There are 5 fundamental principles of movement, mindset and force that go with 5 animal styles of fighting. In this section I will write about the fighting logic and why the animal styles matter, the attributes of each style of force, technique and structure and how it builds in the human body its unique attributes and finally the various stances, body mechanics and drills that cultivate those attributes.
This is not imitating animals but principles and force with each of the five animal styles. The styles are:
- Tiger
- Crane
- Snake
- Leopard
- Dragon
Every complete shaolin martial artist must possess and practice these five archetypes of power. The tiger logic is overwhelming dominance, that builds raw power, structure and ferocity. The crane is about evasion and precision that builds balance, timing and accuracy. The snake is about penetration and sensitivity that builds soft power, angle attacks and nerve control. The leopard is about speed & shock that builds explosiveness, acceleration and impact and finally the dragon is about spirit and adaptability that builds flow, strategy and whole body unity.
There are other animal styles such as monkey and praying mantis however we are looking at the five fundamental animal styles mentioned above. A mature and seasoned shaolin practitioner can adapt and shift between each of the five animal styles depending on the situation requirements. Lets look in more detail the fighting theory of each animal style.
- Tiger: Overwhelming Dominance
The tiger represents directness, authority that can withstand unyielding pressure and has grounded strength while being completely fearless. The tiger does not dance around an opponent it marches forward and controls the space. The key principle is to overwhelm before the opponent can organize themselves to strike. The tiger is about breaking posture, collapsing guard and dominating the opponent physically.
The attributes that tiger training develops is leg strength, shoulder power, grip strength, bone density, psychological controlled aggression that is rooted in stability. Through training, your body becomes solid, heavy and hard to move. There are 3 well known tiger drills or exercises that can you practice.
They are:
- Tiger Claw Strengthening. This requires pressing your fingertips into a wal or the floor and hold body tension between 10-20 seconds and then relax. Repeat this process 5 times to build strength in fingers and forearms.
- Low Tiger Walk. Move or walk slowly in a deep stance while keeping your posture stable. This trains hip strength, bone density, balance and control under pressure.
- Forward dominance drill. Step aggressively from Ma bu or horse stance or from standing to bow stance and strike with your palm and punch forward. This should develop your weight transfer, ground power & body unity.
The tiger combat logic is to use this dominant style when your opponent is retreating or you want to break their balance or if it requires raw dominance. The tiger wins by pressure and not finesse.
- Crane: Evasion and Precision.
Looking at the style of Crane fighting theory it represents lightness, balance, calm awareness, precision and economy of motion. The crane has no need to clash head on its side steps, evades and looks and reads the opening finding an opportunity to strike only when necessary. The key principle is to avoid the storm and strike the gap.
When undergoing crane training it builds balance, core stability, strengthens ankles, control of breath, visual awareness and patience. The mindset is that the crane develops clarity instead of aggression. The core crane stance is to stand and balance on one leg with the other leg its knee raised with arms outstretched and keeping posture and the spine straight and upright. It is recommended to hold the stance between 40 seconds to 2 or more minutes. The crane drills and exercises are:
- One leg balance walk: a person walks slowly breathing calmly on the balls of ones feet pausing on one leg, this is precision stepping and foot sensitivity is created.
- Light touch sparring: using your training partner perform light slow evasive movements where you evade instead of blocking and redirect rather than clashing.
- Precision Palm strikes: using at first soft strikes before intensifying developing accuracy rather than power.
The crane combat logic is to the use the style when the opponent is aggressive or you need to avoid heavy blows and you want to counter at the perfect moment. The crane style allows you to win by timing, precision and not strength.
- Snake: Penetration and Sensitivity
The core snake fighting theory represents softness, flexibility, deception, penetration and pressure point awareness. The purpose of the snake is not to overpower it is all about the way to slip through defenses. The key principle of snake is to enter through the smallest gap. Where there is a weakness or opening the snake finds a way to get through the defenses. The main attributes that are developed with snake training is spinal flexibility, wrist control, finger sensitivity, relaxed movement and spatial awareness. Physically with snake training the body becomes supple and adaptable. The coiled snake stance is the body angled with weight balanced and hands ready to strike, it is though as if spring loaded ready to strike the opponent.
Snake drills and exercises:
- Spinal waves: move the spine like a wave from hips to neck, this builds fluidity, relaxation and elastic power.
- Soft hand sensitivity drill: this exercise requires a partner where instead of resisting you follow pressure, this develops tactile awareness, timing and angle control.
- Spear hand training: practice striking with spear hand into the air or a soft target. This develops accuracy, relaxation and controlled penetration. Using the hands to strike pressure points and also know the exact placement of each accurate strike on the opponent’s weak spots.
The snake combat logic is to use when opponent is strong but rigid, you need to bypass defenses and want to control angles as the snake uses intelligence and entry to win not brute force.
- Leopard: Speed & shock
The core fighting theory of leopard is all about explosive speed, sudden impact, shock power, mobility and opportunism. The leopard unlike the tiger does not apply heavy pressure and turn to dominate instead it strikes explosively and vanishes. The key principle of the leopard is to strike first, strike fast and then get out or vanish. Leopard training develops the following attributes and builds acceleration, fast twitch muscles, footwork, breathing rhythm and reaction speed.
The body becomes fast, sharp and unpredictable. The leopard stance is light on feet with knees bent and ready to spring. Leopard drills and exercises.
- Quick step drills: moving fast forwards and backwards with light strikes, this trains timing and distance control.
- Plyometric jumps: short explosive jumps from a low stance like the horse or cat stance jumping to build explosive force. This also builds leg speed and elastic power.
- Rapid palm strikes: using quick rapid series of snapping palm strikes instead of heavy blows will develop speed and accuracy.
Leopard combat logic or style is used when the opponent is slow or you need to make quick hits or you want to disrupt the rhythm of your opponent. The leopard wins by speed not strength.
- Dragon: spirit and adaptability
The fighting theory of the dragon is the most advanced and philosophical style of combat. It represents, flow and strategy, adaptation and complete body unity and internal power. The dragon does not fight in one way but adapts to whatever the situation or opponent a person is facing.
The key principle is to change with the moment. The key attributes that dragon training develops is breath control, whole-body coordination, mental calmness, tactical awareness and internal strength. The dragon stance is a coil where the spine is upright, soft knees and hands flowing in circles, no stiffness only controlled fluidity.
Dragon drills and exercises:
- Flow forms: Slow continuous movement where one technique blends into another. This develops smooth transitions and body unity.
- Breath led movement: move only as fast your breath allows. This builds internal control and relaxation under pressure.
- Strategy sparring: with a partner light sparring in which positioning is prioritised rather than strikes the dragon sins by mastery, not technique alone.
The five animals work together a complete shaolin fighter uses all five styles according to the situation or opponent. Tiger to dominate, crane to evade, snake to penetrate, leopard to shock, dragon to adapt.
In real application a fighter might enter like leopard, control like tiger, slips like snake and finish with crane precision all the while maintaining dragon composure. The final shaolin teaching is that the body is like the tiger, the feet are leopard, the hands are snake, the mind is crane and the spirit is dragon. The aim is to try and practice a minimum of 5minutes of drills and exercises daily of each animal style finished with 5 minutes of standing, soft, deep gentle breathing. The five animal styles will build all the attributes and provide the means to use any of the 5 styles when a person is faced with a particular opponent or situation that requires combat instead of any other defensive tactic such as word play, or actions that might require the instinctive fight or flight response. The shaolin fighter works for many years daily practicing the 5 animal styles of fighting to enable the ease of transition into anyone of the fighting styles when required.