The
Shaking Step of Mantis
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My Shifu, Shi Zhengzhong performs
the shaking step of Luan Jie |
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Mantis Boxing relies most strongly on the right hand
chop. Here we explore how the chop is used to topple our
opponent. We open up his lower left gate to strike with a right palm
chop while swinging our leg to uproot him. This move is called
mantis shaking step and Master Shi
appears off balance while performing it, hence the term 'shaking step of mantis.'
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Two Kinds
of Waist Chop
| Several months ago I wrote
an article on the waist chop of mantis boxing. In that case the
method was applied by first sealing and fastening the body with the
left side forward. In the shaking step of mantis the technique is applied with the
right foot forward followed by a twisting of the body to do an
uprooting kick with the left leg. |
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My Shiye, Zhang Dekui, performs
the shaking step of Luan Jie |
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Either way that you apply it,
starting with the left or right foot forward,
it always relies
on our leg either hooking, uprooting or attaching to the opponents' right
foot when chopping his left waist.
In the last article the move
shown emphasized a powerful chop. The version emphasized in this
article emphasizes the takedown. |
Tang Lang
Yao Bu
| Tang lang yao bu is probably
the original name of the technique pictured above. Here, yao means to shake
or waver and is commonly used to describe a stance that is
not stable.
I believe that over time the yao of wavering was
somehow changed to the yao of waist. This may have happened
accidentally since both words, 'wavering' and 'waist,' sound
extremely similar in Chinese.
In Li Kunshan's manuscript he
wrote it as tang lang chops the waist, 'tang lang yao zhan.'
This version
on the right was written by Cui Shoushan,
student of Song Zide. |
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In
a version of Luan Jie from Liang Xuexiang, a famous master
of Mantis Boxing near the beginning of the Mantis family
tree of four branches of mantis, he wrote at the end of his
Luan Jie manuscript.
 *
Right and left mantis hands
Shaking step-stop the body.
When applying this technique your right hand grabs
his right then your left hand grabs his left. Or, you strike
with the right and steal with the left. This is called tou
zhan which means to steal open, or to open with stealth.
Stealing
Open Defined
Opening is a way to spread
apart or tie up the opponent's hands. I connect to the opponent with one hand
and use my following hand to open his gate.
from the old Mantis Boxing
manuscript
Details of Short Strikes
it says,
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Opening means to unfold while shutting is
the maneuver which conspires to open.
There is large opening and large shutting,
Small opening and small shutting,
Reverse opening and obverse shutting,
Obverse opening and reverse shutting.
The body method and stepping method follow the changes of
the hands.
The first sentence describes what we do
after the initial attack. The opponent
replies to our attack by closing his gate, which is to say that he defends
himself with a block.
Stealing open can not be applied
without making contact with the opponents hands. We only
wish to make contact with his hands so that we can open his
closed gates and finish with our attack.
The second sentence describes some of the
variations of opening and the final sentence tells that the
hands, body and feet must all move in coordination.
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Jim Chops Steve
Jim on the left faces off with Steve.
(Photographed at our school under the
trees.)
Jim's left hand seals off Steve's right
hand so that he can more easily apply his attack.
Jim attacks with a right backhand chop,
'yang zhang.'
Jim pushes his right hand up as he closes
the distance. The point of this move is to raise Steve's
left elbow above his shoulder.
As Jim raises Steve's elbow he twists his
waist and step and slips his left hand in to grasp Steve's
arm. This is the 'stealing.' |
Chopping the Waist Without the
Shaking Step
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My Shibo(uncle), Su Yuzhang,
performs the waist chop from his book Beng Bu |
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In the practice mode of this
technique the student can leave out the final uprooting kick
in order to practice getting the left foot placed in the
proper location. This is how it is shown here by Su Yuzhang
as well as in the application photos.
After much partner practice, the
student can add the uprooting of the left leg. But only
after they understand the dynamics of entering with the
hands and body. |
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 Jim
has control of Steve's upper body and Steve is off balance.
Jim steps in with his left foot.
When Jim becomes more adept at this move
he can combine the previous move with this and the following
move and instead of stepping in he can swing his leg in
quickly to uproot Steve's right foot for a more impressive
takedown. |
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Same move
from two different schools. The left is from Huang Hanxun's
Beng Bu book |
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 Steve
falls down.
Train this move to its
conclusion
with the opponent falling down. |
The right hand chop of Mantis Boxing is a speedy
and powerful cleave. But, when combing with the shaking step the
speed and rhythm change. In order for both students to understand
the technique they must follow through to the fall. Later, Steve
will learn escapes, counters or ground position counters[
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