Little Nine Heaven UK

Splashing Hands

Please visit www.splashinghands.com to find out more information about this rare and valuable art.

Hsing I

Xing Yi (Hsing I) is a boxing style of Taoist origins characterized by it's direct and powerful techniques. It is said to have been developed in the Sung dynasty (1127 - 1276AD). Xing Yi has always been a famous and highly valued fighting style amongst Chinese Martial Artists.

Xing Yi's forms are composed of one or two simple movements repeated over and over again until they are perfected. They forms look simple but when mastered they produce shocking power. In fact Hsing I is famous for the power of it's strikes which use 'silk-reeling energy' to generate a seemingly relaxed strike many times more powerful then those used by 'external' martial artists.

The average Hsing-I class consists of physical conditioning, form practice and corrections, two person fighting drills and applications, push hands (a relaxed style of slow sparring to develop feeling) and free sparring.

Chen Tai Chi

Chen Tai Chi (Chen Taijiquan) is the oldest known form of Tai Chi. At L9H students are taught the original 13 section form. It is miraculous style for both health development and self defence. Nowadays few Tai Chi teachers can teach Tai Chi as it was originally intended- as a powerful fighting art that promotes good health in it's practitioners. At The Little Nine Heaven school you will study all aspects of this fascinating martial art.

Tai Chi focuses on developing both full body power and extreme sensitivity to the opponents actions. Skilled practitioners are said to have bodies that are like 'steel wrapped in cotton', this refers to the style's extreme softness (which is taught by most schools) but also to the it's extreme hardness (which is almost always neglected). In a fight Tai Chi Chaun aims to close with the opponent and then destroy him with a combination of stand up wrestling and short-range striking.

An average Tai Chi class starts off with stretching. Then rooting exercises are practiced. Next we perform the form along with Chi Kung and supplementary exercises. This is followed by fighting applications from the form and the study of 4 different push hands styles. Once a decent level of proficiency has been reached sparring is also practiced. After about three years of regular practice of the first form students may go on to learn the second form - the explosive 'cannon fist'.