The basics are very important. This is what many kungfu practitioners say, but not many of them really know what it means. To many people the basics mainly refer to kungfu sets. But to us in Shaolin Wahnam the basics refer to such aspects like stances and footwork, feign move and instant change as well as exploding force, entering Zen, and generating chi flow.

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A very serious but common mistake many students made is exposing themselves while attacking. In their zest to move in to attack their opponents, they do not cover themselves adequately, resulting in their opponents striking them easily. The series here shows some important skills and techniques in covering yourselves as well as how to bridge gaps and change steps when you want to close safely into your opponents.

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Many important skills which were only mentioned in previous courses are highlighted and practiced in this course. This series shows three of these new skills, namely flowery hands as you move in to attack, modifying hand-forms and stances of standard patterns to expand your range of attacks, and following-in (without waiting for their responses) if your opponents pause or hesitate. These new skills greatly enhance combat efficiency.

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Do you know what make a master different from a novice? There are many answers, but one important factor that differentiates a master from a novice is that he will defeat you even when you know the techniques to defend against his attacks. How could that be, some people may ask. Grandmaster Wong demonstrates some ways how a master can do this. He also demonstrates what a novice often does, whereas a master will never do, i.e. handing his defeat to the opponent. A sure way to hand in your defeat is to expose yourself.

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Pressing attack is another important tactic masters use to defeat their opponents. It is similar to, but not exactly the same as flowing attack. When your attack is flowing, it is not necessary pressing, and vice versa, although they are often being used together. How would you defend against a pressing attack? Grandmaster Wong shows some examples.

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One effective way to stop a pressing attack is to grip the attacker's hand. So, if you wish to employ the tactic of pressing attack, you need to know how to release your opponent's grip if he successfully applies it on you, and continue your attack. You must close your opponent adequately when you press an attack, though sometimes you may open him. You must also have penetrating reach. Your victory is enhanced if you also apply the tactic of true and false.

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Grandmaster Wong explains a number of finer points hidden in Combat Sequence 6, "Dark Dragon Draws Water". Firstly, if having practiced this sequence 50 times a day for 3 months, you apply it on an average attacker, you have at least 70% chance of defeating him as soon as he executes a right middle attack. The counter for this counter-attack, as well as their subsequent counters are marvelous, manifesting the first line of a poetic couplet enshrined in our school, namely "Marvelous Techniques Beget Marvelous Techniques".

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Grandmaster Wong reveals some secrets hidden in the open in Combat Sequence 7. Do you know, for example, that you can reduce the Poisonous Snake counter at the start of the sequence from three movements to two movements and then to one? Do you know that Double Bows Tame Tiger is an excellent counter against Chop the Hua Mountain employing the tactic of Defence-cum-Counter, and False-Leg Hand-Sweep employs the tactic of No Defence Direct Counter?

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In Combat Sequence 8 you learn how to break an opponent's arm and neck as soon as he attacks you with a right punch, which is very common in combat. How would you in turn counter such a formidable move? You can break his elbow as he tries to break your neck, followed by breaking his ribs. These moves employ the tactic of "No Defence Direct Counter". Grandmaster Wong also explains that you must have an element of threat in your attack, and that you must be always on guard even when completing an encounter.

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Grandmaster Wong demonstrates a legacy of Uncle Righteousness and explains its finer points. This legacy consists of only a few simple movements, namely hanging fist, thread hand and thrust punch, but which had been effectively used by Uncle Righteousness in his numerous fights in the past. Grandmaster Wong also explains in some details what should be done if your attack has been gripped by an opponent.

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Obviously if you know your opponent's attacking or defending movements beforehand, you have a big advantage over him. Here Grandmaster Wong explains how you may anticipate your opponent's movements or how to trick him to react in a way you want. An example is tempting him to attack you with a punch. If he falls into your trick, you can kick with a side-body Tiger-Tail Kick. If he applies this trick on you, a good counter is striking his kicking leg.

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If you tempt an opponent to attack but he hesitates, you can follow-through to strike or kick him. A good example is found in Combat Sequence 10, which is a development of Combat Sequence 9. In Sequence 9 you tempt your opponent to attack so that you can surprise him with a side-kick. But he hesitates, so you follow-through with a thrust kick as in Sequence 10. Sequence 10 is also excellent for pressing attack, in which case you move into your opponent swiftly without any pause but with adequate coverage for your own safety first. If your opponent moves back before you kick, you can swiftly follow-through with a strike to his throat.

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If you have practiced well, when you apply pressing attack skillfully, many people would not know how to respond correctly. You must, of course, make very sure that you have covered yourselves carefully, giving your opponents no chance to mount any surprised strikes. But if your opponent employs a pressing attack on you, how would you react? A good response is to intercept him. You may allow him to proceed with his pressing attack for some time, then surprise him with an interception. Or you may intercept him at the initial point or at any point.

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Pressing attack is a double-edge sword. When applied skillfully, it is excellent for clinching victory. But if you are not careful, it is easy for your opponent to strike you in the heat of your attack. The crucial point for both avoiding defeat and clinching victory is to cover yourself adequately. "Single Tiger Emerges from Cave" and "Wave Dragon back to Den" are effective patterns for this purpose.

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The Organ-Seeking Kick, executed by the pattern "Yellow Bird Drinks Water" for example, is a deadly technique, and is very effective in a pressing attack or in a response to a pressing attack. A good counter is "Trim Bamboo with Roots". On the other hand, if you practice "Chop the Hua Mountain" 50 times a day for six months, you may end the combat as soon as an ordinary person attacks you with a right punch. You would have closed him in such a manner with your "Single Tiger" that he has no way to escape. But to a trained person, the response is simple. As in daily life, you can solve the problem by just stepping back one step. You can then counter with a whirlwind kick.

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Many practitioners have a mis-conception that there are little or no throws in Shaolin Kungfu. Throws are one of the many techniques to fell opponents, and Shaolin Kungfu is rich in many felling techniques. Combat Sequences 13 to 16 focus on felling techniques. The backward throw executed by the pattern Fell Tree with Roots is shown in this series.

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In order to practice felling techniques, one must first of all learn how to fall. An untrained person often tries to stop his fall with his hand, which may result in his arm being fractured by the weight of his own falling body. The hand should be the last part of his body to touch the ground. In this series Sifu Jamie Robson shows how to break a fall, stating from a seated to a standing position.

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Combat Sequence 13 involves a backward throw and its counter. The throw is executed by the pattern "Fell Tree with Roots". It is countered by "Double Butterflies Flying". When throwing an opponent, you should not wrestle with him. If you apply the technique correctly, you can throw someone much larger and heavier than you. It is fun seeing dainty our ladies throwing huge-sized men.

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Another useful Shaolin pattern to fell an opponent is "Lead Horse Back to Stable", which is used to throw an opponent forward or sideway. You may also throw him backward. This technique is found in Combat Sequence 14. Grandmaster Wong explains that even if you do not have internal force, you can still throw a bigger-sized opponent if you apply the technique correctly. It is important that you must not expose yourself as you execute your felling techniques.

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An effective counter against the throw executed by "Lead Horse Back to Stable" is "Hiding Flower in the Sleeves". This is found in Combat Sequence 14. As in other techniques, its successful application does not depend on brutal force. But good footwork and body-movement are necessary. You may surprise your opponent not only by escaping from his throw almost effortlessly but also by striking him as if from nowhere.

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The "over-the-shoulder throw", implemented in the pattern "Farmer Hoes Rice Field", is a drastic technique. It may break an opponent's spine or his head, thus paralyzing or killing him. So be very careful when you practice this throw. For compassion, instead of throw an opponent over our shoulder, we throw him across our hips, thus minimizing his injury. It is very important to lock the opponent’s hands when throwing him, otherwise he may cause serious damage to you. This felling technique and its counter are found in Combat Sequence 15.

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Apart from throwing, you can fell an opponent by pushing him to fall down. This can be implemented in the pattern "Fierce Tiger Pushes Mountain", and is found in Combat Sequence 16. This is a compassionate move, because if you are close enough to push him, you can also strike him, which generally causes more damage. While we are compassionate, we must also not neglect our own safety. When pushing an opponent, or applying any felling techniques on him, it is very important not to expose yourself, a mistake many people practicing a martial sport often make.

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Not many think that hand techniques are all important and may realize that footwork is a core factor in both attack and defence. Indeed, in many cases, your defence against an opponent’s attack is due to your footwork, with your hand techniques being merely supportive. In conjunction with footwork is body-movement. Footwork, body-movement and hand techniques constitute the three external harmonies. The three internal harmonies are essence, energy and mind. All these factors are manifested here in Combat Sequence 16.

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First people fought haphazardly. Then those who fought frequently devised favorable ways of fighting, which over the centuries crystallized into patterns. Patterns are linked together in some meaningful ways to form sequences. Our first four sequences which we use, amongst other things, to train combat skills are "Black Tiger Steals Heart", "Poisonous Snake Shoots Venom", "Precious Duck Swims through Lotus" and "Hang a Golden Star at a Corner".

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How are kungfu sets made? An excellent way is to link some combat sequences together. That is what we have done for the first four combat sequences, which are linked together to form the set Black Tiger Steals Heart. Here the sequences are performed separately first at the initiators mode and then at the responders mode. These four sequences are simple in their techniques but are very important for developing combat skills.

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Our third combat sequence set is "Happy Bird Hops up Branch". It is composed from four combat sequences, namely "Happy Bird Hops up Branch", "White Horse Presents Hoof", "Yellow Bird Plays with Water" and "Naughty Monkey Kicks at Tree". These four combat sequences focus on four main kicks, namely the tiger-tail kick, the frontal thrust kick, the organ-seeking kick and the whirlwind kick.

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"Fell Tree with Roots" is our fourth combat-sequence set. It is composed from Combat Sequences 13 to 16, which are "Fell Tree with Roots", "Lead Horse Back to Stable", "Farmer Hoes Rice Field" and "Fierce Tiger Pushes Mountain". These four combat sequences focus on felling techniques, namely backward throw, forward throw, over-the-shoulder throw and pushing.

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There is a kungfu saying that "the hands open the way, it is the legs that decide victory". The saying indicates that kicking attacks are very important in combat. The legs are also very important in defence. Here, Grandmaster Wong explains and demonstrates how by using good footwork you can neutralize all the four categories of attack, namely striking, kicking, felling and chin-na. He also shows the difference between having good stances and bad stances in the same combat situations.

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Many people fight haphazardly. Some use individual techniques. If you use planned sequences to fight, you will have a better chance of winning as you will be two levels above many people. Of course, your opponents do not fight according to your planned sequences. Hence, you have to make modifications. Suppose you have planned to use Combat Sequence 13. Grandmaster Wong shows how you can modify your planned sequence against your opponents out-of-the-way strikes, kicks, throws and chin-na attacks.

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Grandmaster Wong compares the weakness of using unplanned movements in sparring, like individual or isolated patterns, with planned movements, like using combat sequences. Good stances are very important when using combat sequences because without the stances, the patterns in the sequences lose their technical advantages.

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This video series shows some effective ways of neutralizing his speed. You can gently brush off his fast punches and cover him adequately so that it is difficult if not impossible for him to continue striking. The longer range of your Bow-Arrow Stance compared to the shorter range of Boxer's stances give you a lot of advantages.

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Covering a Boxer adequately is very important. Instead of merely taming him, you may grip his arm with a Tiger-Claw or an Eagle-Claw, thereby making your coverage even more secure. When you cover a Boxer adequately, he usually bounces away. He can then strike you with fast punches again. To prevent this, you should chase in swiftly to bridge the gap. When you have him securely covered, you can safely strike him.

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Two other typical attacks of a Boxer besides jabs and crosses, are hooks and undercuts. You may let the hook pass and then cover it. If it is of a huge arc, which gives you more time, you may intercept and strike. Do not block an undercut. A good counter is to "thread" it along its momentum and dislocate the attackers elbow or fell him onto the ground, using the pattern "White Ape Holds Branch". A Boxer does not kick, but if be always ready that he may. Just move back a small step and strike his kicking leg. You may then follow up by covering him and striking him, or felling him onto the ground.

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Sifu Jamie demonstrates the typcial kicks of a Kick-Boxer, which you should familiar yourselves with, following Sun Tze's advice that "knowing yourself and knowing your opponents, you will win a hundred battles out of a hundred". Ironically it is much easier to handle a Kick-Boxer than a Boxer. This is because by kicking, a Kick-Boxer gives you many opportunities to exploit whereas a Boxer doesn't. In Sun Tze's terms, a Kick-Boxer hands you his defeat, whereas you have to secure your victory against a Boxer.

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A Kick-Boxer does not attack with isolated kicks, i.e. one kick at a time. He usually comes in with a series of kicks, sometimes mixed with punches. Sifu Jamie shows some examples. Grandmaster Wong demonstrates some low-level defence, which many students use. Then he shows some higher level counters. He explains and demonstrates that a master may choose to counter at different points of the opponent's attacks.

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We may divide the timing of our counters into four stages - at the completion of an opponent's series of attacks, at the middle, at the beginning and before he starts his attacks. In practical terms, we may counter at different points. For example, if there are five attacks in the series, then we have six points of countering, namely Points 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 and -1. Unless we are very skillful whereby we may pre-determine the exact point to counter, we can counter at any advantageous or convenient point.

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Sun Tzu's advice that "Defeat is what you hand to your opponent, victory is what you secure yourself", though little understood by others, is very useful to us. It is because today's fighting situations are such that if you ensure your own safety first, particularly by not handing out your disadvantages to your opponents, it is not easy for your opponents to defeat you. Grandmaster Wong emphasizes not exposing yourselves, and conversely covering your opponents adequately. There are also a few rare impromptu occasions where Grandmaster Wong responds spontaneously to Sifu Jamie's tricky, surprised attacks and where he applies some marvelous techniques to overcome seemingly hopeless situations.

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Course participants are treated to impromptu demonstrations where Grandmaster Wong uses marvelous techniques to counter seemingly impossible situations. He asks Sifu Jamie to pin him down securely. Then he frees himself and counter with some deadly techniques, manifesting the Shaolin saying of “Marvelous techniques beget marvelous techniques, Wondrous skills generate wondrous skills”, which is much cherished and practiced in our school.

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"Know thyself, know thy opponent, and thou shall win a hundred battles out of a hundred", advises Sun Tzu in his famous "Art of War". Hence, to prepare yourself well to spar with Muay Thai fighters, you should familiarize yourself with their typical attacks. Here and in the next series, Sifu Jamie demonstrates these typical Muay Thai attacks, which include leg jabs, elbow strikes and knee strikes.

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Besides knee and elbow strikes as shown in the previous series, other important Muay Thai attacks include low kicks and sweeping kicks. But more important than individual attacks are series of attacks. It is very important to bear in mind that a Muay Thai fighter does not attack in isolation; he usually launches a series of attacks

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Firstly, Grandmaster Wong shows what untrained combatants often do when faced with series of Muay Thai attacks. Then he shows some good counters. As Muay Thai fighters are powerful and fast, it is not advisable to meet their forceful attacks with force. A recommended approach is to use minimum force to follow their momentum, instead of going against it. It is also helpful to fell Muay Thai fighters to frustrate their series of attacks.

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Grandmaster Wong demonstrates the formidable knee jabs which many martial arts do not know how to counter. A Muay Thai fighter does not apply these knee jabs straight-away, he usually starts with a series of attacks, including punches and elbow strikes, with the formidable knee jabs as coup de grace. How would you counter these formidable knee jabs?

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The formidable knee jab usually comes with a neck grab where a Muay Thai fighter grabs your neck because gripping is not allowed by Muay Thai sporting rules. The neck grab is comparatively easy to release. You merely glide or push his hands away against the direction of the grab. But a neck grip is more difficult, because his fingers dig deep into your neck. An excellent way to release a neck grip is "Scholar Exchanges Greetings", or "Sau Choi Man On" in Chinese.

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Many martial artists may not know how to counter the formidable Muay Thai knee jabs. But we in Shaolin Wahnam are lucky because our Patriarch Ho Fatt Nam was a former professional Muay Thai champion, and he taught Grandmaster Wong an excellent counter using the pattern "Planting Willow in Front of Camp", which has now become his legacy.

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The forte of Muay Thai is sequence attack, as opposed to isolated attack. You may counter a Muay Thai fighter at various points of his sequence or series of attacks. This series shows some examples. It is very important that you cover your opponent adequately so as not to expose yourself.

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Before a wrestler can pin you down, he has to take you down onto the ground. Two main ways are the Shoot and the Lift. Sifu Jamie demonstrates how these two felling attacks are made. Grandmaster Wong explains that these attacks are applicable in a sport, but may not be practical in a real fight, because the attacker exposes himself to great risk when attempting these attacks. Moreover, if the attacker could take down an opponent, he would also be able to strike the opponent decisively instead. On the other hand, a master with internal force can release himself quite easily even when he is pinned down by a few people.

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Grandmaster Wong demonstrates some counters against the Shoot. The counters may be classified into three categories, at the initial stage when the attacker is coming in for the Shoot, at the medial stage when he has already gripped your legs, and at the final stage when he has taken you down.

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Counters against the Lift and the initial, medial and final stages of attack are demonstrated. As the attacker comes in for the Lift, you can neutralize him using "Two Dragons Subdue Serpent". At the medial stage, you can counter the Lift with "Scholar Exchanges Greetings". "Golden Scissors" is an impressive counter against the Lift while it is being executed.

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Who says there is no ground fighting in Shaolin Kungfu? Sifu Jamie demonstrates some typical wrestling pin-downs which are also found in Shaolin Kungfu, such as Lohan Takes an Afternoon Nap, Frog Crouching on Ground, Lohan Pushes Cart, and Riding Donkey Reverse Way. How would you counter such wrestling pin-downs?

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Not only there are Shaolin techniques pinning opponents onto the ground as in Wrestling, there are also effective Shaolin counters against them. Gold Coin Spinning on Ground and Carp Turns Body are two excellent examples. If both your hands are locked, you would have to free them before applying the counters. Using the spring leg techniques is effective.

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Shaolin counters against Wrestling pin-downs are full of surprises. When you are pinned down with such poetic patterns like "Lohan Rides Dragon" and "Immortal Rides Donkey the Reverse Way:, and it seems impossible for you to escape, a little twist would turn the table on the opponent. This video series shows some interesting examples, using patterns like "Carp Turns Body" and "Horse Back Leg Kick".

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Someone asks about counters against dagger attacks. Grandmaster Wong shows some impromptu examples. He explains that when countering a dagger attack, it is important to avoid the direction of the dagger for safety precaution. Grandmaster Wong also shows how disarm the opponent, and to use the opponent’s dagger against himself.

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It is easy to counter Taekwondo kicks. First, Sifu Jamie demonstrates some major kicking attacks used in Taekwondo. Then, Grandmaster Wong explains an effective strategy against Taekwondo opponents, namely avoid their kicks and immediately move in strike or fell them. "Taming Tiger with String of Beads" is a useful pattern to avoid kicks. Grandmaster Wong also shows the deadly technique of plucking grapes.

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Grandmaster Wong explains and demonstrates some important principles against kicking attacks. A skillful use of stances and spacing can give us tremendous advantages. We can, for example, avoid an opponent’s kicks without having to our feet. Our guard hand prevents an opponent from moving in too closely. As soon as he kicks, we may cover and strike or fell him. Plucking his grapes is relatively easy when he kicks.

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"Taming Tiger with a String of Beads" is an excellent pattern to use against all types of kicks. Grandmaster Wong recalls that in his young days when he sparred with many Taekwondo opponents, this pattern helped him tremendously to defeat them. But it is important to guard against the front arm when using this pattern against kicks. Grandmaster Wong also demonstrates how to counter low kicks, round-house and reverse round-house kicks.

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As in the case of Boxing, it is quite simple to counter Karate attacks. It is because Karate, like Boxing, is quite limited in its techniques. Moreover, Karate strikes are usually real, with little or no feint moves, making it easier to counter. In the video series here, we only use strikes, thus giving the Karate opponent a fair chance. If we use chin-na and felling techniques, which art not normally found in Karate, it will be difficult for the Karate opponent to defend against us.

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Once you have understood the principles of throws and locks, fighting against Judo and Aikido opponents is not difficult. To show some impromptu counters against Judo and Aikido attacks, Grandmaster Wong asks those who are good at these arts to attack him in any way they like. It is interesting that Grandmaster Wong uses only one hand in his counter, reserving the other hand to drink tea, as he often jokingly says. Can you see from the videos what are the two principal factors that enable Grandmaster Wong to counter Judo and Aikido attacks so efficiently?

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Course participants spend the last session in free sparring. They may use any techniques they like, including Kick-Boxing and Wrestling. But eventually all of them prefer Shaolin Kungfu because they have found from their own experience that if they use other martial arts, they would have difficulty defending themselves when their sparring partners use sophisticated Shaolin techniques on them. It is worthy to note that none of them is panting for breath or tired, despite having trained for many hours. They also have a lot of fun.

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