You mention that " we train many styles including san shou" San Shou is not a style of fighting. The san shou you see today (Cung Le ) is not traditional san shou. That is kickboxing. San Shou techniques are in all style of kung fu. If you can use your techniques, blocks, etc in a fight or sparring situation, then THAT’s san shou. Every san shou match you see today is kickboxing. You don’t need to learn kung fu to do that. Just join a kickboxing school.
Mantis, I think Heming means they train that way 
YOu are both correct and wrong at the same time. There is not a so called traditional system called san shou and ALL TCMA systems can do san shou. HOWVER, the Chinese military took the idea of san shou and created a san shou program using traditional techniques to train its personnel. There are a very few people who do this original san shou program, with its unique philosophy and techniques. For the most part, Cung Le is a fighter who fights under San Shou rules. He has a wrestling TKD and Muay Thai background. BUT he has trained with the Chinese and knows MANY of the “san shou skills” as well.
Dear friends
the definition of “San” in Chinese is “parted”, “shou” means " movement"
. the name to be called “Sanshou”, is because it is created by those people who love
to take the most effective parts from different Chinese traditional styles and put them
together, there are less than 15 main movements in Sanshou, but all of them are powerful
enough to kill in one movement…that’s the principle of Sanshou…also, some of the movements
are developed from Shaolin style, so no wonder disciples of martial monks will practise it as well…
actually in my viewpoint, Sanshou is the fast food which can be learnt in a short time( min. 3 months you can learn all the movements, but if you wish to make it powerful, still it will takes you 1 more years.), but
traditional forms will be more powerful than Sanshou if you learn it well, which will takes you years…
Heming
Shaolin Secular Disciple’s Union,
Shaolin Temple, Mt.Song, Henan 452491, P.R.China
Tel: +86(371)2749172
Fax: +1(212)98143
ICQ#: 17145752
Email: heming@shaolintemple.zzn.com
http://www.topcities.com/Arts/heming/index.htm
http://shaolintemple.yeah.net
For a guy who claims to be in China at the Shaolin temple, you can’t seem to read the most basic of characters. The SHOU in SAN SHOU is HAND. Every kid in China can read that character! And the San means to disperse, scatter, free, etc. Thus “free hand”
Is it fun to pay top dollar for standardized wushu forms?
<img src=http://www.angelfire.com/ny/sanshou/images/sanshou.GIF>
Here are the characters for San Shou, look up what they mean for yourself
Heming,
I don’t mean to be rude but I think that’s total nonsense. San Shou is pronounced San Da in Cantonese. In Cantonese it means free sparr. Cantonese, mandarin, as well as all dialects of Chinese use the same characters. San Shou is not a fast food martial art. It is in every style. If you can fight using basic blocks and strikes, then you might be fighting san shou. If you fight like a kickboxer, that’s not san shou. Here’s a simple test, if you are a good san shou fighter you are able to hold back and block everythign coming your way. If some wild man comes at you with punches, uppercuts, hooks etc… can you stand there and block everything? If you can do that then you might be qualified to start calling yourself a San Shou fighter.
One exception to that. White Crane fighters don’t use blocks. They tend to crack and the elbows , funny bones, or pressure point areas. There’s no such thing as a block in white crane and I think thats’ very impressive.
Doesn’t the term san shou means “free hand”? I’m a Chinese American with minimal knowledge in the language but even I know enough to identify a phrase that is so basic.
Yes it does mean “free hand” if you translate it literally. In Chinese you cannot translate everything word for word. A few words put together means something. If I were to call you bad name in cantonese " Say chan" that literally translates to “Dead orange.” But it really means " You as5hole." Anyways, there you go.
Aren’t y’all bein just abit petty? Can Heming say one dang thing without someone jumpin on a single misplaced vowel, or something? Can’t he just relay stuff he’s being taught? Seriously, what a bunch of ill-mannered know-it-alls! I just can’t figure out why he bothers…
He bothers because he is a true shaolin monk. He is humble and respectful. He follows the tao and meditates everyday. hahaa
He’s not a monk, but a secular disciple and he does seem to be the rest you listed…Jeez word, jealous much?
<BLOCKQUOTE><font size=“-1”>quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Heming:
[b]Dear friends
the definition of “San” in Chinese is “parted”, “shou” means " movement"
[/b][/quote]
I am not being too nit picky. Up to this point i had no trouble at all believing that Heming is a Chinese Shaolin Temple disciple (not that being a Shaolin disciple today means jack in my opinion). But as a person of Chinese heritage I simply find it very curious that a native Chinese person would literally translate such a straightforward and basic phrase so incorrectly. I speak and understand Mandarin Chinese fluently. I am well aware of the multiple meanings and translations many Chinese phrases have. But I’m sorry, the “shou” in “San Shou” cannot be translated as “movement”. If you are not reasonably knowledgeable in Chinese language I do not feel that you should comment on this.
respectfully,
~Max
When horse hockey is horse hockey, call it as such…
What’s in a name…? As long as Heming’s description about sanshou is correct, does it really matter how it is literally translated?
Because he’s supposed to be a Chinese “Shaolin Secular Diciple”. And not speaking the language really puts doubt on his Chineseness.
JWT
Maybe he preferred to translate it more freely with “free movement” because when you translate it too litterally with “free hand”, it is not directly understandable for outsiders..
But anyway, this thread is becoming more like a “My-Chinese-is-better-than-your-Chinese-contest” don’t you think…?
I only know Heming from his posts, here. If anyone has trouble believing he is chinese, at Shaolin, a deciple of Shi Heng Jun…the answer is just one phone call away… (I wonder if anyone would actually call)
and…it has been posted numberous times…he is NOT a monk… r e a d the posts, please. Thanx