The many styles of Kung Fu
In martial arts, the art known as Kung Fu is very old, yet very powerful. We know that Kung Fu itself is a bit of an umbrella term, but in the Western world, many people are under the impression that Kung Fu is an art form in and of itself. There are several different forms involved with Kung Fu, that only add to the power and mystique. Below, we will go over a majority of the different styles and forms that make up the different syles of Kung Fu.
White Crane style
White Crane Boxing is a Southern Chinese martial art which originated in Fujian province and is now practiced throughout the world. The spirit of the White Crane has led to what many martial artists consider to be the most graceful system of Kung Fu. The form for the White Crane style was patterned after a crane bird often found in marshes and open plains. The defense forms and attacks of White Crane are nothing short of amazing, often known as 'deadly beauty'.
Although the techniques within the White Crane style can take years to properly master, they are simple and to the point. White Crane students are masters of self defense, although they are taught to avoid confrontations. Even though a student can handle himself in any situation, he will avoid a fight at all costs and only react with physical action when he is left with no choice.
White Crane is being used here in practise
Wing Chun
Wing Chun Kung Fu is a Southern Chinese principal based Martial Art. The system is a collection of techniques that are easy to do and can be used against all weights, sizes and shapes.
The philosophy behind Wing Chun will take years to fully understand, and years of practice to master. Technically speaking, Wing Chun uses a steady and never ending forward flow of energy that’s based on the principle that a straight line is the shortest distance between two points.
Offensively, Wing Chun is all about a combination of intercepting and straight lines with deflecting arcs. In general, it is an aggressive close quarter style that pushes offensive attacks and takes the fight right to the attacker. In other words - Wing Chun doesn’t care nor does it put a lot of time towards the more traditional block and counter routines.
Wing Chun has 6 forms, these are as follows:
Sil Lim Tao – Beginner levels empty hand form
Chum Kil – Intermediate through advanced levels second empty hand form
Bil Jee – Black sash level, third empty hand form
Mok Yan Jong – Black sash Wooden dummy form (techniques taught from beginner levels)
Bart Jarm Dao – Black sash Butterfly Swords form
Louk Dim Book Kwun – Black sash Dragon Pole form
Hung Gar
Hung Gar (or Hung Ga) is a southern Chinese martial art associated with the Chinese folk hero Wong Fei Hung, who was a master of Hung Ga.
Hung Gar is an adaptation of the Tiger system of Shaolin that emphasizes close quarter techniques. Hung Gar is not so much on distance fighting, although it is very effective in close quarter situations, such as alleys and in small rooms. It is a very strong system. There are different strains within the Hung Gar curriculum, leading to marked variations between students of the art.
The Hung Gar style tiger and crane form
Praying Mantis
There are two distinct styles of Praying Mantis kung fu, these are the Northern Praying Mantis, a self-defense technique from the northeast Chinese province of Shandong and the Southern Praying Mantis, a self-defense technique that originates in southwest China and is practised by the Hakka people.
Nearly 400 years ago, a man named Wang had a vision. Using a praying mantis that he was able to capture, Wang studied it’s movements. By using what he saw, he created and founded the style of Praying Mantis. Wang perfected his own martial art style by continuing to observe both the offensive and defensive movements of the praying mantis, and using them with his style. This style has lots in common with Wing Chun, but as Wing Chun, it's major flaw is it's incapability of dealing with a moving target.
The Praying Mantis style in action
The Monkey style
There are a number of independently developed systems of monkey kung fu and the Monkey style is actually one of the deadliest martial arts systems in the world. Monkey Kung Fu, or Monkey Fist, is a martial art which utilizes ape or monkey-like movements as part of its technique. This style dates back to the 1840s, when missionaries were first allowed passage into China.
One branch the Monkey style is said to have originated when a peaceful man named See resisted arrested after accidentally killing an officer of the law. See was sentenced to prison for his crime, where he spent all of his time watching the prison apes. He found them amazing, and would watch them from his cell, which his also helped to pass the time.
Apparently, over his ten year prison sentence, he studied the way the apes moved, paying very close attention to how they defended themselves and fought each other. Then, when he was released from prison, he adapted his style, becoming known as the Monkey Master.
An athletic monkey style form
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