Wen Hsiu Quan

  You all know that there are monks from Northern Shaolin who travel the world to present arguably the best martial arts demonstration in the world. I am not exaggerating. Sure- Wudang has Pushing Hands and the movies tell us they walk on water etc, but what have they actually demonstrated thus far? We have even seen tile breaking and Iron Shirt demonstrations from Karate and related arts. Shaolin, however, has demontrated amazing feats of strength and resilience off the silver screen. These amazing skills include: - One Finger Zen: Having so much strength in the index finger that it can support the whole body; - Iron Shirt: Being able to withstand percussive blows, but wait- there is more! - Golden Bell Cover: BEING IMPERVIOUS TO SHARP OBJECTS! The saying goes: "Every martial art under the sun comes from Shaolin". To some of us this will not hold true. I know that the custodians of the Rajput traditions in India will be quick to shake their heads. ...

I still believe that we have Bruce Lee to thank for the footwork we see in sports karate today. He, as we know, started out with traditional kungfu, but also had a lot of admiration for the late Mohammed Ali. Now his Tao of Jeet Kune Do shows that he has taken a lot from boxing. Where with styles like Western Fencing, Boxing and Sports Karate we see that a springy movement mainly on the balls of the feet are preferred we may believe that this is how we also defend ourselves. If you have read Sensei Iain's article from last week, however, you'd know that this is not the mark of  traditional karate. The footwork I use in the photos above are from Xingyiquan and is a sample of the footwork I use in Wenhsiuquan as well. Taijiquan is also known for using it. With forward movement Shaolin Kungfu and Karate seem to prefer landing on the ball of the foot with every step first before settling weight onto the stepping foot. In my experience it actually makes t...

I had an exciting time on the internet last night. Not only did I help teach a certain member of a certain band some manners after misbehaving toward my girls, but I also found this article by Sensei Iain Abernethy: https://t.co/DEBDEmwdOI Before I have read this I was under the impression that karate was this deadly fighting art that got watered down for the sake of sports and ease of teaching. I realise now that the traditional karate of the kata was intended to protect one from harm in violent situations. So- if you are a karateka and had any hope of learning Ansatsuken (Assassin's Fist) techniques from your dojo I am afraid that you may be disappointed. This has actually raised questions, though. A lot of Kungfu went into karate. Kungfu was known for its duels, its contests and its brutal applications. Has anyone heard the story of Chan San Feng and the village full of bandits? Plus- Toudi (Karate before it became "Karate") was taught in the Ryukyu Islands as...

If you asked me some years ago what the difference between Kungfu and Karate was I would have told you that Karate requires the back to be straight at all times while Kungfu is a lot more liberal.  Well- if you never get beyond the kihon stage  of karate training it will look like it, but the truth is that while even kungfu training has a phase at which posture is strictly adhered to and the back never bends so Karate has examples of ducking, bending and leaning. I experienced my liberation while learning Jeet Kune Do. Where being within range used to mean a definite punch in my face I have now become able to slip that straight punch and go for the exposed ribs at the same time. :D I still block, but really- leg attacks are often most easily evaded by just getting your leg out of the way and face punches by a relatively small movement of the upper body. While I know a lot of karate instructors who would not want to see you bobbing and weaving like...