The Northern Shaolin Systems practiced at our school fall into the category of Chang Quan (Long Fist). These methods employ combinations of long explosive movements and require that several techniques be performed with one breath. This builds both speed and explosiveness. Combinations are often executed in quick bursts, like a string of firecrackers. This style…
Perhaps the most famous of all Asian martial arts is the style popularly known as Shaolin Gong Fu (Siu Lum Kung Fu in Cantonese), which was propagated at the legendary Shaolin Temple located in Henan Province in Northern China. Much of what is true about the history of Shaolin Gong Fu has been obscured by myths and fables. Legend tells…
At our Wushu Gwoon (martial arts school), students will see the words Patience, Discipline, and Perseverance written above the mirrored wall. What do these words really mean, and what is their significance? To understand the meaning of a word, it is always best to seek out the word’s origin. Patience derives from the Latin word…
Forms or routines, known as Tao Lu (套路) in Chinese (Kata in Japanese and Pumsae in Korean), are an essential aspect of training in traditional Chinese martial arts. A form is composed of different stances, footwork patterns, blocking movements, evasive actions, and striking and kicking techniques. They represent the real fighting experience of the masters…
Nan Quan Bei Tui, or Fists in the South, Legs in the North, is an old Chinese martial arts adage. Traditionally the Huang He (黄河), or Yellow River, was considered the demarcation line between the Northern and Southern Schools of Gong Fu. Overall, there is some truth that Southern styles are known more for their…
The Chinese Martial Arts Center is a traditional Wushu Guan (武術館) (Kwoon in Cantonese), or martial arts training hall, which has a rich history that is governed by strict adherence to etiquette known as Wude, and the observation of rules and regulations. The Guan is the place where Kung Fu, or Gong Fu, is on…
Chinese martial arts have had a strong influence on the development of other Asian fighting arts. Ancient China was the cradle of Asian culture, and many of its neighbors either paid tribute or were vassal states. Daoism, Buddhism, Confucianism, the various arts and crafts, calligraphy, sword making, and martial arts all found their way to…
Kung Fu (Gong Fu in Mandarin dialect) is a Cantonese term widely used in the West to describe Chinese Martial Arts. Kung Fu is the Chinese art of self-defense. Its origins date back over 3000 years and it is regarded as the predecessor of all Asian fighting arts. If you’re reading this guide, you obviously…
Chinese martial arts have a history that spans four millennia. They originated as rudimentary fighting skills for survival and evolved into highly sophisticated methods of combat. These methods developed in an outdoor environment, either for use on the battlefield in mass warfare or for individual combat. In both cases, some sort of footwear was necessary….
The term Kung Fu is made up of two Chinese characters: the first, kung, can mean skillful work, hard training, or endeavor. The second, fu, means time spent. The two together mean time spent at skillful work or hard training. In no way does this term express Chinese martial arts, but because training in Chinese martial arts requires a lot of time…
The posts on this Blog reflect the knowledge I have received from my teachers, and the volumes of information I have accumulated while doing research and conducting interviews with many masters, during the years of publishing the Wu Gong Journal and the Journal of Chinese Martial Arts. All the material published on this Blog is copyrighted. — Nick Scrima
