Five Animals (martial arts)
Encyclopedia
In the Chinese martial arts
, imagery of the Five Animals —Tiger
, Crane, Leopard
, Snake
, and Dragon
—appears predominantly in Southern styles
, especially those associated with Guangdong
and Fujian
Provinces. An alternate selection which is also widely used is the crane, the tiger, the monkey, the snake, and the mantis.
The Five Animal martial arts supposedly originated from the Henan
Shaolin Temple, which is north of the Yangtze River
, even though imagery of these particular five animals as a distinct set (i.e. in the absence of other animals such as the horse or the monkey as in T'ai chi ch'uan or Xíngyìquán
) is either rare in Northern Shaolin martial arts—and Northern Chinese martial arts in general—or recent (cf. wǔxíngbāfǎquán; 五形八法拳; "Five Form Eight Method Fist").
In Mandarin
, "wǔxíng" is the pronunciation not only of "Five Animals," but also of "Five Elements
," the core techniques of Xíngyìquán
, which also features animal mimicry (but of 10 or 12 animals rather than 5) and, with its high narrow Sāntǐshì (三體勢) stance, looks nothing so much like a Fujianese Southern style stranded in the North.
Although the technique is mainly associated with the tiger, dragon, snake, crane and leopard, many other animal styles have been developed, including panther, praying mantis (northern and southern styles), horse, cobra, bull, wolf, deer, bear, boar, eagle, python, scorpion, elephant, lion, frog, duck, dog, crow, tiger cub, chicken, hawk, turtle, swallow, lizard and a host of others.
, he met Li Sou, a master of "Red Fist" Hóngquán (紅拳). Li Sou accompanied Jueyuan back to Henan, to Luoyang to introduce Jueyuan to Bai Yufeng, master of an internal method.
They returned to Shaolin with Bai Yufeng and expanded Jueyuan's 72 techniques to approximately 170. Using their combined knowledge, they restored internal aspects to Shaolin boxing.
They organized these techniques into Five Animals: the Tiger, the Crane, the Leopard, the Snake and the Dragon.
Jueyuan is also credited with the Northern style "Flood Fist" Hóngquán (洪拳), which does not feature the Five Animals but is written with the same characters as the Southern style Hung Kuen, perhaps the quintessential Five Animals style.
Moreover, as in the Southern Hung Kuen, the "Hóng" character (洪) in Hóngquán actually refers to a family name rather than its literal meaning of "flood." However, the two styles have nothing in common beyond their shared name.
exercises developed by the Chinese physician Hua Tuo
in the 2nd century. There are two exercises per animal, corresponding to the five yin and five yang internal organs in Chinese medicine. However, simplified forms with only one exercise per animal also exist.
The five animals in the exercises as currently taught are the bear, tiger, monkey, deer, and crane. They are said to improve functioning of the lung (tiger), kidney (bear), liver (deer), heart (crane), and stomach (monkey), respectively.
Chinese martial arts
Chinese martial arts, also referred to by the Mandarin Chinese term wushu and popularly as kung fu , are a number of fighting styles that have developed over the centuries in China. These fighting styles are often classified according to common traits, identified as "families" , "sects" or...
, imagery of the Five Animals —Tiger
Hung Gar
Hung Ga 洪家, Hung Kuen 洪拳, or Hung Ga Kuen 洪家拳 is a southern Chinese martial art associated with the Chinese folk hero Wong Fei Hung, who was a master of Hung Ga....
, Crane, Leopard
Leopard Kung Fu
Leopard Kung fu is style of Kung fu and is one of the Five Animal styles.It was supposedly created by Jue Yuan with help from Bai Yufeng and Li Sou. The emphasis of leopard is speed and angular attack. The leopard does not overwhelm or rely on strength, as does the tiger, but instead relies on...
, Snake
Snake Kung Fu
There are several Chinese martial arts known as Snake Boxing or Fanged Snake Style which imitate the movements of snakes. It is a style of Shaolin Boxing. Proponents claim that adopting the fluidity of snakes allows them to entwine with their opponents in defense and strike them from angles they...
, and Dragon
Dragon Kung Fu
The movements of the Southern Dragon style of Shaolin Boxing are based on the mythical Chinese dragon. The Dragon style is an imitative-style that was developed based on the imagined characteristics of the mythical Chinese dragon....
—appears predominantly in Southern styles
Nan Quan
Nanquan refers to those Chinese martial arts that originated south of the Yangtze River of China, including Hung Kuen, Choi Lei Fut, Choy Ga, Lee Ga, Lau Ga, Mok Ga, Hak Fu Mun, Wuzuquan, Wing Chun, Etc.-Contemporary Wushu Nanquan:...
, especially those associated with Guangdong
Guangdong
Guangdong is a province on the South China Sea coast of the People's Republic of China. The province was previously often written with the alternative English name Kwangtung Province...
and Fujian
Fujian
' , formerly romanised as Fukien or Huguing or Foukien, is a province on the southeast coast of mainland China. Fujian is bordered by Zhejiang to the north, Jiangxi to the west, and Guangdong to the south. Taiwan lies to the east, across the Taiwan Strait...
Provinces. An alternate selection which is also widely used is the crane, the tiger, the monkey, the snake, and the mantis.
The Five Animal martial arts supposedly originated from the Henan
Henan
Henan , is a province of the People's Republic of China, located in the central part of the country. Its one-character abbreviation is "豫" , named after Yuzhou , a Han Dynasty state that included parts of Henan...
Shaolin Temple, which is north of the Yangtze River
Yangtze River
The Yangtze, Yangzi or Cháng Jiāng is the longest river in Asia, and the third-longest in the world. It flows for from the glaciers on the Tibetan Plateau in Qinghai eastward across southwest, central and eastern China before emptying into the East China Sea at Shanghai. It is also one of the...
, even though imagery of these particular five animals as a distinct set (i.e. in the absence of other animals such as the horse or the monkey as in T'ai chi ch'uan or Xíngyìquán
Xingyiquan
Xingyiquan is one of the major "internal" or Wudang styles of Chinese martial arts. The word translates approximately to "Form/Intention Boxing", or "Shape/Will Boxing", and is characterized by aggressive, seemingly linear movements and explosive power...
) is either rare in Northern Shaolin martial arts—and Northern Chinese martial arts in general—or recent (cf. wǔxíngbāfǎquán; 五形八法拳; "Five Form Eight Method Fist").
In Mandarin
Standard Mandarin
Standard Chinese or Modern Standard Chinese, also known as Mandarin or Putonghua, is the official language of the People's Republic of China and Republic of China , and is one of the four official languages of Singapore....
, "wǔxíng" is the pronunciation not only of "Five Animals," but also of "Five Elements
Five elements
Five elements may refer to: In philosophy: *Five elements *Mahabhuta*Pancha Tattva *Five elements In science:*Boron, element 5*Group 5 element*Period 5 element-See also:...
," the core techniques of Xíngyìquán
Xingyiquan
Xingyiquan is one of the major "internal" or Wudang styles of Chinese martial arts. The word translates approximately to "Form/Intention Boxing", or "Shape/Will Boxing", and is characterized by aggressive, seemingly linear movements and explosive power...
, which also features animal mimicry (but of 10 or 12 animals rather than 5) and, with its high narrow Sāntǐshì (三體勢) stance, looks nothing so much like a Fujianese Southern style stranded in the North.
Although the technique is mainly associated with the tiger, dragon, snake, crane and leopard, many other animal styles have been developed, including panther, praying mantis (northern and southern styles), horse, cobra, bull, wolf, deer, bear, boar, eagle, python, scorpion, elephant, lion, frog, duck, dog, crow, tiger cub, chicken, hawk, turtle, swallow, lizard and a host of others.
Legendary origin
According to legend, Jueyuan, a 13th-century Shaolin martial artist, used the original 18 Luohan Hands as a foundation, expanding its 18 techniques into 72. In Gansu Province in the west of China, in the city of LanzhouLanzhou
Lanzhou is the capital and largest city of Gansu Province in Northwest China. A prefecture-level city, it is a key regional transportation hub, allowing areas further west to maintain railroad connections to the eastern half of the country....
, he met Li Sou, a master of "Red Fist" Hóngquán (紅拳). Li Sou accompanied Jueyuan back to Henan, to Luoyang to introduce Jueyuan to Bai Yufeng, master of an internal method.
They returned to Shaolin with Bai Yufeng and expanded Jueyuan's 72 techniques to approximately 170. Using their combined knowledge, they restored internal aspects to Shaolin boxing.
They organized these techniques into Five Animals: the Tiger, the Crane, the Leopard, the Snake and the Dragon.
Jueyuan is also credited with the Northern style "Flood Fist" Hóngquán (洪拳), which does not feature the Five Animals but is written with the same characters as the Southern style Hung Kuen, perhaps the quintessential Five Animals style.
Moreover, as in the Southern Hung Kuen, the "Hóng" character (洪) in Hóngquán actually refers to a family name rather than its literal meaning of "flood." However, the two styles have nothing in common beyond their shared name.
Five-animals exercises in present-day qigong
The "frolics of five animals" (五禽戲, Wu Qin Xi) are a set of qigongQigong
Qigong or chi kung is a practice of aligning breath, movement, and awareness for exercise, healing, and meditation...
exercises developed by the Chinese physician Hua Tuo
Hua Tuo
Hua Tuo was an ancient Chinese physician who lived during the late Han Dynasty and Three Kingdoms era of Chinese history. The Records of Three Kingdoms and Book of Later Han record Hua as the first person in China to use anesthesia during surgery. He used a general anesthetic combining wine with a...
in the 2nd century. There are two exercises per animal, corresponding to the five yin and five yang internal organs in Chinese medicine. However, simplified forms with only one exercise per animal also exist.
The five animals in the exercises as currently taught are the bear, tiger, monkey, deer, and crane. They are said to improve functioning of the lung (tiger), kidney (bear), liver (deer), heart (crane), and stomach (monkey), respectively.