Northern Shaolin 7 animals?

[SanHeChuan]

Every one has heard about the southern 5 animal style? Southern styles of kung fu have five animals and northern styles have seven. Apparently in the north they have a 7 animal system. Tiger, Snake, Dragon, Crane, Eagle, Mantis, and Monkey. Has anyone heard of this?

[Royal Dragon]

As far as I know, Eagle, Mantis, and Monkey are complete systems unto themselves, where as Tiger, Leaopard, Snake, Crane & Dragon are components of a single system.

[Starchaser107]

Eagle Mantis and Monkey are all Northern Styles but I've never heard of a 7 animals system.
Where did the Leopard go? was it absorbed into the Tiger or Abandoned totally?

Perhaps the "7 Animals" represent the main "Individual Systems" or concepts of Northern Kung Fu "Schools"
I dunno

[Starchaser107]

In Hsing-I there's a bunch of other animals as well , but not the above mentioned.

[SanHeChuan]

I have never really heard of it either, and I may be misinterpreting something. I had thought that since the 5 animals were infused throughout the southern systems I might find a similar correlation with 7 animals being represented in different northern styles.

It may just be a unique occurrence. I had never heard of the Phoenix Eye style or Yau Kung Mun, meaning style of flexible power, Yet they exist.

What animals are represented in CLF, just the 5 or are there more?

Did the north just do Single animals systems like, Eagle, Monkey, Mantis, Tiger, etc...

Are there not elements of other animals in these Northern styles? Even styles that are not considered animal styles usually have some animal forms/techniques in them, right?

[B-Rad]

When I hear "7 Animals Kungfu" I get a very negative feeling, though I can't remember exactly where I first heard that term to make me feel that way. A quick search did bring me to a link to this website: http://www.kungfugeneve.ch/ which is not in English. The brief English discriptions though on the webpage I found it through said "Association Suisse Kung fu Tao Lung - Tibetain Kung fu - 7 animals : cat, tiger, snake, monkey, eagle, mants, dragon - the style is external/internal"

The animals are close, except for cat instead of crane...

[B-Rad]

I'm starting to remember a bit... I remember videos of a guy with a mullet wearing a karate gi... some B.S. history about mandarins... and a "da sifu"? :confused: Grr... I can't remember the name of the group :mad:

[Dim Wit Mak]

I don't know about the seven animals of Northern Shaolin. It wouldn't surprise me if the animals you state are included, but it would would surprise me if Leopard is not in there somewhere.

[Crushing Fist]

funny...


those are the same animals that were painted on the walls at our old school, though there was a leopard too. I have no idea who painted them.


B-rad : don't start, there is already a thread for that sort of thing here :p

[tattooedmonk]

8 major animal styles( and many minor animal styles )....... leopard ,tiger ,crane, snake , dragon, mantis , ape, and eagle... the first five are are both individual and a collective style .there are both northern and southern versions developed independantly and -interdependantly of each other.the eagle ,ape, and mantis are individual styles/ .....