Story behind the warrior pose

[Sal Canzonieri]

The posture has always been associated with the Tiger.

As far as Shaolin, I traced this posture back to "Stride or Ride the Tiger - Kua or Zuo Hu" posture in Shaolin sets that are orally (and in the copied pre-1925 Shaolin manuals) dated to the Song dynasty, as seen in Hong Quan.

I traced it further back to the Ape-Monkey / Yuan-Hou Quan, to a posture called "Hungry Tiger - E' Hu Shi". Done with open palms instead of fists, as if warding off an overhead strike and a side kick from an opponent.
Very similar posture in the set is called "Ape-Monkey Shrinks (restrains) Body - Yuan-Hou Shu Shen".

Also, the one legged version is seen in the ancient Shaolin Xin Yi Ba, called "Ti Ba Zai Chuoi - Lift Grasp (hold) Planting Hammer".

Further back still it the one legged version is tiger energy based as well in the Rou Quan and is called "Luohan Bears the Banner".

Further back even than that the posture is a common double-sword posture.


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The furthest back (set-wise at least, meaning a set that existed before another set) that I could trace "Luohan or Jingang Pounds the Mortar" was a posture called "Press Down Hand and Shrink Body - Ya Shou Su Shen", in this same Ape-Monkey Quan.