Shaolin: starting from scratch?

[Crosshandz]

If you were starting from scratch and offered the chance by a Shaolin monk to learn any 5 empty hand forms you wanted to from the temple's curriculum which ones would you choose and why?

[brillone]

Xiao Hong Quan, Tong Bei Quan, qi xing quan, rou quan yi lu and qi xing tang lan quan

[RenDaHai]

Xiao Hong Quan (Extra Long version),

Da Hong Quan,

Xin Yi Ba (has a form, although you won't find videos of this),

Qixing quan (the old version, not the current one, I don't believe there are any videos of this either)

Can't decide on the last one.....

[David Jamieson]

this xin yi ba?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_LTI0QR28Gk

[rett]

I like this kind of thread so might as well jump in here for my first post.

If I had confidence in the teacher I'd be happy to learn whatever forms he thought were most suitable. But maybe five open-hand forms is more than I think I'd want to know, unless a couple of them were shorter and simple preparatory training forms. After two or three I'd rather learn a weapon. Maybe even after just practicing xiao hong quan for a few years if it gets stable and fluent enough and the teacher thinks the right feeling is developing in it.

What is it that interests people about qi xing quan? I saw two people answered they'd choose that one. All I know about it is that it has a cool name.

[RenDaHai]

@Dave,

Sorry, I can't get youtube. There is one performace of Dejian doing a few moves from XinYiBa but its not quite what I'm talking about. I'm fairly certain there is no video, its still a kind of secret thing.

@Rett

Qixing is a strange form. The whole form is about one move, The Dragon/Rooster/Monkey step. It is difficult to train, but highly highly versatile, and simple in application once understood. This move and the principles it embodies is the attraction of qixing quan. Unfortunately it doesn't really appear in the popular version, they have a simplified step. Without it its a pretty average form.

[Royal Dragon]

Lao Hong Quan, Shaolin 32 posture set, Da Hong Quan, and some Rouquan sets.

The first 3 are the sets that make up the Shaolin Tai Tzu Chang Chuan style (there are more, but they are preserved in the Taoist lineages).

The Rouquan is the essence of Shaolin's highest practices.

I might sub a Rouquan for a Xingi Ba though.

Rouquan is the oldest root of Tai Chi. Xingi Ba is the oldest root of Cannon Fist.

Each was blended with Tai Tzu Changquan to produce Tai Chi and Pao Chuan. playing those 5 sets would give me the essential roots of most major northern styles.

I could add a couple Shadong Long Fist sets, and cover them all in 8 forms at the most.

[GeneChing]

I would focus on the monk offering the forms. Each monk has a specialty - that's just human nature. I'd focus on the forms that monk excelled in. Actually, that's sort of how I train now, not so much about how I'd start.

You can tell what forms a monk specializes in by looking at what he chooses to demonstrate.

[Shaolin]

You can tell what forms a monk specializes in by looking at what he chooses to demonstrate.

Interesting and true observation. I am no where near the talent of my monk instructors but I fall under the same generalization. When I personally demo. (which isn't often) I usually show Seven Star followed by hard qigong. When my students demo they usually show Small Arhat.