Southern Shaolin 5 Animals

martial arts studio plano tx

As you are considering Karate or Martial Arts here Plano our goal is to help you make the best choice possible.

There are many styles of martial arts out there. Some styles are narrow in scope focusing on just one of the four primary aspects of martial arts (kick, strike, wrestle, lock). Other styles are sport oriented focused on scoring points or tournament competition. Chinese martial arts are the oldest and most complete of the martial arts. Chinese kung Fu was first documented in the “Spring and Autumn period” over 1,500 years ago and includes all aspects of kung fu fighting as well as internal training so that the you can benefit from powerful fighting skills and Shaolin health improvement methods. The two Kung Fu styles our students learn are Shaolin Five Animals and Northern Long Fist… Below is a short description of the Southern 5-Animals Kung Fu.

The Southern Shaolin Hung Ga taught at the Shaolin Wu-Yi Institute Plano kung fu school was passed down by Master Chang Ke Chi who is the leading Five Animals Hung Ga Master in Taiwan. Master Chang learned Hung Ga from Lin Jia Kun and went on to teach many of the top five animals kung fu masters in Taiwan including Master Chen Shuei Tsai. The Five Animals Hung Ga is different from the Lam Sai Wing branch in that it teaches an individual form for each of the Shaolin five animals. In addition to the five animals forms there are the foundation forms of 18 Lohan Hands and Double Bow Fist as well as the combination forms Snake & Cat, Tiger & Dragon and Tiger & Crane as well as the rare Southern Eagle.

Hung Ga is the chief of the five southern Shaolin martial arts styles. The other four family styles are Li Ga, Lau Ga, Mok Ga and Choy Ga. The Hung fist is by far the most widespread and popular of the southern martial arts with many unique branches recognized for their characteristic 5-Animals techniques. The various styles can be classified as “old style or village style” and “new style”.  The new style was passed down most popularly from Lam Sai Wing and Tang Fung. Some of the other branches of Hung Ga kung fu have been passed down by Leung Wah Chew “Four Lower Tigers Branch”, Wong Kiew Kit “Southern Shaolin Branch”, Yuen Yik Kai” Five Pattern Hung Fist” and Lin Jia Kun “Five Animals Hung Ga”. The 5-Animals kung fu taught at the Shaolin Wu-Yi Institute is the rare and powerful Lin Jia Kun branch of Hung Ga.

Lin Jia Kun arrived in Taiwan in 1946 bringing with him the Hung Ga he had learned  in Guangdong. While in Taiwan he taught his Hung Ga kung fu to Chang Ke Chi. Chang went on to teach countless students and to work on numerous martial arts films from the 1960’s into the 1980’s. Chang continues to promote and oversee the teaching of Five Animals Hung Ga as head of the Shaolin Hung Boxing Association in Taichung, Taiwan, ROC.