TANGLANG ZHAO

Claws of Mantis | Brief Description

Excerpt from the book: Jin Jing Zhong. Authentic Shaolin Heritage: Training Methods of 72 Arts of Shaolin >

Shaolin skill “Claws of Mantis” is “hard” exercise which strengthens the “external”. It develops the “hard” YANG force but also contains “soft” YIN force. That exercise is also called “Diamond Hand” – JINGANG SHOU. It strengthens, through training, the edge of a palm and a wrist. In outward appearance it resembles training in “force ejection” (“force outburst”) of the Shaolin exercise “Palm of Guan Yin” , but its essence is completely different. Here the force of the forearm moving from above downward is used and it is completely “hard force”. It is one of combat arms techniques employed at the shortest distance and here life or death of the enemy depends upon the bent wrist. The effect from a blow is a sort of chopping with an axe and movements resemble a mantis which defends itself, hence, the name – “Claws of Mantis”. Similar chops can be often found among techniques of QUAN FA. But the difference of the Shaolin school is that arm chops in this case are partly executed with employment of “soft” force where “softness” conceals “hardness” and it is the most efficient employment of this technique...

<  A full description of the training procedure is available in the book: Training Methods of 72 Arts of Shaolin >

...After successful acquirement of that Shaolin exercise it is necessary for a wrist and a palm to be filled with force when you encounter an enemy, in that case there will be no man who will be invincible for you. In usual peaceful situation it is no need to use force, so your palm will not differ from a palm of an ordinary man. If you touch (unintentionally) the body of some man, you will not inflict a wound on him. The efficiency of that skill is comparable with the splendid Shaolin skill of “Deadly YIN Hand” – YIN SHOU SHA REN. At the beginning, it is necessary to use a pile of paper to develop the “soft force”. The “soft force” goes through the paper that separates bricks from your hand, then it transforms into the “hard force”. “Hardness” and “softness” supplement each other skillfully and naturally.

At first that exercise got to Shaolin, from there it spread along the right bank of Yangtze to its whole length and later in other places to become very popular with contemporaries. There are also such techniques as “13 Mantis Claw Techniques” and a complete Mantis style with a great number of techniques and methods. They are of independent significance, but they do not belong to this SHAOLIN GONG FU.