7 star mantis

[Battosai]

Hello everyone,


I am currently studying yang tai chi and i am looking to train mantis as well. i found a 7 star school very close to where i live. i found when i was searching for a good tai chi school there were certain things i had to look for in the club, teachers and students to make sure i wasnt training to be a chihugger (no offence to chihuggers, looked for stuff like attention to structure, body alignment, push hands etc)

i dont know very much about mantis style, what things should i be looking for when i go to this club? are there certain characteristics or anything i should look for? in my experience finding a 'real' kungfu school can be very hard, but not impossible if you know what to look for, i am just not sure what to look for in mantis.

any help and info would be greatly appreciated

thanks
scott

[Battosai]

hmmm 72 reads and no response...

i hope I havent offended someone or something like that, if i have i most humbly apoligize.

over the past few weeks i have scoured this forum and as much of the net as i can to find info about 7 star prior to attending the class. but one thing i have found is that reading doesnt compare to first hand experience, especially with kungfu.


once again i apoligize if i have offended anyone, i was just trying to seek the knowledge of those who have walked the path before me...

respectfully
scott

[BeiTangLang]

You have not offended anyone;
"but one thing i have found is that reading doesnt compare to first hand experience," Kinda says it all.

Sorry if I am too bland in this answer, but without showing you, its D@mned near impossible to explain.
~Best Wishes,
BTL

[grifter721]

no offense taken by any here I dont think.
Just a question no one feels like answering.
Hmm. Hard question cuz I havent been to too many schools, not much mantis out in Canada.
Uh, you have been in the martialarts I see so you should be able to tell good kung fu from crap kung fu.
Go in to the school, and if they are willing and friendly they will show you applications. Maybe a two man set if you are lucky.
If the applications are applicable, ie the attack was actually sent towards a good point on the body, not a wide stupid punch or an obvious one then go for it. They should now all the beginnning 6 sets - Stomping Steps, White monkey steps out of cave, white monkey steals peaches, Secret Force, Eighteen Elders, Plumb Flower Hands. The beginning is what will open you to our world.
Unfortunatley now to my knowledge every tom **** and harry are teaching mantis now, esp in the states, although you can find many good teachers out there you can find a lot of crap ones too.
Be wary.

[Tainan Mantis]

Battosai,
This isn't easy to answer since everyone is looking for something different.
The wants being dependant on the needs.

So what is it you hope to gain?
Or how do you like to train?

These questions may not be easy to answer.
Checking out all the schools you can is good.
After 20 years of training I still do this every chance I get regardless of style(to a limit).
Discussing with MArtists like us may give some good insights.

Since you are still a clean slate(so it seems) in the school of external styles, why did you choose Mantis?
And 7* for that?

[ursa major]

Hello Battosai, welcome to our board.

As BeiTangLang so aptly put it your question is very difficult to answer.

It might help to know what part of the world you are looking in? Chances are there is someone on this board near you.

So in general, when asked about selecting a school, I always advise the same way that is:

1) to consider the head instructor and his (or her) ways.
2) who is (or was) the teacher's teacher?
3) what is the lineage of the club and what are their claims to authenticity in the style of kung-fu?
4) ask respectfully and then listen to the answers intently.

As for 7 Star you could consider asking about their thoughts on a few subjects such as:

- character or verbal principals
- footwork and movement
- striking vs. grappling
- forms and applications

Now that we have given you some material to work with I ask that you keep us informed on your progress.

Best regards,
UM.

[Battosai]

Hello Everyone and thanks for replying :D

-Tainan Mantis


"So what is it you hope to gain?
Or how do you like to train?"

I am looking to find good traditional kungfu, by saying that i mean finding a school that teaches solid kungfu, by saying that i mean a place where you cant buy a black sash or get one just because you've been there for a certain amount of time, , but one where it has to be earned over time, a school that focuses on basics as the core techniques. I think one of the things that alot of schools do is rush students through the basics to get them onto the 'cool' techniques, but IMHO mastering the basics makes the basics 'cool' techniques. I am hoping to gain solid fighting skills and a better understanding of myself.

How do I like to train? I like to train hard and I like alot of contact. I trained hung gar in the past at a sweet school that really focused on practical application of techniques, and involved alot of sparring, unfortunately my job at that time didnt allow me to continue my training at that school. but to me, hard training is fun training.

Like i said i have trained hung gar in the past, but that was a while ago, i trained bagua for a very short time recently, but mainly it has been the medium frame yang style with a little bit of chen's canon fist.

why did i choose mantis? specifically 7 * ?
lol, well mantis has a reputation for brutality, which is always fun :D, also it seems like a very complete system for short,mid and long range fighting, also from what i have been able to find out so far is that mantis also doesnt rely on physical strength and uses the waist for power generation, which makes it similar in a sense to the tai chi i practise as i am looking to continue training yang as i pursue mantis.

why 7*

as far as i know the only school teaching mantis thats within an hour drive of where i live is 7 *, i have found any further of a distance to travel becomes a real problem here in the winter because traffic sux, and ice and snow just make it worse. i am still not completely sure what the differences are between the different styles of mantis, i am assuming its like the differences between say sun and wu style tai chi, just a different spin on the same thing with a little added flavour from the various teachers.


ursa major

1) to consider the head instructor and his (or her) ways.
2) who is (or was) the teacher's teacher?
3) what is the lineage of the club and what are their claims to authenticity in the style of kung-fu?
4) ask respectfully and then listen to the answers intently.

I havent met the instructor yet, but so far i really like what he has said about himself and his school, the teachers teacher seems fairly well known and written (lineage is always a tough one, and while it is important IMHO it can be misleading as a great teacher can still have mediocre students etc, but that being said, it looks good) i am always a little cautious when checking out schools because there's alot of crap out here in canada too, and its the little details that keep ya from destroying your knees or make the difference in the strength of your body structure or techniques.

btw i live in the kitchener waterloo area in ontario if anyone is wondering

thanks again
scott

[Ren Blade]

I hope that Mantis school will give you what you want. Let us know of your experience when you start there.

[Skarbromantis]

I train in Toronto, do you mind giving the name of the teacher?

Maybe, one of the members or myself, has heard of him.

If not on the main page you can PM me, as I would like to know also.

Thanks

Skard1

[Battosai]

hey Skarbromantis

your PM mailbox is full, is there an email addy i can send to?

scott

[Laviathan]

Hi, are you the same Battosai of SPCNet?

Anyway, I am now training traditional Mantis in Beijing and it is great! In my opinion, Praying Mantis is flexible, emphasize agressive defence, consisting of beautiful but vicious techniques with clear applications. It has a great arsenal of techniques, so Tanglang training is never dull.

Good luck with your search!

Greetings, Lav

[Skarbromantis]

Pm is now clear...fire away.

Skard1

[Battosai]

well i just went to my first mantis class
very very cool
i was pretty much sold
in the first hour
definitely love the emphasis
on practical application

a devastatingly cool art for sure

so thanks to everyone who responded to my post
and special thanks to Ursa Major

[WanderingMonk]

Originally posted by Laviathan
Hi, are you the same Battosai of SPCNet?

Anyway, I am now training traditional Mantis in Beijing and it is great!

Lav,

I am confused, didn't you say that you are studying shaobei quan in beijing or did you switch or cross training ?

wm