find your kung fu skills increase remarkably over a few months time.  If your body becomes truly exhausted with aches, pains and a material lack of energy, then it’s time to take a day off to rest and recover – maybe even two days.  Otherwise, push.

Remember , the Chinese term of “kung fu” refers to any study, learning, or practice that requires patience, energy, and time to complete.  The secret to our kung fu – our martial art –  is not in “secret techniques” or any such nonsense… it’s consistent effort over years with correct instruction and learning.  This is the key.  Thus, the answer to the question of “How much should I train?” is answered by another question, “How much skill do you want to acquire?”

Shuai Jiao – A Primer

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Shuai_jiao_platform

Shuai Jiao is one of the major disciplines of our school’s curriculum.  Simply put, Shuai Jiao is the Mandarin Chinese term for wrestling.  It is one of the oldest recorded martial arts in the world with legends of formal military practice going back to 2697 BC.  It’s underlying purpose was to throw the opponent to the ground in such a way to kill or otherwise incapacitate the opponent.  For hundreds of years, shuai jiao became one of the foundations of most of the major Chinese martial styles, although in more recent times it has become a popular sport within Northern China.  It is also likely that shuai jiao was the parent of or influencer of other asian arts that focus on grappling and wrestling techniques, such as jiu-jitsu, judo, and aikido.

The Mind Of A Warrior

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“It is because a mirror has no commitment to any image that it can clearly and accurately reflect any image before it.  The mind of a warrior is like a mirror in that it has no commitment to any outcome and is free to let form and purpose result on the spot, according to the situation.”

Yagyu Munenori (1571-1646) founder of Yagyu Shinkage-ryu style of swordsmanship. The Way of the Living Sword.  Trans. D.E Tarver

Chin Na – A Primer

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Chin Na is one of the core elements of our art (the others being striking and shuai jiao) that uses joint and muscle/tendon lock techniques to control your opponent.  “Chin” means to grab or seize and “Na” means to lock and break.  Virtually all Chinese Martial Arts styles employ chin na in some fashion – some more than others.  China, as the birthplace of Asian martial arts, was quite literally the mother of many famous chin na-like martial arts from other countries.  It is highly likely that chin na influenced the development of jiu jitsu, judo, and aikido in Japan and Hapkido in Korea.  Chin na is fun to learn and very efffective in self-defense against grabs or in the event you need to control an attacker.

There are many chin na techniques taught at our school.  In the beginning, escape movements are taught for the reason that you need to learn how to break free from a grab before you learn how to conquer it thru chin na.  After being taught the escape techniques and demonstrating some competency in them, students begin learning “attacking” chin na techniques used against adversaries who grab you.  People will typically grab to control through strength or possibly some form of wrestling.  Some grabs to the throat or neck can even be deadly.  Students must be able to react quickly and accurately with the correct technique to prevent harm to themselves and to gain control of your attacker.  In most cases, the attacker is devastated by painful attacks to nerves at various points on his body.

As students continue their training, other chin na techniques are taught to handle the same attack.  Grabs from training partners become stronger and more realistic, which demands a well-executed chin na technique.  Some techniques come naturally, while others may feel awkward or weak… just keep practicing.  Students are taught stunning, distracting strikes that provide an opening to apply chin na techniques.  As skill progresses, students will learn how to utilize chin na techniques from a punch, push or other strike.  Students will learn to apply one technique only to quickly move to a second or third chin na technique.  Proper reactions to missed or ineffective techniques will be trained.  Eventually,students begin to find opportunities to employ chin na techniques in sparring.  To be able to do this requires a good deal of skill, which, can only be gained through many hours of practice.

Chin na is a particularly useful skill to have for self-defense at it allows the defender the ability to show compassion in response to an attack.  Smaller practitioners who know chin na can utilize the techniques against larger and stronger opponents simply by using their body weight against weak areas of their aggressor.  Weak areas include joints, pressure points, or soft areas of the body.  This is why chin na can be particularly valuable for women.  Law enforcement and security workers can especially benefit from the control aspect of chin na techniques.  Chin na has a vast history and repertoire of techniques for those looking to gain control of attackers.

Humility

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Humility is a key attribute to attaining both a high degree of martial skill and a high degree of martial morality.  It is also a very shaolin trait.

Our school doesn’t focus on punching (such as western boxing).  It doesn’t focus on kicking (such as some tae kwon do).  It doesn’t focus on chin na/grappling (such as aikido and jiujitsu).  It doesn’t focus on shuia jiao/wrestling (such as western wrestling and judo).  It requires training and development in all of those skills and then some.  Because of this, our school’s kung fu is very comprehensive, complex and demanding of the student.  It also requires a student to remain humble as they learn and develop… excellence in all of these disciplines undoubtedly takes time.

Because of the comprehensiveness of our art, students will find certain parts of training more difficult than others.  This is mostly due to natural abilities and athleticism that were brought to the school on the first day of training.  Some will find kicks particularly difficult because they’ve never kicked anything in there life and may be relatively inflexible or unbalanced.  Some will find shuai jiao to be quite hard as they’ve never had to wrestle anyone before.  Whatever it is, EVERYONE has strengths and weaknesses.   Humility allows your ego to accept that others are better than you at certain things at various points in your training.  Kung fu is all about the process… the training.  Where you are at the moment is what matters – not where you think you should be.

In addition to individual strengths and weaknesses, everyone has good days and bad days.  Perhaps you didn’t have a good night sleep, had an exhausting day at work or school, or skipped lunch and breakfast.  Maybe you were just having a “bad day”.  Your humility will accept that you are not perfect and that your training effort (read:  consistency) is more important than your performance on any given day.  It will allow you to accept “off” days as they are and get you back in class the next day.

Humility is equally important outside of the school.  Understanding your own weaknesses and need for improvement is reason to never take anyone for granted should an altercation occur with someone.  There are always going to be others out there who have trained hard in their respective martial disciplines or maybe you’ll encounter someone with friends lurking nearby.  In such an event, you need to lose your arrogance, sink your chi, and calm yourself for what you’ll need to do.  Remember, avoiding a fight shows superior technique when the only thing on the line is your “ego” – for someone who trains hard to defend him or herself, walking away from a fight shows great humility.

Single Step Movements

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Our forms are the dictionary, encyclopedia, and playbook of our martial arts style.  Forms were created and improved upon over hundreds of years and generations upon generations of martial artists who dedicated their lives to learning the best ways to defend themselves and their loved ones from one or more highly skilled attackers.  For this reason, the forms are not to be taken lightly.

Single step movements are a way for beginner, intermediate, and advanced students alike to work on singular movements from forms that need improvement.  Of course, certain single-step movements such as the horse stance punch, forward bow punch, open-hand movement, etc. are the foundations of our training.  These movements are found in most forms and for this reason are some of the first things new students learn at our school and are continually practiced.  Even the kicks practiced in class can be considered a single step movement as they create a foundation to properly execute the movement in sparring.

However, single step movements need not be reserved for beginning students.  Forms have a number of demanding movements that require strength, explosiveness, flexibility and general athleticism.  A great example of a movement that many students struggle with is the first movement in bashu.  It is a fast down movement evading a high attack and following up with a punch to the mid-section.

For those who struggle with this movement (or any movement), simply break it down into a single step movement and practice doing it up and down the mat before or after class.  Sometimes you will do the movement going forward… sometimes it will be done going backward.  Either way, watch yourself in the mirror.  Practice doing it slowly at first.  Is your posture correct?  Are you low enough?  Is your body too tight to make it work properly?  Are your muscles strong enough to do it very slowly?  It may take time to develop the strength, balance, and/or flexibility to get it right.  Learn what you can from this practice and continue until you are satisfied the movement is up to snuff and their is another movement that needs your attention more.

The Whip Chain

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During the Ching Dynasty in China, the emperor’s private bodyguards had their whip chains with them wherever they went.  When accompanying the emperor, they could easily conceal the weapon around their waists, and could quickly and very effectively bring the weapon into its devastating use.

The whip chain is known as a soft weapon in Chinese martial arts due to its extreme flexibility of use.  It is a metal linked chain usually containing seven or nine links, with a handle on one end and a heavy pointed tip, or dart, on the other.  The weapon is used by rapidly swirling the chain around the body.  The heavy dart on the chain can be thrown using the arms, legs, shoulders and even the head.  When in an attack or throwing mode, the chain can be quickly coiled back and redirected to any direction around the body.

Learning to use the whip chain takes long hours of practice.  At times, a few cuts and bruises can be expected.  Loss of focus, even for an instant, can turn out to be painful.  However, using flags at both the handle and the dart end of the weapon allows the chain’s rate of movement to be decreased, and also allows the ends of the weapon to be easily seen.  The use of a sheath at the dart end of the chain is also very helpful, as it greatly reduces the impact of the dart on the practitioner’s body in case of loss of control.

The whip chain in action is a beautiful and interesting weapon, and its proper use is a long-term challenge to the practitioner.  The practice of the whip chain is fairly rare, especially in the United States.  Through the tutelage of Master Robert, those students learning and mastering the whip chain will continue this weapon’s fascinating history.

Steel (or Iron) Fan

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The Chinese have a saying regarding weapons, “The shorter it is – the more dangerous.  The more ordinary looking, the deadlier it is.”

This saying is perfectly appropriate for the steel fan.  The Chinese often turn ordinary household implements, like a pair of chopsticks, a wooden stool, a rice bowl, and even a pair of sandals into a deadly weapon.  It is considered a short weapon, about 14 inches long, very innocent looking, and not that much different to an everyday paper fan, except the ribs are made of stainless steel instead of bamboo strips, and the paper is replaced by toughened silk.  When carrying one unopened, no on can tell it is a weapon at all.  Even when opened, the fan itself looks quite ordinary and harmless.  However, in the hands of an expert, the innocent looking fan can be a lethal weapon.

The steel fan is quite a handy weapon to have, it is easy to carry and is inconspicuous.  When the weather is warm, you can use the fan to cool yourself and chase the flies away.  When you are in danger, you can use the steel fan as an effective weapon for self-defense because the ribs are made of steel.  You can use it to block and deflect much larger weapons by wrapping the fan against your forearm and turning it into an “iron bridge hand.”  You can use it for “chin na” (grappling) and you can use it for acupressure point striking.

When folded, the fan can be used like a short dagger to cut, to jab, and to slash.  When unfolded, the fan can be used like a spring-loaded knife  with sharpened ribs to stab, slice and spear your opponent.  Combine it with your body movement and footwork and you can turn the short fan into a long weapon by launching yourself at your opponent while throwing open the fan.  Thus, turning a soft implement into a hard weapon with a flick of your wrist.

You can also flick open the fan as a fake, as the action makes a loud noise that will distract your opponent’s attention while you kick or throw a punch elsewhere.  The open fan can work like a saw to slice with the tips of the ribs opened up into a semi-circle.  While the fan is open, you use the broad surface like a backhand slap against the face of your opponent.  It is indeed a very versatile weapon.

The fan is considered an “internal” weapon, because it uses the “soft” to overcome the “hard” and the short to overcome the long.  When using the fan;  “the mind must be coupled with the heart, the heart with the strength, the strength with the chi, the chi with the fan, the fan with the eyes, and skill with dexterity.”

The Way of the Mantis (part 3)

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After five long years of solitude, Dushu reappeared before the Shaolin Temple gates.  He once again asked the monk on watch for an audience with the great Master Chang.  He was once again told that Master Chang had no business with him.  And so he waited.   At the end of three days, the temple gate opened and a young monk bade Dushu to follow him.  They came to the inner courtyard and there once again was Master Chang.

Dushu bowed saying, “I humbly thank you for your audience Master Chang.”

Master Change returned the bow and asked, “What is it I can do for you young man?”

“I still wish to become a student of the temple,” Dushu replied.

“You must still prove to me your power of discipline, and last time you could not even beat my lowest student,” said Master Chang.

“I have learned much since then,” replied Dushu.

“Very well then, I shall summon my lowest student once more.”

“I humbly beg that I many contest you myself master,” said Dushu.

Master Chang slowly studied Dushu saying, “You have at least learned humility and thus I shall grant you a challenge.  But after your first, it will be through, and you will never be allowed to challenge here again.”

Dushu nodded in acknowledgement.

They bowed to each other and to Master Chang’s small surprise, Dushu did not ragefully attack him.  So the two began to slowly circle each other.  Suddenly and with great skill, Master Chang struck out and was quickly blocked.  He struck again and again and each time, even though his blows were strong and well aimed, Dushu managed to block or parry them.  The bout went on for several hours until Dushu almost managed to throw Master Chang.  Then totally to the surprise of Dushu and the astonishment of the watching students, the great Master broke his stance and, putting his opened left hand over his fisted right hand, he gave Dushu the sign of repect.

“I do not know where or from whom you have learned this, but you have learned well.”

Dushu respectfully replied, “It is the way of the mantis, and I have learned it from nature.”

The Master accepted Dushu as a student.  Some years later he also became a great master, and the knowledge of the mantis became a part of the Way of the Shaolin Temple.

The End

The Way of the Mantis (part 2)

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Continued….

After Dushu’s failure at being accepted into the temple he felt so ashamed at having failed to achieve his ambition that he decided never to go home again.  So he went into a great forest and built himself a small cottage.  There he stayed for five long years, and in those years nature would teach him many things.  He learned patience, humility, tranquility, and the way of the mantis.

It happened on day when he was taking a long walk through the forest.  He grew tired and decided to sit and rest near a large bush.  As he sat there he noticed a praying mantis on one of the branches of the bush.  The mantis was slowly and purposefully stalking its prey.  Dushu grew more interested and got closer to better observe the ways of the strange creature.  Dushu was fascinated by the graceful yet lethal movements of the mantis as he captured his prey.

Suddenly a small bird lighted upon the same branch as the mantis.  Dushu was a little saddened as he thought his new found fascination was about to be eaten.  But to Dushu’s surprise, the mantis stood his ground and began even stranger movements than Dushu had yet seen.  The mantis’s two long, powerful arms slowly rotated around the front of its body.  Then the bird, which was four times the size of the mantis, tried to catch the mantis in its beak, but the smaller mantis thrust up on his rear legs and pushed the bird’s beak to the side.  Then the bird spread its wings and jumped at the mantis with its talons but the mantis jumped to the next branch.  The bird followed but the mantis jumped again.

Each time the bird would jump at the mantis the mantis would get away at the last instant.  Then the mantis jumped on the back of the birds head.  The bird began to flutter its wings and hopped around madly, but the mantis held on with one of its powerful arms and began to saw frantically at the back of the bird’s neck with the other.  And soon the bird began to bleed from the wound.  Then the mantis jumped away and the bird followed, but the bird was so tired and hurt that when he tried to spear the mantis with his beak, he was easily fended off by the mantis’s large and powerful front legs.  Finally, the bird, too tired and weak to fight any longer, flew away.

Dushu sat there fascinated and dumbfounded.  He reached up to the branch that the mantis was on and captured him.  Then he took him back to his small cottage and studied the mantis and its movements.  Five years passed and Dushu learned much.  By imitating the quick and powerful movements of the mantis, he had created his art.

To Be Continued…

The Way of the Mantis (part 1)

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Three hundred years ago in the Chinese province of Canton, there lived a young man by the name of Dushu.  Dushu was the son of a very wealthy merchant, but he did not wish to carry on his father’s line of work.  His greatest ambition was to enter a Shaolin temple, and the only way anyone entered a Shaolin temple was that they must become a monk.  And as all the Chinese people knew, this was no easy task.

At the age of twenty, Dushu set off for the province of Shantung, where there was a Shaolin temple under the great Shaolin Master Change.  When he arrived at the temple gates he asked the monk that was on watch if he, Dushu, the wealthy son of a Canton merchant, could have attendance with the great Master Chang?  The monk did not reply, but disappeared for a brief time.  When he reappeared he told Dushu that Master Chang had no business with him.  Dushu replied in a loud and desperate voice that he had come a long way to see Master Chang and, besides, this was no way to treat a rich merchant’s son.  The monk made no reply nor did he make any further replies for three more days, in which Dushu just sat at the bottom of the gate – waiting.  Dushu had been warned it would not be easy to gain entrance in the Shaolin temple, but nevertheless he was determined.  And so he waited.

On the fourth day the great temple gate opened and a monk came out and bade Dushu to follow him.  Dushu, feeling a half sense of success, quickly did so.  The came to the inner courtyard of the temple and there stood a small middle-aged man.  This was Master Chang.

“An what is it you wished to see ma about young man?” asked Chang

“Master, I have traveled a long way at great expense to come to the temple so that you might take me in as a monk” replied Dushu.

“Ah, so you wish to become a Shaolin monk?  Well have you ever had any Kung Fu training?  For in order for you to become a monk at your age, you must first prove to me that your body and mind have been well disciplined” said Chang.

Dushu knew this well and in his younger years he had studied many fighting arts, but all his teachers had told him there was nothing as good as the Shaolin Kung Fu.  But nevertheless Dushu was quite determined and replied in a rather assuring tone that his body and mind were quite well disciplined and besides, he had a considerable fortune that he got from his father, and that surely would be more than enough to pay for the disciplines he had not yet learned.  Master Chang game a half smile saying,

“You have much to learn of the Shaolin ways, but nevertheless since you seem to be so determined, I will allow you a chance at showing me your great discipline.  I shall grant you’re a bout against my least skilled student.”

Dushu was about to protest having to fight the lowest student but something inside him stilled his thought.  Inside a few minutes, there was a young bald-headed monk half Dushu’s size standing before him.  Dushu inwardly reassured himself that this would not be such a hard task afterall.

Master Chang clapped his hands and the student and Dushu bowed.  Just as the student was re-erecting from the bow, Dushu jumped at him with a kick and found himself on the ground.  He quickly got up and started swinging as fast as he could.  But to Dushu’s amazement, all of his blows were stopped and he was once again easily thrown to the ground.  He got up once more and in a fit of rage began to strike out a fast as he could, but again he was easily blocked.  Then the student struck three very fast blows to the center of Dushu’s body and he was on the ground once again.  Only this time he could not get up.

The master clapped his hands, and the young monk left.  Then Master Chang said,

“When you are able, you may leave.”

To be continued….

Chinese Kung Fu Virtues

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Use Kung Fu ethics to balance personal judgment

Use Kung Fu technique to become fully rooted

Use Kung Fu practice to assist those in need

Kung Fu must not be used for evil purposes

A hero adopts a hero’s ways

Virtuous warriors have their duties

The Shaolin Way

Sashes

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KWON® Kung Fu Sashes

In their earliest uses, sashes were pieces of cloth wrapped around a practitioner’s waist to hold up their pants.  Later, as time progressed, the cloth was made wider so that not only would it hold up the pants but it was also used to practice breathing techniques by always pressing tightly on the dan tien (a few inches below the belly button.)

The color of these sashes was usually black since, in China, that was the easiest and most accessible color of dye used for clothing.  In the early 1900’s, the Japanese would begin to use belts as a distinction of rank, black being the highest.  In the mid-1950’s, many international kung fu associations also began to use ranking distinctions but they kept their original sashes and most adopted the black sash as their highest rank.

Our school’s ranking is as follows:

  1. Non-rank
  2. Yellow Sash
  3. Orange Sash
  4. Blue Sash
  5. Green Sash
  6. Brown Sash
  7. Red Sash
  8. Black Sash (1st Degree)
  9. Black Sash (2nd Degree)
  10. Black Sash (3rd Degree)