Five Ancestors

They were consolidated by a sixth influence, Xuan Nu, also known as Hian Loo (玄女拳)[6] and "The Lady in the Green Dress", who introduced the most deadly of its techniques, Dim Mak—lethal strikes to the pressure points of the body.

The original concept of Wu Zu Quan has its origin in the early practice by Southern Tai Zu martial artist in venerating the Five Ancestors or Wu Zu 五祖 dating as far back as around the 1600s the Five Ancestors are (1) Tai Zu 太祖 for the emperors of China (2) Guan Nim 觀音 the goddess of mercy that is recognize and venerated by both Taoist and Buddhism (3) Lo Han 羅漢 immortal warriors protector of earth later adapted by the warrior monks of Shaolin that were always ready to assist China's emperors in safe guarding the empire's rural areas against bandits, pirates and foreign invaders (4) Da Mo 達尊 the person instrumental in introducing Buddhism to China and (5) Xuan Nu 玄女 the deity of vitality and nourishment later to be related to a female monk responsible in advancing pressure point and herbal science of medicine.

In other words, the original concept of Five Ancestors was about the five traditional religious practices of dynasty China which are Taoism, Buddhism, Confucianism, Emperor worshipping and ancestor-deity worshipping this tradition was widely practised by the secret societies called Tien De Hui 天地會 Heaven Earth Society.

Since the fall of the Ming dynasty 1644 the Tai Zu Quan was the dominant martial art system especially in Fujian province China.

Later in the late 1950s another version of Wuzuquan history-origin will be revealed thanks to the late Grand master Chee Kim Thong from Malaysia putting the founding of the art around 1300 AD attributed to Bái Yùfeng,[1] a famous 13th century monk from the original Henan Shaolin Temple in the North of China to whom Five Animals style and Hóngquán (洪拳) have also been attributed.

Thus, the history of Wu Zu Quan have four versions: Some practitioners also credit a sixth influence of the Xuan Nu (玄女拳) system, with its emphasis on flowing movements and humility, for refining the art of Five Ancestors.

Combined with its rapid change of footwork, the method of hooking and seizing to control an opponent's arm is sudden and powerful.

Emphasizing softness as a means of training it works to condition the tendons, bones, and muscles into an elastic strength.

Xuan Nu Quan trains the student to emit power by transferring strength from the legs through the waist and to the arms.

The practitioner will come to understand the harmony of hardness and softness, internal and external, and the theory and principles of Taiji as the Grand Ultimate.

[7] One of the primary characteristics of Five Ancestors is its reliance on the Sam Chien (literally "three battles":三戦) stance and the corresponding hand form of the same name, which it obtained from Fujian White Crane.

Thus, it is a strong adage believed by senior/master level practitioners that, without the most basic essential understanding of Sam Chien, all of the fighting forms are rendered as much less effective.

The writer here can't emphasize enough that junior practitioners see how important it is to keep training Sam Chien while progressing to learn different forms at the same time.

The twelfth President of the Federation is James Chee of Australia, who took over from John Graham of the United States in November 2011.

The Federation convenes annually in Quanzhou, Fujian, China with discussions held regarding the preservation, expansion and unity of the art.

The first group of honorary 10th duan Wuzuquan practitioners to be formally recognized includes both living and deceased masters.

[9] John Graham of the United States was awarded the rank of 10th duan at the 2011 International Shaolin Wuzuquan Federation conference.