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  • Shaolin Animal Styles

    Hello all!

    I read, that all Shaolin monks and students are required, during their first year(s), to lear the five animal styles of dragon, snake, tiger, leopard and crane.

    I would like to know how they do actually learn these styles, and of what these styles are composed.

    Thanks for clarifying this for me, fellow kung fu enthusiats!

    Michael

  • #2
    in their first year(s)?

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    • #3
      Never mind if in their first years or not...

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      • #4
        Sounds like you train with USSD.
        Experienced Community organizer. Yeah, let's choose him to run the free world. It will be historic. What could possibly go wrong...

        "You're just a jaded cynical mother****er...." Jeffpeg

        (more comments in my User Profile)
        russbo.com


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        • #5
          Maybe I'm just not clear in what I'd like to know:

          What exactly is the Tiger/Dragon/Snake/Eagle/Leopard style, how is it learned, trained, executed etc...?

          Comment


          • #6
            That's what I'm trying to ask you.

            Where did you get the idea of these five animals? And where did you get the idea that Shaolin monks need to learn these five "styles" in their first few years?

            Who do you currently train with?
            Experienced Community organizer. Yeah, let's choose him to run the free world. It will be historic. What could possibly go wrong...

            "You're just a jaded cynical mother****er...." Jeffpeg

            (more comments in my User Profile)
            russbo.com


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            • #7
              Originally posted by searcher View Post
              Maybe I'm just not clear in what I'd like to know:

              What exactly is the Tiger/Dragon/Snake/Eagle/Leopard style, how is it learned, trained, executed etc...?

              The idea is to learn how to embody the essence of the animal. There are some obvious and some subtle (all very meaningful) attributes, commonalities and differences between the animals.

              Unfortunately, most modern animal forms are performance garbage without an innate understanding of what you are doing.

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              • #8
                forget whatever the monks do, they do wushu.

                when it comes to the styles derived from shaolin gung fu(laymen passing on shaolin teachings) the 5 animals represent the 5 essences of shaolin training.

                tiger(strength), snake(qi), crane(poise), leopard(speed), dragon(spirit) are the 5 traditional animals.

                most styles dont have a form for each animal, and really imitative gung fu isnt about making claws and beaks etc. sometimes you do use a claw etc but not just for attack also for conditioning/strengthening etc

                every style has a different philosophy and a different base and so the animals will look different but they represent the same idea and when you work tiger whatever system your doing your still tiger

                also, people are different, built differently, think differently etc so that also adds to why things may be expressed/applied differently.
                "did you ask me to consider dick with you??" blooming tianshi lotus

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                • #9
                  Originally posted by doc View Post
                  That's what I'm trying to ask you.

                  Where did you get the idea of these five animals? And where did you get the idea that Shaolin monks need to learn these five "styles" in their first few years?

                  Who do you currently train with?
                  I read about this from a German wikipedia article about Shaolin Kungfu.
                  I am training with a Korean trained German master, but I doubt it is real Shaolin what he teaches, even if he claims it to be. But for him the elementary things, in particular stances, are very important and his teachings regarding this are very good and strict. One of the stances, though, he teaches and calls "Crane" is a bit strange: Stand on one leg, the other foot covering the other knee, the fist on the side of the standing leg points forward, the other is inclued 90° to the inside of the other elbow. I have never seen this elsewhere...

                  The next more authentic Shaolin Kungfu master would be severy hours drive from where I live and it's just not feasible. So I try to get along with my teacher, the Tagou books, some selected advice from the internet - and my own mind as advocatus diaboli...

                  And I still don't have any clue about these animal styles. Are they ust forms? For example, is the "Tiger style" just a "Tiger form"?

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                  • #10
                    I dont know if true but budism often says animals are even more ignorants than humans and can hardly reach absolute non violence.

                    These days i wonder, if u kill animals to eat 2 times a days, in a year u eat 730 time dead flesh, so maybe kill 300 animals.

                    For 50 years, u kill maybe 15 000 animals.

                    If in avearge each animal has a life of 1 year, according to the theory of reincarnation (i dont say it is true), u might be an animal for 15 000 years.

                    But as during these 15 000 years of being animal u will also kill animals even if they run away from you, maybe u will be animal for 100 000 years.

                    That is long time even at the universe level. So not loose time while being human to reach absolute non violence and look for the right masters. Think about vegetarianism and its result, its habit of not killing.

                    My tibetan friend Yeshi told me that is why tibetans dont kill small animals with little flesh such as chicken, fishes, shrimps....

                    Peace and love

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                    • #11


                      Liu, you're priceless.

                      Searcher, wikipedia can be a huge source of misinformation too. It's a great tool, but like everything else in life, you have to QUESTION. Just like you did...

                      And no, that's not true about the monks. Whatever they are. They learn the basics, they learn some basic forms, and then they're pointed in certain directions based upon their desires or their skills, form wise.
                      Experienced Community organizer. Yeah, let's choose him to run the free world. It will be historic. What could possibly go wrong...

                      "You're just a jaded cynical mother****er...." Jeffpeg

                      (more comments in my User Profile)
                      russbo.com


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                      • #12
                        Originally posted by doc View Post
                        http://www.russbo.com/Shaolin/animal-forms.html

                        Liu, you're priceless.

                        Searcher, wikipedia can be a huge source of misinformation too. It's a great tool, but like everything else in life, you have to QUESTION. Just like you did...

                        And no, that's not true about the monks. Whatever they are. They learn the basics, they learn some basic forms, and then they're pointed in certain directions based upon their desires or their skills, form wise.
                        Yes, I had read your article about the animal forms. Are these forms in the sense of the five stances form, or does form here refer to something else?
                        And how come there is no "Hu Quan" or "Hou Quan" or "Ying Quan" the Tagou book?

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          Originally posted by Maestro View Post
                          forget whatever the monks do, they do wushu.

                          when it comes to the styles derived from shaolin gung fu(laymen passing on shaolin teachings) the 5 animals represent the 5 essences of shaolin training.

                          tiger(strength), snake(qi), crane(poise), leopard(speed), dragon(spirit) are the 5 traditional animals.

                          most styles dont have a form for each animal, and really imitative gung fu isnt about making claws and beaks etc. sometimes you do use a claw etc but not just for attack also for conditioning/strengthening etc

                          every style has a different philosophy and a different base and so the animals will look different but they represent the same idea and when you work tiger whatever system your doing your still tiger

                          also, people are different, built differently, think differently etc so that also adds to why things may be expressed/applied differently.
                          Thanks for that answer! So wouold I execute the same form differently if I want to concentrate on tiger-strength? And, since the eagle is supposed to go much for acupoints, to what kind of form would I apply this "feature" to?

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            The Tagou book is not all inclusive; it is a book written by one school (of hundreds), granted, a very large and respected long term school. It has some great information, but not everything.

                            The differences between wushu and traditional is mentioned in the main russbo site in the Shaolin FAQ area. And also in the forums here.
                            Experienced Community organizer. Yeah, let's choose him to run the free world. It will be historic. What could possibly go wrong...

                            "You're just a jaded cynical mother****er...." Jeffpeg

                            (more comments in my User Profile)
                            russbo.com


                            Comment


                            • #15
                              "Thanks for that answer! So wouold I execute the same form differently if I want to concentrate on tiger-strength? And, since the eagle is supposed to go much for acupoints, to what kind of form would I apply this "feature" to?"

                              every form is unique and has something to emphasise, you dont just say hey i wanna focus on "tiger strength" when your doing some random form. what i meant was every system or style will express these animals differently according to their specific skill sets.

                              and..eagle goes for acupoints..i guess, i wouldnt say moreso then any other style theres nothing special about eagle in that regard.

                              look at this first video;

                              [ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jk51Czt8QfA&feature=channel"]YouTube - Sifu Onassis Parungao v2[/ame]

                              now the second;

                              [ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8SypClCeeg8"]YouTube - Lama Pai Ng Ying Kyuhn (5 Animal Form)[/ame]

                              both are doing versions of 5 animals from 2 DIFFERENT STYLES.
                              "did you ask me to consider dick with you??" blooming tianshi lotus

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